New Menus Debut on Coral Princess?

[Paula_MacFan]

People!!!! You are not going to be forced to order and/or consume said burger. Cruise prices seem to be holding pretty much steady (at least for the ones I research prior to booking), however, food and fuel prices are not. What do you expect to happen in that case? Cutting costs is a necessary evil to remain competitive in the cruise marketplace these days and to keep owners, as many of you are, happy. Maybe some of you have outgrown the mainstream lines and need to move up to luxury lines. Whats that you say??? You can't afford the luxury lines????? You know what they say about champange tastes on a beer budget. :D Some of you may bemoan the "good old days". Well that was then and now has taken over and is not inclined to allow then to return.:eek: That is reality and reality hurts sometimes. Well, off the soapbox and back to my other reality; working so I can afford the "inferior" food on Princess.;)

 

All that may be true, but I still think serving a burger in the MDR is a dumb idea. If people wanted a burger, they'd go to the grill! The buffet vs. MDR posts/arguments seem to center around 'I want to go to the MDR where it's more civilized/upscale and have something prepared to order for me'. I don't think of a burger in that category!

 

I've long been an advocate of the buffet vs. the MDR for the time it takes to get served and number of choices. This move by Princess just reinforces my thought that the MDR is a waste of my time, and I'll be dining in the Crown Grill and buffet primarily for my upcoming cruise.

[Griller]

All that may be true, but I still think serving a burger in the MDR is a dumb idea. If people wanted a burger, they'd go to the grill! The buffet vs. MDR posts/arguments seem to center around 'I want to go to the MDR where it's more civilized/upscale and have something prepared to order for me'. I don't think of a burger in that category!

 

I've long been an advocate of the buffet vs. the MDR for the time it takes to get served and number of choices. This move by Princess just reinforces my thought that the MDR is a waste of my time, and I'll be dining in the Crown Grill and buffet primarily for my upcoming cruise.

 

Buffet and Crown Grill sounds like a good plan to me. The upmarket lines are just too expensive to go on just for the sake of a decent dinner, while another $25 a day to go to the Crown Grill is minimal extra expense.

 

Mac 'n Cheese is 39c a packet at my supermarket! Probably not anything like as good as what Princess will be offering in the MDR but I can have it anytime at home, not as an alleged special meal on a cruise and getting dressed up for.

[KruzPrincess]

OMG! There were daily 2 menus and everyone acts like it's the worst thing that ever happened. It's mac & cheese with shrimp and scallops. I'm thinking that's more than 39 cents worth of food. I see classy mac & cheese with lobster being made on the food channel all the time. I suspect this is a response to that. I'd love mac & cheese with seafood if it's good. They generally have great pasta on Princess. Some people love a great burger. Sometimes I skip the MDR to have a burger because I'm tired of MDR food. Now, if my travel companions want something in the MDR I can still eat with them and have a burger. You can get burgers at fancy restaurants. I know one of my friends will be sad to see the beef medallions gone from the everyday menu, but I'm sure we all won't go hungry.

[cellyml12]

A lot of upscale places have burgers & mac & cheese on their menus. Maybe people who don't eat upscale at home, don't realize the food trends, so that's why they are complaining. I think it's a smart move for Princess to have choices that kids & teens will like. Just because it's on the menu, doesn't mean you have to order it.

[Doug R.]

OMG! There were daily 2 menus and everyone acts like it's the worst thing that ever happened. It's mac & cheese with shrimp and scallops. I'm thinking that's more than 39 cents worth of food. I see classy mac & cheese with lobster being made on the food channel all the time. I suspect this is a response to that. I'd love mac & cheese with seafood if it's good. They generally have great pasta on Princess. Some people love a great burger. Sometimes I skip the MDR to have a burger because I'm tired of MDR food. Now, if my travel companions want something in the MDR I can still eat with them and have a burger. You can get burgers at fancy restaurants. I know one of my friends will be sad to see the beef medallions gone from the everyday menu, but I'm sure we all won't go hungry.

 

There are some upscale dining establishments that serve Kobe beef burgers that cost upwards of $45. :eek: I have seen lobster mac and cheese priced $20 plus. I have not seen it with shrimp and/or scallops but some places may serve it. I just don't see the guys in the ship's kitchen defrosting Bubba Burgers or preparing boxes of Kraft Macaroni and Cheese with the orange colored cheese powder. Some folks should look around and see what is happening in the real world rather than looking down thier noses. Comfort food has been on trend, even in upscale restaurants.

