The Ultimate Guide to Food on the Carnival Radiance Cruise

If you're setting sail on the Carnival Radiance, you're in for a treat—literally. From complimentary quick bites to specialty restaurants worth every penny, this ship brings serious flavor to the high seas. Here’s a full look at the best food we ate during our 6-day cruise, from embarkation night deals to crispy fried chicken, buffets and build-your-own burritos.

🍷 Embarkation Night Deal at Cucina del Capitano

Start your cruise off right with a delicious deal: on the first night, Carnival offers a free bottle of house wine when you dine at one of the specialty restaurants. You can book ahead of time through the Carnival Hub app or grab a table onboard (pending availability). We chose Cucina del Capitano, Carnival's cozy Italian eatery.

For just $24 per person (as of January 2025), dinner includes warm bread, an appetizer, entrée, side, dessert—and with the embarkation night offer, a full bottle of wine (red or white).

The ambiance is relaxed and charming, with checkered tablecloths and a soft Italian soundtrack. We dined early and caught a perfect sunset view through the window as we sailed out of Long Beach.

Highlights from Our Meal:

• Signature Warm Bread with Garlic Butter: Pull-apart, lightly sweet like Hawaiian rolls, topped with grated Parmesan and served with rich garlic butter.

• Appetizers: We tried the house-made burrata, Nonna’s meatball (our fave!), and a Caesar salad. Pro tip: ask nicely, and they might let you order more than one appetizer.

• Entrées:

  • Chicken Parmesan: Crispy, thinly pounded chicken, melty cheese, and that incredible marinara again—seriously, get everything with this sauce.

  • Tomahawk Pork Chop (Grande Braciola): Juicy and tender with grilled tomatoes, crispy sage, and a sweet-savory glaze. Served over beans, though we wished for pasta!

• Sides: Skip the gnocchi (more like a polenta cake) and ask for the spaghetti with marinara—trust us on this.

• Desserts: A coffee gelato “ice cream sandwich” and an apple tart with caramel ice cream. Honestly, the weakest part of the meal.

Our server Mae was outstanding, and since we didn’t finish our wine, we took it to go and enjoyed it later at the comedy club. 🍷

Rating: 8/10

Best For: Embarkation night with the wine deal!

🍗 Shaq’s Big Chicken – Carnival Cruise Slam Dunk

One of our favorite spots on the ship was Shaq’s Big Chicken, and yes—it lives up to the hype! Located just outside the buffet on Lido Deck 9, this spot serves up massive, crispy chicken sandwiches and tenders with fries and a self-serve toppings/sauce bar.

Our Go-To Order:

• Uncle Jerome Sandwich: Juicy fried chicken dunked in Nashville hot sauce, topped with lettuce, pickles, and mayo.

• Chicken Tenders: Large, juicy, crispy—some of the best we’ve had.

• Sides Bar: Don’t miss the coleslaw, pickles, and potato salad. Add extra buffalo sauce for heat!

Rating: 10/10

Best For: Lunch, late-night cravings, and multiple visits!

🌮 BlueIguana Cantina – Fresh Tacos and Burritos

Located poolside on the Lido Deck, Blue Iguana Cantina offers tacos, burritos, and bowls—all complimentary and customizable. They make the taco tortillas fresh to order, and the star here is the expansive salsa bar.

What We Loved:

• Tacos: We tried pork, fish, and chicken. The fish taco stood out, but it’s the salsa (especially the habanero!) that stole the show.

• Burrito: Steak & shrimp combo, loaded with beans, rice, veggies. Tortilla wasn’t fresh like the tacos, but the filling and salsa made up for it.

Tip: Build your own burrito bowl and grab taco tortillas on the side!

Rating: 7/10 (Salsa Bar gets a 10!)

Best For: Casual poolside meals, burrito lovers.

🍔 Guy’s Burger Joint – The Best Burger at Sea? Yes!

Say hello to Flavortown! Guy Fieri’s Burger Joint is poolside and always pumping out fresh smash burgers and fries.

