Is Dining Really That Bad?

[Trainman-2]

I learned several cruises ago that your table waiter will bend over backwards to please you.

 

One experienced cruiser at our table, after consulting with the rest of us, asked for Cheese Trays, Fruit Trays, and Shrimp Cocktails every night! This was on a 14 night cruise and we got everything we asked for.

 

Our waiter would also bring one or two extra entree's (if no one had ordered them) for us to pass around and taste.

[Nisky18]

I have determined that I do not like Freestyle Cruising. I absolutely prefer to dine consistently in one dining room so that the wait staff gets to know you. I think my experience on the Carnival Splendor in January was so superior with regard to dining because the waiter knew I was vegetarian and anticipated what I liked from the very first day. In addition, there were actually several vegetarian choices on each menu. Norwegian Breakaway, on the other hand, had one vegetarian option on the main dining room menu. And although there were three or four main dining room freebie Joyce's, they all shared the same menu

[LynnTTT]

we keep wanting cheaper and cheaper cruises and better and better food.

We're on a Transatlantic next month. for 13 nights . After deducting what the airfare would have been I am amazed that the cruise lines can feed us at all.

[Nisky18]

Oops. "Joyce's" should read "choices"

[Bailey & Sophie]

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.

If I don't have to buy it, cook it, serve it and clean it up, I'm good to go!!

[Maraprince]

Not a fan of DD either. Tried Freestyle on several NCL ships and it is a no go for me.

 

Now RCCL is converting all their ships to DD. When Oasis debuted it was supposed to be in a class by itself. Now by dividing up the MDR, it will lose some of that uniqueness and be a pale copy to Quantum.

 

I am at a loss as to why RCCL is jumping into this change with both feet without even seeing how it will play out is a little confusing. Are they doing this for the Asian market, trying to attraction new cruisers who have never sailed before, streamlining the number of different meal options produced by the kitchens, trying to copy NCL or what????

 

 

MARAPRINCE

[Clarea]

Not a fan of DD either. Tried Freestyle on several NCL ships and it is a no go for me.

 

Now RCCL is converting all their ships to DD. When Oasis debuted it was supposed to be in a class by itself. Now by dividing up the MDR, it will lose some of that uniqueness and be a pale copy to Quantum.

 

I am at a loss as to why RCCL is jumping into this change with both feet without even seeing how it will play out is a little confusing. Are they doing this for the Asian market, trying to attraction new cruisers who have never sailed before, streamlining the number of different meal options produced by the kitchens, trying to copy NCL or what????

 

 

MARAPRINCE

I'm also at a loss as to the business logic behind the move.

[ddaz]

I agree with most of the other posters, the dining room experience is one of the most subjective of any area of a cruise.

 

I typically order multiple of everything. Three appetizers; a soup, a salad and typically something very off the wall and different. The same with entrees, it seems like I order one of everything, but if I get a dish that I don't like, I won't finish it. There are times that I love everything and leave stuffed beyond belief. There are other times where something sounded tasty from the menu and didn't exactly meet my initial expectations.

 

On my most recent cruise, there were several dishes which I threw in as a last second, "what the heck, why not" option. At least three times, these last choices were the absolutely GREATEST dish of the evening. If I limited myself to only one or even two entrees, I wouldn't have order these dishes which I absolutely loved!

 

My recommendation is to try almost everything. Enjoy what you like and don't worry about what others think.

 

FYI --- Even though I order multiple items from the menu, I always lose weight while on a cruise.

[ryano]

 

Now RCCL is converting all their ships to DD.

 

Link? :confused: Thats exactly what a CSR at Royal caribbean told me last month when I booked my cruise but I put absolutely no stock in what they say.

 

I just dont see how its gonna work on anything smaller than Voyager class.

Edited September 19, 2014 by ryano

[AltarEgo]

I'm also at a loss as to the business logic behind the move.

 

I would hazard a guess that it's to maintain continuity. It's easier and more efficient to train staff to be consistent if the dining options are the same throughout the line.

[Thetrail]

I'm just hoping that the food on the Serenade is *better* than Golden Corral. :o

 

I'm sure DW and I will enjoy our meals, and we plan on being somewhat adventurous. Just need to take some of these negative food reviews with a grain of salt....

You just answered your own question....take the food reviews with a grain of salt.....:cool:

[pinkrosesdeb]

We have certainly never gone hungry on a cruise. Please go with an open mind. I am sure you will find something you like...if not love. Read some of the ohter threads that deal with dining room "favorites". It will give you a good idea on what people really enjoy.

