Is Dining Really That Bad?

[sjb317]

Are the meals the only reason to go?

 

We haven't been on RCI, but the MDRs on the Disney Fantasy have no where to go but up.

 

No, meals are not the only reason but if I found the food to be "inedible" or as bad as some posters write, I would either find a different cruise line or try a different kind of vacation.

 

Sherri:)

[Travel R]

1) Food is subjective. However, if it was really bad, RCI and the cruise industry would go belly up. There are many choices of entree's and side dishes to choose from (feel free to order two, or order one and split one with a tablemate). I personally have had some great dishes on cruises, and some horrible ones - but the same can be said for land-based restaurants. However, IMHO, most dishes have been good. On my last cruise I order a duck entrée. I did not each much of it and focused on my other dish. The waiter, being concerned, went over to the next table where most of the guests had ordered the duck. He asked them if they liked it, and they all said yes. Same dish, same cruise, same waiter - but very different tastes.

 

2) MDR -vs- WindJammer -vs- Specialty. This is totally a personal preference. try them all and see what you like. I personally like the MDR, I believe that the WJ used to be better, and although have only tried one specialty restaurant I did not feel that it was worth the extra $. However, that is me, so try them all and you will know for yourself.

 

3) Service. You may like your wait staff or you may not. If after a meal or two, you feel that they are not to your liking, ask to move to a table with a different waitstaff, or talk to the waiter.

 

4) Opinions. As said many times above, these reviews are opinions, and as also mentioned, more people will complain about the negatives mention the positives. Go in with an open mind, and just enjoy the experience.

 

Enjoy your first cruise.

[Paulette3028]

1) Food is subjective. However, if it was really bad, RCI and the cruise industry would go belly up. There are many choices of entree's and side dishes to choose from (feel free to order two, or order one and split one with a tablemate). I personally have had some great dishes on cruises, and some horrible ones - but the same can be said for land-based restaurants. However, IMHO, most dishes have been good. On my last cruise I order a duck entrée. I did not each much of it and focused on my other dish. The waiter, being concerned, went over to the next table where most of the guests had ordered the duck. He asked them if they liked it, and they all said yes. Same dish, same cruise, same waiter - but very different tastes.

 

2) MDR -vs- WindJammer -vs- Specialty. This is totally a personal preference. try them all and see what you like. I personally like the MDR, I believe that the WJ used to be better, and although have only tried one specialty restaurant I did not feel that it was worth the extra $. However, that is me, so try them all and you will know for yourself.

 

3) Service. You may like your wait staff or you may not. If after a meal or two, you feel that they are not to your liking, ask to move to a table with a different waitstaff, or talk to the waiter.

 

4) Opinions. As said many times above, these reviews are opinions, and as also mentioned, more people will complain about the negatives mention the positives. Go in with an open mind, and just enjoy the experience.

 

Enjoy your first cruise.

 

Thank you for the laugh you gave me.....the old expression goes 'the way to a mans' heart is through his stomach'.....it can well apply to what you just said ' the way to a persons (being more politically correct) heart (love) is through their stomach' -- if the food was so awful the industry would have folded up years ago -- or at least be significantly struggling, since people only want to compare the food served today to the food served many years ago. People must love cruising enough to keep doing it, and the food that comes with it!

 

I personally am glad they are not serving the food they served years ago...because that would contribute to onboard ailments. (just joking)

[Nisky18]

Got off Norwegian Breakaway this past Sunday so food memories still intact. I know feedi g nearly 4,000 people is challenging and don't expect food to reach us and still be hot. But I do expect it to be flavorfull. As a vegetarian I was terribly disappointed by the lack of culinary creativity, though the Garden Cafe buffet was decent. Frankly, with the cost of cruising so high I expect food to be better than decent.

[DaNana]

The food in Windjammer is a bit disappointing in the lack of variety. The main dining room has been better but still can be hit or miss. As others have said if you order smothering you don't like order something else! Lots of people do it.

 

Happy sailing.

 

I'm always amused by the term "lack of variety" in the Windjammer. Not sure where these folks eat on a regular basis but I can guarantee you there is more variety on a daily basis than you would get at home in your kitchen! The Windjammer wraps around and has numerous stations. So much, it is difficult to determine what to eat. Is it 5 star? Maybe not but it is great since I am not cooking or cleaning up. I have no issue getting something else and never leave hungry! ;)

[gumboroux]

My wife and I will be going on our first cruise in February on the Serenade. I've been reading some of the threads in this section, and started reading some thread about dining. And I must say - I am really bummed out. I'm beginning to think I should have saved some money by TIVO'ing some Caribbean shows on the Travel Channel, turned our thermostat up to 85, and just go down to the Golden Corral buffet to eat.

