Which Cruise Line Has Best Food?

[kelmac]

This is always a moving target. Things change! We are going to give NCL another chance here in less than three weeks -- we've always rated them at the bottom in cruise ship cuisine.

My ratings as of now: (only lines we have cruised)

 

 

#1 -- Oceania -- MDR wonderful; alternatives good; buffet very good

 

#2 -- Azamara -- MDR excellent; alternatives excellent; buffet pretty good

 

#3 -- Celebrity -- MDR very good; alternatives excellent and Blu is a nice change of pace; buffet great and improving

 

#4 -- Cunard -- MDR excellent; alternatives so so; buffet the worst at sea

 

#5 -- Holland America -- MDR very good; alternatives good; buffet usually good

 

#6 -- Royal Caribbean -- MDR good and improving; alternatives good; never cared for their buffet

 

#7 -- Princess -- MDR good; alternatives good; buffet crowded and not my favorite

 

#8 -- NCL -- have not been on their ships in many years, so I will hold off for now. We did select their UDP for our next cruise.

 

I use to rate Princess above Royal Caribbean, but things change. I would love to cruise Oceania and Azamara more, but they are much more expensive. Crystal, Seabourn, Silversea -- some day. Disney, Costa, MSC, Carnival just haven't grabbed my attention -- yet.:)

 

Ask me in a year, and it will be different.

Kel:D

[rjrpar]

Instead of changing to a Luxury cruise line, it is much cheaper to eat in the specialty restaurants most nights on the main stream lined like Celebrity. It is also a higher level of food than shifting to an Oceania or Azamara.

[Cruise Junky]

Instead of changing to a Luxury cruise line, it is much cheaper to eat in the specialty restaurants most nights on the main stream lined like Celebrity. It is also a higher level of food than shifting to an Oceania or Azamara.

 

But unfortunately, they don't change the menus.

[lahlah57]

Crystal by far better than any other line we have been on. It did not matter where you ate......top notch! A foodies dream come true!:p

[grandgeezer]

Instead of changing to a Luxury cruise line, it is much cheaper to eat in the specialty restaurants most nights on the main stream lined like Celebrity. It is also a higher level of food than shifting to an Oceania or Azamara.

 

We have cruised all the major lines and have found that overall, the food is quite similar. We've had good, and not so good meals on all of them. We feel the quality has changed because of the cutbacks, cheaper cuts of meat, etc. We have tried the specialty restaurants and though the food is somewhat better, it is not near worth the extra charge.

[lightning bolt]

Oceania's food was outstanding. I still prefer to sail on Celebrity.

[jsf]

I agree that the M.Roux days were to be remembered. Could it be that the MDR food is sub par to drive people to the specialty dining rooms or pay more for Luminae or Blu availability?

We have sailed on Celebrity since 1994 and must admit the food quality has gone down but then again this may be true of all cruise lines.

[yorky]

I look at it this way, when we started cruising 20 years ago the ships were maybe serving food for 1200 passengers, now it's often over 3000, I wonder if the staff in the kitchens have increased three fold.

[ISABELLA]

We bring Lunchables and canned Raviolis on board to avoid the MDR and the rest of the nonsense all together. :D

 

You might need them for your Carnival cruises.;)

[alexspepa]

I second Oceania as having the best food. I especially like Oceania's larger ships Marina and Riviera which are 1200 passenger ships. O does not charge extra to go to their specialty restaurants but there is a priority reservation system pre cruise in which suites get first dibs.

 

yes but everyone is guaranteed one night in each restaurant.

[cscream13]

We thought Oceania was by far the best of all the lines we've sailed, but also the most expensive. We were on the second sailing of the new Riviera in 2013, so perhaps we had a particularly good experience.

 

Of the other lines we've sailed - Disney, Princess, Royal Carribbean and NCL - nothing else is really a standout. Some great, some good, some not-so-good.

 

And I agree with a previous poster, that sometimes the food is made or broken by the surrounding experience. Its hard to look back clearly on JUST the food when there is a lot that colors your opinion from the dining experience as a whole.

[Merriem]

My husband and I just came off Celebrity Constellation. HUGE disappointment with each evening meal in the MDR. Lacking flavor, presentation and variety.

 

We just came from my cousin's birthday dinner......

 

Rack of Lamb, roasted potatoes, roasted asparagus, Caesar salad paired with a very nice Pinot Noir.

 

Best meal we have had in a week!

 

 

Our next cruise may be based on how good the food is.

 

What is your feedback because I am extremely disappointed.

 

We like Celebrity, but obviously we' were not on your cruise. We were on the Celebrity Xpedition in the Galapagos in January for the second time and the food was terrible. It had really gone down hill.

 

I would recommend the speciality restaurants. Oceania has great food, but that was about it! Maybe you just had bad luck as normally the MDR has good food.

[FlorenceItaly]

You might need them for your Carnival cruises.;)

 

I am wondering if you have ever cruised on Carnival? I have been on 2 in the last few months(and many more before that), and the service is consistently wonderful in every area; dining room, bar service, room steward, etc. They are friendly, and very eager to please. The food is GOOD. From what I have been reading about Celebrity lately, I am wondering about my upcoming Constellation cruise. My upcoming cruise is only 5 nights long, but, I have been reading bad reviews(member section) on the longer cruises also. No doubt we will have a wonderful time as there is no bad cruise, imo.

[hypercafe]

It is hard to point to a line. We have had good and bad on all. We had our best steaks on NCL and the worst Italian on Oceania.

