CruzinScotty

No pressure but only 34 days until I leave on the Glory :D

LOL, I hear ya. Unfortunately, I'm back to real life which doesn't allow me as much "me" time as I'd like to work on this.

Thanks for the room pics as you can see on my countdown our first balcony on the liberty getting excited.

I'm glad you liked the pics. I'm planning a "room with a view" set of shots towards the end that I took on most days were we in port.

This is also why I'm going into so much detail. For many, it's the new menus, for you it's that, plus a first balcony.

Thanks to everyone for the great feedback!

One last bit of housekeeping, then I'm all set with this music thing; I must give credit where credit is due.

I Left My Heart in San Francisco was written by: George Cory and Douglass Cross.

Rude was written by: Nasri Atweh, Adam Messenger, Mark Pellizzer, Ben Spivak and Alex Tanas (that's a lot of people!)

So, just a few entrée pictures this evening.

Here is the Crispy Shrimp with Coconut Curry and Lemon Grass:

I’ve had this in the past and remember enjoying it.

I believe this is one of the pork dishes offered tonight. I think it matches the description of the Honey Glazed Pork Loin (carrot cinnamon puree). I don’t remember who ordered it in my party. But, I don’t remember any complaints, nor the plate leaving with just a few bites taken from it. As we all say, food is very subjective. YMMV. (Your mileage may vary.)

If you look closely, you can see the grilled chicken breast with veggies in the background above.

My entrée tonight was the Braised Beef Brisket with corn pudding and red onions:

It was quite good; but I do want to discuss it a bit. I had seen comments before that this is basically “pot roast”. Well, I’m from the south, so when I see “beef brisket”, I DO expect to see the southern BBQ/grilled version of it. This was definitely not that. I’m not a true beef expert, but I did decide to look up “braised” beef brisket and also “pot roast”. Brisket comes from a certain part of the cow, whereas post roast has to do with how you cook it. The “braising” part is the slow cooking that makes you think it’s pot roast. So, it’s not like any other brisket I’ve had before; but I did see pictures of recipes on the net that looked a lot more like what I had this night than what I’m used to seeing. Again, it was good but I do prefer the southern version.

Now, we have a few sides to see as well.

Ratatouille: I convinced Thing 1 (or is it 2 – I just don’t know LOL) to try this. I KNOW I’m not a veggie person, but she it. I believe she enjoyed it and may have ordered it again during the week:

Mac N Cheese with bacon: there seems to be the lovers and haters of this dish:

In our family, we were pretty consistently in the middle. If you make home-made Mac N Cheese – yours will be better. This was better than box or frozen Mac and Cheese. It was nice and creamy; our complaint was not enough cheese. Again, YMMV

Now, on to desserts.

So, I was in a hurry to get the menu posted and some appetizers as well to hold you over just a bit. :)

Now, let’s back track. Each year, we’ve done separate sets of bookings for our trip. We could have joined them together at some point; but we were always just afraid that somehow some of us would get split up for dinner. So, we’ve chosen ATD and have enjoyed it a lot. Each year, we have been lucky enough that we really liked our wait staff the first night. So, we always go right when they open. Partially because we’ve got a large group, and partially so we can get out and enjoy some evening entertainment.

I have heard comments that you can make a “reservation” with ATD if you have a set time/wait staff you like. I can tell you that this may vary by ship. We didn’t think to ask the last 2 years, we just always went early. I specifically asked this year and was told they did not do that. Just show up and ask for whom you want and they will seat you as soon as possible. By the 3rd night, as soon as we got to the hostess station; they just showed us right to our table. :D

One complaint with ATD is that it takes longer. I will say yes and no to this. We have ranged from 9 to 13 to 11 the last 3 years. A large table IS going to take longer. Our first night with a new wait staff IS going to take longer. Tonight, we were enjoying our conversation and didn’t mind a slight lull between dinner and dessert. We did however, not get out of dinner until 8PM.

I mentioned the next night to our head waitress we wanted to get out in time to make 8PM shows and we were able to the rest of the week.

One improvement we noticed is a change in how the wait staff is set up. The last 2 years; it seemed we had 3 people; but they were all spread out so much that it wasn’t as enjoyable with them and it took even longer. This year, we had one person get our initial water or iced tea. We changed seats EVERY night and he had everyone right every night. Then, we didn’t see this person again. We had a main waitress and a secondary waiter. She took the main orders, they both helped serve thru the entrees; and the 2nd waiter took complete control of dessert. This really seemed to work better for us.

