The 30-second answer
Three tiers, and a three-way tie at the top — here's the real shape, and exactly where it comes from.
Glory carries neither Ol' Fashioned BBQ nor Mongolian Wok. Conquest adds the BBQ. Valor, Liberty and Freedom carry both. Four categories — Included Dining, Variety, Value, and Casual & Quick Dining — step up with each station; the other four read identically on all five ships. Valor, Liberty and Freedom land on exactly the same numbers, so it's a tie, not a lead.
How this page works
No new scoring happens here — this page puts five published scorecards side by side and traces every venue back to its own ship guide.
Every score below comes from Carnival Conquest's, Glory's, Valor's, Liberty's and Freedom's own dining guides, linked throughout. Eight categories make up each ship's total — Included Dining (25%), Specialty Dining (20%), Variety (15%), Quality Ceiling (10%), Value (10%), Casual & Quick Dining (10%), Special Experiences (5%), and Suite & Restricted Dining (5%). Each is judged on its own merits, not averaged up from the venue scores further down.
The Conquest Class is a clean two-station story. Ol' Fashioned BBQ and Mongolian Wok are the only things that separate five ships that otherwise eat alike, and this page sizes that gap honestly: Valor, Liberty and Freedom tied, Conquest a step behind, Glory a step behind her.
Venue counts use one basis on all five ships. The twin Main Dining Rooms count once, and Room Service counts. That gives 15, 14, 16, 16 and 19, or 80 across the class. Freedom's 19 is 18 roster lines plus Room Service, and three of those lines aren't separately scored, so read her count as a roster length, not a richer score.
One pricing note. Carnival's published reservation information groups all five ships at $114 per person for The Chef's Table. Confirm current pricing in Cruise Manager.
You won't find a sailing-specific dining calculator on this page. That belongs on each ship's own guide. Read the matrix, then open the ship you're weighing.
Where all five ships match exactly
Four of eight categories read identically on Conquest, Glory, Valor, Liberty and Freedom — the specialty bench, the top shelf, the one hosted experience, and the class's shared weakness.
Specialty Dining reads 7.2 on all five ships. Each carries a Steakhouse under its own name, The Chef's Table, and an à la carte sushi counter. The Steakhouse is the same shared program with five different signs on the door: The Point on Conquest, Emerald Room on Glory, Scarlett's on Valor, Diamonds on Liberty, and Sun King on Freedom. The four sister pages list it at $52 per adult and $15 per child base, $62.40 and $18.00 all-in after Carnival's 20% service charge. For Freedom, one July 2026 sailing report put Sun King near $62 per adult. We don't claim an official base price for her steakhouse, so confirm current pricing in Cruise Manager.
A naming note on sushi. On Conquest, Glory, Valor and Liberty the counter is Sushi at Sea, and each of those pages describes it as paid, small-format, grab-and-go sushi priced à la carte. Freedom's current Carnival page, and Carnival's 2019 renovation announcement, name hers Bonsai Sushi Express. We give both the same row in the matrix because they fill the same à la carte sushi slot in the scoring, and we keep each ship's own name. We're not claiming they're the same product, or different ones. Neither raises Specialty Dining or Quality Ceiling.
Quality Ceiling reads 8.0 on all five ships, because the top shelf is the same one: the shared Steakhouse and The Chef's Table.
Special Experiences reads 8.2 on all five ships, and The Chef's Table carries it almost alone — a hosted, multi-course tasting experience at $114 per person on every ship in the class. Confirm current pricing in Cruise Manager. It's identical across the five, so the tiers never show up here.
Suite & Restricted Dining reads 1.0 on all five ships. We found no suite-exclusive or restricted-access venue on any of them in any source, and no smaller breakfast-lounge-style benefit either. It's a genuinely empty category, not a graded-down score on a mediocre venue. It locks at the 1.0 floor and costs every ship real points off her total — a class-wide cost this guide states plainly rather than smooths over.
Book the Chef's Table and Steakhouse early if a specific night matters to you.
The Point, Emerald Room, Scarlett's, Diamonds and Sun King run the same shared program. We use “Steakhouse” as the shared label and keep each ship's own name beneath it.
Not a Glory-specific or Freedom-specific shortfall — a genuinely empty category, class-wide, that this guide doesn't minimize even for the top tier.
Where the class splits into three tiers
Four categories move, and every move traces to two complimentary lunch stations — not a vague “smaller roster” story.
