Carnival Cucina del Capitano Lunch Menu: Pasta, Salads, Desserts & Drinks
Cucina del Capitano is Carnival Cruise Line’s Italian restaurant, but you don’t necessarily have to wait until dinner to eat there. The restaurant is also open for lunch, when Carnival offers a complimentary Italian lunch with pasta, soups, salads and desserts.
The Cucina del Capitano lunch menu shown here includes several familiar Italian favorites, including Rigatoni Bolognese, Spaghetti Carbonara, Pappardelle with shrimp, Linguine Meatballs and Penne Pomodoro. There are also lighter starters, two desserts and alcoholic beverages available for an additional charge.
For more Carnival information, CruisePrism readers can also explore our Carnival Dining Menus, Carnival Drink Lists, and Carnival Onboard Guides for more information about restaurants, schedules and onboard activities.
Cucina del Capitano Lunch on Carnival
Cucina del Capitano celebrates Carnival’s Italian heritage with dishes inspired by the food enjoyed by the cruise line’s Italian captains and officers.
Carnival currently lists Cucina del Capitano on:
- Carnival Breeze
- Carnival Celebration
- Carnival Horizon
- Carnival Jubilee
- Carnival Magic
- Carnival Panorama
- Carnival Radiance
- Carnival Sunrise
- Carnival Sunshine
- Carnival Vista
- Mardi Gras
While Cucina del Capitano is best known as an evening restaurant, Carnival also offers a complimentary lunch at the venue.
The exact lunch offerings can change, so the menu photographed here is especially useful for passengers trying to get an idea of what they may find during their own Carnival cruise.
Cucina del Capitano Soup and Salad Menu
The lunch menu begins with three soup and salad choices:
- Roasted Tomato – Rustic Sicilian chunky country-style tomato soup
- Caprese – Roma tomato, mozzarella, basil and olive oil
- Mixed Greens – Iceberg, little gem, rucola, potatoes, ripe tomatoes, olives, cucumber and mustard vinaigrette
These provide a lighter alternative or an accompaniment to the pasta dishes that make up the main portion of the lunch menu.
Cucina del Capitano Lunch Pasta Menu
Pasta is the centerpiece of lunch at Cucina del Capitano, and the photographed menu offers six different preparations.
Rigatoni Bolognese
Rigatoni pasta tossed in beef ragu with grated ricotta salata and olive oil.
Spaghetti Carbonara
A familiar Italian pasta dish prepared with bacon, Parmesan and cream.
Fettuccine with Mushrooms and Chicken
Fettuccine served with chicken and mushrooms in an Alfredo cream sauce with cheese.
Linguine Meatballs
Linguine and meatballs served with tomato sauce, basil and Parmesan cheese. The menu describes this as an “old-fashioned favorite.”
The remainder of the pasta menu continues in the second photo.
Pappardelle
Pappardelle served with garlic shrimp, lemon cream sauce and fresh herbs.
Penne Pomodoro
Penne pasta with a robust roasted tomato sauce and Parmesan cheese.
The selection gives passengers several noticeably different choices, ranging from the straightforward Penne Pomodoro to richer cream-based dishes and seafood pasta.
Cucina del Capitano Lunch Desserts
The photographed menu offers two desserts:
- 7-Layer Chocolate Cake – Coffee crémeux
- Banana Cream Pie – Graham cracker crust
Having dessert included on the lunch menu makes Cucina del Capitano feel more like a complete sit-down meal than simply stopping somewhere onboard for a quick plate of pasta.
Cucina del Capitano Lunch Drink Prices
Alcoholic beverages are available for an additional charge.
The menu photographed during this cruise lists:
- Bellini – $11.25
- Lambrusco, Riunite, Emilia, Italy – $11 per glass or $36 per bottle
- Moscato, Stemmari, Terre Siciliane, Italy – $12.50 per glass or $42 per bottle
- Peroni – $8.75
- Moretti – $8.75
These prices are the prices displayed on this particular menu and should not be treated as permanent fleetwide pricing. Carnival can change beverage prices over time.
Is Cucina del Capitano Lunch Free?
Yes. Carnival currently describes the Cucina del Capitano lunch offering as complimentary.
That distinction is important because dinner operates differently. On many Carnival ships, Cucina del Capitano is an additional-charge dinner restaurant. Carnival Celebration, Carnival Jubilee and Mardi Gras have a different dinner arrangement in which one Cucina del Capitano dinner is currently complimentary during the voyage, with additional visits carrying a charge.