[Cheryl H]

Enjoy your first cruise!! If nothing sounds good to me, I just order the Chops steak with bernaise sauce and some mashed potatoes and I'm all set! They offer the Chops steak each evening as an option. I think with the tip, it usually ends up to be around 19. Be sure to try the little "savory bites". They are the tiny triangular shaped breads. They are a bit crusty, but have a sundried tomato taste. (or that's what it seems like to me).

 

I do miss the days of when they used to offer 3 homemade dressings each time I ordered salad. It seems like that last few cruises, there wasn't a choice of dressing anymore.

 

I agree with the others that the desserts often seem lacking. The chocolate sensation was pretty good last time. It was offered every night. But it is no where near a cheesecake factory type of cheesecake. I used to love the Mud Pie in Chops Grille, but I hear it's not the same anymore.

[Paulette3028]

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.

 

I will totally agree with one part of your statement -- "It is a ship by ship thing". Every Executive Chef on each ship is different, and handles their kitchen differently. I am NOT in food services in any industry, let me say that. But consistency across a company is difficult or impossible, when so many different people (from executive chef down) affect what comes through the kitchen door.

 

I can only speak for myself and DH, what we have experienced has been overall very good food. Is it different from what was served 10 years ago when I began cruising, sure.

 

In those same 10 years, I have seen dramatic changes in the food offerings at land based restaurants, and some of those have resulted in me NOT GOING BACK. People have remained repeat cruisers, so that says something as well.

[nbsjcruiser]

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

 

The food has declined somewhat but dining in the MDR is still quite good. To me where I notice it is in the buffet especially at breakfast. Cold toast, runny scrambled eggs, blah. Now, we hit the MDR for breakfast every morning unless we have a very early excursion.

[pajazz28]

I see bad reviews here all the time about all sorts of different stuff. But I have never been on a cruise where I did not want to stay on the ship at the end of it. There is no vacation like cruising as far as the food is concern. I have always enjoyed the food. Keep this in mind if they are complaining why are they still cruising. Some people are just negative. Enjoy your first cruise and I hope is doesn't become an addiction like it has to me.

[Cruising Forever!]

I had good meals everywhere aboard on Serenade in '13 (see my review at the link below).

 

In Explorer of the Seas Sept 6th sailing, it was way below standard in the Windjammer Buffet (cold tasteless scrambled eggs, little variety, dismal views through mold fogged windows, etc). Like most sub-standard buffets, there are some golden nuggets that you can find, though. Btw- Old Country Buffet (which I don't like, generally speaking) is leaps and bounds better in variety and quality of food then our Explorer Windjammer experience was back on the 6th.

 

In the Main Dining Room, all the food was GREAT, but the portions are small. Order two entrees or fill up on rolls (which are delicious). Also, I'd eat more lunch and breakfast meals here than at the Windjammer going forward. The MDR has the 30 minute bistro concept at lunch that gets you in and out fast, and it's way less crowded than the Windjammer. Also, the salad bar there where the chefs make your salad in front of you is great!

 

On Serenade, I love the Chops Grille... get a meal there the first night and it will be at a discount.

 

Enjoy your cruise... Serenade is a GREAT ship!

Edited September 19, 2014 by Cruisin' Forever!

[jd07]

I was on radiance for sydney to Honolulu this year. I thought the food In the MDR ordinary. It was tasty. Just on the boring side. And a substantial part of the menu was repeated each night. I liked the windjammer food. Plenty of variety and for buffet food it was good. The specialty restaurants were tasty and the chefs table fabulous. Park cafe also had some tasty treats. In 2011 I sailed on Costa Pacifica on a Eastern Mediterranean cruise and I thought their menus far more exciting though :)

 

 

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[Tanker]

We cruise a lot (next one in Feb 15 on Jewel) on RCCL and have always totally enjoyed our meals on board. We live in an area south of Raleigh and have 4 small cities within 10 miles of each other with lots of restaurants. We have never had a bad meal on board. Of course there are a few foods that I don't like and stay away from, such as real spicy foods, celery, and cold soups. We have ordered several entrees at one meal so that we could explore some of the other dishes. You really need to eat in the MDR and make up your own mind.

[Justmekaren918]

Raxter54

 

I am just off Vision, and to bring hopefully more positive. I was speaking to a 1st time cruisers and they were raving about the food in the Main Dinning Room. They loved the Cod, Lamb and a few other things that have escaped my memory.

