Blue is past it's prime, it appears.......

[cruiseerf]

We are long time Celebrity sailors and I previously had wrote a post when Solstice Class ships came out stating that Blue provided the perfect small ship within a big ship experience. This has changed greatly in the last few years.

 

We dined there most nights in the early days of Blue and found the food to be excellent and the service personal and friendly. We always book suites so added value for all the extra that we pay is also appealing. Blue was a Win in our book, another good option.

 

Jump Forward 5 years......Blue has caught on....Everyone wants to eat there and when we were on the Reflection last year it was a Mess. Food came out cold or poorly done, service was good but always apologetic and we stopped eating there within the first 5 days of our 23 day journey. We chalked this up to the Reflection adding all those Aqua Class suites, with Blue access and not making Blue any larger. The ship was made slightly larger the venue was not. So we thought, obviously they are on overload and decided that the Reflection was not for us as we also waited longer for elevators and the pool decks were more crowded than ever. The extra 200+ pax made a difference, we felt.

 

Jump forward to this year on the Celebrity Silhouette. Blue's food was poor, and this time it appears there has been a cut back in the ingredients and the cooking. The service was rushed and hurried and the waiters seemed pushed to their limits. You could feel their stress and this made dining uncomfortable. The food came out overdone, underdone, cold and the fish was often smelly and many of the meats dry and tasteless. We had to wait at times 45 minutes to enter Blue as it was SO SO Full and sometimes wait 40 minutes between courses.

 

They had two Sommeliers, One was thin and short with blue eyes and only took 15 minutes to even get to your table for a wine order and the taller broad guy took 20+ minutes and could not have been more arrogant and Less friendly. I believe the 123 packages are killing these guys because people who rarely drink are all drinking "because its included"....The Maitre D had so many people complaining all the time, he was miserable and trying to make the best of a bad situation with lines of 20 people at his podium. This restaurant was what I term "a Hot Mess" and we avoided it like the plague after three horrible stress filled meals. Mad-House.

 

Through some questioning, what appears to have happened is the following. Blue has taken off, People love the small dining room and alternate menu. Using rough numbers.....Blue holds 170 persons at any given one time. You have Roughly 300 aquaclass passengers at any given time wanting to eat at this "successful concept" and another 150 suite passengers at any given time as well, more on reflection. They open at 5:30 now hoping persons will eat early and thus the crowds will flow better however most come between 6:30-8PM and there's where the trouble happens. We have given up on this after several disappointing meals.

 

IMHO, I think this is why Celebrity is trying to find a private dining room for their suite passengers. I am not sure if it has to do with providing a luxury product OR handling the flow of passengers who want to dine at a "private venue". Blue is on overload and everyone suffers for it.

 

For our Silhouette cruise, we found the food in the main dining room to far eclipse what was being served and presented in blue and the service far far better. We found Blue offered the style....but little else. We alternated every three days with a specialty restaurant and that was a good formula for us.

 

If you are excited about blue, have a few martinis before going and everything will taste fine. :)

 

My Advice is that if you want to eat at Blue, Go either early or late because the 6:30 to 8PM time period does not make for a nice meal.

 

Safe travels to all! Cheers!

[chamima]

We are long time Celebrity sailors and I previously had wrote a post when Solstice Class ships came out stating that Blue provided the perfect small ship within a big ship experience. This has changed greatly in the last few years.

 

We dined there most nights in the early days of Blue and found the food to be excellent and the service personal and friendly. We always book suites so added value for all the extra that we pay is also appealing. Blue was a Win in our book, another good option.

 

Jump Forward 5 years......Blue has caught on....Everyone wants to eat there and when we were on the Reflection last year it was a Mess. Food came out cold or poorly done, service was good but always apologetic and we stopped eating there within the first 5 days of our 23 day journey. We chalked this up to the Reflection adding all those Aqua Class suites, with Blue access and not making Blue any larger. The ship was made slightly larger the venue was not. So we thought, obviously they are on overload and decided that the Reflection was not for us as we also waited longer for elevators and the pool decks were more crowded than ever. The extra 200+ pax made a difference, we felt.

