Food can it get any more boring?

[Ethel5]

I figure I don't have to shop for it, I don't have to cook it, I don't have to serve it and I don't have to clean up after it. I can always find something to like on the menu.

 

After a while, especially a long cruise, I get tired of the fancier stuff, so I go to the pool deck and have a hot dog or order the alphabet soup from the kid's menu.:D

[Iamcruzin]

There are so many choices in the assortment of venues, we don't get bored. I look at mdr food as a step above convention food. Tough to get too gourmet and exciting feeding the numbers the ships need to.

 

Our best meals were on Oceania and Seabourn. But the passenger count is much lower and cost is higher. So, we can live easily with food options on Princess and Celebrity. We have found Celebrity's specialties clearly surpass Princess.[/quote]

 

 

They should be better since they are twice the price of Princess specialty restaurants . I probably will never find out since I refuse to pay $50pp on Celebrity. We did eat in Qsine for $36pp but it wasn't worth more than $20. The food was Meh...

[7leagueboots]

Never had a problem with food on Princess.

[lindy sails]

The good on the Regal last month was excellent!

[shredie]

I figure I don't have to shop for it, I don't have to cook it, I don't have to serve it and I don't have to clean up after it. I can always find something to like on the menu.

 

After a while, especially a long cruise, I get tired of the fancier stuff, so I go to the pool deck and have a hot dog or order the alphabet soup from the kid's menu.:D

 

Perfect! :D My thoughts exactly. It's always possible to order from the kids' menu which has lots of non-exotic stuff like chicken fingers and spaghetti and a garden salad my grandson loves.

[MTJSR]

When people say cruise food is lousy I always wonder what they eat everyday.

 

 

Well just for fun, and one example of where Princess misses the mark. In the real world that I eat in and work in, prime rib is "Normally" cooked with rock salt and pepper only. What you get is a nicely seasoned piece of meat you can taste on its own merits. No strange weird or odd aftertastes.

 

Princess however does something different, what exactly I do not know, but I have never had odd, weird or strange aftertastes in prime rib, except on Princess. How can even the simplest item to cook and hold for long hours be off tasting?

[Frflatt]

Speaking from an extensive (2!) cruise history I would argue that the perceived quality of the food depends on a number of factors:

The team preparing the food

The menus - European/ Carribean/other

The personal taste of the passenger

 

On our Mediterranean cruise on the Regal Princess we were very impressed by the food, it was very much to our liking, the flavours were amazing and we absolutely couldn't fault it.

 

On our Caribbean cruise on the Royal Princess we found the food disappointing to say the least, the taste was bland and even those dishes that were meant to be spicy lacked any flavour.

 

The only constant in terms of excellence was the IC, which was superb on both ships.

 

Now, this may be completely subjective because we are European (English) and enjoyed the European flavours more, or, it could be because the catering team on the Regal were better than those on the Royal.

 

We have more cruises booked on both ships to both destinations so we will have more data to make a proper assessment- I will get back to you in a year's time!

[greenie082756]

I figure I don't have to shop for it, I don't have to cook it, I don't have to serve it and I don't have to clean up after it. I can always find something to like on the menu.

 

After a while, especially a long cruise, I get tired of the fancier stuff, so I go to the pool deck and have a hot dog or order the alphabet soup from the kid's menu.:D

 

Exactly! This is why I cruise. Denny's doesn't serve Beef Wellington. :D

[furb]

Carnival had made to order Pizza, Sandwiches, Hot dogs, all types of bread, free hot cocoa lemonade, even ice cream available alnight.

On our Carnival cruise the pizza was disgusting and soft (like microwaved bread texture) and the "always available ice cream" was the cheapest off-brand ice-ridden-horridly-textured ice milk, and my husband, normally a complete ice cream fiend, took one bite and didn't have any ice cream for the remainder of the cruise.

[richstowe]

I figure I don't have to shop for it, I don't have to cook it, I don't have to serve it and I don't have to clean up after it. I can always find something to like on the menu.

