Mercury compared from last year to this year

[Joyfredsblondecruiser]

We enjoyed the Mercury last year so much. This is why I booked it again for another cruise this year on the Oct 31, sailing. My husband and cousin and I went on it together. I have debated with myself on whether to post this or not because I know some people will not agree and I know some will. This was my eperience only and also some of my table mates and people I met, The Mercury does need to replace their matresses we had to ask for a different matress baecause you could see deep dents in it when we arrived. They did take care of this for us and we were able to sleep very well. Many other people I talked to had bad matresses too so I suggested they ask for another matress and a egg crate. I will say that all of the people that worked on the ship were as wonderful as before. I do not blame them for anything. I heard from a very good source that Celebrity has cut down on many things and also on giving their employees paid vacation. The food last year was wonderful this year I thought it was terrible. My husband had a filet mignon that was so tough you had to saw it and you could not chew it he broke a cap on his tooth with this steak. He tried steak two other times and it was very tough too. My steak and everyone at our table was tough too. We had late sitting and I understand the early sitting at our same table said it was great. I had only 3 meals that I thought were good. Lamb curry at lunch, duck at dinner, and lobster which I had two of. The Baked Alkaska was a laugh. It was not true Baked Alaska. It was neopolitan icecream with marshmelow cream and was not baked it had a little thin cake on bottom. We decided since the food was so bad not to eat in the dining room as much. My cousin ate in dining room the whole time and found it to be terrible. We ate sushi as an alternative and found it to be very good. The night of the Captains club party their was a terrible sewage odor. It was also in the dining room after the party. This odor seemed to happen several times on our trip. I loved the Mercury before and I wish Celebrity would do something to bring it back to what it was. We did enjoy all of our shore excursions and found the food on the excursions to be excellent. I also feel that the Mercury needs to refurbish the chairs and couches in the cabins. We had Concierge Class this time and I did enjoy the balcony but I do not think I would pay the difference again. I had such a wonderful steward last year and our steward was very good this time but he was not a Mr. B. This was the first time my cousin said he did not feel sad to leave the ship. We were on the Jewel of the Sea Aug .Sep, sailing and all of the food was excellent. Happy Sailing, Joy

[trcori]

I guess your experience can really vary depending on what cabin you're in and who your service personnel are. We too sailed Mercury last year and this year (April 2004 along California & to Cabo, August 2005 to Alaska) and thoroughly enjoyed both cruises ... got an even-better wait team this year ... never had a bad meal. Re: the Baked Alaska -- we've sailed six times since fall 2002 and that's pretty much what it's always been -- ice cream in meringue -- really just an excuse for the parade more than some sort of dessert dream, IMO. Sorry you had a bad time -- TR

[tbelian]

Wasn't I on this same cruise?

 

I don't feel the same way. Particularly about the food . I did send my filet back because it was too rare when it first came, but the second piece was excellent. Our other 5 dining companions expressed no complaints over the food at dinner, and none of us missed a dinner in the Manhattan.

 

I made a couple bad choices for entrees that I found I didn't care for but sent them back, and got replacements, no problem.

 

I can say that smell was a little weird, and none of the waitstaff seemed to know what was up. I thought it was basically gone before dinner was served, or at least I didn't notice it then.

 

I don't like baked alaska so I didn't even look at it. ALL of the other desserts I had were great. I asked for different dessert on baked alaska night and it was served, no problem.

 

As for the 'very good source' , if it's ship staff, I don't listen to anything any staff person tells me on the ship without realizing it is only one side of the coin, 'THEIR' side. Some ship staff, in my experience, are overly anxious to wag their tongues about things they really don't know that much about.

[Joyfredsblondecruiser]

I know many people had great food and many did not. My husband never complains about food but if you cannot chew it and you lose a crown because of it being too tough this is not good. Did you have early or late seating. I heard the early seating was better than the late. Happy Sailing, Joy

[asctony]

I can only add that each opinion is an opinion. Check the other boards. HAL Zuiderdam had bad smells when it first came out. Mattresses are being replaced on most of the lines. Food is very subjective. I am not disagreeing, but only pointing out that there is no one perfect cruise line or cruise ship. The world is changing and we must accept changes. It is your money and you have a choice. I wish you well on your next cruise regardless of which cruise line. Happy Cruising!

