Bad food on Silversea?

[duct tape]

I think you misinterpreted my comment. Occasionally SS ships hit a rough patch on food. I, a frequent floater, am the first to admit it. I have had multiple conversations with mgmt on those occasions. I just wanted to know which ship it was at the moment since I hope it won't be mine!

[TravelJane]

We just got off the Silver Shadow in Barbados on our first SS cruise. It was out 20th cruise, so we are experienced cruisers. I would say that there is plenty of good things to say about the food, but there was certainly room for improvement. Breakfast was fine in LaT where we ate all mornings after a very slow service issue in the Main restaurant. We were advised since we got there late in the service hours, around 9:15, they were really busy with room service! So, next day we did room service which arrived promptly with our food! The balance of the days we preferred LaT because of the view.

 

For lunch, we also ate there most days, and I found the variety of what I was interested in was a bit boring. Seems like it was the same selection of salads every day! I was not interested in a big, hot meal at lunch - but others were, and there appeared to be varying dishes daily. I can say that the soups and broths on the ship were excellent and probably my favorite of anything, by far! We dined once in LeT, but there again, the menu was pretty much the same nightly, so we did not return! For those pizza fans, the pizza on the buffet in LaT left me cold. I tried two different pieces one day just to see how they were. I took one bite of each and then went back for another cup of soup! The desserts there were excellent - especially the sugar free ones that were quite light.

 

We found dinner in the Restaurant to be our best choice, and there was a variety of good selections. We did order from the optional menu several times especially to get a baked potato and fresh steamed vegetables. I think that the very best dinner I had with meat was the night the roast beef was served. I ordered mine rare, and I got exactly what I ordered! Our server, Mr. Wang, whose tables are at the back of the Restaurant, was our waiter of choice after getting him on our first night. We asked for him every time we returned; and he and his assistant, who has a great sense of humor, took great care of us and learned what our preference were. I am strange in that I like lots of lemon with everything and my husband got his special order of mashed potatoes once he discovered them on the special menu! If you are on the Shadow, I would suggest asking for him. You can let them know his "southern" friends recommended his table.

 

I did discover that if you see something on the main menu that you like, but you have a reservation for that evening in LaT, you can arrange with the maitre d' to get it there. I did that one night to get an appetizer I wanted, and it was delivered!

 

Since we have not cruised on SS before, I can't address any of the differences in things such as wines, but I can make this comment on the comp wines. We did like the fact that there was a different red and white wine offered every night in the Restaurant. I don't think they repeated the wine offerings at any time during our cruise. We thought it was a nice idea and a bit like having a wine tasting with your dinner.

[wripro]

What I do regarding wine is speak with whoever is in charge and find out what they have aboard. If I find a white or red I particularly like I'll request it. I have never found the quality of the wines uniform so a bit of research pays off.

 

As for quality of food declining I have to say I find it more of a roller coaster than a steady decline. I have had great food, terrible food and good food. Mostly, I think they try hard. It's very possible their budgets have been cut and it's reflected in the menus. Certainly over the course of 15 years there is a difference. If you fly first class across the Atlantic or Pacific nowadays it's not the same either.

[lisa and david]

While we haven't cruised on Silversea in a year, we found the food fabulous and we are true foodies. We were concerned about the complimentary wine selection, but the wines were terrific as well. We found the Regent food to be really poor and boring, with very few selections, as well as the Regent service. For example, Regent served lamb chops EVERY day--they even featured them at BREAKFAST as a special! And I am not kidding. In fact, breakfast was the same almost every day. Silversea had variety and great preparation. That being said, it really depends on the chef on your cruise...the menus and recipes are standard, but the chef tastes the food and adds his/her own flair.

[SantaAna,CA]

I'm just finishing up a 9 day Caribbean cruise on the Silver Shadow. This was my first Silversea cruise, as I have sailed Seabourn several times before. The food in the restaurant on the Shadow can't hold a candle to Seabourn. The Shadow has been disappointing in that regard. I had dinner one night in La Terraza. The appetizer and the pasta were very good, the halibut was so dry I had to beg for some tartar sauce, which didn't help. I am trying Le Champagne tonight.