 

After a while, especially a long cruise, I get tired of the fancier stuff, so I go to the pool deck and have a hot dog or order the alphabet soup from the kid's menu.:D

 

Exactly! This is why I cruise. Denny's doesn't serve Beef Wellington. :D

My expectations are higher then Denny's . It is not enough for DW and me just to find something

to like on the menu. Fortunately these expectations are usually met. Cruise ship food

is on par with country club or private club fare . It is not adventurous or particularly exciting

but it is decent to good and that's how most people want it . For us it is a bit retro .

[kimlovesfl]

My husband does a lot of baking at home--just a hobby--and, like you, has a stash of varieties of flours. But one true way to ruin a good experience with a roll is to not get a nice brown crust on it. And this is exactly what happened on one of our cruises on the Sea Princess. It was a major disappointment each and every evening. The rolls were only lightly blonde and because of this, they lacked flavor. This was the only time on any Princess cruise that the rolls were, by our standards, under baked. It was a 10-day cruise. We've never experienced this again. Yes, food can be subjective but it also is dependent on the Chef in Charge of the kitchen. He is in charge of the quality and control of what goes out to the dining rooms. He sets the standards.

 

A lot of Americans like their bread "anemic", as my mother used to say. I like my bread nice and brown and well-baked.

 

The black forest cake, OMG YUM!! My husband is a pastry chef, and he declared the black forest cake absolutely dead-on perfect, could not have been any better.

[SteveH2508]

We have just booked on the Royal Princess today (first Princess cruise in 5 years).

 

We have pulled the sample MDR menu off the website that is "past ships";). It is dated June 2013 - is it still up to date or at least a reasonable reflection of what we will get in July 2015?

[PrincessLuver]

On our Carnival cruise the pizza was disgusting and soft (like microwaved bread texture) and the "always available ice cream" was the cheapest off-brand ice-ridden-horridly-textured ice milk, and my husband, normally a complete ice cream fiend, took one bite and didn't have any ice cream for the remainder of the cruise.

 

I can tell no difference in the pizza and ice cream on Carnival or Princess.....they both are tasty and fulfilling....:)

[Colo Cruiser]

Denny's, disgusting. :(

[Ethel5]

Well just for fun, and one example of where Princess misses the mark. In the real world that I eat in and work in, prime rib is "Normally" cooked with rock salt and pepper only. What you get is a nicely seasoned piece of meat you can taste on its own merits. No strange weird or odd aftertastes.

 

Princess however does something different, what exactly I do not know, but I have never had odd, weird or strange aftertastes in prime rib, except on Princess. How can even the simplest item to cook and hold for long hours be off tasting?

 

I think that the main stream cruise lines are buying cheaper cuts of meat and using MSG or something. Last month on Carniva,l the steak and prime rib were VVEEERRRRYYYYY tender but were gray and had an off taste. My legs from ankles to mid shin were puffed up to twice their size by the third day. I haven't sailed Princess since Oct 2014 and I didn't have that problem but the meats were chewy.

[waltd]

I think that the main stream cruise lines are buying cheaper cuts of meat and using MSG or something. Last month on Carniva,l the steak and prime rib were VVEEERRRRYYYYY tender but were gray and had an off taste. My legs from ankles to mid shin were puffed up to twice their size by the third day. I haven't sailed Princess since Oct 2014 and I didn't have that problem but the meats were chewy.

 

Have had the same issues when cruising. After 2 or 3 days my ankles start swelling. Once I get home, within a couple of days, the swelling has gone away. I'm thinking salt is the culprit.

[MTJSR]

I think that the main stream cruise lines are buying cheaper cuts of meat and using MSG or something. Last month on Carniva,l the steak and prime rib were VVEEERRRRYYYYY tender but were gray and had an off taste. My legs from ankles to mid shin were puffed up to twice their size by the third day. I haven't sailed Princess since Oct 2014 and I didn't have that problem but the meats were chewy.