Ol' Fashioned BBQ is a complimentary BBQ lunch station on Conquest, Valor, Liberty and Freedom. Glory doesn't carry it. Mongolian Wok is a complimentary Asian stir-fry station on Valor, Liberty and Freedom only. Conquest and Glory don't. That's the entire list of differences that move a score.
Here's how it plays out. Included Dining reads 7.4 on Glory, 7.5 on Conquest and 7.6 on Valor, Liberty and Freedom, and Value follows the same 7.4, 7.5, 7.6 steps. Casual & Quick Dining reads 7.6, 7.8 and 7.9. Variety reads 7.2, 7.3 and 7.5 — and it isn't a straight line, because Mongolian Wok is judged the more cuisine-distinct addition than the BBQ, so Conquest's 7.3 doesn't sit at the midpoint. That's an editorial judgment call, not a venue-count formula.
Valor, Liberty and Freedom are tied, not close. They post the same number in every one of the eight categories and the same weighted 7.275. Nothing on this page ranks one above another, and nothing should be read into the order they're listed in, which is just build year.
Glory's gap isn't about care or portion size. It's two stations she doesn't have, and the weighted distance from Glory to the top tier is 0.145 points. Read that as modest.
What changed. Freedom was in dry dock from September 1 to October 8, 2026, at Chantier Naval de Marseille. She left the yard for Barcelona on October 8, and her first passenger sailing — the actual return to service — was October 9. The work added a lower “whale tail” funnel, a redesigned casino with roughly 100 more gaming machines, a refreshed arcade, updated retail, accessibility improvements and a new bow crest.
What didn't. Dining. Carnival's own June 2026 culinary press release, which announces new venues across the fleet, leaves Freedom out of its rollout, and the trade coverage dated October 8, 2026 describes the same scope. We also re-checked her full roster fresh on October 13, 2026 rather than carrying the pre-dry-dock picture forward. It's unchanged.
If a specific venue matters for your sailing, confirm it in Cruise Manager before you book.
All 80 venues, five ships, side by side
Fifteen, fourteen, sixteen, sixteen and nineteen on one shared counting basis — the matrix first, then a filterable explorer.
| Venue slot | Conquest | Glory | Valor | Liberty | Freedom |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Main dining and buffet | |||||
| Main Dining Rooms | Monet & Renoir | Golden & Platinum | Washington & Lincoln | Golden Olympian & Silver Olympian | Posh & Chic |
| Buffet | Cezanne Grand Buffet | Red Sail Restaurant | Rosie's Restaurant | Emile's Lido Restaurant / Lido Marketplace | Freedom Restaurant / Lido Marketplace |
| Seaday Brunch | Not on scored roster | Not on scored roster | Not on scored roster | Not on scored roster | Seaday BrunchListed, not separately scored |
| Free quick-service and lunch stations | |||||
| Burgers | Guy's Burger Joint | Guy's Burger Joint | Guy's Burger Joint | Guy's Burger Joint | Guy's Burger Joint |
| Mexican | BlueIguana Cantina | BlueIguana Cantina | BlueIguana Cantina | BlueIguana Cantina | BlueIguana Cantina |
| Deli | The Carnival Deli | The Carnival Deli | The Carnival Deli | The Carnival Deli | The Carnival Deli |
| Pizza | Pizza Pirate | Pizza Pirate | Pizza Pirate | Pizza Pirate | Pizza Pirate |
| Soft-serve | Swirls | Swirls | Swirls | Swirls | Swirls |
| Sea-day lunch item | Chicken, Waffles & Waves | Chicken, Waffles & Waves | Chicken, Waffles & Waves | Chicken, Waffles & Waves | Chicken and Waffles |
| Ol' Fashioned BBQ | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Mongolian Wok | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Candy and tasting | Not on scored roster | Not on scored roster | Not on scored roster | Not on scored roster | Cherry on Top; Taste BarListed, not separately scored |
| Room Service | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Extra-cost and specialty | |||||
| Seafood Shack | Seafood Shack | Seafood Shack | Seafood Shack | Seafood Shack | Seafood Shack |
| Specialty coffee | JavaBlue Café | JavaBlue Café | JavaBlue Café | JavaBlue Café | JavaBlue Café |
| Sushi | Sushi at Sea | Sushi at Sea | Sushi at Sea | Sushi at Sea | Bonsai Sushi ExpressNamed so on Carnival's current Freedom page and its 2019 renovation announcement |
| Steakhouse | The Point Steakhouse | Emerald Room Steakhouse | Scarlett's Steakhouse | Diamonds Steakhouse | Sun King SteakhouseDeck 10 |
| The Chef's Table | $114 per person | $114 per person | $114 per person | $114 per person | $114 per person |
| Venues counted | 15 | 14 | 16 | 16 | 19 |
Chef's Table: Confirm current pricing in Cruise Manager. “Not on scored roster” means the venue isn't on that ship's scored roster on her own dining page; it isn't a claim about what's physically aboard. Sushi naming: the four sisters keep Sushi at Sea, as their pages call it; Freedom's name is Bonsai Sushi Express. We aren't saying they are, or aren't, the same product.