[Joyfredsblondecruiser]

I know that everyone has different experiences on ships than others. I have always said I have enjoyed every ship I have ever been on. I enjoyed the ship but I did not think the food was up to par. I think Freds steak was an end cut and very tough. The waiter argued with him their was nothing wrong with it. I don`t think a waiter should argue with you. Fred just got up and left. The waiter kept asking my cousin if we were going to return to eat at the table. My steak was hard to cut too and so was everyones at our table. Last year the Pizza was great and so were the Hamburgers. This year both were terrible. My last meal was excellent it was rack of Lamb I wish all of the meals had been as good as that. I just talked to my cousin on the phone and he said he was served cold fish in a pool of oil and it was terrible on one of the nights Fred and I did not join the table. He said others ordered this too and had it removed and ordered something else. Happy Sailing, Joy

[Ma Bell]

Joy,

 

Sorry to hear you had a bad experience. We had late seating and found the food to be very good. Sounds to me as if your waiter may have been the problem. We found the service to be excellent with the exception of one waiter at lunchtime. He seemed to be the only one on the ship with a bad attitude. As far as the smell that one evening, we were told there was a problem with a leak in the airconditioning system and it was near the sewer line. Since you could smell it everywhere, this seems to make sense. It seemed to be repaired within about an hour and we never smelled it again. It was nasty, but taken care of quickly.

[tbelian]

Did you have early or late seating. I heard the early seating was better than the late.

 

Hi,

 

We were two tables away from you at late seating.

 

I noticed your waiter a couple times during meals. He seemd 'grumpy'.

 

Sorry your experience was not up to par.

[WillK]

I'm glad that the O.P. brought up the issue of mattresses. We've previously cruised only on HAL and our first Celbrity cruise will be on the Mercury-May 5th sailing. Now I'm thinking that I'll pack a mattress topper. I'm less concerned about the food. I prepare at least one "questionable" meal per week and don't hold others to a higher standard.

 

Will

[Leela]

I was on Mercury at the end of September and wished that they had nice new pillow-top mattresses everywhere. The mattress in our stateroom was very average -- better than the awful on we had on Horizon, but not as nice as the pillow-top one we had in our CC cabin on Century. With the various hotels and also HAL trumpeting the quality of their beds, Celebrity will need to step up and match it.

 

As far arguing with your husband about his steak, that's poor service. Even if the steak was perfect according to culinary definitions, he should have offered to take it back or, if they were out of more, bring a different choice. Some waiters are definitely a lot better than others. Zuzannah, on Century in March of 2004, was practically psychic. The guy we had on Mercury in September did a decent enough job but was not particularly memorable.

 

I was on Mercury at near the end of a series of short 3-, 4-, and 5- night itineraries. I wonder if having to do all those quick turn-arounds was wearing out the staff.

 

Still, food ratings are subjective...it amazes me how many people love the sushi and hate the canapes. I eat sushi four to six times a month and think the stuff on the Celebrity ships is about the equivalent of what my parents pick up pre-packaged at Price Chopper, a Costco-like store in New Hampshire. Meanwhile, other people think the canapes are inedible, but I find them to be innocuous pre-dinner nibbles good for soaking up the champagne while dressing for dinner!

[trcori]

Leela, I agree with you on the sushi. It's edible but it's definitely supermarket quality :) OTOH, I may be spoiled since here in Seattle we have a lot of awesome Japanese food.

[Joyfredsblondecruiser]

We have great Sushi in San Francisco too. I found the sushi to be better than the rest of the dining food in general. That is not saying alot! I have sailed many times first sailing on Crystal. I have never been on a cruise I did not enjoy I go for itinerary more than I go for the cruise ship. This is the first time I have ever written anything negative about any ship I have gone on before. I guess if I read this too I would think because my food was good that the other person must be very picky. I do think it is possible for some people to have good food and others not to after all they are serving many people. I do think the waiter was wrong to argue with Fred and say that the steak was fine when you could not even cut into it easily. Thanks Joan and Tom for the nice comments. I may give Celebrity another chance again but maybe on a different ship. In the meantime I am still looking for itinerary rather than cruise line. Happy Sailing, Joy

[Leela]

Joy, I just wanted to add that I've cruised on three X ships and found the food to be best on Horizon, second best on Century, and third best on Mercury. The variances in kitchen staff and suppliers could certainly make for uneven results. For instance, the pasteries on Horizon were so good that when I got a chance to meet the head pastry chef all I could do was shower him with praise, while a few months later on Mercury the same menu items were just okay -- kind of Safeway quality if you ask me, rather than roll-the-eyes-back-in-your-head quality.