 

Jump forward to this year on the Celebrity Silhouette. Blue's food was poor, and this time it appears there has been a cut back in the ingredients and the cooking. The service was rushed and hurried and the waiters seemed pushed to their limits. You could feel their stress and this made dining uncomfortable. The food came out overdone, underdone, cold and the fish was often smelly and many of the meats dry and tasteless. We had to wait at times 45 minutes to enter Blue as it was SO SO Full and sometimes wait 40 minutes between courses.

 

They had two Sommeliers, One was thin and short with blue eyes and only took 15 minutes to even get to your table for a wine order and the taller broad guy took 20+ minutes and could not have been more arrogant and Less friendly. I believe the 123 packages are killing these guys because people who rarely drink are all drinking "because its included"....The Maitre D had so many people complaining all the time, he was miserable and trying to make the best of a bad situation with lines of 20 people at his podium. This restaurant was what I term "a Hot Mess" and we avoided it like the plague after three horrible stress filled meals. Mad-House.

 

Through some questioning, what appears to have happened is the following. Blue has taken off, People love the small dining room and alternate menu. Using rough numbers.....Blue holds 170 persons at any given one time. You have Roughly 300 aquaclass passengers at any given time wanting to eat at this "successful concept" and another 150 suite passengers at any given time as well, more on reflection. They open at 5:30 now hoping persons will eat early and thus the crowds will flow better however most come between 6:30-8PM and there's where the trouble happens. We have given up on this after several disappointing meals.

 

IMHO, I think this is why Celebrity is trying to find a private dining room for their suite passengers. I am not sure if it has to do with providing a luxury product OR handling the flow of passengers who want to dine at a "private venue". Blue is on overload and everyone suffers for it.

 

For our Silhouette cruise, we found the food in the main dining room to far eclipse what was being served and presented in blue and the service far far better. We found Blue offered the style....but little else. We alternated every three days with a specialty restaurant and that was a good formula for us.

 

If you are excited about blue, have a few martinis before going and everything will taste fine. :)

 

My Advice is that if you want to eat at Blue, Go either early or late because the 6:30 to 8PM time period does not make for a nice meal.

 

Safe travels to all! Cheers!

 

 

We also sail in Aqua and dine in Blu.

Last year on the Eclipse we noticed the same thing I highlighted above.

Everyone was stressed and rushing around. Meals took a very long time to come out. (I didn't like the seasoning as well as on previous cruises but chalk that up to the chef for that particular cruise).

Dinner was NOT a relaxing experience. I felt badly for the waiters and the Maitre D' because of the tension in the air.

Our sommelier, however, was wonderful.

I've chalked up the experience to , hopefully, a one-off and we're back on the Eclipse this coming year, also in Aqua and dining in Blu.

I REALLY hope there hasn't been a staff cut back!

Edited May 29, 2014 by chamima

[Gracie115]

IMHO, I think this is why Celebrity is trying to find a private dining room for their suite passengers. .

 

I believe this is the most accurate part of your post and my feelings exactly....

 

With the opening of the suites only dining room I would expect any overcrowding in Blu to disappear....UNLESS the suite dining room is awful....and I'm sure it won't be.

 

Oh, and they aren't "trying to find a private dining room for the suite passengers" they are doing it, to be implemented fleet wide by 4/1/15

 

Sorry you had a bad experience(s) we've not had that happen to us on 5 different trips, however, we have not sailed on Reflection and have read similar stories of over crowding in that Blu....

Edited May 29, 2014 by Gracie115

[lovestx]

We'll be dining in Blu next month and hoping for a better result.

 

Just wondering, though, why the maitre d is allowing suite diners in if they are overcrowded and rushed? I thought that a ressie in Blu is not guaranteed to suite guests.

 

Also wonder if you get better service if you are an Aqua guest and use Blu for most of your meals. Perhaps just wishful thinking on my part!

[ghstudio]

Based on reading here, blu on the reflection is the exception rather than the rule. When they built the ship, they added 34 aqua suites (68 passengers) and while the press releases said they added 24 more seats to blu, reports are that they actually added about 10 seats. Additionally, from what I've read here, the reflection seems to have always allowed suite guests to eat dinner in blu at any time, irrespective of aqua guests having priority. Coupled with the apparent reduction in staff throughout all Celebrity ships, I'm not surprised to read the OP's review.

 

We have not had that experience on the equinox, eclipse, infinity, millennium.

[GuinnessGal]

We'll be dining in Blu next month and hoping for a better result.