For lunch, however, Carnival currently identifies the offering as complimentary.
Alcoholic and other bar-service beverages are separate from the complimentary food offering.
Lunch vs. Dinner at Cucina del Capitano
Passengers researching Cucina del Capitano should not assume that the lunch and dinner experiences are identical.
Lunch is a more casual opportunity to enjoy Italian food during the day, with the menu shown here centered heavily around pasta along with soup, salads and dessert.
Dinner uses a broader Cucina del Capitano menu and is treated as a separate dining experience. Dinner pricing also depends on the ship.
That makes lunch particularly attractive for passengers who want to try Cucina del Capitano without using one of their evenings onboard.
Which Pasta Should You Choose?
There is a pretty wide range despite the relatively compact menu.
For a classic meat sauce, the Rigatoni Bolognese is the obvious choice. Spaghetti Carbonara offers a richer bacon-and-cream combination, while the Fettuccine with Mushrooms and Chicken provides another creamy option.
The Pappardelle stands out as the seafood choice, combining garlic shrimp with a lemon cream sauce and fresh herbs.
Passengers looking for something simpler have the Penne Pomodoro, while the Linguine Meatballs delivers one of the most recognizable Italian-American combinations on the menu.
Planning Cucina del Capitano Lunch During Your Cruise
Restaurant schedules can vary during a cruise, particularly between port days and sea days. Check the Carnival HUB App and the ship’s daily program for the actual Cucina del Capitano lunch hours during your sailing.
Carnival’s current published Cucina menu shows its complimentary pasta-bar lunch running from 12:00 PM to 2:30 PM, but onboard schedules should always take priority.
If Cucina is offered for lunch on your sailing, it can be a useful alternative to the busier pool-deck restaurants and buffet, particularly if you want a sit-down Italian meal in the middle of the day.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Cucina del Capitano lunch free on Carnival?
Yes. Carnival currently lists its Cucina del Capitano lunch offering as complimentary. Drinks normally ordered through bar service are separate.
What is on the Cucina del Capitano lunch menu?
The photographed menu includes roasted tomato soup, Caprese, mixed greens, six pasta dishes, 7-Layer Chocolate Cake and Banana Cream Pie.
What pasta is served at Cucina del Capitano for lunch?
The photographed menu includes:
- Rigatoni Bolognese
- Spaghetti Carbonara
- Fettuccine with Mushrooms and Chicken
- Linguine Meatballs
- Pappardelle with garlic shrimp
- Penne Pomodoro
Does Cucina del Capitano have seafood pasta at lunch?
Yes. The photographed Pappardelle is served with garlic shrimp, lemon cream sauce and fresh herbs.
Does Cucina del Capitano serve dessert at lunch?
Yes. This menu offers 7-Layer Chocolate Cake with coffee crémeux and Banana Cream Pie with a graham cracker crust.
Are drinks included at Cucina del Capitano?
The photographed menu lists alcoholic drinks separately with individual prices, including a Bellini, Lambrusco, Moscato, Peroni and Moretti.
Is Cucina del Capitano lunch the same as dinner?
No. Lunch and dinner are separate offerings with different menus, and dinner pricing varies depending on the Carnival ship.
Which Carnival ships have Cucina del Capitano?
Carnival currently lists Cucina del Capitano on Carnival Breeze, Carnival Celebration, Carnival Horizon, Carnival Jubilee, Carnival Magic, Carnival Panorama, Carnival Radiance, Carnival Sunrise, Carnival Sunshine, Carnival Vista and Mardi Gras.
Conclusion
Cucina del Capitano lunch is one of Carnival’s more substantial complimentary daytime dining options, particularly for passengers who want something different from burgers, tacos or the buffet.
The menu photographed here offers a surprisingly broad pasta selection, from Rigatoni Bolognese and Spaghetti Carbonara to Pappardelle with garlic shrimp and Penne Pomodoro. Add soup or salad and one of two desserts, and it can easily serve as a complete lunch rather than just a quick pasta stop.
Because restaurant hours and menus can change between ships and sailings, check the Carnival HUB App once onboard for the current schedule. But if Cucina del Capitano is serving lunch during your cruise, it is definitely worth keeping in mind when planning your onboard dining.
