Celebrity, please change the menus

[true45]

bbappel

The thread was started to ask Celebrity to change the menus

 

Some (many?) of us have expressed these same suggestions to various personnel onboard, on threads and in our reviews. Sometimes they are not the people that have the power and resources to make changes.

 

Thanks for your story

 

This is called cruise critic after all and if everyone was happy happy happy with everything improvements would never be made and there would be no cruise critic or it would be a real bore 😎

 

Happy sailings 🚢🚣

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[keithm]

I tend to agree with most of the people on this forum, especially about Blu. My partner and I have done AQ each time we cruised and we are debating on whether or not it's even worth it with the menu's being the same each time we go. I understand they probably have purchasing agreements with vendors and whatnot, but you think they would have people who would breathe some new life into the Blu menu, on a yearly or year and half basis. The Pecan Crusted (Duck?) had to be the worst thing I ever ate - they can start by ditching that. From what I have been reading about the new Suite Dining Room, my understanding is that the menu is going to be getting changed a lot, I hope they can do the same in Blu.:cool:

What I always loved about dining in the Grills on Cunard..if it wasn't on the menu, you asked for it & they had pretty much anything you wanted. Sometimes it took a day, but they found what you liked.

[keithm]

In the past I might have agreed with you, but my last two cruises were a killer. I don't think anyone is complaining inappropriately as you suggest - I hope tongue in cheek. The food has decreased in quality. Steaks vary from Applebee's quality to inedible, and that is not what one should expect on a cruise ship. I would rather have 4 oz of really good steak than 12 oz of something inedible.

 

I did get bored with the menu because although you have a lot of choices, I've tried too many of the dishes and found them wanting. Someone said they have not changed the menu in years. I just looked at a few Feb 2012 menus and they were quite different from the menus last month. The Feb 2012 menus were Jacques Van Staden menus. The menus must have changed after Feb 2012, and since then I've been on 6 Celebrity cruises so it just seemed that it had been years.

 

The execution of many dishes falls far short of the descriptions. Examples: Lamb Shank with Moroccan spices, couscous and vegetables and Harissa.

I ordered this dish on Summit because I enjoy Moroccan spices and I've made my own Harissa. I like couscous (the Israeli couscous vegetarian dish is often excellent) and the vegetables typically served with Moroccan dishes - carrots, sweet potato, acorn/butternut squash or yellow turnip/swede, cabbage, zucchini with chickpeas (I was imagining a little of each vegetable leaned up against the couscous with the meat in the middle and sauce to pour over everything, and a little bit of something really spicy to add to the dish). This dish was tasteless and overcooked. There were no spices of any kind, too few vegetables and/or chickpeas, the lamb was dreadful and tasted old - like cooked, frozen, thawed and cooked some more, there was too much of it and when I asked my waiter "where is the Harissa?" he couldn't answer, and went back to the kitchen and came back with some sort of generic hot sauce that wasn't harissa. On Equinox, I decided to give it one more try and I'm glad I did. It was good, though still far from well-seasoned, and the asst waiter had some harissa to offer on the side. Granted, the harissa was about as bland as one can get and still call it harissa, but it was much more tasty than on Summit. If the kitchens are all supposed to follow the same menu, why was this? When I asked our head waiter on Summit why there were no Moroccan spices in the dish clearly labeled Moroccan - his answer: "Some people don't like Moroccan spices." Well some people are vegetarian, so should we leave out the meat in all the meat dishes?

I think the head chef on Summit was either not very competent, or he arrogantly thought we wouldn't really like the spices, and he wasn't going to waste them.

Another dish that I wish were properly prepared is the carbonara - it isn't really carbonara, it is a pasta alfredo with an egg on top. True carbonara is delicious, not too rich, and has no cream. But that is me being pedantic and Italian (though not by birth). And so it goes.

 

There are far too few vegetables. Yes, you can order more, but you shouldn't have to read between the lines. If a dish says it is served with green beans and roasted potatoes, there should be more than 2 green beans and one potato. I would happily halve the size of the meat on the plate if 1) it were improved in quality and 2) I got more vegetables and sauce. I think someone mentioned the 1/3 idea. I would like that very much. If need be, people could be told by their waiter that they can order double something, and then the kitchen would have to make that possible.

