Buffet etiquette?

[vasoccerchick]

What IS expected at buffets? We don't eat at them around here (can't even think of a restaurant that has them here except CiCi's pizza). On vacation, we sometimes do (WDW, for example, but prefer not to - I want to sit and rest).

 

I know you have to get clean plates and cups each trip. What about line standing/cutting? What is okay? What is over the line? Not that anyone can do much about it, but the trip did make me wonder if I was in LaLa land about expectations. Maybe it really is an every man or woman for himself norm.

 

We cruised in August and passenger behavior at the breakfast and lunch buffets (and MDR for breakfat) was the only "negative" I experienced during the whole trip. And the "offenders" were ALWAYS middle aged women, not kids, not folks from other countries where queues are done differently.

 

Anyway, we never experienced particularly long buffet lines, but these women would always be doing something that I thought was odd/inconvenient and often, just plain rude. The worst was going down (up?) the line backwards, i.e. starting where most people finished. They would park themselves on the line and not move until more bacon came out. So this caused a short line to get long very quickly. This one really didn't make sense since they could have walked to another line and gotten their bacon faster. The most common one was they would cut in front of you "I need to get a little more...", and a few times they'd walk up and between the line to try to return a bagel or piece of bread to get it toasted a little more. Then, on several occasions, they would speak so rudely to the workers that it was appalling. The world won't end if you have to wait for bacon. No, the workers aren't idiots or stupid because your toast isn't exactly what you want.

 

I understand needing to get silverware and asking the line if you can reach in and get some. I don't understand the entitlement of the rest. There's a line for a reason.

 

So, what ARE the do's and don'ts of buffets?

[AWCHIEF]

Use common sense and show the same coutesy to others that you would want shown to you.

[Room Service!]

Common courtesy. You wait in line, but if someone ahead of you is waiting for something you are not interested in I think it's alright to go around them, or you will create quite a backup. No reaching past someone, etc.

[livestocruisetoo]

Use common sense and show the same coutesy to others that you would want shown to you.

 

This usually works the best but sometimes when someone says "I just need to get a little more." you can just look them up and down and ask "Are you sure sure?".

[Name Of The Game]

I like the ships that have the salad bar separate. The line gets held up too long with people taking ten minutes to make the perfect salad and it's annoying waiting for them when you only want hot food.

[MSRussell]

I always ask if it's ok to go around a lookie-loo on the buffet line.

When I need to get some salad dressing, I ask if it is all right if I take a second and put some on my salad.

 

[Antloe]

Well To avoid the Breakfast barbarians all together. Have breakfast early if your an early riser. 7am to be exact. Nice and relaxing no lines no bull. and you can get a seat outside aft if your not taking your food to your balcony. As far as lunch goes, Port days shouldnt be to bad as compared to day at sea. 1-2pm for lido burger (15 min wait). If your really worried though about line skippers you gotta play a little buffett defense. Grab your tray, one hand on each side of tray, and stay tight to the person in front of ya . Kinda like driving if theres no space to merge then they cant merge. lol.. Only people I let through are milk grabbers.

[Duanerice1]

Instead of cutting in line, is it OK to just take stuff off of someone else's tray? I wouldn't be cutting, just walking down the line taking a little bit from each persons tray :)

enjoy,

Duane

[Room Service!]

Why not just offer to carry someone's full tray to a table for them? ;)

[Name Of The Game]

What trays? Didn't they do away with them?

[floridabum]

I hate buffets but sometimes you have to do what the others in your party want. #1 thing you should not do, for your own good and for the good of others, use your napkin to wipe your hands and fingers instead of licking them clean!

I can not count how many times I have witnessed the licking of fingers routine and then the person walks back to the buffet line and starts touching utensils. :eek: YUK!!!!

[kicia]

Yes the trays are gone. I always seem to miss the butter/cream cheese on my first pass through and have to go back and slip through the line to get them. I don't think it's wrong to reach in and grab something but not to stay and make a salad for instance.