 

 

Sent from my XT1032 using Forums mobile app

[Stateroom_Sailor]

I am wondering if you have ever cruised on Carnival? I have been on 2 in the last few months(and many more before that), and the service is consistently wonderful in every area; dining room, bar service, room steward, etc. They are friendly, and very eager to please. The food is GOOD. From what I have been reading about Celebrity lately, I am wondering about my upcoming Constellation cruise. My upcoming cruise is only 5 nights long, but, I have been reading bad reviews(member section) on the longer cruises also. No doubt we will have a wonderful time as there is no bad cruise, imo.

 

Haha, funny little slam. I agree, can't comment on the new American Table on 4 of the ships, but the regular menu as of 4 years ago, was excellent. I would compare it to a $40+ a person steakhouse. Celebrity was even a bit better, where RCL was closer to an Outback Steakhouse.

 

For those who have never been on Carnival and wonder how the food could possibly be good, no one shows up! We sat at a table for 8, alone, with no one even nearby almost every night. This was in the Spring when the age demographic is a bit higher. Still, most passengers seemed more interested in the buffet, fast food, or room service. :rolleyes:

[workstocruise]

Our first Celebrity cruise was in 2013 on the Constellation. The food in the MDR was the best we've had at sea. Everything was delicious and we never ate in any of the specialty restaurants. In 2014 we sailed on the Oceania Marina. We did not care for the choices in the MDR and rarely ate there, but we loved the Terrace Cafe where we could get steak and lobster every night if we wanted. Also most of their specialty restaurants are very good. Food is very subjective and what some people like, others don't.:)

[GUT2407]

I prefer plain food, nothing better than a steak and salad or a roast, but I also love seafood.

 

Not big on rich sauces, BUT have never absolutely never not been able to get something that suits.

 

Herself is vegetarian or vegan and reckons some of the best food she's ever had was on a cruise.

[true45]

Among the lines I have sailed food

Oceania was the best

2. Disney

3 tie celebrity & Princess

Celebrity buffet better (just tried Blu- not impressed) room service breakfast very good

Princess MDR better, room service breakfast not good at all

Love balcony breakfasts and not getting up early

Celebrity new lavazza coffee delicious

Princess coffee free and pay terrible

4. Rccl - ok

5. Carnival - just terrible

[Aloha 1]

#1 Oceania - The 1200 passenger ships are as big as the M class with half the passengers.

 

#1 1/2 Regent - Outstanding MDR and specialty restaurants

 

#3 Celebrity - BLU outstanding and Murano superb

 

#4 (tie) Princess & Disney - We found the food on Disney surprisingly good and Princess still has the best Italian food at sea AND the best pizza!

 

Food quality is subjective. Being in the restaurant business for 30 years, I look for quality and variation. Others want simple. If you are happy with your meal, that's a win.

[ChiGal1962]

So hard to compare because time plays into it. I guarantee you the vast majority of cruise lines have adjusted their main dining quality downward over the last 15 years. So comparing my Royal Caribbean 2003 cruise to my 2014 Princess cruise probably isn't fair. But the food onboard is very important to me:) So here goes:

 

Celebrity (2011, 2013) and HAL (2009): Very good MDR. Hope it continues as I have 2 Celebrity cruises booked for 2015!

 

Princess (2014): Also very good MDR. Maybe a hair below what I loved about Celebrity?

 

Royal Caribbean (2003): I remember enjoying it a lot, but it was a long time ago.

 

NCL (2012): Barely acceptable to inedible MDR. Seriously there were many nights nothing on the menu appealed to me, and the steak they ended up bringing was tough to the point of not being able to cut it. Did one specialty restaurant their (the steakhouse) and it was excellent. I think of all lines, they are really driving people to their specialty restaurants, so if I were to ever cruise them again (the prices are good!), I would probably plan on specialty restaurant every night.

[ChucktownSteve]

I agree with many that food is subjective. That being said, I equate that Carnival food is to Celebrity as Celebrity is to Oceania.

 

The best food I've experienced so far was on Oceania Marina. I enjoyed the caviar boats in the MDR. They brought me three!!! The third one I didn't order, it was compliments of the chef because I enjoyed the second one so much. I also enjoyed the food at the four specialty restaurants included at no extra charge.

 

The service was exceptional in dining and all the other departments on board. However, the no extra charge isn't exactly accurate. You pay two to three times per nightly rate on Oceania than Celebrity.

 

So you can eat at the Celebrity specialty restaurants and still get off cheaper than Oceania. Next February we're booked in Aqua and will experience Blu for the first time. So maybe we'll have more to compare then.

 

I believe the real difference is who is heading up the kitchen at the time of your sailing. On the same ship you can experience completely different levels of food with the same menu one year apart.

 

But as they say, any day on a cruise is better than any day at work. ;) And at least you're not having to prepare dinner yourself.

Edited March 10, 2015 by ChucktownSteve

[Redtravel]

Windstar has fabulous food. Best deck BBQ that I have ever seen. Celebrity is very good. Food is subjective. Nothing can compare with Celebrity's cheese cake. It is my favorite dessert.

[RosieCanberra]

Windstar has fabulous food. Best deck BBQ that I have ever seen. Celebrity is very good. Food is subjective. Nothing can compare with Celebrity's cheese cake. It is my favorite dessert.

 

Lol, my husband LOVES the cheesecake too. I would put Celebrity as number one for food.

[Lovincruisin1321]

Why should I be forced to eat in a specialty restaurant and pay more money? I paid for a cruise that states is higher quality than RCCL.

[Shaco]

We bring Lunchables and canned Raviolis on board to avoid the MDR and the rest of the nonsense all together. :D

 

Don't forget to pack the Spam!