 

Just wondering, though, why the maitre d is allowing suite diners in if they are overcrowded and rushed? I thought that a ressie in Blu is not guaranteed to suite guests.

 

Also wonder if you get better service if you are an Aqua guest and use Blu for most of your meals. Perhaps just wishful thinking on my part!

 

Don't worry...it will be fine. I too have been eating in Blu for the past 5 years...and I've have booked Aqua Class exclusively for the past 7 sailings just for that reason.

 

Is Blu a little more crowded and the staff a little less "relaxed" than in the earlies: Yes. Key reason: suite passengers who have been turned on to this "private dining room"... and there are an average of 74/75 suites on solstice ships, so even if a quarter of those pax show up thats a need for 18 additional seatings. Should a Maitre D' hold the line on availability and say no to suite passengers: yes. Will they: no. And I can understand why. Celebrity, like any business in these economic times, will go the extra for High Value customers (who know how to leverage that status as seen in many threads on this forum) rather than lose the potential repeat business. No different to any airline really who will bend over backwards for First Class and Business Class passengers whilst squeezing coach passengers into smaller more fee ridden space and service.

 

That being said, I go on vacation to relax and find joy so personally, I continue to enjoy the experience. Is the food still great: yes. I think so. Or maybe I just make the right choices :) Do I have to wait in-between courses...sometimes, yes...but I expect to. After all I'm there to dine. Are the service times unreasonable: No. Not at all...but again, I'm there to dine and don't want to be rushed in and out (that being said neither am I going to linger and occupy a table for longer than is reasonable or courteous to others).

 

Net Net, like anything else your frame of mind and the "reasonableness" of your expectations are what dictate your experience.

 

I think sometimes we forget just how lucky and privileged we are to be able to afford these wonderful adventures...and we forget to enjoy that. Reality is if you look for faults and reasons to complain, they will always manifest themselves. Takes far less energy to be happy than to be upset. Just saying :)

[curtdesilets]

It really does look like Celebrity is failing on many levels. I still love Celebrity, but it seems like the push for more and more passengers and less and less staff or facilities to handle them has taken it's toll.

 

Look back at the earlier development of Celebrity ships. The M class ships originally had 1900 passengers and to me seemed the perfect ratio of passenger numbers to passenger capacity. Your comments about the 200+ passengers on Reflection compared to the "smaller" S-class ships tells a lot.

 

I sure do hope Celebrity figures out their $%%& soon. I think restoring staffing levels or increasing them may have an effect. Expanding Blu's operating hours and perhaps limiting attendance may help this specific situation.

 

And as your review states, the number of people taking advantage of these idiotic free drink promotions has IMO, cheapened the Celebrity product and stressed the staffing situation considerably. The idea that in the MDR the 2nd waiter's new position of being bar server is ridiculous. He or she should be serving food, period.

 

Come on Celebrity, do better.

[chamima]

i do appreciate how lucky we are to be able to go on vacation at all.

 

Waiting for the meal was the least of our problems.

 

The tension in the air (I guess because of all the rushing) was our main problem.

I don't go on vacation to eat my meals with tension - I can get plenty of that at home!

[Gracie115]

Come on Celebrity, do better.

 

I think they have made a GREAT step in the right direction as far dining is concerned with the suites only dining room coming next year.

 

I have been sitting in AQ when some suite guests were denied access and they were not nice about it and this put the Maitre'd in a difficult situation...I think this is part of the overcrowding...no one likes to be confrontational so I suspect the Maitre'd's choose to just accommodate as many as possible which makes all service more spotty.....

 

I've read that when the new Suites only dining room opens there will be a $50 per person fee if someone in a non suite wants to dine there with friends who are in a suite. I wonder if the old fee of $5 or $10 will be reinstituted at Blu at that time for suite guests that want to eat in Blu....seems like that would only be fair....AND help with keeping the crowds down too....

[wpgcycler]

I'm only a lowly new cruiser but it's been pointed out to me by several "veterans" that cruises even on the same ship can vary dramatically. I realize this post is about Silhouette, but complaints similar to this one appear on here about Reflection too. My experience on Reflection was NOTHING like this - if anything, our service was almost too efficient.