 

I've seen mention of printing costs being a limiting factor - I think Celebrity could go the way of many many restaurants, and self-print. It isn't really that costly and would go far toward making guests happy. It might give some latitude to the chefs to prepare food that is tasty or if Celebrity must have a limited number of dishes that the chefs must prepare (for some reason beyond our understanding), then give them the ability to mix up the selections for the day. There is one menu where there is absolutely no dish that appeals to me or my husband - and I don't particularly like the steak, salmon or chicken on the left side, as they are intentionally rather plain so that people who need or want plain food can have something good. I'm not a picky eater, I'm someone who loves to cook at home and someone who likes seasoning and variety and spices and heat on occasion. If they can't make the food well-spiced, they should at least serve a sauce that is passed, like they do with mint sauce (well they serve that awfully sweet green jelly, not mint sauce) or horseradish.

 

I'd really love to sit down for an hour or so with the Miami person who plans the meals and discuss this from a food-educated diner's perspective. You can please everyone. It is possible. But you have to give the chef room and reason to shine. Cutting quantity rather than quality would be OK, and I approve of those cost cutting methods. Our cruises haven't increased as greatly in price as the economy, and I'm sure some of that is reasonable cost cutting.

Well, I've rambled enough. Just my opinion. I've been a very loyal Celebrity cruiser, but we are cancelling our next two cruises (I've taken them off my signature already), and are waiting until 2016 for another one. This will give Celebrity time to revamp the menu and perhaps I'll be eager to board the Silhouette when the time comes.

 

I've also decided to edit this post and write to the head office. I shouldn't be complaining on Cruise Critic, if I'm not willing to speak to the source.

 

Beth

We've had great food in the Eclipse. Only meal I didn't care for on our Jan.18'th trip was Talapia(just never really liked it)I just ordered the Salmon from the Celebrity "favorites" list. You don't have to have it broiled as shown, you could pretty much order it any way. Blackened for me was great.

[bar_20]

No....

 

Blu has several off the menu as well as every day items that they will serve on request. Those include onion soup, escargot, caesar salad and some others. However, as a general rule, they won't get you something that's on the MDR menu. Yes, there is the occasional exception for whatever reason, but they are not staffed to have someone run over to the MDR kitchen to get your desired dish. If you are in Blu, you have to work with their menu and their offerings.

 

We used the same waiter every night and he brought us what we asked for. A lot depends on your waiter. He was well taken care of at the end of the cruise.

[keithm]

My experience is different. I went on three two week Celebrity cruises in 2012, all in Aqua class. South America, Transatlantic and Panama Canal.

The price without beverage package ranged from $1200-1600 per person.

The same or similar cruises are now $2500-$3000 pp

And yes, the menus are still the same three years later......Blu's pecan crusted duck breast remains one of the worst dishes at sea, and with a few exceptions, the " chefs " in Blu still struggle to properly cook game birds.

I still got our cruise for $1300p/p for both our Last year & this year's Jan.18'th trip. It was for an inside room, but for $1300P/P for 14 days,I find that a great bargain

[NLH Arizona]

I'd really love to sit down for an hour or so with the Miami person who plans the meals and discuss this from a food-educated diner's perspective. You can please everyone. It is possible. But you have to give the chef room and reason to shine. Cutting quantity rather than quality would be OK, and I approve of those cost cutting methods. Our cruises haven't increased as greatly in price as the economy, and I'm sure some of that is reasonable cost cutting.

I'd love to do the same thing. I'm not a food-educated diner, but know what I like and dislike. I'm not a spice or sauce person and found that there are many things on the right hand of the menu that I would love to try, but they appear (by the description) to have too much spice or have a sauce. It gets a little embarrassing to keep saying, no sauce or no this or no that, so I'd like to see more things on the left side of the menu that are a little more on the plain side and maybe a pasta dish or two. I guess I'm a meat (only eat beef, chicken and turkey) naturalist. When I go to a restaurant with my friends, they are always complaining that the steak doesn't have flavor and I just sit there and smile because I think it tastes fantastic with just a tad of salt and some pepper.

