When in port, do you try a local restaurant or eat on ship for lunch?

[josie724]

AHHH he's a Pulp Fiction fan I see . *LOL*

 

My son, 23, would do the same thing.

 

 

We love trying the local fare of the various ports . Especially the out of the way places that the locals go to. Even at home when we go into NYC , we like to find these little places . Some of them are very tiny and might have about 10 -15 tables in them, but the food is excellent.

 

 

Why yes he is.....funny. He loves ANYTHING Quentin Tarantino. :D

And yes, you are ABSOLUTELY right.....why go to Applebees when there are soooo many GREAT restaurants in NYC.....smh

[GeriatricNurse]

When you seasoned cruisers are in port, do you go back or stay on the ship for lunch or do you like to sample the local flavor of the restaurants in that port?

 

I return to the ship for lunch because the Lido always offers an excellent selection, the food is included in your fare & there are far less cruisers onboard making it less congested! :);)

 

[magandab]

We eat in port whenever possible, and have had some absolutely wonderful and memorable meals. The fish and chips at a small shack on the pier in Ketchikan is something we still remember and talk about to this day, and that was 7 years ago. It was raining when we were to return to the ship in Guernsey so we ducked into a local cafe for lunch. The lobster salad was another "still talk about it" meal even though we had no idea what it was going to cost and once we tasted it, we didn't care. We have made it a point to sample the ice cream everywhere we go to find the world's best (so far, Sweden is winning).

 

As for McDonald's, I make it a point to find the nearest one wherever I travel. Not to eat, but because they always have clean, free, restrooms. I figure I paid for my use of them with all the times over the years I bought food at Micky D's and DIDN'T use the bathroom!

[igraf]

My thoughts exactly.

 

The truth is that very few restaurants offer the quality and variety that is available on a HAL ship, even less likely at the touristy places near the pier. Also, I personally witnessed a scam where a restaurant down in Baja (right at a HAL tour stop) will rip off cruise people by offering an off the menu "special" with no price. Afterwards, the unsuspecting diners are presenting with a bill that makes NYC fine dining seem inexpensive by comparison.

 

igraf

 

 

 

 

 

We usually have a good breakfast on board, so we're just looking for a snack lunch. We look for a bar that has a local brew and that's lunch.

[sparky-elpaso]

No it is NOT a dumb question. If someone is rude to you, ignore him and he'll go back under his bridge. Or use the triangle button and the mods might shove him back under his bridge.

 

It's interesting to see what people prefer to do. No right or wrong answer, just different opinions.

 

I don't go to fast food places at home, so I would never go to McD's on vacation. But I can understand wanting that touch of home. When we were on QM2 around Australia, I was going crazy for lack of cookies. They had lovely desserts at the buffet, but sometimes all I want for dessert at lunch is a cookie. So I went to a supermarket in port, intending to buy chocolate chip cookies from the bakery department. I decided to take a quick look at the packaged cookies and there were OREOS!!! I don't eat oreos at home. Dont' dislike them, just don't bother with them. But wow, it was a bit of home halfway around the world! (even if they were made in China)

 

Great food pics, Sparky! I took photos of my lobstah roll when we were in Bah Hahbah.

 

Thanks. Did you try TimTams in Australia - I wish I'd had more room to bring back more than 1 package. We actually did go to McD's once - at the airport in Sydney before our flight home. It was just quicker than a restaurant.

[Krazy Kruizers]

I all depends on whether we have an excursion and what time that excursion is.

 

We do like to eat off the ship once in a while.

[cruisemom42]

I enjoy eating locally when I travel, but it's difficult to do so on cruises. Keeping in mind that most of my cruises now are in Europe, one has such limited time to see and do as much as possible in any given port (which may not be close to where the ship docks).

 

While I'd love to indulge in a nice lunch ashore, all too often I don't wish to give up the time. So I grab something quick (a panino, a gyro, kebap, whatever......not a McDonald's). On land tours I may also do this, but I'm able to enjoy a nice local dinner. Unfortunately, that's rarely possible on a port stop, as the ship generally sails prior to dinner time.

 

(Still trying to get over the comment about 5-star cuisine on board....;)).

[Typhoon1]

We avoid local restaurants. I am not about to jeopardize my trip due to food born illness.

 

We feel food on the ship is much safer.

[3rdGenCunarder]

We avoid local restaurants. I am not about to jeopardize my trip due to food born illness.

 

We feel food on the ship is much safer.

 

That depends a lot on the port. Most of the places we've sailed to have been in Europe, Canada, US, Bermuda, where a cup of coffee or a beer don't seem scary.

[Typhoon1]

That depends a lot on the port. Most of the places we've sailed to have been in Europe, Canada, US, Bermuda, where a cup of coffee or a beer don't seem scary.

 

Mexico and the Caribbean are pretty scary.

[kyriecat]

I love to try local foods. I grew up in SE Texas - we'll eat just about anything that we can catch.

 

My husband and I will try to at least grab a local snack when we are in port. If it's a port we've visited before and aren't concerned about missing some sightseeing time, we'll have a sit-down meal, preferrably somewhere that we can people watch. We had some fabulous shrimp on the beach in Aruba during sunset, pizza in Pisa with a view of the leaning tower, reindeer brats in Stika while watching the salmon run, and some wonderful lobster pasta next to the Rialto Bridge in Venice. I had iguana stew in Curacao, although I don't really recommend it - very stringy meat.