 

No waits for tables, wine appearing almost immediately upon being seated and refilled so quickly I more than once had to stop the sommelier in mid pour as we were switching to another wine, friendly conversation with the staff, food that deserved praise rather than complaints (I'm an amateur gourmet cook and a sales exec with an expense account, so I'm very particular about food quality) and overall service so efficient that, except for one evening (on which the room had a great buzz so it didn't matter) we were in and out inside of an hour (including time for a glass of Port). Our dining times were early, late and in between. Oh and no mini marathon Martini session was required.

[curtdesilets]

I'm only a lowly new cruiser but it's been pointed out to me by several "veterans" that cruises even on the same ship can vary dramatically. I realize this post is about Silhouette, but complaints similar to this one appear on here about Reflection too. My experience on Reflection was NOTHING like this - if anything, our service was almost too efficient.

 

No waits for tables, wine appearing almost immediately upon being seated and refilled so quickly I more than once had to stop the sommelier in mid pour as we were switching to another wine, friendly conversation with the staff, food that deserved praise rather than complaints (I'm an amateur gourmet cook and a sales exec with an expense account, so I'm very particular about food quality) and overall service so efficient that, except for one evening (on which the room had a great buzz so it didn't matter) we were in and out inside of an hour (including time for a glass of Port). Our dining times were early, late and in between. Oh and no mini marathon Martini session was required.

 

Our recent experience on Century was quite good, despite some very harsh criticism from the reviewers on the cruise before. Choosing the right dining time, choosing the right time to go into the tender lines, etc. can alleviate the tension that some have detailed here as well. Above all else, choosing the right attitude will make your cruise experience that much better.

[wpgcycler]

Above all else, choosing the right attitude will make your cruise experience that much better.

 

This advice is golden. :)

[rnrcruzin]

The OP's experience on Silhouette this year and our experience in February appear to be exact opposites. With the exception of dinners, one night each, in Quzine and Tuscan, all of our evening meals were in Blu. Our wait time was never more than three minutes. The Maître D, while busy, always seemed accommodating and acknowledged us by name when we arrived as did our servers (we tend to return to the same servers if we like them). I make wine as a hobby and the Sommelier, that reminded me of Sheldon from the Big Bang in appearance, would discuss the different wines being served. I trusted his judgment and he never went wrong. Were they busy, yes. Were they rush, close but not quite there. As someone that was both a manager and server in a restaurant, in the past, perhaps I’m more accommodating because I’ve walked in their shoes. We’re looking forward to our next cruise and perhaps we will get bored with 17 days of Blu, IDK. But it’s good to have choices isn’t it.

Edited May 29, 2014 by rnrcruzin

[BosoxI]

Our most recent experience in Blu was on the recent Eclipse TA. Briefly, the food was very average, the waiters were very good but certainly rushed, the sommeliers were available and helpful, the receptionist was most helpful, our wait for a table never exceeded 15 minutes and sometimes that was because we wanted to wait for a specific table. The venue was very nice. But again I stress the food was average at best except for the soups which were excellent. Pay extra for Aqua? Fine but don't do it only because you think the food will be better than the MDR. We'll be back in Blu in November but past that point, I will take a pass, maybe all the way back to Princess, whose food has always had more appeal than X's. One last extraneous comment: don't fault the OP for misspelling "Blu" when so many posters make a word plural by adding 's. Drives me crazy

[Jane2357]

i do appreciate how lucky we are to be able to go on vacation at all.

 

Waiting for the meal was the least of our problems.

 

The tension in the air (I guess because of all the rushing) was our main problem.

I don't go on vacation to eat my meals with tension - I can get plenty of that at home!

 

Hi Karen! My one and only dinner in Blu was this last cruise, dh and I dined with Karen and her wonderful hubby. :D It was our 1st and only time trying Blu for dinner (we were in a suite) and Karen is correct in her description - there was a tension in the air. Neither my husband or I came away wanting to go back. I felt the MDR food was better as was our service in select. The staff in Blu seemed stretched very thing. We did have breakfast there twice and the food and service were much better.

 

Based on our experience we've decided we just aren't Blu material. Beyond the service and food issues - I found Blu to be too far from the action, I felt like I was missing out. Just leaves more room for the rest of you ;)

 

 

[vulcan1971]

My Advice is that if you want to eat at Blue, Go either early or late because the 6:30 to 8PM time period does not make for a nice meal.

 

This advice is true, not just at BLU, but probably most any restaurant, be it on a ship or on land.

