Craziest thing you admit to OR actually heard someone complaining about on a cruise?

[Hlitner]

My goodness, living in the Starbucks era one should understand something about coffee. Espresso is made by forcing very hot water (about 90 C) at high pressure) through tightly packed coffee (one can use many different type roasts). Crema is simply some foam that is created during the process of making espresso and has nothing to do with anything dairy. Personally, I developed my love (almost obsession) with espresso as the result of having it on some Sitmar cruises back in the 70s. These days I obsess about making a good cup of espresso or cappuccino at home. Since its such a pain doing this with the old fashioned manual machines we finally bought a "Superautomatic" machine made in Switzerland. This does it all (like the machines on cruise ships) from grinding the beans (for each cup) compacting the grinds, making the hot water (and steam), and delivering the near perfect cup with the proper crema on top. These superautomatic machines are very complex with the good home versions costing $2000 - $3000 and the commercial ones costing a lot more. Of course, in keeping with the Italian tradition we only use Italian beans (Lavazza). It is interesting to note that both Princess and Celebrity use Lavazza beans in their machines.

 

As to comment about adding water to espresso to make "coffee" that is generally called Café Americano. However, most Americans prefer their Americanized coffee which is just coffee beans soaked in hot water which is not under pressure like the process used to make espresso. Café Americano does not taste anything like traditional American coffee.

 

Isn't this kind of useless post fun? :)

 

Hank

Edited April 10, 2015 by Hlitner

[Velvetwater]

If somebody wants a black filter coffee they should order it with that name. An Americano is usually from a Barista machine and will have the natural non dairy 'crema'. If they are fussy with hating the crema then they should ask how the coffee is prepared (from a Barista machine or a filter). It sounds like the lady had no idea what she was talking about and was a natural complainer. Americano is times better than normal filter coffee but there you go. I was trained as a Barista in my student days by a friendly pair where one was an Aussie and one was French Italian. Even though I am in my twenties I find the whole starbucks culture odd...foamed milk does not improved coffee and all you need is hot water, normal milk and a shot of espresso.

 

Talking of milk/tea/beverages on ships I was always bugged by the fact there was only Ultra heat treated milk all over the ship instead of quality fresh milk. I had brought my Yorkshire Gold tea bags and the milk even ruined those. Ah well!

[ducklite]

If somebody wants a black filter coffee they should order it with that name. An Americano is usually from a Barista machine and will have the natural non dairy 'crema'. If they are fussy with hating the crema then they should ask how the coffee is prepared (from a Barista machine or a filter). It sounds like the lady had no idea what she was talking about and was a natural complainer. Americano is times better than normal filter coffee but there you go. I was trained as a Barista in my student days by a friendly pair where one was an Aussie and one was French Italian. Even though I am in my twenties I find the whole starbucks culture odd...foamed milk does not improved coffee and all you need is hot water, normal milk and a shot of espresso.

 

Talking of milk/tea/beverages on ships I was always bugged by the fact there was only Ultra heat treated milk all over the ship instead of quality fresh milk. I had brought my Yorkshire Gold tea bags and the milk even ruined those. Ah well!

 

Most ships use shelf stable milk as it's much easier to store and there is far less spoilage. I don't care for it either, but it is what it is. By the way, if you ever got to French Polynesia you will find whole milk in quarts for beyond dear prices in the cold section, or you can buy shelf stable milk imported from New Zealand for a much more reasonable price.

 

I've run into many times when I was unable to find "filter" coffee in Europe, and will order Americano out of desperation. But like OzKiwiJJ, I typically stick with tea. It's easier on the palate when not made to my liking. (I use loose leaf tea and make it in a pot. Tastier and better on the environment as the tea leaves are compostable and there's not other garbage other than the paper bag it comes in, which is recyclable.)

[Velvetwater]

But like OzKiwiJJ, I typically stick with tea. It's easier on the palate when not made to my liking. (I use loose leaf tea and make it in a pot. Tastier and better on the environment as the tea leaves are compostable and there's not other garbage other than the paper bag it comes in, which is recyclable.)

 

I am guessing you probably adored the tea culture if you visited these isles then. You cannot move for specialty loose tea suppliers and tearooms over here.I am more a tea drinker too and love my tea from a teapot, in a soft water area with sugar. Unfortunately my new home is in a hard water city so I make do. Not too fussy on teabag or not as long as its Yorkshire/Betty's quality and up.