 

I also agree, the portion sizes are quite large (my filet was probably 2 or 3 times as large as the recommended size), compared to a normal sized portion, so I would also like for them to cut quantity instead of quality.

Edited February 7, 2015 by NLH Arizona

[keithm]

I believe that a great chef can cook any ethnic dish well. However, I have lived in the Middle East, Europe and several areas of the USA. Also, I have been to 63 countries in all area of the World.

 

As a native of Texas, I have found many cooks that cannot cook Mexican food the way it should be cooked. When I lived in Europe, I visited so called Mexican restaurants (more than a few). Sorry, but the German and Austrian restaurants that tried to cook authentic Mexican food just could not get it done.

 

Many Mexican restaurants in my home state of Georgia offer pretty fair Mexican food, but still tend to tone down the spicey nature of true Tex-Mex. I think they do this because the people here are not accustomed to true spicey Tex-Mex.

 

I have found the same results with Philippine cooks when I lived in the Middle East.

 

Further, I have had some pretty sad Greek and Lebanese food here in the USA that just didn't use the right spices. I have yet to have really good Arabic pastries like Baklava prepared with honey like they do in the Middle East. Good Moussaka is generally not available in the US unless you find a good GREEK restaurant. Also, Moussaka from the Middle East is different from Greek.

 

Many chain Italian restaurants like The Olive Garden in the USA offer Italian food that is different enough from true Italian food. The food may be good, I like the mushroom stuffed ravioli, but my people of Italian ancestry will tell you Olive Garden is not real Italian.

 

I could go on with more examples.

 

Yes, you can find a recipe and follow it, but different cultures use different cooking oils and techniques. Most oriental cooking is done in a wok or grilled, baking is difficult and the results can be so so.

Most people who have had Chinese food for example,have never had REAL chinese food. My partner is Chinese & when we go to Chinatown, he'll frequently go off menu & get the real stuff. Most Americans would not eat authentic ethnic cuisine if served to them. We've been spoiled by "dumbed" down "Americanized" ethnic food. I mean,really? Do people actually think a "PU PU Platter" is Chinese food?? If they do,please tell them to stick to MacDonalds!

[hcat]

Would like just a few new choices in BLU but not an overhaul of current format...we think menu is varied but getting stale..,overall still perfect for us!

 

hated the coffee...truly bad....we thought it was burnt til someone explained it was a new brand...only good coffee was in Tuscan and Cafe Baccio...,

[ghstudio]

One of the true disappointments in the food is the seasoning...or I should say, the lack of seasoning. Most (dare I say all) dishes served in Blu and the MDR are bland and essentially tasteless. I assume this is cooking to the lowest common denominator...cook it bland and let folks add seasoning....which would be passable if there were appropriate seasonings to add. Now in defense of the chefs, they have managed to find one seasoning which they tend to overuse in most everything....salt. No, salt is not the only seasoning Celebrity, although it is probably one of the least expensive. Given the variation of food taste on the ships, Either the recipes say "season to taste" or if the seasoning is not easily available in the cooking area, the chefs just skip it. I fear it's season to taste and there is no standard. One would hope the head chef would bring some consistency, but obviously they don't taste the food or they have very different palettes. Hooray for the ethnic sections of the buffet, the only place where one can get something actually seasoned with spice (mexican and sometimes asian).

 

Ok...I have one other disappointment...the lack of anything solid in the soups. I mean clam chowder is supposed to have a clam or two in it....onion soup should have some onions in it (I've actually been served onion soup on the Millenium with zero onions...hard to believe). Blue has this down to an art...irrespective of the soup, they put a few solid things on the bottom of the bowl and then pour in the liquid. I spotted a clam once but was afraid to say anything lest others would hear and want one too.