 

I personally like that Blu operates without a reservation system, but I'm also savvy enough to know that the "masses" will continue to all show up, all at the same time, during peak times, which ultimately overwhelms the dining room staff.... and the cruisers expect perfect, flawless service. To me, that seems like the cruisers have an "expectation" that is unrealistic at best.

 

Apologies in advance for the generalization, but based on my read on Cruise Critic of other cruise passenger experiences (good/bad/ugly/etc), I do think that some cruiser "expectations" are not in alignment with current trends or a changing cruise vacation market.

 

Is Blu a little more crowded and the staff a little less "relaxed" than in the earlies: Yes. Key reason: suite passengers who have been turned on to this "private dining room"... and there are an average of 74/75 suites on solstice ships

 

Not sure if your "average" of "74/75 suites on Solstice ships" was calculated or a guess. The Reflection has 111 suites (including aqua suites that will convert to sky suites). All other Solstice class ships have 66 suites.

 

Having booked in an Aqua Suite on the Reflection, I found my dining experience in Blu to be a highlight of that cruise experience. My preference is to dine later in the evening, so I'm sure I was "blessed" that everyone else wanted to eat earlier. The Blu dining room was never full at 7:30-8:00 PM. Any time after that, it was half empty and fully capable of serving a relaxing meal.

 

I think they have made a GREAT step in the right direction as far dining is concerned with the suites only dining room coming next year.

 

I have been sitting in AQ when some suite guests were denied access and they were not nice about it and this put the Maitre'd in a difficult situation...I think this is part of the overcrowding...no one likes to be confrontational so I suspect the Maitre'd's choose to just accommodate as many as possible which makes all service more spotty.....

 

I have seen similar situations of suite passengers getting up in arms about being told they are not able to be accommodated in Blu. Not sure why they felt they needed to make a scene when it was clear all along that being admitted was on a "space available basis". :rolleyes:

 

I've read that when the new Suites only dining room opens there will be a $50 per person fee if someone in a non suite wants to dine there with friends who are in a suite. I wonder if the old fee of $5 or $10 will be reinstituted at Blu at that time for suite guests that want to eat in Blu....seems like that would only be fair....AND help with keeping the crowds down too....

 

Given the enhanced perks for all suite guests, I don't think that suite overcrowding in Blu will be a substantial issue moving forward once the new suite dining room is implemented across the fleet, especially since the higher end suites will also have unlimited specialty dining.

 

I'm only a lowly new cruiser but it's been pointed out to me by several "veterans" that cruises even on the same ship can vary dramatically. I realize this post is about Silhouette, but complaints similar to this one appear on here about Reflection too. My experience on Reflection was NOTHING like this - if anything, our service was almost too efficient.

 

The OP was commenting on a variety of experiences in Blu on several ships including the Reflection. It appears the the most recent may have been on the Silhouette (but not in an Aqua room) since they were dining in the MDR with some meals in specialty restaurants.

 

No waits for tables, wine appearing almost immediately upon being seated and refilled so quickly I more than once had to stop the sommelier in mid pour as we were switching to another wine, friendly conversation with the staff, food that deserved praise rather than complaints (I'm an amateur gourmet cook and a sales exec with an expense account, so I'm very particular about food quality) and overall service so efficient that, except for one evening (on which the room had a great buzz so it didn't matter) we were in and out inside of an hour (including time for a glass of Port). Our dining times were early, late and in between. Oh and no mini marathon Martini session was required.

 

I've had hits and misses in Blu with the sommelier service, both with getting service and changing between wines. It used to get me agitated, but I've learned to adapt to the changing dynamic and staff from day to day. Once I have viewed the menu and gotten the attention of the sommelier, I simply inform them upfront at the beginning of the meal what my interests are for wine over the course of the meal service and that seems to work smoothly for me.

[miched]

First cruise that we took on X was in AQ on the Solstice. We booked AQ For the so called healthier perks.

 

Naturally everything about X was new to us and Blu was Soemthign that we had never experienced before on a ship. We were sold.

 

After many cruises on X all being in AQ we sailed ont he Reflection. Blu was a disaster. It was overcrowded. More table were added to accomodate the extra passengers in AQ.

 

Since then we have sailed on other X ships and Blu was still Blu but it is getting to be boring. Does that mean it isn't any good to the quality is going down hill? Not really it has just lost its luster for us.

