New Late Night Dining Options Coming to Carnival Cruise Line

Carnival Cruise Line has added delicious new late night snack options onboard for guests, with availability beginning the week of July 17, 2023.

Exact dates and opening/closing times for the new options will vary by ship and may even vary on different sailings, but this is a welcome option for passengers interested in grabbing a bite after karaoke, late night comedy, evening shows, or other nighttime activities.

New Late Night Snacks to Be Offered

Rumors have been floating around social media recently that Carnival Cruise Line planned to bring back the “Midnight Buffet” that was offered onboard years ago.

These gala events involved not only amazing spreads of delicious eats carefully arranged into appetizing displays, but also showcased ice sculptures, carved fruits and vegetables, and other beautiful accents.

Brand ambassador John Heald has addressed the rumors, confirming that the cruise line will not be recreating the sumptuous late-night feast – much of which went uneaten and was wasted.

What the cruise line is doing, however, is expanding late night dining options by offering different foods for guests to choose from rather than just one more slice of pizza or an extra ice cream cone.

“We will be complementing the wondering pizza we offer with these late night options,” Heald said as he revealed the “Late Night Snack” menu.

The snacks available include chicken noodle soup, coleslaw, potato salad, chips and salsa, fried chicken tenders with a honey mustard sauce, hot dogs available with chili or grilled onions, an Italian meatball sandwich, and a ham and cheese roll.

Chicago-style pizza will also be available in cheese or pepperoni, and guests with a sweet tooth will want to snack on the chocolate chip and sugar cookies. All items are complimentary and included in the cruise fare with no extra charge.

Heald mentions that the new snack menu will be starting “next week” (the week of July 17, 2023), and the availability times may be different on different ships. “Timing may vary from ship to ship, considering factors such as peak periods and guest demographics,” Heald explained.

This news is almost one year after Carnival Cruise Line announced several permanent dining cutbacks, including eliminating the popular 24-hour pizza. At the same time, Late Night Snacks that had been offered in each ship’s Lido Restaurants were also discontinued.

It is possible that guest feedback and requests have contributed to Carnival bringing back these late night snacks, including the pizza on the menu. In recent days, Carnival Cruise Line has demonstrated its responsiveness to guest feedback by resuming the Diamond Lunch loyalty benefit as well as adding more vegan menu options to the main dining rooms.

Room service remains available 24 hours a day onboard Carnival ships, but nominal fees do apply for late night orders. Only the continental breakfast menu, available from 6-10 a.m., is complimentary.

Reducing Food Waste

All cruise lines are concerned with waste and efficiency, and food waste is one of the biggest culprits onboard.

Revamping menus to remove less popular ingredients, trimming buffet dining hours, changing portion sizes, charging for third and fourth entrees, and developing cocktails that use rinds or other normally wasted food scraps are all strategies different cruise lines have used to combate food waste.

In 2022, Carnival Cruise Line added food waste biodigesters to its fleet, and in March 2023, the cruise line made an additional $500,000 investment in more biodigesters, parts, and maintenance for the technology.

Biodigesters rapidly break down food waste using beneficial microorganisms, resulting in much less waste being discharged into marine environments or offloaded in port.

Hopefully, the addition of the Late Night Snack menu will be a welcome option for cruise guests without contributing to food waste.