American Table/ American Feast

[mikem5]

Has anyone been on the ships that are trying the American table and American feast yet? If so, how do you like it? Do you like the it or do you like the traditional dining menus better? Also, does anyone know when it will be going fleet wide? Leaving in July and I'm pretty sure I want the traditional way, unless I get coaxed towards the American feast/table with great reviews from everyone.

[rubysmom]

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Old Today, 08:27 AM

rubysmom rubysmom is online now

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We just got back from a week on the Glory and to tell you the truth the new menu and service was not all that great... we sailed on the Victory last year and the food and service was OUTSTANDING.....so of course we thought this year it would be the same....it wasn't......even the buffet was not very good...in my opinion....we are not picky eaters by any means but by the end of the cruise I was wishing I knew what was on the menu before we even trekked down to the dining room because between the service which was bad and the food ....well just say it was ok....I would have been more satified with a Guy's Burger a few nights..On the other hand...the elegant nights were fantastic.....the lobster and prime rib were perfect......one of the nights..we both ordered steak.....it was tendons and fat...I ate what I could but my husband was able to grab a server and order Another choice for dinner....which never came.....He left the table to gamble!!!! The wait staff that we had was confused bewildered over taxed, arguing amongst themselves...I don't know ....but there was a WORLD of difference between last and this year....we are planning on another cruise next year and am hoping they get whatever is wrong fixed by then.....maybe it was just an off week......we cruise for the fun and ports and food isn't the main reason (it helps!!!) but we just really noticed a difference from one year to the next.......am really wondering how others feel on this......was just getting ready to post a thread when I saw this one... am curious about others experiences.......!!!!

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[rubysmom]

Just posted this in a diff thread......did nit enjoy it as much as regular dining....

[mikem5]

Yeah me too! I'm not sure of the new menus but I'm pretty sure that they started early this month, so maybe that's the cause of all the confusion. I was on glory last year and it was perfect like always. I wish they just stayed with the old menus with the everyday items and the today's special items. Was it like that or is every day the whole menu the same or is it always different? I'm sorry you had a bad experience. I hope yours next year it better for you!

[rubysmom]

The Glory started in December

...saw a review from stevea20...a cc member that he posted in December from the Glory...it is a perfect review of the food......same way I felt.....he said hes picky tho...we ARE NOT...but he tells it like it is too....EXACTLY....check it out in the review section...or I can try to cut and paste here..

[rubysmom]

http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=246078

[rubysmom]

Did it....the menu is different every day...its confusing and just didn't warm up to it...

[mikem5]

Thank you rubysmom!!!

[mikem5]

Wow sounds awful. Hopefully they don't stick with it, when I first read about it, it was only for a few select ships as a test.

If a success the rest of the fleet would be getting it mid-late 2014. (Hopefully after July). But I hope they just end it. From what I heard I don't want it.

[Terre]

They had them on the Liberty a couple of weeks ago. The foods is good, but I don't like the menus and the choices. Three of my favorite desserts are no longer offered...may just be me, but I didn't much on the menus I wanted. That being said, I didn't go hungry and I never ate from the buffet! My favorite is the Fish & Chips above the buffet.

Edited February 17, 2014 by Terre

[SadieN]

Waiting to get off the Inspiration 3day.

 

Over all we enjoyed the American Table.

 

The 'shared appetizers' were the same every night.

 

No complaints about the quality of the food.

 

Only negative is the layout of the actual

menu. For some it was very confusing.

Edited February 17, 2014 by SadieN

[Sparky2]

They had them on the Liberty a couple of weeks ago. The foods is good, but I don't like the menus and the choices. Three of my favorite desserts are no longer offered...may just be me, but I didn't much on the menus I wanted. That being said, I didn't go hungry and I never ate from the buffet! My favorite is the Fish & Chips above the buffet.

 

I agree with your thoughts on the new menus.

 

I just wish they hadn't taken away all of our yummy cold soups and the Creme Brulee.

 

As someone mentioned above, they didn't like the layout of the new menus. I was disappointed that I missed the Escargot on the 2nd week of our B2B because it didn't stand out like it did on the old menus. Too much info on a small sized sheet.

