Food on Emerald Princess

I have not heard good things about the food on Emerald..can anyone that has been on lately help..and let me know if they liked it..

Thanks Jancruz1

I have not heard good things about the food on Emerald..can anyone that has been on lately help..and let me know if they liked it..

Thanks Jancruz1

Pretty much the same as any other Princess ship I’ve been on.

We sailed Emerald for 28 days last October. Most of the food was fine. The head chef actually used spices! Pizza on Lido was horrible. Had a vanilla malt on Lido and asked for lots and lots of malt. Reminded me of the way a good malt used to taste when I was a kid. :)

We were on her for 60 days this year and the food was good, not great. We do not like some of the changes they have made to the menus. Especially formal night. We skipped several formal nights as we did not feel it was worth getting all dressed up for. We also missed all the Curtis Stone dishes on the dining room menu. When we asked we were told since there was a Share restaurant none of his items were served in the main dining room.

 

 

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Food was fine when we were on board. All ships basically have the same DR menus.

Nothing about the Emerald food stands out as good or bad.

It's typically Princess style food.

Now if you compare it to that of the Regal or Royal it's not that good in comparison.

You won't go hungry either way.

Food is so subjective. What others like, you may not.:)

Pretty much the same as any other Princess ship I’ve been on.

My experience, also.

 

I find the food on Princess pretty monotonous. Only "italian" type foods, and lots of sauce. But generally well prepared.

Hi,

 

I recently cruised aboard the Emerald Princess (May 9-13, 2018) and enjoyed the food. As stated above, it offers the typical Princess dining experience.

 

Chuck

I was on the 12-day cruise on April 27th on the Emerald. The food was “OK.” Not great. My sister ordered the prime rib one night and it couldn’t be cut with a steak knife. Inedible. It looked like rubber. The same night, others were raving about the prime rib. We had issues with your waiter (not assistant waiter) with regards to incorrect orders and attitude so we wound up not going to dinner in the dining room a few nights.

We completed a 12-day AK cruise on the Emerald Princess just two weeks ago. I guess I will agree with most of the above opinions. For the most part, the food on the Emerald Princess is good, not great.

 

I only had one meal in the dining rooms--a breakfast--and it was perfectly fine.

 

I am a SHARE bigot. So, the following may be a bit predictable. Two meals at SHARE were excellent.

 

The Ultimate Balcony Dinner was excellent, as usual.

 

We tried the Ultimate Balcony Breakfast, one day. That was good, but I don't see us rushing back to do that, again.

 

Three dinners at Crown Grill were quite good. I have to tell a story, here. On our second visit I ordered the Porterhouse Steak. When the waiter asked how I wanted my steak prepared I stated as clearly as I could that I would like it to be "as rare as possible." When the steak was brought to our table, the server asked me to check it to make sure it was the way I like it.

 

I sliced the steak. It was pink, not rare. Normally, I would just say "It's fine," and continue with my meal.

 

It was only then that I realized that the chef was standing behind the server. He stepped forward, and said, "If that is not satisfactory, let us re-do it for you." OK, he was insistent.

 

I asked them to re-do it. We sipped some more of our wine and waited for my second steak to be brought over. It was excellent.

 

Coincidentally, a few days later I took the Ultimate Ship's Tour, and guess who gave the galley tour portion--the same head chef from the Crown Grill. After his presentation, I took a few minutes to thank him profusely, for the attention that he gave to my meal. He seem to be very appreciative.

 

We made a couple visits to the Trident Grill. The Trident Grill is what it is. I actually like their cheeseburgers.

 

I had breakfast three or four times in the Buffet. I'm always OK with that--better than on some Princess ships, not as good as others, Oh, let me report that the lox they were serving in the Buffet was outstanding--more than once I saw a server slicing a fillet to prepare the serving platter.

 

We had our first dinner in 12 Princess cruises in the Buffet, one night. It was fine.

 

I always hate to disagree with Thrak. His posts always seem to be so well thought out and well written, but I am reporting that I enjoyed the Prego Pizza on the Lido deck a couple times.

 

I had a Cuban sandwich from the International Cafe, and that was quite good.