 

I don't come on cruises for the food, but being used to both the elegance of presentation and the incredible quality of Seabourn's menus, I would give Seabourn higher marks, hands down.

 

Plenty of other things to like about the Shadow. I'll put up a review on CC when I get home.

 

Jane

[oregon50]

Can't wait for your total review. Is this the second or third time you have posted while on your cruise and repeated the food story?

 

The general consensus is that SB beats SS for food. No reason to dwell upon it here. I think the entire food and beverage department is superior on SB.

[SantaAna,CA]

Yes, I posted on the other Shadow thread and then on this one, since both were talking about the food on Silversea, thank you for asking.

 

I appreciate your saying you are looking forward to my review. I'll have it up as soon as I can.

[meow!]

In Silversea's e-mail we found this sentence (copied and pasted):

 

SLOW FOOD

A new dining experience made with fresh, locally grown and sustainable foods so that principles and pleasure can dine together

 

Slow food may not be bad food, it can be good food. We just hope it won't be too slow, some people get edgy after having to sit and wait for hours .. meow! Perhaps the word "slow" has a different meaning here .. meow!

[unfathomable]

SLOW FOOD

...surely the opposite of fast food?

[dwelsh]

The new review just posted by SantaAna seems to reiterate the reports of the food "problem." I guess food is a very subjective subject, what is great to one is "garbage" to another.

Perhaps SantaAna, you could give a little better detail for your review in that area. Glad that you enjoyed the cruise so much otherwise.

[SantaAna,CA]

Well, let me see if I can be a bit more specific. About half the time I didn't like whatever was put in front of me. For example, in La Terraza, they would have a pasta dish that was incredibly good, followed by a piece of halibut so dry I begged for tartar sauce so I could eat it.

 

In Le Champagne, they had lamb that was very good, followed by the weirdest concoction I've ever tasted (one spoonful was too much); a blob of roquefort or bleu cheese on a "bed" of prune jelly served in a champagne glass. Horrid.

 

Some of the desserts I took one bite off and pushed aside. It was like that for the entire cruise. Some things were fine, some inedible.

 

Didn't stop me from re-booking Silversea. I found things to eat and I like the line. My reflections came mostly from my experience on Seabourn, where the food was delightful.

 

This is not a comment in your direction, but to the inevitable grousing by others....please allow me to have my opinion. Thank you.

 

Jane

[jerblu]

I sure hope things improve by the time I embark. I've been sailing with Crystal the last few years and I've never had "inedible" food. I think I'd rather pay for my booze and dine well, than have dry halibut and free wine.

[MuseCruiser]

A confirmed foodie, I have been on about a dozen SS cruises, 3 or 4 Seabourn cruises, probably 3 or so Regent cruises, once on SeaDream, and several cruises on Cunard ships (Grill category).

 

The quality of the food, IMHO, on SS, SB and Regent is more similar than it is different. I would give a decided nod to Silversea for best quality and consistency overall. Seabourn second, Regent third and the rest after that.

 

That said, even more than on land, I find food at sea (on any of these ships) to be up and down, depending on the chef at the time. I've had some outstanding meals on each one of these vessels and some shocking flops. On one cruise, the food on Seabourn was terrible--bland and not properly prepared. On another Silversea cruise, the chef was not up to the quality one would expect from Silversea. I've had some real highs and some real disappointments on each of these lines. Regent, in my experience, is more consistent but at a slightly lower level than SS or SB.

 

I bet if I were to construct a "mean rating" of food experiences on these lines reflecting just my experience and satisfaction, they'd come out in the order of SS, SB (just a tad lower) and Regent about a notch lower. But they're still, generally, all quite fine and appealing. As I say above, that said, I can describe major exceptions for each line. One really can't take a single cruise and generalize to the line as a whole.

