AmaMora Dining

AmaMora's cuisine is designed for the Western tastes of its clientele, along with some regional specialties, such as schnitzel and goulash when sailing through Austria and Hungary. Breakfast and lunch are buffets with a few items cooked to order, while a four-course dinner is served to your table. Dietary preferences and restrictions can also be accommodated by informing staff in advance.

AmaWaterways is the only major river cruise line to be part of the prestigious Chaine des Rotisseurs food and wine society. Not every dish on AmaMora is world-class gourmet but are of high quality and well-prepared. A special event, the Chaine des Rotisseurs Dinner, is held once per cruise in the main restaurant. Everyone also gets the opportunity to experience a seven-course tasting menu at the more intimate Chef's Table.

Beer, wine and soft drinks are complimentary during lunch and dinner and generously poured. Many wines are sourced from the regions of the itinerary, such as Riesling from Austria. If you don't like the nightly selection offered by your waiter, you can ask for another varietal.

Main Restaurant (Cello Deck): The main dining room has booths that seat up to four people and tables configured for two to eight, all offering river views. You can sit wherever you want and change tables (and dining companions) every day if you please. Couples or solo travelers who want to sit alone should get down early to nab one of the tables for two; similarly, large groups should not linger too long at happy hour if they want to be seated together. The restaurant is always busy and lively, especially at dinnertime.

Breakfast and lunch are buffet-style, but some dishes can be ordered from your waiter. To avoid the rush, don't turn up as soon as the restaurant opens; you usually have two hours to choose when to eat. Breakfast features scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, hash browns, pancakes, cheeses, yogurt, nuts, cereal, sliced meats, a made-to-order omelet station, and sweet pastries and jams. Diners can help themselves to juices and sparkling wine, while waiters will bring tea and coffee to the table. Passengers can also order from a menu of oatmeal, waffles and other types of egg dishes.

Lunch consists of salads, sandwiches, soup, an assortment of bread, cold cuts and cheese, fruit and cake. The lunch menu includes a burger, steak sandwich and chicken ciabatta sandwich, which can be ordered from the waiters.

Dinner requires more punctuality as there is only one sitting, entirely served by waiters, so everyone at the same table dines at the same time. The rotating menu has four courses (appetizer, soup, main and dessert) with two or three options for each. There is also a selection of always-available dishes, such as grilled entrecote steak or chicken breast with Caesar salad, plus a basket of bread. A cheese plate is also available as an alternative, or in addition, to the sweet desserts. Portion sizes are sensible so a four-course meal is doable for most appetites, although you are free to have one course or five courses by ordering extras.

Chef's Table (Violin Deck): Open for dinner only, this stand-alone venue at the aft of the ship seats 34 diners for a more intimate affair -- a romantic vibe for couples or like a private dinner party for groups. The restaurant boasts the line's first retractable balcony, allowing people to dine alfresco if the ship isn't sailing that evening, but this didn't happen on our cruise. Watching the ship's wake as it sails off into the sunset is still a sensational view, though. Behind you, the chefs are also visible while they cook in the glass-walled kitchen.

The seven-course tasting menu at Chef's Table is complimentary and available to book at least once per cruise for all passengers. The food is the same every night of the cruise and reservations are required. While the focus is on seafood and meat, the menu can be adjusted for the vegetarians and vegans with advance notice. These visually striking dishes may include a feta cheese panna cotta, braised beef in porcini sauce and a nougat gateau with green apple sorbet. The matching wines are fancier, too, such as a peppery Gruner Veltliner and a Wachau Valley Zweigelt.

Lounge Bar (Violin Deck): The lounge offers food from morning till late. In the hour before and after breakfast, freshly baked pastries are available. At lunch, for those who don't want to go into the restaurant, there is a selection of sandwiches, salads, a soup, two entrees, dessert and cheese. Cakes and tarts are offered in the afternoon for tea time, and cookies (including gluten-free) are available 24 hours. Late-night snacks are also laid out during the evening entertainment.

In between all of these scheduled snacks, passengers can order from the all-day tapas menu from the bartender. At any time of day or night, they can also help themselves to tea, specialty coffees and hot chocolate from the hot beverage station located on the starboard side of the Violin Deck at the entrance to the lounge.

Room Service: Room service is only available to passengers in suites. The limited menu includes coffee, tea and continental breakfast. For other passengers, staff can bring food or drinks to your cabin if you are sick.