Our Favorite Combo:

• Plain Jane Burger: Customize it yourself at the toppings bar. Add caramelized onions, jalapeños, and grab Thousand Island dressing from the buffet as a “secret sauce” hack.

• Rojo Ring (Onion Ring): Extra crispy and perfect on top of a burger.

• Fries: Don’t judge by appearance—they’re crunchy, soft inside, and ideal for dipping in Guy’s sauces.

Rating: 10/10

Best For: A fresh, juicy burger with endless topping options.

🍖 Guy’s Pig & Anchor – BBQ Radiance!

Only open on sea days, Guy’s Pig & Anchor Smokehouse is tucked away at the back of the ship and often overlooked—which means shorter lines and more food for you!

What We Ate:

• BBQ Chicken & Pork: Juicy, well-seasoned, and served hot off the smoker.

• Sides: Collard greens with smoked turkey were phenomenal. Mac and cheese? Meh. Potato salad was a surprise hit!

• Sauce Bar: Guy’s signature BBQ sauces are worth trying all.

Rating: 7/10

Best For: Sea day lunch with a view and a full plate of comfort food.

🍝 Cucina del Capitano – Lunch Pasta Perfection (Complimentary!)

Surprise! This specialty dinner restaurant offers a complimentary lunch on sea days with a build-your-own pasta menu that’s quick, fresh, and so tasty.

Pasta Combos We Loved:

• Alfredo with Zucchini & Mushrooms: Creamy, cheesy, and perfectly cooked.

• Pomodoro with Veggies: The same standout red sauce from dinner—light, tangy, and full of flavor.

• White Clam Sauce with Shrimp: Packed with seafood and bold garlic flavor.

Pro tip: Half-portions are available so you can still enjoy other lunch spots too!

Rating: 10/10

Best For: Sea day lunch, pasta cravings.

🍕 Pizza del Capitano – Worth the Wait

Open late and always in demand, Pizza del Capitano serves up fresh, Neapolitan-style pizzas with a crispy-chewy crust and gooey cheese.

Highlights:

• Pepperoni Pizza: Tangy sauce, crispy edges, and always hot out of the oven.

• Limited Menu on Sea Days: Just pepperoni or cheese, but it’s so good you won’t mind.

Rating: 9/10

Best For: Late-night eats or a quick cheesy snack.

🥐 Breakfast Buffets for the Late Risers

We skipped the dining room after a disappointing first breakfast and stuck to the Lido Marketplace buffet for their Late Risers Breakfast from 10am–11:30am. The vibe was relaxed — not too crowded (probably because we always rolled in around 11am), and there were plenty of options.

Highlights:

• Hot food changed slightly each day: pancakes, potatoes, sausages, scrambled eggs, and a few rotating proteins.

• A cold bar with yogurt, cereal, fruit, deli meats, and mini bagels.

• Crowd favorites: the mini hash browns (crispy outside, soft inside) and the made-to-order omelet station.

• Pro tip: You can also request fried eggs at the omelet station — they were my favorite so I waited for them almost every day!

Rating: 8/10

Best For: Hot, fresh, solid variety. I just wish they offered bacon every day!

🥗 Lunch & Dinner Buffet: Variety is the Spice

We mostly nibbled at lunch since we were eating at the specialty spots, but the buffet still deserves its due.

Highlights:

• The salad bar was a standout — fresh, crisp veggies and a rotating menu of premade salads (think: beet, potato, bean, squash). Always fun to see what was new.

• Hot food was a surprise party of flavors. One night you'd find Indian curry, the next was lasagna and BBQ ribs. Carving stations, pasta dishes, soups, creamed spinach, fried fritters — there was always something new.

• Quality varied. Sometimes food was perfectly hot, sometimes closer to room temp (likely due to the bottom heating system instead of overhead lamps).

Rating: 6/10

Best For: Grazing and tasting a little of everything.

🍦 Soft Serve & Free Drinks

Included for all cruisers: coffee, hot cocoa, iced tea, and lemonade. At breakfast, you get orange and apple juice instead — a nice little bonus. Coffee was drinkable and unlimited, which honestly is all I need.