 

I think the same can be said for the MDR. The first few times the food is fantatic and then when you go to a alternative restuarant it doesn't seem as good because you have experienced better, but after dining in a alternative restuarant many times it also loses its luster. Plus it doesn't help with any when some of the little things that you had before are no longer offered or not given.

 

Changes are good and bad, after a while we get bored and want something different but we also want what we had before plus more. That is why we become a disposable society and for some hoarders.

 

🌊🚢🇺🇸🌅

[chamima]

Our most recent experience in Blu was on the recent Eclipse TA. Briefly, the food was very average, the waiters were very good but certainly rushed, the sommeliers were available and helpful, the receptionist was most helpful, our wait for a table never exceeded 15 minutes and sometimes that was because we wanted to wait for a specific table. The venue was very nice. But again I stress the food was average at best except for the soups which were excellent. Pay extra for Aqua? Fine but don't do it only because you think the food will be better than the MDR. We'll be back in Blu in November but past that point, I will take a pass, maybe all the way back to Princess, whose food has always had more appeal than X's. One last extraneous comment: don't fault the OP for misspelling "Blu" when so many posters make a word plural by adding 's. Drives me crazy

 

 

 

 

Thanks for your comments.

Just curious if you remember who the Maitre D' was in Blu when you were on the Eclipse? We had a pretty young woman named Or. I kind of wondered if she was disorganized and that caused a lot of the back ups and tension.

BTW - to all the posters who said to eat when it's not busy - we tried all times between 6:30 and 8:45. It made no difference.

Immediately after disembarking the Eclipse we sailed on the new Royal Princess. The ambience and food in the dining room was noticeably different. Not only did the food taste better but the waiters were walking, not running, and had the time to actually talk to you during the meal. The lack of tension was so obvious to us because of the previous 14 days on the Eclipse.

 

 

Hi Karen! My one and only dinner in Blu was this last cruise, dh and I dined with Karen and her wonderful hubby. :D It was our 1st and only time trying Blu for dinner (we were in a suite) and Karen is correct in her description - there was a tension in the air. Neither my husband or I came away wanting to go back. I felt the MDR food was better as was our service in select. The staff in Blu seemed stretched very thing. We did have breakfast there twice and the food and service were much better.

 

Based on our experience we've decided we just aren't Blu material. Beyond the service and food issues - I found Blu to be too far from the action, I felt like I was missing out. Just leaves more room for the rest of you ;)

 

 

 

 

Hi Jane!

Miss you guys!!!! :D

Thanks for verifying my observations.

Looks like we should have joined you in Select!

We like how quiet Blu is and will, for the time being, continue to sail in Aqua for that but on our next cruise will make sure to try the MDR one night if we encounter (hopefully we don't!) the same problem as last time.

And yes, breakfast was a TOTALLY different story. It was always relaxed and wonderful!

Oh, also just to note, I don't come on here just to complain.

I'm hoping that someone from Celebrity monitors these boards and passes on the info that the cut back in staffing (and that's what I think happened on our cruise) is noticeable and that they re-think that decision as regards to an area that some of us are paying a premium to enjoy!

(Just as they wisely are increasing the benefits for those in suites.)

Edited May 29, 2014 by chamima

[bigbenboys]

We are trying Blu for the 2nd time tomorrow. The service was fine on our last cruise in Aqua. It was the food that I was not that happy with. I'm going to give them a fair shake. Our cruise tomorrow we got the Aqua cabin for less than CC, and we get the 25 extra points.

[Gracie115]

One of the ways we've helped "ourselves" with Sommelier & Bar service in Blu(or the MDR for that manner) is that we usually bring one of our beverage of choice with us when we arrive each evening. It gives the Sommelier time to see us and acknowledge us and it gives us time to say... "this is what we want when we finish this wine or this cocktail" works every time and our service from these people has nearly always been good to excellent.

 

Just a thought....

[wpgcycler]

To those that find Blu misses the mark, I'd be interested to know what your expectation is. Given the cost of the cruise I would not expect anything higher than a typical medium priced restaurant on land with a Zagat rating of no more than about 20 and certainly not Michelin star rated - Bib Gourmand at best. In that context, Blu met and sometimes exceeded my expectations. What about you?

[BosoxI]

Thanks for your comments.

