Oceania Losing Ground - Just Back From Marina

On our first cruise in 2008 on the Regatta they made the dressing tableside from scratch in Toscana - smashed anchovies and all. It was the first and last time.

 

 

 

Yes I'm sure we had dressing made tableside on at least our first cruise in 2005 and I think again in 06. Both on Insignia. Trying to forget the food in 08 on Regatta as it was pretty bad the entire cruise.

 

Mo

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

hmmmm. IFRC from when I started on O, 2008(?) the only Caesar dressing did not have anchovy that I assume was for those who might be allergic to fish or the 'ewe' crowd so the would top the salad with a piece of fish, which is clearly not the same.

 

Great to hear they now have options and I can get the "original" with anchovy and a swack of garlic. If someone, even the majority want the bland one that is aok with me.

 

I find the pizza pepperoni analogy amusing, seems like it is the modern way. At fast food restaurants on more than one occasion I've overheard a person ordering something like "I'll have the #1 combo (which is a cheeseburger) without the cheese". Often wondered why they don't order the mushroom burger without the mushrooms.

 

 

Original recipe did not have anchovies but Worcestershire sauce that gave it the flavour.

Original recipe did not have anchovies but Worcestershire sauce that gave it the flavour.

Yes, you've got it hanecambridge. And Worcestershire sauce contains anchovy. And the anchovy is to supply unami, a very important component of taste. wired.com very nicely describes the purpose of anchovy as it is used in Worcestershire sauce: "(Anchovies) have been aged in vinegar-filled wooden tanks for 18 months. The fermentation releases inosinate, a nucleotide that tastes savory, or, if you’re being technical, umami."

 

And Worcestershire sauce also contains tamarind that makes it somewhat unique for "western" flavouring.

 

Tossing an anchovy fillet on top a salad is hardly the same. I don't know where that idea came from and I have honestly never seen anchovy on a salad as is presented on O. Perhaps it is a regional preference.

 

I know things change, there are people who abhor the thought of pineapple on a pizza though it is one of the most popular toppings, and there are many mainstream restaurants that include bacon in a Caesar salad now (gasp). But an anchovy fillet atop Parmesan / mayo dressing does not a Caesar salad make.

 

My, haven't we gone down the minutia hole on this one. Back to your regular programming ...

Original recipe did not have anchovies but Worcestershire sauce that gave it the flavour.

 

This the second "original" recipe that I have posted:

 

http://partaste.com/worldrecipes/original-tijuana-caesar-salad-homemade-dressing-recipe/

 

 

Also, the original recipe is NOT really Italian BUT Mexican who was an Italian immigrant to Mexico!

The bottom line is Oceania has to stop catering to the non existent tastes, or more appropriately, the non tastes of some of its clientele.

A Caesar salad without garlic and a few other ingredients is NOT a Caesar salad. Call it a romaine leaf salad with some kind of non descript dressing!

Yes, you've got it hanecambridge. And Worcestershire sauce contains anchovy. And the anchovy is to supply unami, a very important component of taste. wired.com very nicely describes the purpose of anchovy as it is used in Worcestershire sauce: "(Anchovies) have been aged in vinegar-filled wooden tanks for 18 months. The fermentation releases inosinate, a nucleotide that tastes savory, or, if you’re being technical, umami."

 

And Worcestershire sauce also contains tamarind that makes it somewhat unique for "western" flavouring.

 

Tossing an anchovy fillet on top a salad is hardly the same. I don't know where that idea came from and I have honestly never seen anchovy on a salad as is presented on O. Perhaps it is a regional preference.

 

I know things change, there are people who abhor the thought of pineapple on a pizza though it is one of the most popular toppings, and there are many mainstream restaurants that include bacon in a Caesar salad now (gasp). But an anchovy fillet atop Parmesan / mayo dressing does not a Caesar salad make.

 

My, haven't we gone down the minutia hole on this one. Back to your regular programming ...

 

Certainly in Australia real anchovies (and bacon which I don't care for) are generally in a Caesar salad

Certainly in Australia real anchovies (and bacon which I don't care for) are generally in a Caesar salad

Interesting all the regional differences isn't it. Here if there are anchovy it would be as SSN ingredient in the dressing and not a piece of fish on top. Reading a great discussion on another board perhaps you are familiar with on meat pies, goes to many pages. Gets one in the mood for a visit. That said, despite its regional following I don't think an Aussie pie floater (a remembrance from one of DW extended visits ) will export as far and wide as Caesar's salad.

My nonna would turn over in her grave to see all the aberrations they call pizza these days

We've been sailing on O pretty much since the beginning, and three cruises on Renaissance before that. (We were booked on the original inaugural -- there's a story there I won't go into -- but had to cancel, so our first cruise was on Regatta in January 2004 ... coincidentally our first cruise with Ren was on the R2, which became Regatta with O.)

 

But I sure don't remember putting a piece of fish on top of the version of Caesar Salad EVER. I'm not a fan of anchovies but I ask for them with my salad and give the beasties to DH.

 

I remember having a Caesar salad in Tijuana (the home of the creator) and it was great ... but beyond that I remember nothing about it since I was only 10 years old. I don't recall any anchovies ... but as I said I was only 10 and didn't know yet that I didn't like squirmey fishies.

Here is an actual overheard story of a Specialties restaurant encounter at a high end Caribbean resort a few years ago.

 

Lady: I would like the scrimp scampi without the garlic and spices.

 

Waiter: of course ma'am, sautéed shrimp.

 

Lady: NO, I said shrimp scampi without garlic and spices!

 

Waiter: of course ma'am sautéed shrimp!