Highlights:

Now for the real MVP: soft serve and frozen yogurt. There are four machines onboard, so even if the poolside one is busy, there’s always another option. I’m a soft serve girlie myself — smooth, creamy, and perfectly sweet. Carnival fans rave about this, and they’re not wrong.

Rating: 10/10

Best For: Simple, nostalgic, and always hits the spot.

🥱 Midnight Buffet

We were really hoping for a satisfying late-night bite, but the midnight buffet (11:30pm–2am) was a major letdown.

• Cold food, limp textures, and just…not appetizing.

• The only semi-decent item? A basic potato salad.

• No heat lamps meant everything felt sad and room-temp.

Rating: 1/10

Best For: Don’t bother. Grab a soft serve and call it a night.

🍫 Chocolate Extravaganza

One of the sea days featured a Chocolate Extravaganza from noon–2:30pm: cakes, brownies, cookies, a chocolate fountain — everything looked amazing. But the lines were insane, so we opted to skip it. Looked incredible, just not worth the crowd stress for us.

🍽️ Dining Room: Ups & Downs

We were assigned to the Sunset Restaurant and dined there for both breakfast and dinner.

🍳Breakfast in the Dining Room

You can request a table on the Carnival Hub app, and it’ll tell you exactly when to head down. Love that. However...

• Eggs Benedict looked great, but were ice cold.

• Brandon’s veggie omelet with ham was cheeseless (what??) and underwhelming.

• Hash browns and sausage were the same as the buffet (but fresher at the buffet, tbh).

Rating: 4/10

Best For: Beautiful setting, but the food didn’t deliver. We didn’t return for breakfast again.

🥩Dinner in the Dining Room

Now this was more like it. You can preview the night’s menu on the app, which is great if you’re deciding whether to dine here or try a specialty spot.

Highlights:

• Appetizers:

  • Brandon’s beloved escargot — buttery, cheesy, slightly overcooked (in a good way!).

  • My chilled cucumber basil avocado soup was more smoothie than soup.

  • Tuna crudo with yuzu vinaigrette (a signature Emeril Lagasse dish) was one of my favorite bites of the whole trip.

  • Wedge salad was meh, but we had four apps so, not mad.

• Entrees:

  • I got the jumbo grilled shrimp and crab cake. Shrimp were seasoned perfectly, crab cake could’ve used more flavor.

  • Brandon went big with the Firecracker Branzino and the Filet + Short Rib Duo. Both were cooked beautifully. The filet had a killer sear and was melt-in-your-mouth tender.

• Desserts:

  • The famous Melting Chocolate Cake lives up to the hype — gooey, rich, unforgettable.

  • But the dark horse winner? The Grand Marnier Soufflé. Warm, fluffy, with a buttery sponge and caramelized crust. Absolute heaven.

Rating: 8/10

Best For: Great food, incredible desserts, worth it for the vibe and the sweet ending alone.

🫖 Tea Time: A Hidden Gem

On one of our sea days, the Sunrise Dining Room hosted a lowkey afternoon tea — and it ended up being one of our favorite experiences of the cruise.

• Totally free and low-key hidden in the app.

• Tea service with sandwiches, salmon crostini, and a sweets cart full of macarons, tarts, cakes, and cookies.

• You could grab as much as you wanted, and they refilled everything with a smile.

• We stayed the whole hour just sipping tea and chatting.

Rating: 10/10

Best For: Elegant, chill, and a sweet break from the hustle. Don’t miss it if it’s offered on your sailing.

Final Thoughts

Carnival Radiance has seriously stepped up its food game. Whether you’re looking for a gourmet dinner with wine or a hot chicken sandwich after a day at port, this ship delivers on variety, quality, and flavor. The staff are incredibly friendly (shout out to Mae and the whole team!), and the food—especially the specialty options—offers unbeatable value.

If you’re sailing soon, bring your appetite. You’ll need it.

Bon voyage and bon appétit! Got questions about Carnival Radiance or want to see more cruise food reviews? Drop a comment below or check out our latest cruise video on YouTube!