[Griller]

A lot of upscale places have burgers & mac & cheese on their menus. Maybe people who don't eat upscale at home, don't realize the food trends, so that's why they are complaining. I think it's a smart move for Princess to have choices that kids & teens will like. Just because it's on the menu, doesn't mean you have to order it.

 

Its not so much what is new on the menu, you don't have to order it, its what will have been taken off to save cost and dumb down the whole used-to-be-excellent Princess dining experience.

 

No of course we don't eat upscale at home all the time, there just aren't enough hours in the day to spend the time preparing it and cooking, even if we had the culinary expertise.

 

It was great for kids and teens to come on a Princess cruise and realise there was more to life than burgers and eating with your hands.

[IECalCruiser]

The only real change to always available entrees is the substitution of beef medallions with ground sirloin burger and tri-tip. We tried the tri-tip last night and it was a pretty good cut of beef although only available medium well. The shrimp cocktail and Caesar salad are still there. The other apparent change to the always a available options is vanilla cream brûlée as a dessert option every night.

 

The Mac and Cheese is a "gourmet" version. It is more like any of the other Princess pasta options with a light cheese sauce with small scallops, bay shrimp and bacon. I had it as an entree that night and enjoyed it.

 

Of the five entrees on the new menus typically two were new and three were old. Princess knows what entrees were not popular and are trying new options for the unpopular old entrees.

 

We were only on the Coral for three days but it was nice to have some new options.

[Astro Flyer]

People!!!! You are not going to be forced to order and/or consume said burger. Cruise prices seem to be holding pretty much steady (at least for the ones I research prior to booking), however, food and fuel prices are not. What do you expect to happen in that case? Cutting costs is a necessary evil to remain competitive in the cruise marketplace these days and to keep owners, as many of you are, happy. Maybe some of you have outgrown the mainstream lines and need to move up to luxury lines. Whats that you say??? You can't afford the luxury lines????? You know what they say about champange tastes on a beer budget. :D Some of you may bemoan the "good old days". Well that was then and now has taken over and is not inclined to allow then to return.:eek: That is reality and reality hurts sometimes. Well, off the soapbox and back to my other reality; working so I can afford the "inferior" food on Princess.;)

I agree with you Doug & for those who want to continue to have an affordable cruise such changes are in evitable. There's a current thread showing prices for Princess cruises 35 years ago & guess what... the prices for the 3 & 4 day cruises from LA that begin next year are about the same price as in 1977! Does anyone truly believe that you could pay the same cost you did 35 years ago & get the same type of cruise??? :rolleyes:

 

It appears that these changes are in place so each of us have a choice to accept them or not. I think that similar changes will be made by all mass-market cruise lines as they struggle to keep costs low for their passengers. Things are changing and for those longing for the good old days they may consider a luxury cruise line at a luxury price. For anyone who wants the food and service depicted in the old Love Boat series I've been told that you can still get it on cruise lines such as Crystal.

 

I still see many things on the menu that I would enjoy eating so for me even with these changes Princess still provides me the best cruise for the price paid. It's been a long time since any cruise line that I can afford had 'gourmet' food which in my opinion has for sometime been generally more like good banquet food while serving thousands of meals daily.

[Paula_MacFan]

OMG! There were daily 2 menus and everyone acts like it's the worst thing that ever happened. It's mac & cheese with shrimp and scallops. I'm thinking that's more than 39 cents worth of food. I see classy mac & cheese with lobster being made on the food channel all the time. I suspect this is a response to that. I'd love mac & cheese with seafood if it's good. They generally have great pasta on Princess. Some people love a great burger. Sometimes I skip the MDR to have a burger because I'm tired of MDR food. Now, if my travel companions want something in the MDR I can still eat with them and have a burger. You can get burgers at fancy restaurants. I know one of my friends will be sad to see the beef medallions gone from the everyday menu, but I'm sure we all won't go hungry.

 

OMG! I can go to the buffet and serve myself mac 'n cheese with seafood! I don't need the MDR staff to do it for me in a supposed 'upscale' environment. That's MY complaint about the changes.....serving what I consider to be buffet-style food in the MDR (chili, meatloaf, mac ' cheese, etc).