Filter all five rosters
Every row traces to its own ship's dining guide and our October 13, 2026 Freedom re-check — nothing here is hand-built independently of those pages.
Filter by ship| Venue | Ship | Type | Price | Score |
|---|
Freedom's venue scores are carried from the class slot each venue fills — the same values Valor and Liberty publish for that slot, with Sun King at the Steakhouse program's 8.7 and Bonsai Sushi Express at the sushi slot's 7.4 — not separate Freedom measurements. Seaday Brunch, Cherry on Top and Taste Bar are listed without any venue score (shown as a dash), so 16 of her 19 rows are scored. Her locked category scores in the Showdown table below already stand. The four sisters' 61 rows each carry their own page's venue score.
Seabound Showdown — every category, all five ships
The full scorecard, decimals included, with the step called out on every row where one exists.
| Category | Weight | Conquest | Glory | Valor | Liberty | Freedom | Step |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Included Dining | 25% | 7.5 | 7.4 | 7.6 | 7.6 | 7.6 | +0.1 Conquest, +0.2 top tier vs. Glory |
| Specialty Dining | 20% | 7.2 | 7.2 | 7.2 | 7.2 | 7.2 | Identical |
| Variety | 15% | 7.3 | 7.2 | 7.5 | 7.5 | 7.5 | +0.1 Conquest, +0.3 top tier vs. Glory |
| Quality Ceiling | 10% | 8.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | Identical |
| Value | 10% | 7.5 | 7.4 | 7.6 | 7.6 | 7.6 | +0.1 Conquest, +0.2 top tier vs. Glory |
| Casual & Quick Dining | 10% | 7.8 | 7.6 | 7.9 | 7.9 | 7.9 | +0.2 Conquest, +0.3 top tier vs. Glory |
| Special Experiences | 5% | 8.2 | 8.2 | 8.2 | 8.2 | 8.2 | Identical |
| Suite & Restricted Dining | 5% | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | Identical |
| Weighted total | — | 7.200 | 7.130 | 7.275 | 7.275 | 7.275 | Valor = Liberty = Freedom · +0.075 vs. Conquest · +0.145 vs. Glory |
| Headline score | — | 7.2 | 7.1 | 7.3 | 7.3 | 7.3 | Three-way tie at 7.3 |
Four rows unshaded: the four categories that read identically on all five ships. The four shaded rows are the only place the class diverges, each one traceable to Ol' Fashioned BBQ and Mongolian Wok. “Top tier” means Valor, Liberty and Freedom, which post identical numbers on every row. Freedom's column is from her October 13, 2026 re-check; the other four come from each ship's own published scorecard.
What's not on the scored roster
A few things this guide deliberately leaves off the scored rosters, or lists without a separate score, and why — the same handling the ship guides use.
Which ship for you
Dining is a small factor in this class — the whole spread is two free lunch stations. Weigh it lightly against itinerary, homeport and price, which our Conquest Class overview covers.
Pick this one if a BBQ lunch station appeals and a stir-fry station doesn't matter to you. You give up only Mongolian Wok against the top tier, and her sailing or price may outweigh it.
Pick this one if her itinerary or fare is the draw and two free lunch stations aren't. The weighted gap to the top tier is 0.145 points, and everything else on her roster matches her sisters.
Pick this one if you want both Ol' Fashioned BBQ and Mongolian Wok and her sailing fits. Her numbers match Liberty's and Freedom's exactly, so choose on the trip, not the table.
Pick this one if you want both stations and her sailing fits. Same numbers as Valor and Freedom, so dining shouldn't be what decides it.
Pick this one if you want both stations and her sailing fits. Same numbers as Valor and Liberty. Two names differ: Sun King Steakhouse (Deck 10) and Bonsai Sushi Express. Her 2026 dry dock changed no dining.
If dining is the only thing deciding your booking, it shouldn't be much of a factor. The biggest swing in the class is 0.145 weighted points, from Glory up to the top tier, and it's two free lunch stations. Valor, Liberty and Freedom are tied, and there's no dining reason to choose one over another. Send us your sailing and let Seabound Journeys price it.