As I said, Nathaly (Natalie) was our main Waitress; she is from Peru and very happy to be going home for HER vacation in a few weeks. Mile, our secondary server (who has worked as a Main Waiter), was from Serbia. The first night he said, “I look serious, but I’m really not”. He was a lot of fun; they both were. He’s got a 2 yo son at home and works a longer contract so he can be home at Christmas. See, you really can get to know your wait staff, and they know your desires when you do ATD – you just have to find a crew you like and then stick with them. :)

Now, on to the entrees!

Wonder if these are prepared in the steakhouse and brought to the dining room?

I think they may be. As stated above, it does take a few minutes longer for the entrees to come out. I had a group of 11; a few of us tried it one night.

I had the spicy alligator fritters, which were not what I expected them to be, but they were actually quite tasty. I expected them to have more of a texture (thinking chicken), but they were sort of crispy on the outside and very soft inside. Didn't seem like any "meat" was in the fritter, more like a vegetable fritter. I also had the honey glazed pork loin with the broccoli, carrots and pearl onions. I was underwhelmed by the pork but the vegetables were very good.

 

Looking forward to more of this review!!!!

From your description, that sounds like the alligator fritters I had last year. It was OK, but I'm glad I had new options to try this year.

I only have 3 entrees to show. There were 2 pork dishes, I believe I have a pic of one; but I'm not positive which one it is. I may need your help later. :)

Loving your review.

 

Tell your "POP" Thanks for his service. We appreciate him.

Thanks so much. You'll be hearing more about POP as the week goes by. I even have a pic of him in the hat that has set off the security scanner in the past. But, there's a special place in the report for that. ;)

Hopefully, we'll get thru with dinner tonight. But, there's still more fun after that - it's still just Embarkation Day. :D

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So, how about some seafood.

Here is the cured salmon:

The fried calamari used to be a "family style dish". It's individual now and I only remember it being offered on the first night. I had this, it was quite good. I don't remember the exact sauces, but they were good individually and together:

Now, on to the flatbreads. Our group found them to be a WONDERFUL addition to the menu. I had tonight's walnut, pear, blue cheese flatbread. It was GREAAAAAAAAAT!!!

OK, one last item we must discuss. My gang REALLY LOVES the chilled fruit soups. Me, I hold our for the Mango. But tonight's selection is Strawberry Bisque.

Is it soup yet?

Nope, not yet. LOL

How about now?

Oh, I'm teasing you! But, we're getting close.

HEY - It's soup now! I was assured by many at the table, just how wonderful it was:

That's it for pictures tonight. I might have time for a little dialog tomorrow. And hopefully will post a few entrees and then get to dessert tomorrow evening as well.

Until then...... Which appy(s) looked the best to you?

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As I said before, I didn't want to interrupt everyone's meals. So, I only asked to take pics of people near me. We had a HUGE variety of appetizers. When we get to entrees, we must have mostly ordered the same thing.

So, to get started, this is probably the only picture we have of all 11 of us. Our head waitress, Nathaly (pronounced Natalie) is also in the shot:

I'm at the head of the table; I guess I'm picking up the bill tonight. :D

Let's start with the onion soup:

Now, see how much CHEESE there is on top of the soup!

Did you say soup? I was assured that the Corn Chowder was quite good:

Loving your report. Especially interested in your imput on new menu. I am such a picky eater, but had no trouble finding things I'd love to have on the 1st night menu. Looking forward to reading more and looking at your great pictures. Thank you !!

Thanks for the plug on the other thread. ;)

I will say that, while I missed a few favorites; I really loved the new menu overall. There was one day that I thought I wouldn't find much I'd like - that ended up being one of my most surprisingly enjoyable meals.

On to the appetizers now. :D

We were on Glory last month and I loved that flat bread appetizer with pear, walnuts and blue cheese. A nice addition to the menu!

There's a pic coming right up!

Hubby and I have that shirt also. Thanks for doing the review.

Thanks! I saw a few others on our sailing with it as well.

"Cruzin Scotty" has started a great trip report here on CC and I just saw pictures of the new American Table menu from 1st night. You can see it on pg 3 of his report. Some of the popular items that had disappeared but were now back during the 8 nights of his cruise. You should check it out. Great report so far.

Thanks for the plug!

Here's a link to the report: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2105485

If you're just looking for new menu info; Post #60 has the beginning of the first night's menu. (Sorry, I have an old fashioned camera, so come of the menu pictures will be a little blurry. But the food pics look great. :) )

Today, I have also explained my impression of how the new menu's started and what they look like today. It's going to be a lengthy review. As stated, we're on page 3 and only up to the first dinner. I'm getting ready to check the recent posts over there and then post some appetizer pictures from the first night.