 

I'm not sure if it's just a bunch of jaded cruisers with 20+ cruises under their belt lamenting on how the food is getting worse over the years or what, but really, is on-ship dining really that bad? Of course, you must realize that being from a small rural community in Illinois, fancy dining to us is defined as going somewhere that you don't order your food at a counter and carry it to your seat :o

 

 

Eating on a cruise ship is different than going to a restaurant. If I like what I read about the appetizers I order several of those instead of an entree. You can't decide between desserts- order both. On lobster night I have seen several people order 2 entrees. Just relax and enjoy what you do like and leave out what you don't. Dining on a cruise ship is flexible. You are going to have a great time! Btw I use my iPhone to take a picture of my ships Compass (listings of happenings on the ship) so that I don't miss any experience that I want to do.

 

 

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[ryano]

Im sorry but not having to "cook it and clean it up" does not make mediocre food great. I always see that around here and I strongly disagree. I dont have to cook it or clean it up if I'm in the hospital but that doesn't make it good food by any stretch. :)

 

With that said, Im always pretty happy with the food on board RCI ships and can always find MULTIPLE things to eat.

[MOcruiserman]

We don't spend much time cooking at home. Our meals usually consist of cold cereal or English muffin for breakfast, a take-out sandwich or salad for lunch and more take-out or a local restaurant for dinner. We cook only two or three times a week.

 

So for us, the food available on a cruise ship is great, both in terms of quality and the number choices available.

[Sitzmark]

Im sorry but not having to "cook it and clean it up" does not make mediocre food great. I always see that around here and I strongly disagree. I dont have to cook it or clean it up if I'm in the hospital but that doesn't make it good food by any stretch. :)

 

I have also always marveled at that measuring stick on the quality of food. There are plenty of things that we do prepare and clean up after that are quite delicious and of very high quality. When we go out to eat at home, the not cooking and cleaning is not why we do it.

 

I've never been on RCI, but I wouldn't base my decision to go or not go on the food. My expectations of it aren't that high, you're a captive audience and you have to eat. That kind of means they can do what they like. I'm sure you can survive on it.

Edited September 18, 2014 by Sitzmark

[ryano]

My expectations of it aren't that high, .

 

You will very likely be pleasantly surprised then :) I think RCI does a great job considering their budget per passenger and the fact that they are cranking it out in such mass quantities!

Edited September 18, 2014 by ryano

[Sitzmark]

You will very likely be pleasantly surprised then :) I think RCI does a great job considering their budget per passenger and the fact that they are cranking it out in such mass quantities!

 

Perhaps, we were on the Disney Fantasy and had heard great things about the MDRs, while we enjoyed the upsell restaurant Palo, we did not like the MDR experience there. I've heard many say it is comparable to RCI, we'll see. If it's good then I'll enjoy it.

[marci22]

I think that if you go and expect 'decent buffet' you will be happy.

 

Service is usually very good.

 

I have noticed the cuts on each successive cruise. There are still things that I like, but now there are more things that I try and think, 'that was a fail'.

 

The bread is always good, so you won't starve.

 

Consistent: bread

 

Best luck: appetizers

 

Mixed reviews: entrees

 

Needs a do-over, without gelatin products: desserts

[beerman2]

ryano

 

I think most people lose sight of the fact that cruise lines are cooking for masses.

 

People really shouldn't compare to restaurants as they may serve a couple of hundred people during lunch/dinner.

 

Cruise lines 3000 or more.

 

And no Restaurant can cook for that many people in a couple if hour time frame .

 

 

 

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[ryano]

ryano

 

I think most people lose sight of the fact that cruise lines are cooking for masses.

 

People really shouldn't compare to restaurants as they may serve a couple of hundred people during lunch/dinner.

 

Cruise lines 3000 or more.

 

And no Restaurant can cook for that many people in a couple if hour time frame .

 

I totally agree :)

[JTBCruiser]

My wife and I really enjoy the food in both the MDR and Windjammers. She loves fresh salads and fruit so she is always able to find what she likes at WJ during lunch. I won't say we are hard or easy to please but like other posts here, it is subjective. I have had table mates who complained about every single meal and surmised they weren't happy unless they were unhappy. I'm one who will eat several appetizers, two entrees and 2-3 desserts. To keep from blowing up into a blimp, we always take the stairs and go on active excursions to burn the calories. Even doing that I know for a fact, sea air shrinks clothes.

[delirious9876]

My wife and I really enjoy the food in both the MDR and Windjammers. She loves fresh salads and fruit so she is always able to find what she likes at WJ during lunch. I won't say we are hard or easy to please but like other posts here, it is subjective. I have had table mates who complained about every single meal and surmised they weren't happy unless they were unhappy. I'm one who will eat several appetizers, two entrees and 2-3 desserts. To keep from blowing up into a blimp, we always take the stairs and go on active excursions to burn the calories. Even doing that I know for a fact, sea air shrinks clothes.

Damn that sea air !!!!!!

 

It always shrinks my clothes as well - lol.