 

While I"m on a roll....Celebrity, if you are only going to change one or two dishes every 18 months.....would you consider changing the small "taste teasers" in blu that are always there when we sit down...the carrot stick, celery stick and two dips....they NEVER EVER CHANGE....it is the epitamy of boring after cruising for 70 or so days dining in Blu. Surprise us...how about a different dip or some olives one night. BORING BORING BORING.

Edited February 7, 2015 by ghstudio

[Islander500]

 

While I"m on a roll....Celebrity, if you are only going to change one or two dishes every 18 months.....would you consider changing the small "taste teasers" in blu that are always there when we sit down...the carrot stick, celery stick and two dips....they NEVER EVER CHANGE....it is the epitamy of boring after cruising for 70 or so days dining in Blu. Surprise us...how about a different dip or some olives one night. BORING BORING BORING.

 

Roll on, ghstudio.

 

So bored with it, I forgot to remember it. ;)

[Arwen]

We are doing a 14-night for the 1st time next sailing.

 

Lots of talk about changes and cost cutting. Would it be so expensive if the menus were revamped? It would be a huge plus to me. Tried Blu -- change is not necessarily an improvement.

 

By the way, thanks for the Lavazza coffee. That was a terrific change.

 

May I suggest things I would like?

More and varied vegetables.

Pork tenderloin, Beef stroganoff,

Ethnic specialties such as Greek spanakopita, moussaka, pastitsio, Italian, Eastern European such as pierogi, kielbasa, French like the coq au vin I grew to love on Celebrity.

Vary the desserts

Love the apple pie but would love to see a cannoli or eclair once in a while

 

Please improve the quality of the beef or cook it in a way that tenderizes it.

 

Ok, this wish list is long enough.

Thanks

 

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

 

 

We just came off from an 11 day Celebrity Southern Caribbean cruise and only our second Celebrity sailing (19 in all, HAL and Princess).

 

In the MDR, the menu was pretty basic. But truly, just about everything ordered came with mashed potatoes! Now, I love mashed potatoes but after 10 to 11 nights???:eek: And the other favored veggie was sliced cooked carrots.

 

One night, along with my steak and mashed potatoes, I found a lone (yes a LONE brussel sprout). It tastes so good :D

 

I found that the Oceanview Cafe had a better selection of veggies, though they seemed to remain the same throughout the cruise. The salads there were quite good, though.

 

Favorite items on the menu 1. Lobster on formal night 2. The Prime Rib 3. The offering of escargot every night, though by day 8, I was done with the escargot :o

 

So, a vote here for more veggies....and I feel that at least Celebrity prefer that folks eat in their specialty restaurants. I understand that profit is necessary.

 

However, even eating in Silk Harvest at lunch...there were few to no veggies...but lots of riced based items (including one of the desserts). Rice is also a staple along with the mashed potatoes in the MDR.

[NLH Arizona]

In the MDR, the menu was pretty basic. But truly, just about everything ordered came with mashed potatoes! Now, I love mashed potatoes but after 10 to 11 nights???:eek: And the other favored veggie was sliced cooked carrots.

 

You can always order a baked potato.

[ChucktownSteve]

My goodness.

 

The ice cream is too cold.

My carrots are too Orange

My egg yolk is too yellow

My water is too wet.

 

Are we spoiled much?

You forgot the "freshly" squeezed OJ is no longer "freshly" squeezed but "fresh" (frozen) squeezed OJ (not from concentrate) :rolleyes:

[cle-guy]

The current MDR menus were rolled out in June 2013.

 

If you look at the very fine print on the bottom of them (hidden under the flap that holds them in the menu holder), you will see the date code, as well as the number of the menu from 1 to 14 identifying which night of the 14 day rotation's menu is being served.

[patty1955]

You can always order a baked potato.

Except the baked potato isn't really baked, it's steamed. The consistency if wrong

[NLH Arizona]

Except the baked potato isn't really baked, it's steamed. The consistency if wrong

Tasted like a baked potato to me.

[SkystheLimit]

I concur with more vegetables. At least a few more pieces of any vegetable served with the meal.