 

I guess I've been very lucky because I have never had food poisoning, despite some of my interesting culinary experiences. My husband says because I put cayenne and/or Rooster sauce on almost everything that my stomach can handle anything. Oddly enough, the only time my husband had food poisoning was from eating onboard the ship in Alaska. He got salmonella. We know he caught it onboard because he wasn't the only incident. The common denominator seemed to be the eggs used for omelettes.

[Boytjie]

We avoid local restaurants. I am not about to jeopardize my trip due to food born illness.

 

We feel food on the ship is much safer.

 

Until noro strikes! :D

[bepsf]

I've had some of my best lunches while in Port:

Cuzzins in Charlotte Amalie

A cute little sidewalk cafe in Stavanger, Norway where we had the most delicious Fish Stew!

The terrace of the Sandy Lane on Barbados

A great little upstairs cafe overlooking the old port in Grenada

The sidewalk cafes overlooking the swinging bridge at Curacao

That cafe overlooking the pier on Bonaire where I had some tasty Iguana Stew (Tastes like chicken w/ lots of bones)

Barrachina in Old San Juan (Where they invented the Pina Colada)

A great little tea house in Scotland - Best Scones I've ever had!

Burgers at the Bayview Cafe in Sitka after a nice hike through the Totem Pole Park, watching the rain come down...

...and the Taco Bell on Aruba :D

[3rdGenCunarder]

Mexico and the Caribbean are pretty scary.

 

Yes, I agree. Stick to the beer. The alcohol kills the bacteria. :D

[geocruiser]

We only eat onboard the ship.

[RedmondCruiser]

We have done several PC cruises and always go to lunch in Puerto Vallarta at Las Palomas. Best Mexican food to be found. In Amador I always stop at the Bucaneer for sea food. We still have to find the right restaurant in San Juan -- we like spicy. We normally always eat ashore.

[bepsf]

We avoid local restaurants. I am not about to jeopardize my trip due to food born illness.

 

We feel food on the ship is much safer.

 

Holding myself back...

;):D:eek:

[Boytjie]

Holding myself back...

;):D:eek:

 

Oh why? Take a whack at it! :D

[igraf]

Norrovirus largely comes from contact surfaces shared by fellow passengers (serving utensils, salt shakers). The food as prepared is most likely fine.

 

Besides, where do you think the virus/germs come from? Probably from a passenger who patronized a questionable street food vendor!!

 

igraf

 

 

 

 

Oh why? Take a whack at it! :D

[jtl513]

On shore whenever possible!

 

Probably from a passenger who patronized a questionable street food vendor!

Or more likely from an infected passenger from another ship in port.

[Boytjie]

Norrovirus largely comes from contact surfaces shared by fellow passengers (serving utensils, salt shakers). The food as prepared is most likely fine.

 

Besides, where do you think the virus/germs come from? Probably from a passenger who patronized a questionable street food vendor!!

 

igraf

 

Really, you could trace it back to a street food vendor? :rolleyes:

[sail7seas]

I've had some of my best lunches while in Port:

 

Cuzzins in Charlotte Amalie

A cute little sidewalk cafe in Stavanger, Norway where we had the most delicious Fish Stew!

The terrace of the Sandy Lane on Barbados

A great little upstairs cafe overlooking the old port in Grenada

The sidewalk cafes overlooking the swinging bridge at Curacao

That cafe overlooking the pier on Bonaire where I had some tasty Iguana Stew (Tastes like chicken w/ lots of bones)

Barrachina in Old San Juan (Where they invented the Pina Colada)

A great little tea house in Scotland - Best Scones I've ever had!

Burgers at the Bayview Cafe in Sitka after a nice hike through the Totem Pole Park, watching the rain come down...

...and the Taco Bell on Aruba :D

 

 

We, too, have enjoyed a few lunches at that cafe in Bonaire and we love lunch and/or dinner ashore in Curacao. Some of our most memorable, wonderful evenings have been spent eating in Curacao.

 

Flying Fishbone in Aruba is a memory for a lifetime. What an evening we spent dining at tables placed right on the beach three feet from the water line. We were told to wear sandals or flipflops so we could dig our feet in the sand while we had the most elegant, beautiful meal with dear friends.

 

[bepsf]

Oh why? Take a whack at it! :D

 

I would - but the moderators probably wouldn't appreciate it...

...and I'm sure you guys already know what I was thinking.

:p

[bepsf]

Flying Fishbone in Aruba is a memory for a lifetime. What an evening we spent dining at tables placed right on the beach three feet from the water line. We were told to wear sandals or flipflops so we could dig our feet in the sand while we had the most elegant, beautiful meal with dear friends.

 

That sounds delightful - Will have to remember that for our stop there this winter!

[cruiseapril]

We usually have a good sized breakfast, go on a morning excursion, go back to the ship to eat and change, and go back to port to explore and have a drink and a local snack.

 

An Amstel beer at Fort Nassau in Curacao and a rum punch at Gilligan's at Palm Beach in Aruba come to mind. For us, it's more the setting than the food.