[rubysmom]

Same here Terre......not much I wanted either.....miss the bitter and blanc bread pudding....

Edited February 17, 2014 by rubysmom

[Doug910]

They had them on the Liberty a couple of weeks ago. The foods is good, but I don't like the menus and the choices. Three of my favorite desserts are no longer offered...may just be me, but I didn't much on the menus I wanted. That being said, I didn't go hungry and I never ate from the buffet! My favorite is the Fish & Chips above the buffet.

 

...Have to totally agree. Did NOT like the menus and choices. In 23 Carnival cruises, we had never eaten dinner at the Lido buffet. We did twice a few weeks ago on the Liberty. That said, we also never went hungry. Dessert choices are very limited. We heard lots of chatter around us regarding the lack of desserts. As a person who stays away from sugar, there was one choice every evening. None of the choices ever suited me. Just had a cup of after dinner coffee each night.

[mikem5]

Wow, well I hope whoever is in charge of this change rethinks it before it goes fleet wide. Will have a lot of unhappy guests when competitors are coming out with new ship after new ship. Not a good time to change a good thing in my eyes.

[Bdw062590]

There are some good food reviews!

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=249993

[xbatt8]

Waiting to get off the Inspiration 3day.

 

 

AGAIN???

 

I can't believe that you're already... Oh wait, I'm back on the Imagination in 2 weeks. Never mind. :D

 

I hope we have the new menus. I would at least like to try it before I pass judgment.

 

Also, thanks again for all the great intel the morning we met at Long Beach. It really did help make our trip better.

 

Bob

[wantocruisemore]

There are some good food reviews!

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=249993

 

I saw this review as not necessarily aimed at the new menus, but at the choices of food in general and all the possibilities.

 

But most of other reviews I've seen the people generally like the foods, just less selection. Now dessert is different. The only ones that seem satisfied with dessert are those that either don't eat it or always get the WCMC.

 

Bottom line, CARNIVAL redo the new dessert menu!!!!!!!!

[ranger10!]

We didn't think the menu was confusing at all. The food was great, selection great along with flavor. What we didn't like was the size. It is a big menu. Not small at all. Rather awkward to hold. That is the only negative we had about it. If there wasn't anything you like you could order anything from the grill, Hamburger, chicken sand., ect. Each night the offerings were large so if there wasn't anything you could find that you didn't like then you are just too picky. Many people just don't like change. We do, it breaks up things up. Love the cold soups, but can live without them. The warm melting cake is still offered. So all is good! ;) Go with the attitude that it is different and expect changes. We liked it!

[SadieN]

Forgot to add--

 

The songs changed in the MDR.

One I didn't recognize and the other was Gangnam Style (had that on the Conquest) with not much dancing.

 

Some at our table were bring served during the song.

[rubysmom]

We didn't think the menu was confusing at all. The food was great, selection great along with flavor. What we didn't like was the size. It is a big menu. Not small at all. Rather awkward to hold. That is the only negative we had about it. If there wasn't anything you like you could order anything from the grill, Hamburger, chicken sand., ect. Each night the offerings were large so if there wasn't anything you could find that you didn't like then you are just too picky. Many people just don't like change. We do, it breaks up things up. Love the cold soups, but can live without them. The warm melting cake is still offered. So all is good! ;) Go with the attitude that it is different and expect changes. We liked it!

 

Believe you me.....we are not picky or demanding.....if we were we would have raised a big stink about our lousy.....yes lousy service.....that was a LOT of it too...after our great first cruise on the Victory last year I would have NEVER thought I would have anything derogatory to say about our week...Last year having never been on a cruise I read the not so flattering reviews before we went and after we had such a great

first time thought to myself... HOW can anyone complain??? Until you experience what they did, I see how... Also, when I see reviews where complaints were exact to what we had going on....it's not just me....No one would put up with that kind of service at a regular restaurant where you are paying cash that night plus the tip....how many times do you talk to people who go out and ask how their dinner was and they complain? Then someone else goes and they rave about how good it was....it happens....sure you can ask for something else in the dining room if you aren't happy...but getting it brought to you was another story....and a person should not have to ask more than once...after that I just said oh well...Every night I thought it would be better....it wasn't....Change is fine.....bring it on!!! And in talking about change......our wait staff's out of pocket cash gratuity to them changed this year too...