[mstigerlily18]

Except the baked potato isn't really baked, it's steamed. The consistency if wrong

 

It's probably baked, but then steams because it was wrapped in foil, or if it sits on the steam table on the buffet or while waiting for plating.

[Aloha 1]

Most people who have had Chinese food for example,have never had REAL chinese food. My partner is Chinese & when we go to Chinatown, he'll frequently go off menu & get the real stuff. Most Americans would not eat authentic ethnic cuisine if served to them. We've been spoiled by "dumbed" down "Americanized" ethnic food. I mean,really? Do people actually think a "PU PU Platter" is Chinese food?? If they do,please tell them to stick to MacDonalds!

 

And real Chinese food eaten in mainland China makes anything served in the USA pale by comparison!

[ghstudio]

And real Chinese food eaten in mainland China makes anything served in the USA pale by comparison!

 

That generalization is just not true in some of the very large US cities. The generalization that most american's would not eat real chinese food is also pretty far off the mark.

 

Sure, we've all heard of Dog and snake dishes...but China's a huge country with widely varied styles of cooking. We've enjoyed trips there and always eat in non tourist, authentic local chinese restaurants and food stalls...and yes, it's certainly different from what most experience in the US, but it's excellent...and it doesn't have strange ingedients or even strange spices. Certainly the sauces are different...in fact in china there seems to generally be little sauce as opposed to the thick "glop" sauces served in most of the US.

 

I could obviously go on....but the message is....don't generalize

[Kevnzworld]

In the past I might have agreed with you, but my last two cruises were a killer. I don't think anyone is complaining inappropriately as you suggest - I hope tongue in cheek. The food has decreased in quality. Steaks vary from Applebee's quality to inedible, and that is not what one should expect on a cruise ship. I would rather have 4 oz of really good steak than 12 oz of something inedible.

 

I did get bored with the menu because although you have a lot of choices, I've tried too many of the dishes and found them wanting. Someone said they have not changed the menu in years. I just looked at a few Feb 2012 menus and they were quite different from the menus last month. The Feb 2012 menus were Jacques Van Staden menus. The menus must have changed after Feb 2012, and since then I've been on 6 Celebrity cruises so it just seemed that it had been years.

 

The execution of many dishes falls far short of the descriptions. Examples: Lamb Shank with Moroccan spices, couscous and vegetables and Harissa.

I ordered this dish on Summit because I enjoy Moroccan spices and I've made my own Harissa. I like couscous (the Israeli couscous vegetarian dish is often excellent) and the vegetables typically served with Moroccan dishes - carrots, sweet potato, acorn/butternut squash or yellow turnip/swede, cabbage, zucchini with chickpeas (I was imagining a little of each vegetable leaned up against the couscous with the meat in the middle and sauce to pour over everything, and a little bit of something really spicy to add to the dish). This dish was tasteless and overcooked. There were no spices of any kind, too few vegetables and/or chickpeas, the lamb was dreadful and tasted old - like cooked, frozen, thawed and cooked some more, there was too much of it and when I asked my waiter "where is the Harissa?" he couldn't answer, and went back to the kitchen and came back with some sort of generic hot sauce that wasn't harissa. On Equinox, I decided to give it one more try and I'm glad I did. It was good, though still far from well-seasoned, and the asst waiter had some harissa to offer on the side. Granted, the harissa was about as bland as one can get and still call it harissa, but it was much more tasty than on Summit. If the kitchens are all supposed to follow the same menu, why was this? When I asked our head waiter on Summit why there were no Moroccan spices in the dish clearly labeled Moroccan - his answer: "Some people don't like Moroccan spices." Well some people are vegetarian, so should we leave out the meat in all the meat dishes?

I think the head chef on Summit was either not very competent, or he arrogantly thought we wouldn't really like the spices, and he wasn't going to waste them.

Another dish that I wish were properly prepared is the carbonara - it isn't really carbonara, it is a pasta alfredo with an egg on top. True carbonara is delicious, not too rich, and has no cream. But that is me being pedantic and Italian (though not by birth). And so it goes.