 

Just like a restaurant on land--if the chef changes, the food (and customer's satisfaction) may change. Its impossible for ANY line to guarantee each chef will be as good as the ones before her or him. There's always a miss here and there. But the trend, to me, is what is most important.

 

PS As to the fear above of "inedible food"--that's an experience I've never encountered on SS. On the occasions when I have not been happy, I have asked the staff to return the dish to the kitchen, and give me a different choice. On one cruise (the 'late' Seabourn Sun) the food was quite unsatisfactory. On that occasion, we did a lot of special ordering (ordering our wishes the day before) and found that to help things considerably, as the meal was prepared for the 2 of us and not for a hundred or so people.

[WesW]

MuseCruiser, very thoughtful/experienced based post..thanks for sharing.

[dwelsh]

A good debate on the subject. Thanks everyone for the input.

 

In our experience, which does not include SB or Crystal but does cover many lines over many years, we have found that on all of the lines, when a dish was not up to our liking, it was very simple to advise the server and order something else, more to our taste. The quality of the line, IMHO, is how the complaint is handled, how speedily and with what kind of attitude.

We have been fortunate to spend many weeks with Oceania and have been 100% delighted with their food and service. We look forward to our SS experience with great excitement and with positive thoughts about the cuisine which we will experience.

[SantaAna,CA]

I find myself puzzled at the way this thread is going. This is not meant as a debate. I answered dwelsh's question based on my experience on Silver Shadow, as opposed to four previous Seabourn cruises.

 

What someone else experiences is their opinion. Is does not negate what I have to say, and what I have to say does not negate another's experience. This is, after all, a message board where we can share our findings of a particular cruise line, positive and negative.

 

Interesting so much has been said about Silversea with regard to food. With those who may care.....keep it in mind.

[dwelsh]

The original post on this subject questioned the several reviews which criticized food and service abord SS.

 

Quote> We are considering Silversea's new Silver Spirit cruise in May from Southampton to Barcelona. In reading various blogs and Cruise Critic it seems as though there are a LOT of complaints about the food and dining room service on Silversea.

 

SantaAna's observations were, I do not perceive, negated by any of the posts. On such a subject the boards, IMHO, do provide an opportunity to debate the subjects presented by the posters.

[Jaffa]

Yes, I agree.

 

From time to time food discusions should come up. It is very difficult for the lux cruise lines to keep things 100% all the time, for all people. These types of disscusions help keep the lines at the top of their game.

Personally, as a long time SS cruiser l have always found the food to be excellent, but once in a blue moon l send something back because it has cooled to much and l like my mains hot.

The only time l have ever got sick on a cruise, was on the Seabourn Pride in late 2007 from fresh Seafood, but a big bunch of us were affected so a bad batch can happen even on the lux lines. I still like Seabourn though! enough to send my parents on the Legend last year.

 

You are right SantaAna,CA you do need to keep these things in mind.

 

It is interesting to me also that Seabourn Odyessy is continuing to recieve very mixed reviews from quite a number of the regulars re food (served cold, late, uncooked ect) as well as poor food service. So going to a bigger ship can have it's downsides as well. I am hoping Silversea's greater experience with larger ships will see these issues not pop up to this degree on the Spirit, but time will tell.

 

I think the golden rule should be, if you don't like the dish ask for it to be replaced. My experience is both Seabourn and Silversea don't have a problem with this and are happy to accomodate. They really do, want you to be happy.

 

The other point l wish to make is that the negative Silversea food posts on this thread seem to be made by the same small group of posters again and again and again.

 

Its nice to know that only such a small amount of people have an issue, when its seems the vast majority are very satisfied.

 

You cannot please all the people all the time.

