I have sailed on more than twenty cruises; from the largest ships to river cruises (which are essentially barges).
The Norwegian Gem is perhaps the most beautiful ship I've seen. My travel agent warned me the colors were a bit gaudy, but compared to Carnival, the ship is quite subdued. It is very large and very beautiful. The various dining rooms run from the very elegant to playful; depending upon the theme.
Restaurants/Freestyle: The Good-- Without an additional surcharge you have the choice of dining in several theme restaurants; when you want. The main "American Style" dining room is about the most elegant room I have seen on a ship and rivals most top notch elegant restaurants on land. More importantly, the food was excellent and the service very good. The Mexican restaurant is whimsical in decor but the food left something to be desired. The Italian restaurant (La Cucina) is perhaps the most popular free restaurant on board. The food was very good, the service was good and the decor most appropriate, from the large pizza oven to the carpeting which looked exactly like terra cotta flooring and had us fooled. We dined at the surcharge steakhouse (Carnegie) and have no complaints. The steaks were quite good and the service fine. My 22 year old son (along with several friends he met on board--both male and female) ate at the surcharge hibatchi restaurant and raved about it.