 

I still love Celebrity though, I've got two more cruises reserved on them. However, if the next two are more like my Mercury experience and less like my Century and Horizon experiences, I might rethink this love. I guess my expectations were just set very high after a wonderful experience on Century and stellar food on Horizon.

[susancruzs]

I think alot has to do with the wait staff. I'm on the Mercury the last cruise of the Mexican Riviera season (end of April) so we'll see how it is! :-)

 

My first cruise with Celebrity wasn't outstanding, which I was expecting because of all the hype they get so this time I'm going on an older smaller ship. I was on the Summit, not impressed and it had alot to do with food service, both dining room and the buffet area.

 

I always keep an open mind, I tried a fairly new ship so now I'm going to try an older one. I did that this year with Princess and was pleasantly surprised. After negative comments I've read about Sun Class ships compared to their bigger ships, I truly enjoyed my cruise on a "smaller" ship. Going from the Summit to the Mercury is similar as Mercury is around the Sun class size. I think I'll probably like it alot.

[caviargal]

Leela, I agree with you on the sushi. It's edible but it's definitely supermarket quality :) OTOH, I may be spoiled since here in Seattle we have a lot of awesome Japanese food.

 

 

I also agree. It is equal to what I get in the grocery store. Makes a decent snack but frankly it all tasted alike.

 

I have been enjoying sushi for over 25 years so really appreciate the good stuff!

 

I was on Mercury last month. The food overall was very good and I am one of those "no sauce", "on the side", no dessert folks. My fish dishes were hot, fresh and made to order.

 

Cabins and mattresses, however, really need a retrofit as do some of the public spaces.

 

I will pass on Mercury next time around.

[Leela]

Quick sushi anecdote: on my first (and so far only) trip to Tokyo, I had sushi that was so good that I coudn't bring myself to eat any sushi at all for a month after I got back home to San Francisco. I still joke to this day that I would fly to Tokyo just for the sushi.

 

It's kind of that with with Celebrity -- the overall standard is quite good, and having an above-average Celebrity experience makes an average Celebrity experience seem lacking, know what I mean? It's not that my Mercury cruise was bad -- it wasn't! It's just that when things really come together for a truly stellar experience, it spoils you for the merely good ones.

[Cathy Laz]

Having been on this very same cruise with Joy and Joan, I just wanted to comment to Joan......We must have shared that same waiter at lunch. Having said that, I also realize that they are not our regular waiters who do such of fantastic job of knowing our likes and dislikes and having the iced tea waiting for us....etc. I guess I will let that day slide. Now to Joy....sadly, I

agree with you (somewhat). This was the first time I have been disappointed with the food. Part of me thinks that it is the "same old stuff" year after year. I still continue to return to X because I love the "entire" package. I

also think that part of it had to do with the fact that there is just too much good food. Not used to that at McDonalds:p . Seriously though, it was the first time I could not eat my beef as it was very tough. All I had to do was send it back and I know it would have been replaced, but I chose not to as I had really had enough to eat already. (Note: I never had more than one entree - honest.) I also had some very bad, undercooked - actually bloody tuna at dinner. Another tablemate had the same. Our waiter quickly took care of this and another one was brought to the table. After the first two bites, we got into the middle that was again raw and bloody. Not good at all.

It is hard to serve that many people and have everything perfect....but it seemed like they did before. Why not now? Too many cutbacks? I surprised myself when I realized that I have just gotten bored with the food! I think that is a big part of it. You still can't beat the staff on X.

 

Cathy

[Joyfredsblondecruiser]

Hi Cathy: Nice to hear from you. Our waiter argued with Fred that there was nothing wrong with the tough steak so he just left the table. It sounds like you had a better waiter. I am glad you posted on this because some people if they had good meals will find it hard to believe that others did not. I don`t think I will give up on Celebrity completely but it will not be my first choice at this time. Happy Sailing, Joy P.S. Please say hello to Dawn for us.