[Astro Flyer]

The only real change to always available entrees is the substitution of beef medallions with ground sirloin burger and tri-tip. We tried the tri-tip last night and it was a pretty good cut of beef although only available medium well. The shrimp cocktail and Caesar salad are still there. The other apparent change to the always a available options is vanilla cream brûlée as a dessert option every night.

 

The Mac and Cheese is a "gourmet" version. It is more like any of the other Princess pasta options with a light cheese sauce with small scallops, bay shrimp and bacon. I had it as an entree that night and enjoyed it.

 

Of the five entrees on the new menus typically two were new and three were old. Princess knows what entrees were not popular and are trying new options for the unpopular old entrees.

 

We were only on the Coral for three days but it was nice to have some new options.

Thanks for sharing your experiences & I agree with you. Some have wanted the Fettuccine Alfredo in a crisp Parmesan basket without making a special request. I see it's now a standard anytime selection so they're trying to provide food passengers desire at a price most passengers can afford. With thousands of opinions on what type of food & how it's prepared it's impossible to have everyone happy all of the time. Even with the new menus there are enough choices that I would enjoy & I doubt if anyone will go hungry.

[mgcarnut]

We just got back from Alaska on the Island Princess on 9/12. We found the food in the MDR "OK" for the most part, with a few standouts (Fettucine Alfredo with Parmesan bowl, Love Boat Dream dessert, to name a couple).

 

I think the most difficult thing to accept is the dichotomy between the ambience in the MDR and the food quality. The atmosphere in the MDR is like a 5-star restaurant. You are attended to by a pair of waitpersons who are always smiling and ready to enhance your experience. Linen and china instead of vinyl placemats and paper plates. Two nights of formal dress where you all look like you are putting on the Ritz.

 

The look and feel of the MDR are what make the presence of "just OK" food hard to accept. Your eyes and ears are being fed a 5-star experience, but your palate is disappointed when it is not. Maybe if we were all eating in an MDR that reminded us of a land-based chain restaurant, the food would seem to taste better.

 

And I realize mine is a horrendously small and subjective sample size, but on our only other cruise (Celebrity Constellation, Panama Canal, 2010), we were very pleased by the quality of the food every night in the MDR with maybe only 1 or 2 items which turned out "just OK".

 

Cheers,

Paul

[Paula_MacFan]

We just got back from Alaska on the Island Princess on 9/12. We found the food in the MDR "OK" for the most part, with a few standouts (Fettucine Alfredo with Parmesan bowl, Love Boat Dream dessert, to name a couple).

 

I think the most difficult thing to accept is the dichotomy between the ambience in the MDR and the food quality. The atmosphere in the MDR is like a 5-star restaurant. You are attended to by a pair of waitpersons who are always smiling and ready to enhance your experience. Linen and china instead of vinyl placemats and paper plates. Two nights of formal dress where you all look like you are putting on the Ritz.

 

The look and feel of the MDR are what make the presence of "just OK" food hard to accept. Your eyes and ears are being fed a 5-star experience, but your palate is disappointed when it is not. Maybe if we were all eating in an MDR that reminded us of a land-based chain restaurant, the food would seem to taste better.

 

And I realize mine is a horrendously small and subjective sample size, but on our only other cruise (Celebrity Constellation, Panama Canal, 2010), we were very pleased by the quality of the food every night in the MDR with maybe only 1 or 2 items which turned out "just OK".

 

Cheers,

Paul

 

Very well said.

[brentlym]

Wow....we are a picky lot, aren't we? That said, I love Princess and the product that they offer. They offer a fabulous product at a very affordable price. While dining is a very important part of the cruise experience, they offer a variety of selections to satisfy several thousand people...many of which like different types of foods. We all have a choice to cruise or not to cruise....dining in the MDR, specialty restaurant, or the buffet. In addition to that, we have a choice to be happy and go-with-the-flow or not.