 

We did Room Service one evening--Cheeseburger and Fries, Club Sandwich and Fries, Cookies, Chocolate Cake--and that hit the spot that night.

 

Cookies. I have see people rave about the cookies on Princess, and I have never understood that. They always seem to be brittle and dried out. On this trip, though, I did pick up a few cookies in the Buffet a couple times, and, I have to say, they were pretty good. I only saw Oatmeal and Chocolate Chocolate Chip, but they were good--nice and chewy.

 

 

Edit, We were on the same cruise as Pam who posted the above while I was composing mine.

You definitely won't starve and likely gain a few pounds by the end of your cruise.

Definitely a personal thing! I was on the Emerald for 30 days, Feb. 28-March 30th and the food was good. I had a couple of things that weren't as good as others but nothing inedible. The surf & turf was great, my prime rib excellent, lamb and veal dishes I had were good, too. I don't normally eat prime rib but my table mates looked so good the 1st cruise, tried it the 2nd cruise, it was fine. I'm not eating as much beef as I did when I was younger, but have found on my recent cruises the filet mignon has been good.

 

I don't eat at the buffet ever, doesn't matter what they are serving, not my thing. I have a yogurt parfait, and a muffin for breakfast at the IC and a salad or sandwich there, too, for lunch.

 

I never cruise for less than 14 days and goal is to weigh the same when I get home as I did when I left! :)

It was only then that I realized that the chef was standing behind the server. He stepped forward, and said, "If that is not satisfactory, let us re-do it for you." OK, he was insistent.

 

...Edit, We were on the same cruise as Pam who posted the above while I was composing mine.

Your post reminded me that during our dinner in the Crown Grill the night before disembarkation, the chef came to our table to make sure everything was as we wanted it. I LOVE the Crown Grill and this meal did not disappoint. I’ve never seen the chef checking with the passengers before. Nice touch.

 

I often do the Sanctuary on cruises but it was too cold. I wound up going to the buffet in the afternoon for my chocolate “fix” several times and got chocolate cookies and some brownies that were still melted and soft. OMG! So good! FYI, I didn’t gain any weight on this cruise (never have on over fifty cruises) even though I ate the cookies and my chocolate obsession in the Crown Grill (and finished my sister’s as well.)

I was also on the April 27 sailing on the Emerald. The lobster served in the dining room on formal night was uneatable. After cutting away the blood and veins on the underside, I was left with a torn up small bite of lobster. It was served on overcooked risotto. My husband and I always eat breakfast in the Horizon Court. The sausages were mushy, the eggs were bland, and the potatoes tasted old. I always enjoy the banana bread, and this time there was none. I'm not too picky, but there was a definite decline in food on the Emerald. I had been on the Emerald the previous October for a 28 day cruise, and the food was better then.

We sailed Emerald for 28 days last October......Pizza on Lido was horrible.

 

We completed a 12-day AK cruise on the Emerald Princess just two weeks ago.

 

I always hate to disagree with Thrak. His posts always seem to be so well thought out and well written, but I am reporting that I enjoyed the Prego Pizza on the Lido deck a couple times.

 

 

I see no disagreement. Thrak's experience was about seven months ago. Your experience was this month. Looks like the Emerald's Prego Pizza may be back to its old quality.

Your post reminded me that during our dinner in the Crown Grill the night before disembarkation, the chef came to our table to make sure everything was as we wanted it. I LOVE the Crown Grill and this meal did not disappoint. I’ve never seen the chef checking with the passengers before. Nice touch.

 

XBGuy says: I have seen it. It is, unfortunately, exceptionally rare. I wish I remembered his name, but I guess I'm getting old. On sailaway day, I was just walking by the CG when he walked out and greeted me very warmly. He is a very gregarious guy. I'm sure he will move up and be an Executive Chef on one of the Princess ships pretty soon.

 

I often do the Sanctuary on cruises but it was too cold. I wound up going to the buffet in the afternoon for my chocolate “fix” several times and got chocolate cookies and some brownies that were still melted and soft. OMG! So good! FYI, I didn’t gain any weight on this cruise (never have on over fifty cruises) even though I ate the cookies and my chocolate obsession in the Crown Grill (and finished my sister’s as well.)