 

I am recently coming back to cruising and this was 2nd trip back! I only ate twice in the MDR. Breakfast and dinner. The classic chicken was great and the veggies, and baked potato. The breakfast food is made in mass quantities and is delivered to the MDR orders, WJ, and Room Service orders! I ordered the Lobster tail and Prime Rib out of Room Service and the Prime Rib pretty tasty, was not to impressed with Lobster! Breakfast through RS was the pits! A quick suggestion is order lunch RS and keep covers and order coffee and juice to the room and have 1 of you run to WJ and grab breakfast food. If you have covers you can transport! Food at WJ is better then RS breakfast! Actually there is an Omlet station and they can cook whatever you want egg wise.

 

If you know going in knowing that the only food that is cooked singly and fresh to order is the specialty resturants, and I am not even sure of that. The rest is mast produced and some items may be better than other items.

 

Overall the food was fine and I always found something pretty good to eat! I am not sure what ship your on. Vision class WJ is smaller, so less options then say Radiance or larger class! For lunch and dinner there is always hamburgers and hot dogs in WJ!

 

I checked out the Park Cafe, and I just had a Egg Salad sandwich and chips and it was pretty tasty, and they serve a lot more things, so worth checking out, and there desserts seemed more of what I liked, but never tried. They looked size friendly.

 

I hope this adds a little more!

[curcurt]

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

 

When I think of fine dining I'm thinking of places like Commander's Palace, Restaurant August, Irene's Cuisine, The Rib Room, etc, here in New Orleans. Cruise ship MDR is not to this level, but it is still usually very good food. Not everything will be great or to your taste, but you just have to remember they are serving hundreds if not over a thousand dishes the same as yours, all at the same time. It is pretty much mass produced food.

 

We enjoyed our MDR dishes that we had on the Serenade for last fall's TA. I never really care for the buffets, whether on a ship or around home, but this is just me, as it seems many people do enjoy their buffet meals.

 

What I enjoy the most of the MDR is our table mates and getting to know new people and them getting to know us. Never had a bad or negative experience with our table mates. We have friends from a cruise over 30 years ago that we treat as family, even though they are Texas A&M fans.:rolleyes: We did a TA with them in 2012, along with other cruises over the years. We also enjoy getting to know our wait staff and the countries they are from.

[temple1]

Skipping over all the comments that will praise and lambaste Royal about food in the main dining room, Windjammer, pizza, specialty restaurants and what the Captain's mom sent back to the ship with him the last time home, I will say they have cut some corners the last time out with menus. But, I think even Ruth's Chris has dumbed down their menus.

 

There are usually some good choices each night on the main dining room menu. The Windjammer usually has good choices for lunch and breakfast. As has been pointed out - it s a matter of taste. The OP is correct about the jaded 20 plus cruisers who remember the good ole days of cruising. We also seem to have our share who dine every other night at Morton's and the Oak Room and consider that to be slumming.

 

Relax, try new things and if you don't like it - send it back, the waiters will not be offended. Another thing we have discovered - if the waiter makes a recommendation, or suggests something other than what you ordered - listen, they are usually correct. :D

[Justmekaren918]

Temple1

 

I was just at Olive Garden last night and it is no Ruth Chris. The portions are much smaller the quality is worse and the price is up! OG needs to buy new plates, cause it is hard not to notice when the plate is half filled with air! [emoji57]

 

They are not the only ones using this pratice; and hoping we would not notice!

 

I don't know if it is RCI wide, but the specialty resturants were basically serving the whole menu to you during dinner, and they were all doing it on Vision, and I heard this from multiple people on my cruise. Really for the price it is an awesome way to get menu testing! Most people said the food was really great.

[sowhat]

I had good meals everywhere aboard on Serenade in '13 (see my review at the link below).

 

 

 

On Serenade' date=' I love the Chops Grille... get a meal there the first night and it will be at a discount.

 

Enjoy your cruise... Serenade is a GREAT ship![/quote']

 

We sailed on serenade in July this year, The food was the very poor in all areas.

[tm3750]

What my wife and I enjoy the most in the MDR is the opportunity to try different items you normally never would if paying in a regular restaurant, before you say it, yes , I know we are paying for it but what I mean is we can order a " third" meal to taste and that is not something you would do if you were out paying for every item. We also order the cold soup every night just to taste it. I remember getting Lobster tail on three days cruises, but that doesn't happen anymore. My opinion, MDR is very enjoyable and if you don't like it , send it back and get something else.