[Terre]

I agree with your thoughts on the new menus.

 

I just wish they hadn't taken away all of our yummy cold soups and the Creme Brulee.

 

As someone mentioned above, they didn't like the layout of the new menus. I was disappointed that I missed the Escargot on the 2nd week of our B2B because it didn't stand out like it did on the old menus. Too much info on a small sized sheet.

 

I miss the cold soups, too, and agree, too hard to read with the layout.

 

Same here Terre......not much I wanted either.....miss the bitter and blanc bread pudding....

Agree...I LOVE the bitter and blanc, the creme brulee and the souffle, all of which they took off the menu!

 

I didn't think the menus were awkward to hold, much easier than the menus in the book covers, at least for me. I did think the layout was awkward and choices were not as great as they used to be. Hope someone from Carnival is monitoring comments...

 

Rubysmom, I would ask for the bitter and blanc every night just to tease my asst. waiter because I saw nothing I wanted. Our waiter, Fernando, even asked the chef to make me one, but he wouldn't, said he couldn't since it's not on the menu. Our waiter and assistant waiter tried to please me, but couldn't. They were great, we had no complaints with them.

One thing I ordered because I love it so much on Carnival was the mac & cheese. They added bacon to it and I thought it was terrible, couldn't eat it. The bacon took away that wonderful white cheddar cheese flavor.

Edited February 18, 2014 by Terre

[Steve H]

Just off the Glory we had great food great service every night in the MDR. The only thing that I had a problem was all the baseball hats, shorts, and generaly no enforcement of a dress code. If you are going to have a dress code enforce it . Everyone that I spoke to thought that the food was great. The only problem I had with the food was the breakfast buffet, it was very poor.

[SadieN]

AGAIN???

 

I can't believe that you're already... Oh wait, I'm back on the Imagination in 2 weeks. Never mind. :D

 

I hope we have the new menus. I would at least like to try it before I pass judgment.

 

Also, thanks again for all the great intel the morning we met at Long Beach. It really did help make our trip better.

 

Bob

 

.......and going on the Sapphire in two weeks. :D

 

Glad the info helped.

 

**

The Ahi Tuna appetizer was my favorite. It is served on the same noodles as the previous duck appetizer. I'm thinking four of those would make a good entree.

 

Here's a reveiw of the 3day menu.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1992044

Edited February 18, 2014 by SadieN

[rubysmom]

I miss the cold soups, too, and agree, too hard to read with the layout.

 

Agree...I LOVE the bitter and blanc, the creme brulee and the souffle, all of which they took off the menu!

 

I didn't think the menus were awkward to hold, much easier than the menus in the book covers, at least for me. I did think the layout was awkward and choices were not as great as they used to be. Hope someone from Carnival is monitoring comments...

 

Rubysmom, I would ask for the bitter and blanc every night just to tease my asst. waiter because I saw nothing I wanted. Our waiter, Fernando, even asked the chef to make me one, but he wouldn't, said he couldn't since it's not on the menu. Our waiter and assistant waiter tried to please me, but couldn't. They were great, we had no complaints with them.

One thing I ordered because I love it so much on Carnival was the mac & cheese. They added bacon to it and I thought it was terrible, couldn't eat it. The bacon took away that wonderful white cheddar cheese flavor.

HAHA...Terre....one of our friend's young daughters told me at the AIRPORT BEFORE WE LEFT that she wanted to eat that BITTER AND BLANC this year because it looked so good....alas...not to be....it rocks!!!! One night the chef supposedly make a special dessert for the dining room....honestly didn't know what it was....our table mate said baked Alaska....I just ate it....one dessert I did get was the briosch, which was crusty sticky and pretty good....glad you had good service....seems like most people did....