 

I am not as passionate about chocolate as many people. I will normally look for a fruit dessert. Sidetracking, here, a bit, on our third visit to Crown Grill (probably, the night before you were there, Pam), I tried to completely decline on dessert. The server seemed disappointed. He asked if I would like a fruit plate.

 

Yes! That hit the spot.

 

My nonchalance towards chocolate, notwithstanding, the "Princess' Extraordinary Chocolate Quartet" that comes with the UBD is ABSOLUTELY AMAZING.

 

One more shout-out for the Crown Grill. The best entree that I had, there, also on our third visit of the cruise, was the Chilean Sea Bass. Very tasty and very attractive presentation.

No one has mentioned the UNBELIEVABLE onion rings served every third day or so at the Grill.

We were on Thrak's cruise and I was really trying to watch what I ate (I think I could easily gain 28 lbs. in 28 days if I just ate everything I wanted :eek: ) so I didn't try the pizza but, oh those onion rings!!!!! :evilsmile::hearteyes:

January 2018, South America Cruise.

 

Typical Princess food. Good, not great..about as good as it can be, when cooking for numbers on ships these days.

 

Disappointing steak in MDR.

Complained to Headwaiter who was most apologetic.

 

Certainly didn't starve. Always something, somewhere to take your fancy!

We were on the same cruise as XBGuy & Pam & we thought the dining room food was fine. We didn’t try the Prime Rib. I thought all the steaks were great . The soups might have been a little off, compared to past cruises on Princess. We were in the Club Class & many times had that extra entree that was offered. We had excellent service in the Club Class.

 

I will say one thing about the Share, that we tried for the 1st time, it was terrible. We wouldn’t go back , even if we were paid to go .

We had a group of 9 on the Emerald Princess from 5/9 to 5/13/18. We had two additional with us for the BVE and boarded at 11:45 am and were at the aft MDR at noon when it opened for lunch. The menu was limited, but the food was good and service was excellent. Before taking our order, I was able to book 9 for Share that night in the semi-private at 6:30 pm. Four of us had dined at Share last October on the Ruby Princess and wanted to dine there again with family and friends on the Emerald. We all enjoyed the food and service, including the 5 that had never been. We dined and talked for almost 3 hours. Share was maybe half utilized that embarkation night; quiet, private, and relaxed; perfect for us all on our first evening on the ship. Looking forward to Share again on our next cruise.

 

We all dined at Crown Grill our last night on the Emerald, food and service were good, but a step down from Share in our opinion.

 

We dined in the Da Vince MDR two nights at one large circular table for 9. It was nice, but I don’t think 10 would fit comfortably. Food was good to very good, except the steak from what I heard from the one person that ordered it. I heard the beef kabobs were good, but I didn’t order either. I figured it would be best to order steak from the Crown Grill, where I have before and enjoyed it. The hit was the Fettuccini Alfredo I ordered as a side and many tried it and ordered it as a side that night and again the next. I did not eat in the Buffet at all and most of the rest of our group did not either, so I can’t really comment on it.

 

All, but one in our group booked mini-suites. My wife and I were upgraded to Club Class, which was an unexpected surprise. Because were with others, we only had breakfast in the Club Class ding area twice. No wait, excellent service. Same items as the MDR menu plus one other table-side preparation item. Neither of us wanted the first option, don’t recall what it was now. The second breakfast, it was pancakes with Nutella and whipped cream, which I’ve never had. I decided to order it and found it tasty. Sorry, but i can’t comment on the Club Class dining for lunch and diner, but can see the benefit for those that want any time dining with no wait and an additional menu item choice. However, since we like to travel in groups and dine together, I don’t think we would ever pay for Club Class.

We were also on the Emerald May 9-13. Due to the size of our group and some of the elder folks mobility issues we had every meal in the MDR except port day in Victoria we ate pizza and burgers on the Lido.

4/8 of our group had never cruised before and they were wow’d by the food selection and quality and the amazing service. Those who do not know... do not miss the Parmesan bowl lol.

We all really enjoyed the food and the service. However after sailing on ships like NCL Getaway - the buffet leaves a lot to be desired. I found the HC to be very cramped. But not enough to make us cancel Sept cruise on the Crown. :)

Edited May 27, 2018 by tanyaewa