[tbelian]

Our waiter argued with Fred that there was nothing wrong with the tough steak so he just left the table.

 

I hope you or Fred pointed this out to the Maitre d'. The only way to fix these problems, and I understand it WAS a problem, is to address it right then and there on the spot.

[Joyfredsblondecruiser]

Tom my cousin had asked me not to say anything about the waiter to the Matre`d. Since we had joined my cousins table I did as he requested. We had missed so many dinners at the table that the matre`d did come over to talk to me to see why. I told him what I thought of the food since he asked me. Happy Sailing, Joy

[janetmojo]

I was on the same cruise and will agree on a couple points. The matress on my fold out bed was horrible the first night but when I mentioned it to our steward it was replaced AND a pillow top put on it as well. As far as the food goes, I didn't have too many problems with quality. I will say some of the soups were downright not good, but most of my entrees were very good. I do tire of the same menu on each cruise. This is my third long Celebrity cruise in three years and we have had the same menu all three trips.

[DocJohnB]

The only way to fix these problems, and I understand it WAS a problem, is to address it right then and there on the spot.

 

Absolutely!!!!!! If you have a problem and do not address it as it happens, you will lose the opportunity to have it corrected. To wait until the end of the cruise and address it on your comment card is useless as it doesn't fix the problem for YOU and it may not even fix it for the next guy after you.

 

Complaining about it here does absolutely no one any good (unless you count the pleasure of venting).

 

Just my nickles worth.

[Ma Bell]

Doc,

 

I really agree. When I think about it, there have been problems along the way, but I have always found that if you address a problem at the time and in a pleasant and polite way, they will bend over backwards to make sure that things are right.:)

[SS Cruise Lady]

Doc,

 

I really agree. When I think about it, there have been problems along the way, but I have always found that if you address a problem at the time and in a pleasant and polite way, they will bend over backwards to make sure that things are right.:)

 

Hi Ma Bell :)

 

That is such a good point. When I ask for references for a contracter for a potential project on my home, I am more impressed if someone tells me a problem occurred but they responded immediately to rectify it than if someone tells me everything went perfectly. That is because in almost any situation in life, something can go wrong and how a provider of that service responds is what really determines their level of service.

[charmie]

Hi All,

 

Interesting, we too were on the same cruise. a group of 10 of us. We had an outstanding wait staff .. second seating. We all commented on how wonderful the filet was .. so tender and cooked to perfection. Several in our group ordered multiple things .. There were a few dishes that people found rather bland and boring .. one that surprised us was a pork chop .. it was excellent! I do agree that the menu on longer cruises becomes boring .. how many different ways can you server the same beef, chicken, etc. We found the fish to be very good and we enjoyed the soups. We found the food in the lido to be "OK" .. we found the breakfast buffet to be better than the lunch offerings. We rated the dining room food as good to very good. Our waiter was very good at steering us away from items that he didn't think we would enjoy. We gave him very high marks for his ability recommend what each person would enjoy. we had room service one evening .. the food was OK ... same dining room menu .... but sat out under a heat lamp for too long.

 

Upon arriving in our sky suite we found both of the chairs in our room were broken. The chairs had very thin cardboard like sides .. when you sat in them they were very unsteady .. we didn't feel safe in them and asked our cabin steward to exchange them for chairs from the dining room. This was taken care of immediately. Our mattress was very good .. no complaints .. however another couple traveling in our group mentioned that their mattress was rather thin and not very comfortable.

 

So sorry your DH Fred had the bad experience with the steak and the waiter .. that should never of happened ... Our waiter couldn't do enough for us .. he was an absolute delight .. we all had such a great time at dinner!

 

We noticed a lot of chairs through out the ship needed to be replaced ..not sure when the ship is scheduled for dry dock .. perhaps they will take care of this. We did comment on our cabin chairs on our comment card .. to us, they were a safety hazzard!

 

Service throughout the ship was terrific .. always smiling and very helpful.

 

We enjoyed meeting the CC group!!

 

Peggy