Come join in the fun.

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I’m going to tackle this as if you knew nothing about the American Table other than the fact that “the menu changed on the Liberty”. (And the Glory and two Fantasy class ships – but I don’t remember which ones at the moment. J )

Initially, part of the American Table idea was to have some items served “family style”. I believe the appetizer items were Fried Calamari and Caesar Salad. For dessert, there was Pie a la mode – I’m not sure if they brought an entire pie to the table no matter what. I don’t remember if there were side dishes brought to the table with the entrées.

Please correct the above information as needed.

In any event; they no longer do the Family Style dishes. You order each item as requested.

They had also taken away all of the chilled soups, and Crème Brulee was gone as well (which used to be on the first night’s dessert menu). Thru passenger feedback, the chilled soups are back (see Strawberry Bisque tonight), and the Crème Brulee is back – you’ll see when later in the trip.

On to the Menu itself.

There are Appetizers on the left, with the “Rare Finds” replacing the “DIDJA (every try this). Some items are new, some are the same. It seems there was a gator dish before, but I don’t remember if it’s the same as tonight’s choice. (I had gator last night, so I didn’t try it tonight.)

Under Mains, you see the entrée’s for this evening. You also see “Items from the Grill”. These are standard items that are offered every night; though I believe the fish entrée may change. I didn’t order off of this section; so we’ll have to see together as the week progresses. J

In the lower portion of the Menu is the “Port of Call” menu. This will be specific to the port you are/were in. This is my first time with the new menus, so I can’t say for sure if the St. Thomas Port of Call Menu might be the same as something in the Western Carribean (say Costa Maya). But, I do remember looking on another site at the menu when the Liberty was still in Miami. The items there were Cuban in nature and are different than tonight’s Port Canaveral ones.

The Port of Call menu has a Cocktail, Appetizer and a Main course. It’s important to look at the ENTIRE menu, because often, the choices here are very good!

On American Table nights, the entrées are ala carte. You have Side Dishes at the bottom to choose from. There are maybe 10 or so items overall; so you will see some things repeated during the week. This is good because if you like a particular side, you can have it again, or you can try them on different nights.

NEW ITEM IN THE LOWER LEFT:

***** STEAKHOUSE SELECTIONS***** I’m not sure how new this section is and/or how well publicized this has been on the rest of the Carnival site. The EC’s were on the Glory for a b2b (lucky dogs!) in April. The return of the chilled soups and crème brulee as well as the Steakhouse Selections are all new to them.

This is a very unique option. It allows you to upgrade your entrée for a $20 charge. Some may think this is just another way for Carnival to get extra money from you. Our family thought this is a FANTASTIC idea! If some of you want an upgraded entrée; but your entire group does not and does not want to spend $35 to go to the steakhouse for an entire meal – this is a GREAT alternative. I will share that a few of us did this one night. You’ll see pics of later in the week.

Coming soon: some pics of tonight's appetizers!

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Menu has been tweaked since I was on Liberty this past May, but I had the Calamari and the mahi mahi. I'm glad they took the chaeuteaubriand off the menu. DH said it was the worst ever.

 

Noticed the strawberry soup is there and they have Indian listed as vegetarian. I don't remember the vegetarian the night we went, but remember my veggie DD ordered sides.

I didn't realize the Chaeuteaubriand was moved to the first nigt of the new menus. I remember it towards the end of the week last year on the Dream. And, I guess it really does depend on the chef. Last year, it was one of the best beef dishes of the week. It's one of the main things I did miss with the new menu. Interesting.

I would have had the Grilled Salmon and the Veggie Lasagna all-cruise long :)

I had Salmon one night; but not tonight. I'm not a veggie person; but I did eat more veggies than usual this week.

I think I'd have to go with the mahi mahi myself.

 

 

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And Caesar salad of course!

Sounds good to me. :)

Time to pay the bills!

I've got to work this evening, and 12 hour shifts over the weekend. I "may" be able to make a few posts; but I can't do pictures unless I'm home. So, I wanted to post the first evening's Menu for you to peruse.

I had heard the new menu's on American Table night were LARGE; they are. I'm sorry the first picture is blurry. I did warn you - but I think you can make out the item names, just not complete descriptions:

The dessert menu will be posted when we get there. :)

I'll try later to discuss the new menu and format.

Let's have some feedback now. :D

If you were on this cruise, WHAT did you have the first night?

If you're along for the right, what would YOU order tonight?

Don't be bashful; you can order more then one appetizer and entree. Our group did often!