[Emtbsam]

In 2006, we were on the Cloud. The F & B manager was Heinz Santner, and the Exec. Chef was Paul Oppenkamp. While the caviar was free flowing, the food was probably 8/10 - nothing memorable. In 2008, we were on the Shadow for two cruises. The F & B manager was Heinz Santner and the Executive Chef was Carsten Lang both times. The food was 10/10 - everything was fabulous. In 2009, we were on the Shadow again for two cruises. The F & B manager was Lester Woodfall and the Executive Chef was Ricardo Dotti for both cruises. This time the food was 9/10 - slightly less special. In other words, the food was quite good on each voyage, but the 2008 voyages stand out. Could it be that we were so spoiled in 2008 that we had unrealistic expectations or had become blasé? One thing that we preferred on the 2006 and 2008 voyages was that they listed the items that you could order "off menu", while in 2009, you had to know to ask for them. I do believe that the Executive Chef does make a difference, and we hope to sail with Carsten Lang on one of our cruises in 2010.

 

There will always be items that you order but that do not turn out the way you anticipated. Conversely, there will always be the wonderful surprises. Who would have thought that a white pizza in La Terrazza in 2008 would be the best pizza I've ever eaten? The ossobuco is to die for. The filet with any of the sauces is fabulous. The desserts were probably the best in 2008, but we had a standing order for chocolate creme brulee in 2009, so we were quite happy. As others have said, if you want something special, ask for it. They will try very hard to accommodate you even if it means serving one of the geese stored in the larder for Christmas,two weeks before they were planning on serving it!

 

Food is a very personal experience. IMHO, Silversea tries very hard to please its passengers and succeeds most of the time. I wish I could say that I did half that well at home.

[SantaAna,CA]

I seem to have ruffled feathers with my experience of the Shadow's food. Anything I ever post on CC is for the benefit of people who want to know the positives and negatives of particular line, it's meant to be helpful. As it's seemed to have an irritating effect, it won't be happening again.

[MuseCruiser]

SantaAna--I think you have misconstrued people's reactions. Your viewpoint is very interesting and helpful. Its a datapoint, so to speak, as are the other reactions that have been posted (including my post, for instance). Just because the reactions are different doesn't mean people don't appreciate your viewpoint. If there is a problem on a ship, its good to know about it and I, for one, appreciate your posting about it. No ruffled feathers on my end. My only exception is when people, then, jump to a conclusion that the food is "inedible" and get worried about their own upcoming reservation. They need to have as many datapoints as they can to make a good decision and have a good appraisal.

 

I think you're taking this too personally. Just my $.02.

[Emtbsam]

I seem to have ruffled feathers with my experience of the Shadow's food. Anything I ever post on CC is for the benefit of people who want to know the positives and negatives of particular line, it's meant to be helpful. As it's seemed to have an irritating effect, it won't be happening again.

I agree with MuseCruiser - no ruffled feathers here. I appreciate hearing about your experience. If anyone from SS is watching, it might help improve things.

 

Please keep on posting.

[meow!]

Who would have thought that a white pizza in La Terrazza in 2008 would be the best pizza I've ever eaten? .

Thinking about pizzas suddenly reminded us of the best pizza we had, in the Westin Melbourne, it was full of chunks of lobster, huge sea scallops, clams, etc., not the usual pizza .. yummy .. meow! In fact, we seldom eat pizza (it may be too "rich"), just the occasional time.

[ging466]

Thinking about pizzas suddenly reminded us of the best pizza we had, in the Westin Melbourne, it was full of chunks of lobster, huge sea scallops, clams, etc., not the usual pizza .. yummy .. meow! In fact, we seldom eat pizza (it may be too "rich"), just the occasional time.

 

Of course, Aussies make awesome "gourmet" pizza!:D:D

 

Cheers

ging466

[meow!]

The next time you go to Melbourne, you should go to the Westin, and order "sea scallop pizza" at the hotel's restaurant. It was only A$15 in March, 2001. We watched the "Annie" musical right across the street at the Regent Theatre (it was much more "accessible" for the non-athletic than the Opera House in Sydney).

 

By the way, while in Sydney for a week, an Oriental taxi driver took us to "Chinatown" to this "Golden Tong" (?) restaurant to try different food. It had perhaps two dozen water tanks holding all imaginable sea creatures presumed to be edible. We even tried "abalone" (taken out from a shell). Living in Sydney, you must have tried them too!