 

There are far too few vegetables. Yes, you can order more, but you shouldn't have to read between the lines. If a dish says it is served with green beans and roasted potatoes, there should be more than 2 green beans and one potato. I would happily halve the size of the meat on the plate if 1) it were improved in quality and 2) I got more vegetables and sauce. I think someone mentioned the 1/3 idea. I would like that very much. If need be, people could be told by their waiter that they can order double something, and then the kitchen would have to make that possible.

 

I've seen mention of printing costs being a limiting factor - I think Celebrity could go the way of many many restaurants, and self-print. It isn't really that costly and would go far toward making guests happy. It might give some latitude to the chefs to prepare food that is tasty or if Celebrity must have a limited number of dishes that the chefs must prepare (for some reason beyond our understanding), then give them the ability to mix up the selections for the day. There is one menu where there is absolutely no dish that appeals to me or my husband - and I don't particularly like the steak, salmon or chicken on the left side, as they are intentionally rather plain so that people who need or want plain food can have something good. I'm not a picky eater, I'm someone who loves to cook at home and someone who likes seasoning and variety and spices and heat on occasion. If they can't make the food well-spiced, they should at least serve a sauce that is passed, like they do with mint sauce (well they serve that awfully sweet green jelly, not mint sauce) or horseradish.

 

I'd really love to sit down for an hour or so with the Miami person who plans the meals and discuss this from a food-educated diner's perspective. You can please everyone. It is possible. But you have to give the chef room and reason to shine. Cutting quantity rather than quality would be OK, and I approve of those cost cutting methods. Our cruises haven't increased as greatly in price as the economy, and I'm sure some of that is reasonable cost cutting.

Well, I've rambled enough. Just my opinion. I've been a very loyal Celebrity cruiser, but we are cancelling our next two cruises (I've taken them off my signature already), and are waiting until 2016 for another one. This will give Celebrity time to revamp the menu and perhaps I'll be eager to board the Silhouette when the time comes.

 

I've also decided to edit this post and write to the head office. I shouldn't be complaining on Cruise Critic, if I'm not willing to speak to the source.

 

Beth

 

An absolutely great post. Well thought out and very true.

I first experienced Blu in January 2012 on the Infinity. Though the menu remains pretty much the same, the execution of the dishes was far better around the time of Blu's inception.

Beth , contact Miami and get back to us....I wish you luck, you'll need it.

[Kevnzworld]

The Pecan Crusted (Duck?) had to be the worst thing I ever ate - they can start by ditching that.

 

Haha!! I've written many times that the pecan crusted duck is the single worst dish on the high seas. It's become a joke to us. ( I LOVE duck by the way, and Murano's version is ok...the skin isn't crispy and the fat isn't rendered enough as it should be though ).

So we were on the Silhouette last October for a month. The night the infamous duck was on the menu in Blu we went to the MDR instead. I knew the maître d there so I shared my opinion about the pecan crusted duck with him. He disagreed with my take.

I figured it out. They over cook it to the point that it's rubber in an attempt to keep the crust on.. The crust always falls off though, and you're left with an inedible mess.

Edited February 8, 2015 by Kevnzworld

[patty1955]

Tasted like a baked potato to me.

You're right, it tastes like a potato. The consistency is wrong. A baked potato is flaky. Celebrity's potatoes' texture is waxy. They are either steamed, baked in foil or the wrong variety.

[patty1955]

And real Chinese food eaten in mainland China makes anything served in the USA pale by comparison!

The majority of my co-workers are Chinese. When I was going to China, I asked recommendations about what I should and shouldn't eat. One of them told me that the Chinese food I eat here in the US would be the same as what I would find in China. I was doubtful until I realized that she eats in Chinatown (SF) a lot, so she was comparing that to the food in China.

[NLH Arizona]

You're right, it tastes like a potato. The consistency is wrong. A baked potato is flaky. Celebrity's potatoes' texture is waxy. They are either steamed, baked in foil or the wrong variety.

I guess they don't make the right consistency here in Arizona either, because the baked potato I had on the Summit, tasted just like those I get the restaurants here. Oh well, I guess I live and learn.