I'll also try to answer questions about the new menu. I just can't post more pictures until late tonight or tomorrow.

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I checked in with DW a couple of times today to make sure she was doing OK. They had been treating themselves to pizza and Blizzards, which made me feel happy she was getting better. I would try the phone in Grand Turk, but didn’t expect to be able to talk to her until San Juan. Time to turn the phone off, talk to you in a few days, honey!

I hear rave reviews, but have yet to try it yet:

A local casino boat:

We Sail Away, they Sail Back:

Royal Caribbean is building a new terminal. Then, Terminal 10 will also be a Carnival Terminal and the staff/port workers will be better equipped to ALWAYS be Carnival:

How about a pic from the lesser photographed Port side:

Next: The first American Table Dinner Menu

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After the Muster Drill; being of sound legs, I took the stairs. I told those that wanted to join me for Sail Away, that I would be up on Deck 10 on the Starboard side. So, I go up and start moving some loungers into the shade and then…..doh’…..I’m on the port side. I head to the starboard side and everyone is wondering where I got to. LOL

The Sunshine left first.

We couldn’t see the VAB (Vehicle Assembly Building) at NASA like last year until it left. That’s because it was in “our spot”. (Just love the Big Bang Theory!) LOL

I thought we were parked “the wrong way” We were facing away from the ocean and had to turn around to head to sea. Well, from this view, I guess it makes sense. I thought I had a better pic. Look at the Disney mooring, it is very close to where we docked:

Although, the Liberty may have arrived a few minutes late and didn't have time to turn around. I did notice the Freedom of the Seas was backed in the day we returned.

Let me also mention this is the first time I've heard the Disney "When You Wish Upon a Star" horn blow that I've heard so many positive things about from Disney cruise fans. I must say, I was less than blown away. ;) I guess I expected more from it.

When the triplets become twins. DW has the same shirt; but there's only two of us to "represent":

Gee, they’re bringing the Drink of the Day around. I guess you could twist my arm to try the Fun Ship Special:

YES, I'm talking about one of my gang!

Wait a minute, what am I talking about? All eleven of us are safely on board.

Well.......

So, I was in my room, starting to unpack as it was getting closer to Muster Time. I intended on going to my assigned station. Then, there was a knock at the door. Thing 1 said there was a problem.

You see, traveling to Cocoa, we had 5 people in one car. In Cocoa, we had more cars to spread out. There was a medicine bag left in the back seat of a car that had 5 people that now only had 2. No one thought to look in the back seat. :eek: So, DB/DSIL/Thing 2 head to go get it. DSIL is the only one with her Sign and Sail AND her Driver’s License. She’s the only one they would let off. Good thing she knew exactly where the car was parked!

Run, DSIL, Run!

If she wasn’t the last person on board/re-board the ship, she was one of the last before they pulled the gangway. Not a good use of your FTTF. ;)

So, I helped our Special Needs people to the Special Needs Muster area where a lot of us met up. We were in the 4th Floor Golden Dining Room. So as to not leave us completely out of the true Muster experience; in addition to hearing the overhead announcements – for some reason the air conditioning was off. We got the “full heat” experience of being outside without doing so. :confused:

Now, I hope this doesn’t frustrate people, but it really makes sense if you think about it. The reason a lot of people need the Special Needs Muster Station is that they need access to elevators. Sooooo, when the drill is done and the Cruise Director comes on to talk about the cruise, but won’t let you leave the Muster Station – that’s to give the Special Needs people a chance to get to the elevators first.

Next: take your own advice, Scotty.

We headed down to Guest Services, it’s nice using the VIP line. There was business to take care of and we needed to find out where the Special Needs Muster Station is. We’ve got a few people in need of this for the first time. While on Deck 3, it’s nice to remember that there is a HUGE quiet space outside. Let’s take a look:

And, a nice seat to relax:

Here is the Disney Fantasy, and the Sunshine is in "our spot". (Anyone catching the Big Bang Tie-in? LOL):

Please note how close we are to the Disney moorings.

Next, we peeked into the Venetian Theatre:

I just LOVE the Italian blown glass sculpture in the ceiling:

Only a few pics here; it usually dark and my low-tech camera doesn’t do well with dark.

Though, I do have a very good “dark” photo from the Venetian we’ll see later.

Coming up: RUN, DSIL, RUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUN!

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So, now that we've made it on to the ship; are we getting enough pictures?????

Coming up soon: the other ships in port with us, Sail Away, and what is this thing they call "The American Table"?