Just curious if you remember who the Maitre D' was in Blu when you were on the Eclipse? We had a pretty young woman named Or. I kind of wondered if she was disorganized and that caused a lot of the back ups and tension.

 

Immediately after disembarking the Eclipse we sailed on the new Royal Princess. The ambience and food in the dining room was noticeably different. Not only did the food taste better but the waiters were walking, not running, and had the time to actually talk to you during the meal. The lack of tension was so obvious to us because of the previous 14 days on the Eclipse.

 

Sorry but I don't know. I thought the maître d' hotel was a man. The receptionist, if I recall correctly, was a very pleasant, dark haired, slender Russian woman, if that helps.

 

Indeed, some of the waiters in Blu were actually running with their orders. I felt sorry for them, and, really, I don't expect to see that kind of frantic haste in a quality restaurant. I do not want waiters to be my best friends or act like family members, but it is nice to spend a moment inquiring as to their health or how their day went. Some of them looked nervous, like they wanted to run away. It saddens me to see how they can be stressed on X ships, especially since they are far from home and family and most seem to be really nice people, making an honest living.

[willma]

We are done with Aqua and Blu for the time being. Our recent experience with chaotic service and long waits to be seated, particularly on formal nights when it seemed that all suite pax were eating there, has encouraged us to try a stateroom on deck 7 and the MDR on our next cruise. We are also tired of the menu which has remained the same for a few years now.

We may come back, but we are looking forward to trying the MDR, specialities and the buffet for evening meals for a change. The very limited breakfast opening hours on our recent cruise also led to stressed staff and frustrated diners, especially on port days. We had to resort to the buffet or room service, as the opening hours did not seem to have been considered when the ship docked early and we needed to be off on tours. (This was an Asia trip when port time was precious due to the long distances to the cities.)

[chamima]

Sorry but I don't know. I thought the maître d' hotel was a man. The receptionist, if I recall correctly, was a very pleasant, dark haired, slender Russian woman, if that helps.

 

Indeed, some of the waiters in Blu were actually running with their orders. I felt sorry for them, and, really, I don't expect to see that kind of frantic haste in a quality restaurant. I do not want waiters to be my best friends or act like family members, but it is nice to spend a moment inquiring as to their health or how their day went. Some of them looked nervous, like they wanted to run away. It saddens me to see how they can be stressed on X ships, especially since they are far from home and family and most seem to be really nice people, making an honest living.

 

To those that find Blu misses the mark, I'd be interested to know what your expectation is. Given the cost of the cruise I would not expect anything higher than a typical medium priced restaurant on land with a Zagat rating of no more than about 20 and certainly not Michelin star rated - Bib Gourmand at best. In that context, Blu met and sometimes exceeded my expectations. What about you?

 

So, is it an unrealistic expectation that the staff don't appear "nervous" ?

And I don't know what you mean by "given the cost of the cruise". I just checked and our cruise (in Aqua) is a little over $200/per person/per day.

I don't consider that so "medium priced".

As I've repeatedly said, we weren't looking for gourmet, just a relaxing meal.

(And, BTW, the Princess cruise, in their Premium Deluxe Balcony cabin, was less than $150/pp/per day. And, we continue to cruise Celebrity for the itinerary and the hope that this staff cut back will reverse itself)

Edited May 29, 2014 by chamima

[wpgcycler]

So, is it an unrealistic expectation that the staff don't appear "nervous" ?

And I don't know what you mean by "given the cost of the cruise". I just checked and our cruise (in Aqua) is a little over $200/per person/per day.

I don't consider that so "medium priced".

As I've repeatedly said, we weren't looking for gourmet, just a relaxing meal.

(And, BTW, the Princess cruise, in their Premium Deluxe Balcony cabin, was less than $150/pp/per day. And, we continue to cruise Celebrity for the itinerary and the hope that this staff cut back will reverse itself)

 

Not an unrealistic expectation at all - just was nothing like our experience, hence my earlier post raising the inconsistency issue related to me by much more experienced cruisers. As for the price, our cruise was less than $200pp/day - for which I got a great balcony cabin on a nearly new ship, unlimited food and premium beverages, all sorts of great entertainment, access to a wonderful relaxing spa area AND they were kind enough to transport me to a new destination while we slept ("etc."). Not once did we encounter service that was unfriendly, inattentive or unprofessional. I guess we hit it lucky. :)