 

:)

[gumboroux]

JTB thanks for the service announcement that sea air shrinks clothes . Lol

[JTBCruiser]

It took several cruises to find out the fact on sea air, I knew it had nothing to do with eating all that food. I feel better now. :D

[Bazzito]

We’ve been on 18 cruises 12 RCI ships over the years and have enjoyed the food on every one of them. And, of course, we agree that food is a matter of taste, etc., etc. and is highly subjective.

Being regular cruisers we have developed our own preferences and habits that suit our tastes, lifestyle, and personal quirks. I’m sure you will, too.

MDR: We’ve found the food to be consistently good. We don’t, however attend formal nights in the MDR anymore – we’ve got plenty of cruise photos by now and I wear a tuxedo for my second job and I’m not taking it on vacation.

We both love lunch in the MDR. It’s among the best meals on the cruise, in our opinion.

WINDJAMMER: Yep. It’s a buffet, but a whole lot better than Golden Corral, IMHO. We’ve noticed and often commented that RCI has really made a concerted effort to improve and maintain the quality of the Windjammer food, over the years. We think they’ve succeeded.

And since we’ve quit attending formal nights in the MDR, we’ve been eating more and more dinners in the Windjammer and have been pleasantly surprised at how good the food is for dinner. We’ve also noticed that they usually serve one or two of the entrees and desserts from the MDR in the evenings.

Our most recent cruise was on the Freedom OTS and we ate dinner in the Windjammer all seven nights.

ROOM SERVICE: Room service is free, most hours of the day, and my wife loves it. Me? Not so much. It takes her a while to get moving in the mornings, so I’ll bring her coffee first thing and she’ll order pastries and fruit, plus a second cup of coffee from room service and it works out great. It’s the same pastries she’d get if she went anywhere else on the ship. I’ll got to the MDR or Windjammer for breakfast and we’re both happy. It DEFINITELY beats any breakfast arrangement we can work out at home by a long shot.

PIZZA: Yes, the pizza isn’t of the best quality, BUT on some of the ships the Sorrento’s serves it 24/7, so after staggering out of the casino at 1:30AM drunk, it’s terrific, IMHO!

SPECIALY RESTAURANTS: We’ve eaten at Chops twice in all of our cruises, each time at my wife’s request, and certainly the quality of the food was excellent. Personally, I wince at having to pay extra for the specialty restaurants when I find the other food offerings perfectly to my liking. I realize that many people love the specialty restaurants and that they’re a huge profit center for RCI, but if they all disappeared tomorrow, it wouldn’t detract from my cruise experience in the least.

So, on the whole, we really like the quality, flexibility and options that the meals on RCI cruises have to offer, and they’re one of the reasons we enjoy cruising so much.

[dreadpirate3]

I have only cruised three times, all with RCI. I love the MDR and prefer to eat any meal offered in there. I have family members who do not want to dress up more than shorts and sneakers so avoid the MDR, but that is their choice.

 

I also enjoy room service. In the review in my signature are meals from each option. The only time I eat in the Windjammer is if the MDR and the solarium cafe were closed.

 

I encourage you to have an open mind. We have never found a serving team that was not friendly and took excellent care of us.

[MichaelCMTX]

No, meals are not the only reason but if I found the food to be "inedible" or as bad as some posters write, I would either find a different cruise line or try a different kind of vacation.

 

Sherri:)

 

I'm with you. Some evenings are better than others but from what you occasionally see, you'd think we were getting prison rations even the seagulls and pelicans passed up.

[sea shepherd]

The food quality is going down. But it is a ship by ship thing. I was on the majesty and the food was grate. Got off that ship in miami drove up to ft lauderdale got right on the vision and the food was not as good.

[footzz]

From my perspective, the experiences I've had on any given cruise has rarely ever coincided with the negative reviews I've read from prior passengers. And, it's really not worth the bother to dwell on the reviews.

 

Pssst. Here's a little secret. Ask your waiter what the word from the kitchen is. The dining staff knows whats good on any given day and what isn't. And, so far, they have never failed to give me very good recommendations. Eat, Drink and be Merry!

Edited September 19, 2014 by footzz

[negc]

Damn that sea air !!!!!!

 

It always shrinks my clothes as well - lol.

 

:)

 

Not only that, but while you are away, it sneaks into your closet at home and shrinks those clothes as well.

[cruiseapril]

As was mentioned, when you consider the number of meals prepared on a ship- 3 times per day- plus all of the extras- the cruise ships do well, in our opinion.

 

We enjoy the many choices on a cruise ship. We are selective and have always found the meals to be well cooked and well presented- (except for the occasional cool scrambled eggs).

 

Where else can you find so many choices? Most of the time, the food quality has exceeded our expectations. Also, we usually don't cook the dishes at home that we choose on the ship- so there is an element of change and variety. And sometimes delight!