 

Lady: NO! Blah, blah!

 

Waiter: of course ma'am, I'm sorry!

 

Later a different waiter comes, delivering the food, and says " which had the sautéed shrimp?

 

The Lady starts into her routine , when the original waiter comes running up an apologizes and says "this is shrimp scampi, he was just confused!"

 

Later on, the Lady applauded the wonderful shrimp scampi she was served!

 

I have little issue with that real life experience, unless the restaurant decides to make her shrimp scampi the standard fare, and those wanting actual shrimp scampi have to go through hoops to get it. Is Oceania headed there?

All these stories about Caesar salad reminds me of our experience in Toscano last year. We had a junior waiter on his second day on the job. The waiter told him to make a Caesar salad for the 4 of us at the table, The assistant brought over the salad table but told us as he does not eat salads, he did not know how to make the salad. After the waiter made the salads he asked the assistant to serve the parmesan cheese - the assistant brought a dish of grated cheese and placed it on the table instead of offering some to each of us.

 

I'm sure his Italian was flawless but that didn't help us. At least when we went back 2 weeks later he was doing much better.

we are just off the Riviera (aug 22- sep1)...it was our first O cruise having been on HAL and Princess mainly over the years. we were offered a great deal late spring to change from a Nov 2017 cruise (8 days) to this 10 day...from a balcony to a PH1!

 

we found the food and service to be top notch.....the butler was very efficient and friendly, serving us dinner 2 nights in our cabin from Polo grill and Jacques as we could not dine there more than once. something we did not know in advance....

 

all wait staff in the Terrace grill and cafe were super nice...no frowns only smiles. i don't care if people call me by name...

 

i appreciated the laundry...and did not cringe having to insert 2 dollar bills to have a little coin pop out! nice to not have to pack a lot and wash mid cruise on my own.

 

food was wonderful in MDR (they did call us by name as they seated us and there was never an issue with finding a table for 2 around 6:45) if we didn't care for selections in MDR and we did not have a specialty restaurant booked for the night, the terrace cafe was just fine.

what i would have liked was a way to see menus on the TV so we could plan where to have dinner.

 

we had 2 tours included and paid for one more. all 3 were good...local guides (especially in Santorini) were friendly and informative. their job must be like herding cats! Cinque Terre must have been a challenge for her as we had multiple means of transport for that one.

 

we booked an october 2018 cruise while on board. the calmness and quiet of the ship was wonderful after our last 3600 passenger Princess cruise in January. Oceania did a very good job! and we were very pleased with our experience. even the air arrangements went off without a hitch....although, air travel is a challenge these days !!

Losing ground is true. I left Marina in STO with a lovely set of bed bug bites.

It was and is extremely irritating and painful. I was incredulous that such a thing

could happen. Needless to say I did not book another cruise on board and will be cancelling the one I have deposit on.

Losing ground is true. I left Marina in STO with a lovely set of bed bug bites.

It was and is extremely irritating and painful. I was incredulous that such a thing

could happen. Needless to say I did not book another cruise on board and will be cancelling the one I have deposit on.

 

So sorry you had that experience.

That and the often reported bland food and poor beef quality keeps us looking elsewhere after 13 O cruises.

Crystal has become our line of choice and we will also be trying Viking in 2018. No O in our immediate future!!

Losing ground is true. I left Marina in STO with a lovely set of bed bug bites.

I hope you reported this to housekeeping so they can do a proper cleaning of the room :eek:

 

If there are BB they are usually brought on by passengers or their suitcases can harbour the beasties

Bed bugs on Marina? Our first cruise on this ship next April. Not happy hearing this! [emoji54]

 

Sent from my SM-N900V using Tapatalk

https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/bedbugs/faqs.html more on bed bugs. it can take 14 days to see evidence of the bites. wonder how long the passenger was on board? its possible the bites did not originate from the cruise.

hopefully it has been reported for further investigation and action. sadly not uncommon as the info on the link suggests.

Bed bugs on Marina? Our first cruise on this ship next April. Not happy hearing this! [emoji54]

 

Well hopefully the poster reported the problem

We have no idea if it was really bed bugs or something else that caused the bites

 

I would not lose sleep over it

Wow. Wondering. Worried

Well hopefully the poster reported the problem

 

I would not lose sleep over it

 

:'):'):')

Absolutely looking forward to being on Marina again in December. Will give complete report of any bites and/or itching that shows up anywhere from a week before to two months after. Recommend that everyone planning cruises on Marina immediately cancel and book instead on any ship not reporting possible bedbugs and offering Caesar salads prepared at table side, with the option to request anchovies as desired.

I'm trying to think of a scenario where the very first, and only, post I made on Cruise Critic would be reporting about bedbugs. Just my alter/troll-suspicious nature I guess. Perhaps WallaceX could enlighten?

My husband was the cruise critic member. I joined but didn't post. Since I travel a lot I left and just rejoined. Until the bed bug sttack on Marina I really had nothing to say.

 

I felt this was important enough to note. You may not think so.

My husband was the cruise critic member. I joined but didn't post. Since I travel a lot I left and just rejoined. Until the bed bug sttack on Marina I really had nothing to say.

 

I felt this was important enough to note. You may not think so.

 

Did you report the issue to management?

What deck were you on?

Hope you wrapped your luggage on the way home & did not transport any extra passengers home with you

Deleted message.

My husband was the cruise critic member. I joined but didn't post. Since I travel a lot I left and just rejoined. Until the bed bug sttack on Marina I really had nothing to say.

 

I felt this was important enough to note. You may not think so.

 

Glad you had the smarts to report this and hope your no longer feeling the discomfort.