Quick answers
Why do Valor, Liberty and Freedom all score 7.3, and why do Conquest and Glory score lower?
Valor, Liberty and Freedom each carry both Ol' Fashioned BBQ's complimentary lunch station and Mongolian Wok's complimentary stir-fry station, and all three land on exactly the same weighted 7.275, which rounds to a published 7.3. That's a three-way tie, and this guide never puts one of them ahead of another. Conquest carries the BBQ station but not the Wok, so she sits in the middle at 7.2 (weighted 7.200). Glory carries neither and is the leanest at 7.1 (weighted 7.130). Specialty Dining, Quality Ceiling, Special Experiences, and Suite & Restricted Dining read identically on all five ships; the other four categories step up with each station.
Which Conquest Class ships have Ol' Fashioned BBQ and Mongolian Wok?
Ol' Fashioned BBQ, a complimentary lunch station, is on Conquest, Valor, Liberty and Freedom; Glory doesn't carry it. Mongolian Wok, a complimentary stir-fry station, is on Valor, Liberty and Freedom only. Conquest and Glory don't carry it. Glory is the only ship with neither, which is the whole reason she's the leanest of the five.
Did Carnival Freedom's 2026 dry dock change her dining?
No. Freedom was in dry dock from September 1 to October 8, 2026. She left the yard on October 8, and her first passenger sailing, the real return to service, was October 9. The work covered a lower funnel, a redesigned casino, a refreshed arcade, updated retail, accessibility improvements and a new bow crest. Carnival's own June 2026 culinary press release leaves Freedom out of its new-venue rollout, trade coverage describes the same scope, and our fresh October 13, 2026 re-check found her dining roster unchanged.
Are the five steakhouses the same restaurant under different names?
They run the same Steakhouse program under ship-specific names: The Point Steakhouse on Conquest, Emerald Room Steakhouse on Glory, Scarlett's Steakhouse on Valor, Diamonds Steakhouse on Liberty, and Sun King Steakhouse on Freedom (Deck 10). The four sister ship pages list $52 per adult and $15 per child base, or $62.40 and $18.00 all-in after Carnival's 20% service charge. For Freedom, one July 2026 sailing report put it near $62 per adult; we don't claim an official base price for her steakhouse. Confirm current pricing in Cruise Manager.
Is Sushi at Sea the same as Bonsai Sushi Express?
We keep each ship's own name. Conquest, Glory, Valor and Liberty call the venue Sushi at Sea, as each ship's page does. Freedom's current Carnival page, and Carnival's 2019 renovation announcement, name hers Bonsai Sushi Express. Both sit in the same à la carte sushi slot in our scoring, and neither raises Specialty Dining or Quality Ceiling. We're not claiming they're the same product or different ones; we're showing each name as its source gives it.
What does The Chef's Table cost on these five ships?
Carnival's published reservation information groups Conquest, Glory, Valor, Liberty and Freedom at $114 per person. It's the same hosted, multi-course experience on all five, and it carries the whole Special Experiences score of 8.2. Confirm current pricing in Cruise Manager.
Do any of these five ships have a suite or restricted dining restaurant?
No. We found no suite-exclusive or restricted-access venue on any of the five in any source, so Suite & Restricted Dining locks at the 1.0 floor score on every ship. It costs each of them real points off their total, and it's the same gap for all five, not a ship-specific shortfall.
How many venues does each ship have, and why does Freedom show 19?
On one shared basis (the two Main Dining Rooms count once, Room Service counts), the totals are Conquest 15, Glory 14, Valor 16, Liberty 16 and Freedom 19, or 80 across the class. Freedom's 19 is 18 roster lines plus Room Service. Three of those lines (Seaday Brunch, Cherry on Top and Taste Bar) are listed but not separately scored, so her count isn't a measure of a richer score. Her locked score is the same 7.275 as Valor and Liberty.
So which ship should I book for dining?
If dining is the only thing deciding, it shouldn't be much of a factor. The biggest gap is 0.145 weighted points, from Glory (7.130) up to the top tier (7.275), and it's two free lunch stations. Valor, Liberty and Freedom are tied, so there's no dining reason to pick one over another. Choose on itinerary, homeport and price, then ask Seabound Journeys to price your sailing.
Deciding between the Conquest Class ships?
Tell us your sailing, your crew, and what matters most — a lunch station, a homeport, or which ship to book first — and Seabound Journeys will help you pick.
Tap a question or the button and an advisor will answer against current pricing before you book.