Edited April 10, 2015 by Velvetwater

[DirtyDawg]

Since this has turned into a coffee thread I'll ask my question here. Does any cruise line have decent non-premium coffee? I've been on Carnival, NCL, Royal and Celebrity. All their non-premium coffees were lousy.:(

[Texas Tillie]

Since this has turned into a coffee thread I'll ask my question here. Does any cruise line have decent non-premium coffee? I've been on Carnival, NCL, Royal and Celebrity. All their non-premium coffees were lousy.:(

 

That's because it's a concentrated liquid that has hot water added to it.

[papcx]

What's everybody's opinion of mellow birds?

 

<Takes cover>

[ducklite]

I am guessing you probably adored the tea culture if you visited these isles then. You cannot move for specialty loose tea suppliers and tearooms over here.I am more a tea drinker too and love my tea from a teapot, in a soft water area with sugar. Unfortunately my new home is in a hard water city so I make do. Not too fussy on teabag or not as long as its Yorkshire/Betty's quality and up.

 

Very much. The only problem was the terribly hard water in London. I loved ordering tea and getting a proper pot and crockery as opposed to a paper cup with a plastic lid. Went to tea at the Savoy on my birthday which was incredible.

[ducklite]

Since this has turned into a coffee thread I'll ask my question here. Does any cruise line have decent non-premium coffee? I've been on Carnival, NCL, Royal and Celebrity. All their non-premium coffees were lousy.:(

 

The coffee on Windstar was good. No charge for any non-alcoholic drinks on that line.

[notentirelynormal]

If somebody wants a black filter coffee they should order it with that name. An Americano is usually from a Barista machine and will have the natural non dairy 'crema'. If they are fussy with hating the crema then they should ask how the coffee is prepared (from a Barista machine or a filter). It sounds like the lady had no idea what she was talking about and was a natural complainer. Americano is times better than normal filter coffee but there you go. I was trained as a Barista in my student days by a friendly pair where one was an Aussie and one was French Italian. Even though I am in my twenties I find the whole starbucks culture odd...foamed milk does not improved coffee and all you need is hot water, normal milk and a shot of espresso.

 

Talking of milk/tea/beverages on ships I was always bugged by the fact there was only Ultra heat treated milk all over the ship instead of quality fresh milk. I had brought my Yorkshire Gold tea bags and the milk even ruined those. Ah well!

 

I disagree. If I'm having dinner and not at the specialized coffee bar and I ask for black coffee I see no need to explain to my waiter that I don't want something other then coffee and water in my cup. Believe it or not there are millions of people out there that have never had or even heard of an "Americana" or any other fancy coffee drink. Even more that have no clue what a Barista is.

 

Personally I don't get the Starbucks thing. Paying $5 plus for a cup of coffee seems nuts to me but I do understand that there are others that love their specialty coffee. I don't begrudge them but on the other hand I have an issue with people that think others that don't want the special coffee should get their heads out of the sand, so to speak.

[ducklite]

I'm not a fan of Starbucks, but obviously you have never ordered coffee there. There is no "cup of coffee" which is just coffee and water with condiments you add on your own that you will pay $5 for.

[RW20]

When waiting to get on board my first cruise I was talking with my husband about what we should expect our cost of the on board account to be. Then I mentioned about the daily gratuity fee. We both thought it seemed like a lot of money per person per day.

 

Later that evening when we were having dinner we realized how ignorant we were and actually started a conversation about how much more we would pay in tips on land to get the same high quality service. Now we are booked for our next cruise and I have family coming who started to complain about the daily gratuity fee.... they got an earful on how much work the staff do to earn every penny and more.

[notentirelynormal]

I'm not a fan of Starbucks, but obviously you have never ordered coffee there. There is no "cup of coffee" which is just coffee and water with condiments you add on your own that you will pay $5 for.

 

I've been in there a couple of times. Long lines. Like I said I don't get it. But it's not my money being spent so whatever makes that person happy, I'm good with it.

 

My whole point is - if I am not in/at a place that has specialty coffee and I order black coffee I should not have to explain to the person that I want just black coffee. At the specialty coffee bars, yes, explain. In the restaurant, no I should not have to.

[ducklite]

If you walk into a Starbucks and order black coffee, you will get black drip coffee. Nothing more, nothing less.

[notentirelynormal]

When waiting to get on board my first cruise I was talking with my husband about what we should expect our cost of the on board account to be. Then I mentioned about the daily gratuity fee. We both thought it seemed like a lot of money per person per day.