 

On my previous cruises, there was food that was over the top spectacular, and some that was completely inedible and would barely sustain life, so I chose another item. Most importantly, I chose to book 2 additional cruises on Princess. Hmmm....I might even ask for a plate of the ever treasured Beef Medallions even though they're not on the menu now. Clearly, they're spectacular considering all the complaints above. LOL:D

[caribill]

Some have wanted the Fettuccine Alfredo in a crisp Parmesan basket without making a special request. I see it's now a standard anytime selection so they're trying to provide food passengers desire at a price most passengers can afford.

 

It has been on the anytime selction list for years, no special requst needed.

[caribill]

It's not just the main entrees that have been suffering. Other items have been downgraded over the years, bit by bit.

 

Examples:

 

Breaksticks used to have seseme seeds on them. No longer.

 

Rolls used to include a selection of dark rolls. Now they rarely do.

 

The Love Boat Dream has deteriorated from a glorious experience to one that is hardly worth ordering anymore.

o It used to have a crunchy bottom, they switched to a soft cake bottom several years ago.

o It used to have a Lady Godiva chocolate with the Sea Witch emblem on it. They then switched to a hollow stick of chocolate and on my most recent cruise had eliminated even that.

o The chocolate filling used to be a heavenly rich mousse. It is now little more than chocolate pudding.

 

The baked Alaska used to be a hemisphere of delight with a thick meringue and various thicknesses of the three different flavors of ice cream, and you were served a nice sized piece of it. It is now looks like a sheet cake and the small portion has a very thin meringue and very uniform layers of the ice cream flavors.

 

What has been unique and fine dining is slowing becoming just a nice restaurant.

[kool kruiser]

Do they still offer other varieties of creme brulee duing the cruise?

 

 

Sorry for the delay in responding

On our seven nighter, no other varieties were offered.

[kool kruiser]

Based on our experience, the quality of the food offered was as good as on our other recent cruises. Sure, there have been cutbacks but there was no noticeable decline this time, so far as we were concerned. Still there, the wonderful twice-baked goats cheese souffle, french onion soup, veal marsala, seafood entrees, etc etc. Sure, things aint what they once were but the cruising world has changed. If you avoid some of the nickle and diming traps, Princess still, IMHO, offers great value.

[coo359a2]

My husband ordered fried chicken under the comfort food part of the menu on our British Isles cruise and what was brought to him was a joke..

 

I found that the chicken strips and fries offered on the children's menu are excellent. Had thought it might be the "fake" chicken but it was the real deal. I've also ordered the hamburger on the children's menu (good) to change up from what is on the regular MDR menu.

[coo359a2]

Thanks for sharing your experiences & I agree with you. Some have wanted the Fettuccine Alfredo in a crisp Parmesan basket without making a special request. I see it's now a standard anytime selection .

 

When DH ordered the Fettuccine as the main course, it always had the permesan basket. If he ordered it as an appetizer, it didn't have the parmesan basket. When a shrimp dish is on the menu, he likes to order the Fettuccine (main course size) and have shrimp added. I like to have grilled chicken strips added to mine.

[Pushka]

Can I just confirm? Macaroni and cheese and a burger are offered in the MDR on nights where we are told to dress formally?

[coo359a2]

Can I just confirm? Macaroni and cheese and a burger are offered in the MDR on nights where we are told to dress formally?

 

If they are on the always available menu, it should be. I've never seen where the always available menu changes for formal nights.

[azdmelani]

Isnt there a burger on the anytime menu in the MDR at lunch? I understand lunch is more casual then dinner, but it probably makes more financial sense to keep it on the menu for dinner than offering another cut of meat in addition to the rotating menu.

 

Not saying I agree, but to keep cruise prices competitive, they need to cut from somewhere.

[sunsetbeachgal]

Read through more of the posts and still trying to find out more specifics about the changes...was it a change to the Always Available menu? If so, what is gone and what were the items deleted replaced by?

 

Thank you!

[chrysalis]

Read through more of the posts and still trying to find out more specifics about the changes...was it a change to the Always Available menu? If so, what is gone and what were the items deleted replaced by?

 

Thank you!

 

Read the very first post again:)

[Infi]

Isnt there a burger on the anytime menu in the MDR at lunch? I understand lunch is more casual then dinner, but it probably makes more financial sense to keep it on the menu for dinner than offering another cut of meat in addition to the rotating menu.

 

Not saying I agree, but to keep cruise prices competitive, they need to cut from somewhere.

 

Yes, the burger is on the MDR menu at lunch.