[Antloe]

Trays gone? really? since when? damm its been a while or I just never noticed.

[Room Service!]

I think I did read that the trays were gone. Domething about bigger plates. Bigger plates. Is that really a good idea?

[okwriter]

It's much easier to just eat breakfast in the dining room. :)

 

Lunch, too, when it's open.

[zqvol]

What trays? Didn't they do away with them?

 

They were available on Fantasy the last week of July. I can't speak for other ships.

[vasoccerchick]

Use common sense and show the same coutesy to others that you would want shown to you.

 

Yeah, that makes sense to people WITH some common sense...

 

Trays gone? really? since when? damm its been a while or I just never noticed.

 

There were trays on the Pride Aug. 7-14...

 

There were rarely lines when we went. In my OP, I mentioned not getting the whole standing there, blocking the lines to wait for bacon. These women were camped out and mean about it. You could easily walk over to the other line and get some without waiting. That's why I was so surprised when the line stopped moving. Of course, they blocked the line so you couldn't get to the stuff close to the bacon either...I just don't get that mentality, esp. from grown women.

[zqvol]

Manners and etiquette do not exist on Carnival ships. It is all for one and one for all at the feeding troughs and at the shows and whenever entering or leaving the ship.

[vasoccerchick]

It's much easier to just eat breakfast in the dining room. :)

 

Lunch, too, when it's open.

 

 

We tried that, and no, it wasn't. Took FOREVER! Our b'fast in the MDR was the worst dining experience we had.

[Sauer-kraut]

I am of the opinion that I don't want to stand in line if all I want is something from the middle. I like to wander the buffet first and see what I want and then go get my plate and take the items quickly and get out of the way. I noticed on my last CCL cruise that the line was constant, everyone just standing and being slow. I don't understand why people can't just wander and get what they want. I like to start with a salad, go and eat that and then go back for the main entree, but with the way people were standing in line I would have to start again from then end of the line.

Then the buffet line was mixing in with the line for the asian station and made for some irritation. Just go, look around, pop in and out and let the line move more quickly. It isn't high school where the selection was limited to 3 items, sheesh people MOVE YOUR POSTERIORS!!!

[joepeka]

Trays gone? really? since when? damm its been a while or I just never noticed.

They are phasing out the cafeteria style trays and replacing the plates with a much larger variety. JH posted a couple of photos on FB (the photos aren't very large... sorry):

 

 

[Name Of The Game]

Larger plates don't make up for the lack of trays (on the ships that don't have trays). Without a tray all you can manage is the plate. You can't bring soup/drinks back to the table at the same time. Plus the plates are always burning HOT!:mad:

[joepeka]

Larger plates don't make up for the lack of trays (on the ships that don't have trays). Without a tray all you can manage is the plate. You can't bring soup/drinks back to the table at the same time. Plus the plates are always burning HOT!:mad:

That is true.... the trays did allow you to put your drink, silverware, etc. on them and make one trip. However, in eliminating the trays, CCL can reduce the amount of stuff they have to wash and lower their costs... which we hope translates into continued lower cruise rates. :)

[luddite]

I always thought the only buffet etiquette rule was to wipe your finger on your underwear after picking your nose.

Are there more rules than that? :eek:

[RWolver672]

In my opinion, what makes the buffet line so bad is the way it's laid out. They have the milk and cream cheese at the beginning of the line. If you have no intention of getting a bagel or cereal, you don't take any. They if you do decide to take some, you are already past the milk and cream cheese. On the Dream, they had the jellies, peanut butter and pancake syrup in large containers at the end of the line. Instead of just grabbing an individual container, you had to put your tray down, and scoop some out. That seemed to be the big hold-up whenever we ate breakfast at the buffet.

 

If the line is moving, I will wait for the person in front of me. If they stop and wait for something, I will go around them. I have no problem with someone stepping in front of me to grab something they forgot as long as they ask politely. Starting in front of me is not welcomed.