 

Later that evening when we were having dinner we realized how ignorant we were and actually started a conversation about how much more we would pay in tips on land to get the same high quality service. Now we are booked for our next cruise and I have family coming who started to complain about the daily gratuity fee.... they got an earful on how much work the staff do to earn every penny and more.

 

That's kind of what I did on our first cruise. If we had gone out for breakfast, lunch and dinner - how much tip would we have left. It works out cheaper for better service so it's a no brainer to me.

[notentirelynormal]

If you walk into a Starbucks and order black coffee, you will get black drip coffee. Nothing more, nothing less.

 

LOL Then you just confirmed the lady wasn't out of line to order black coffee and complain when she had cream in it. So we agree :)

[DirtyDawg]

The coffee on Windstar was good. No charge for any non-alcoholic drinks on that line.

 

Thanks for the info. The quality of the coffee is not going to be a deal breaker for me in choosing which line to sail on but it's something to consider. Until Windstar I'll just have to grin and sip it or pay for the premium stuff:(

Edited April 10, 2015 by DirtyDawg

[navybankerteacher]

My whole point is - if I am not in/at a place that has specialty coffee and I order black coffee I should not have to explain to the person that I want just black coffee. At the specialty coffee bars, yes, explain. In the restaurant, no I should not have to.

 

News flash: the world is bigger than your neighborhood, and not everybody shares your experiences and concepts. If you haven't noticed, the people serving you in the restaurant on board ship are not from your neighborhood. Is it that difficult to specify what you mean when you order coffee?

[notentirelynormal]

News flash: the world is bigger than your neighborhood, and not everybody shares your experiences and concepts. If you haven't noticed, the people serving you in the restaurant on board ship are not from your neighborhood. Is it that difficult to specify what you mean when you order coffee?

 

Wow!

 

News flash: not everybody shares YOUR experiences either.

 

I travel around enough and have ordered coffee in different places around the world but that doesn't mean the guy next to me has. I don't care where the server was born. If I am on a US based ship (as many many people point out the tipping system is US based) then I do expect my server to understand the food items on the menu that I am ordering are US based. When I say I want black coffee I AM specifying what I want - coffee that is black!

[maywell]

Wow!

 

News flash: not everybody shares YOUR experiences either.

 

I travel around enough and have ordered coffee in different places around the world but that doesn't mean the guy next to me has. I don't care where the server was born. If I am on a US based ship (as many many people point out the tipping system is US based) then I do expect my server to understand the food items on the menu that I am ordering are US based. When I say I want black coffee I AM specifying what I want - coffee that is black!

Even on US-based ships, it would be nice of you to specify if you want regular black or expresso black with/no water (americano is expresso shot(s) with more water added to it). Has more to do with the different varieties of coffee drinks now.

 

Sent from my SGH-T399 using Tapatalk

[Debala715]

If it is coffee and has caffeine in it, then I'm good and will take whatever kind of coffee is put in front of me.

[GottaKnowWhen]

Wow!

 

News flash: not everybody shares YOUR experiences either.

 

I travel around enough and have ordered coffee in different places around the world but that doesn't mean the guy next to me has. I don't care where the server was born. If I am on a US based ship (as many many people point out the tipping system is US based) then I do expect my server to understand the food items on the menu that I am ordering are US based. When I say I want black coffee I AM specifying what I want - coffee that is black!

 

I agree with you both. 1. Common drinks, like regular coffee or black coffee, should need no explanation. 2. But they do sometimes need explanation. In cross-cultural interchanges (e.g. California - Missouri; or U.S. - Philippines) I tend to play it safe and explain myself. But there is a fine line - you don't want to come across as though you don't think the other has a clue. So when I ask for my morning Bloody Maria, if I am dealing with a waiter I say without pausing "A Bloody Maria please that is like a Bloody Mary but with tequila instead of vodka." When dealing with a bartender I'll just name the drink, watch for any signs of puzzlement or failure to hear the "Maria" part and only then say the rest. When dealing with a waiter I'll say "black coffee drip if you have it otherwise Americano." Dealing with a barista I'll just say "coffee please" and assume that whatever they give me will be good.

 

Stan

[Pyrate13]

Man, talk about a thread being hijacked!!!:p

[mrsdeb]

LOL Then you just confirmed the lady wasn't out of line to order black coffee and complain when she had cream in it. So we agree :)

 

Not cream! Crema! It's coffee foam!

[BullDawg91]

Man, talk about a thread being hijacked!!!:p

 

 

[emoji51]