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OK, now that we’ve got one good meal in us; let’s backtrack just a bit. We got to the room earlier enough to actually relax for a minute. I took a few pics. We have to look, especially for those close to cruising, or maybe someone getting their first balcony?

My room steward doesn’t yet know I’m traveling solo:

The large mirror does help the bathroom seem a little larger:

And finally, the balcony:

And a view of the Marina and Indian River from it:

See how close we are to the ocean. Ah the smell of salt in the air. I posted on a recent Guy's Burger thread that the salt air makes them taste better! LOL

So, I met my Room Steward immediately. His name is John, from the Phillipines. I told him I was traveling solo, he immediately offered to make up the couch as soon as he could. I said I would like fresh ice twice daily. I never had to ask again. I saw John 4-5 times a day in the hallway. We had 3 other rooms nears mine. I got to know their room steward as well. He was Jerold, also from the Phillipines. I really enjoy interacting with the crew members that work so hard to make our vacation special. A little conversation and taking interest in THEM goes a long way in getting superb service. And, it adds to MY cruise experience as well.

Remember when I said we’re at a different terminal and Carnival was out of sorts? Parking – yes. Security – YES. Check in – No – they did a great job. Luggage delivery….Forgettaboutit…. FTTF didn’t get us luggage very fast at all. It was after 3PM when we got the last pieces. I know that’s not bad for some; but it is one of the perks we paid for. No worries though; we’re starting to get on Island Time.

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We can't start off too fast; we've got a whole cruise to eat. Plus, we've got an extra day - this is the first 8 day cruise for most of us.

Here is "The Sweet Spot":

I only made two choices, the Lemon Tart and the Strawberry pops:

Let me say that the Lemon Tart was much better than I expected. Very good!

And, I only remember cake pops on 2 days. If you remember others, let me know. This is the 3rd year in a row they've had strawberry pops the first day. These are super moist and VERY yummy!

While I'm on the subject of desserts; my family has been in agreement on two things:

1. The cake type desserts, particularly at lunch - tend to be dry. You have to look at them closely; occasionally you'll see something nice and moist.

2. This week on the Liberty; there seemed to be a VAST improvement in the desserts at EVERY meal. It was especially noticeable at lunch. You'll see as the week progresses. But, go back and notice the crumb-type cake above. That does look dry; I don't remember anyone trying it.

In fact, I did NOT choose the chocolate cake shown above because I was't sure it would be moist enough. Another nameless family member (EC2 ;) ) got the chocolate cake with the expectation that it wouldn't be moist. She did this so she would only eat a bite or two. She had more than two bites. :)

Anyway - Strawberry Pops - GET one.....or two!

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The Mongolian Wok looks good:

Make that the Mongolian Wok for two, please. With some nice fresh fruit:

How about some roast beef from the buffet:

And finally, more roast beef. Plus, some pizza; Ma gives the thin crust a thumbs up. I can't remember what the deli sandwhich was, but I'm sure it was good. :)

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GUY'S Burger Joint is where I headed. Sorry for the blurry menu:

The making of the burgers. They come out as large balls of meat. Look closely to see a few. They were really fast with that iron/flat-ner thingy they use:

The serving of the burgers. Sorry, I didn't get a pic of the toppings bar; it was too crowded:

I chose "The Ringer".

Um, it looks like Guy’s is the most popular choice for our gang today:

You can see ONE thumb up. It was actually, EIGHT thumbs – WAY UP!

But, there’s 11 of us, so there are some other choices to see.

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So, The EC’s, being EC’s - are at Platinum level. We worked long and hard to get FTTF for the rest of our rooms. It’s a game of “FTTF Roulette” and I guess I was good at it. I got them all – at four separate times. WHEW.

Some think it’s a waste of money and another way for Carnival to get more $$ out of you. But, for us; it’s worth every dime. We go thru a shorter embarkation line; we can go directly to our rooms to unload our carry-ons and we get an early debarkation as well. We also used the VIP line at Guest Services a few times. We had no tender ports, but that’s OK. It works for us.

They were just starting to board when we finished getting our Sign/Sail cards. We stood right there so we didn’t have to walk as far around for those VIP’s/FTTF people that had arrived earlier.

It was 11:06 when I stood on the gang plank!

Time for traditional Liberty photos of the Atrium Lobby. Some welcome aboard music. And.....you've noticed me using different colored text? Well, it's because.....You know.....the lights, they change a colors just saying "Welcome Back!" :D

So, we went to the room, where I took the obligatory pics. But, instead of showing those next; it's time to start the REAL Food Porn!

Next: So many choices - WHAT to have for lunch the first day??

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