 

I think you just nailed it, MSG does give that tangy weird chemical taste. Speaking of swollen ankles, that happens to my mother and I both on Princess. So it's not just us!!

[paul929207]

I guess it all depends on your perspective. We have not sailed in 18 months and will not for another 6 because my wife has been seriously ill. We look to a cruise as a sign that she is better. So I would love to see those "boring" menus again.

[waltd]

Paul, sorry to hear your wife has been ill. Hope the two of you get to cruise soon.

Joe

[happy cruzer]

Sorry, can't agree with boring. Prime rib was excellent, loved ordering fish and seafood including scallops. Trio of veal, lamb and chicken skewer was excellent. Duck and pheasant were very good too. Lots of good pastas with mushrooms, veal or osso buca..

Not boring at all.

[kendon]

I really don't understand how the menu is boring. There are SO MANY options...homestyle comfort foods, ethnic dishes from everywhere, vegetarian, etc. How...can...the..food...be boring...

 

I don't get it.

[greenie082756]

I really don't understand how the menu is boring. There are SO MANY options...homestyle comfort foods, ethnic dishes from everywhere, vegetarian, etc. How...can...the..food...be boring...

 

I don't get it.

 

Exactly. I think there is quite a variety of selections, everywhere on the ship. There are items I get on the cruise such as Beef Wellington (as an example) that has never been offered in restaurants (and no I'm not talking about Denny's). :rolleyes:

On our 14 day cruise on the Golden I thought the food was a bit bland. On the cruise we took on the Ruby it was perfect.

I think different staff makes or breaks the food preparation.

I do know that I do not go hungry and I don't have to cook or do the dishes. I'm on vacation. :D

[MTJSR]

I really don't understand how the menu is boring. There are SO MANY options...homestyle comfort foods, ethnic dishes from everywhere, vegetarian, etc. How...can...the..food...be boring...

 

I don't get it.

 

Well, after eight cruises, for me the menu has become stale, familiar and overdone. I for one, just don't want another bowl of fettuccini right now, how about raviolis, carbonara, pene rigatoni, lasagne, linguini and clams, etc etc.

 

What would be wrong with table side entries like tomato, sausage and pecorino pasta or pasta pancetta and pine nuts. I can book a cruise right now and know exactly what is on the menu each night. I for one like surprises and I think thats what this thread is all about. Time to mix it up and freshen the selections.

 

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Edited May 5, 2015 by MTJSR

[shredie]

Well, after eight cruises, for me the menu has become stale, familiar and overdone. I for one, just don't want another bowl of fettuccini right now, how about raviolis, carbonara, pene rigatoni, lasagne, linguini and clams, etc etc.

 

 

.

 

There is always an additional pasta choice besides fettuccine every day. Some of those sound pretty exotic to me. On many of my cruises, the head waiter has done a pasta dish table side. Sometimes there is an Italian-type appetizer offered. There is always the kids' spaghetti, which is pretty good, actually. It sounds as if you should be dining every night in Sabatini's (though the pasta selections there aren't all that great, IMO.)

[MTJSR]

There is always an additional pasta choice besides fettuccine every day. Some of those sound pretty exotic to me. On many of my cruises, the head waiter has done a pasta dish table side. Sometimes there is an Italian-type appetizer offered. There is always the kids' spaghetti, which is pretty good, actually. It sounds as if you should be dining every night in Sabatini's (though the pasta selections there aren't all that great, IMO.)

 

lol, my primary point was just that the menu items for more frequent cruisers is old and very very familiar. Even a nightly special, something concocted by the chefs team and not the same on every ship might help shake it up a bit.

 

Side note: Its very hard for this forum to agree on many suggestions. There will always be people here willing to defend moldy bread, so Princess won't be taking us too seriously anytime soon.

 

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Edited May 5, 2015 by MTJSR