Food on Viking Embla is horrible

[pilgrimduke]

This post cleared up a lot for me. I never saw -- nor expected -- shrimp cocktail or lobster on my river cruises. This confirms that OP brought an ocean-cruising mentality to river cruising and has been unwilling to accept river cruising for what it is.

 

My thoughts exactly. It seems that there was disappointment because of a feeling that the experience wasn't commensurate with the price paid and then things that would normally be ignored get magnified, even when the gripes are contradictory (wanting local cuisine and being upset at the lack of yellow mustard and shrimp cocktail.)

 

We sailed on Viking in aquarium class and it was fine for the price we paid, but I was glad that we weren't in a higher priced cabin. We did speak to three other couples who were disappointed with the cruise and they were expecting something more higher-end based on the advertising. They had sailed on Crystal, Seabourn, and Oceana, and were expecting a similar experience. Not having sailed on those lines I can't definitively compare the experiences, but from what I've read I probably would have been disappointed too if I had booked a higher end cabin.

 

As to the food, my experience was the opposite. I thought that the chef was trying to be a little too cute and trendy, but I know I'm a philistine and wrote it off to that. It tasted fine but, again, it's all a matter of expectations. (My big objection to the dining experience was the scrum when the dining room opened and trying to make sure that all four of us who were traveling together could eat together.)

[Host Jazzbeau]

My thoughts exactly. It seems that there was disappointment because of a feeling that the experience wasn't commensurate with the price paid and then things that would normally be ignored get magnified, even when the gripes are contradictory (wanting local cuisine and being upset at the lack of yellow mustard and shrimp cocktail.)

 

We sailed on Viking in aquarium class and it was fine for the price we paid, but I was glad that we weren't in a higher priced cabin. We did speak to three other couples who were disappointed with the cruise and they were expecting something more higher-end based on the advertising. They had sailed on Crystal, Seabourn, and Oceana, and were expecting a similar experience. Not having sailed on those lines I can't definitively compare the experiences, but from what I've read I probably would have been disappointed too if I had booked a higher end cabin.

 

As to the food, my experience was the opposite. I thought that the chef was trying to be a little too cute and trendy, but I know I'm a philistine and wrote it off to that. It tasted fine but, again, it's all a matter of expectations. (My big objection to the dining experience was the scrum when the dining room opened and trying to make sure that all four of us who were traveling together could eat together.)

 

This is common on many river cruise lines. The solution is to divide and conquer: one of your party has to cut out early from the pre-dinner talk and get in the scrum to grab a table. Then the rest of you can stroll down and make a grand entrance like Loretta Young! The "scout" duties should rotate, unless someone is mobility challenged ;)

[pilgrimduke]

This is common on many river cruise lines. The solution is to divide and conquer: one of your party has to cut out early from the pre-dinner talk and get in the scrum to grab a table. Then the rest of you can stroll down and make a grand entrance like Loretta Young! The "scout" duties should rotate, unless someone is mobility challenged ;)

 

Jazzbeau, I'd often do this, but I felt bad about it (equal parts of not wanting to be an ugly American, not wanting to tell people I'm waiting for three other, and not wanting to be a bully since I'm the biggest person on the cruise :)) It always worked out, but I still didn't like it, but that's me.

[Hydrokitty]

I don't like doing it either, but when you're traveling with 2 or 4 other people, it's the only way to guarantee sitting together because everyone else does it! I know that's not an excuse and I can hear my Mother's voice in my ear as I type, but it's the simple fact. One thing that seems to be custom on river cruises to avoid that embarrassing "sorry we're waiting for 2 other couples" , is the first person/couple at the table takes the napkins from the place settings he/she is saving and places them on the back of the chairs. this lets everyone else know that 2 or 4 of the seats at the 8 top are taken. It's one of the downsides to everyone eating at the same time and it does make me feel guilty.

[Starlaker]

(My big objection to the dining experience was the scrum when the dining room opened and trying to make sure that all four of us who were traveling together could eat together.)

 

 

Oh dear. I don't like the sound of that. Can this be avoided by eating on the Aquavit Terrace? I absolutely hate jockeying for a position in line, etc. I used to hate that on Southwest before they changed to a numbered system.

[SuiteTraveler]

Oh dear. I don't like the sound of that. Can this be avoided by eating on the Aquavit Terrace? I absolutely hate jockeying for a position in line, etc. I used to hate that on Southwest before they changed to a numbered system.

 

Usually after the first or second evening, informal groups have formed who eat together at the same table every night. After that time, not many switch tables - or at least that was our experience on Uniworld.

[Host Jazzbeau]

pilgrimduke: you just have to show "true grit." :)

[goldenrod]

Amen. The food on our last Princess cruise was poor, and the specialties just decent. That was 5 years ago and our last mass market cruise. It is not for us, and I am Elite with Princess, DIamond Plus with RCI, Elite with Celebrity. All of the extras do not compensate for the lousy MDR and other included food, undrinkable coffee, etc.; also the massive dining rooms, and rushed service.

 

I'll take the cheaper digs on Oceania, etc. over a Penthouse on any mass market line for the exact reasons stated above.

 

 

First as long as we can afford suites that's what we will be in, we were just on Princess this past December and the food was much better than what Viking served! We have been on Regent and Silver Seas several times and expected similar quality on Viking, as far as mass market ships we find that Celebrity Solstice class has the best food. We like anytime time dining and have had good luck finding good waiters who have been able to steer us to the best menu selections. But in the case of Viking they did not exist!

 

 

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[Texas Tillie]

First as long as we can afford suites that's what we will be in, we were just on Princess this past December and the food was much better than what Viking served! We have been on Regent and Silver Seas several times and expected similar quality on Viking, as far as mass market ships we find that Celebrity Solstice class has the best food. We like anytime time dining and have had good luck finding good waiters who have been able to steer us to the best menu selections. But in the case of Viking they did not exist!

 

 

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Expecting similar quality to Regent and Silversea on a Viking river boat was your first problem. There are several river boats that will offer that level of quality, but Viking isn't one. I am just off the Crystal Mozart on the Danube and can tell you that the quality is the same (or better!) than their ocean ships. Crystal will be adding 4 more river boats over the next year.

[Mark_T]

First as long as we can afford suites that's what we will be in, we were just on Princess this past December and the food was much better than what Viking served! We have been on Regent and Silver Seas several times and expected similar quality on Viking...

 

If you had spent a fraction of the time you've spent complaining on this forum during your cruise, researching before you booked, you'd never have made that mistake.

 

Pick the cruise line that meets your requirements and offers the itinerary you want first then see which cabins your budget allows and decide to book or not.

 

Booking a suite on a mid-range cruise line is never going to give the same dining experience as Regent as you are just choosing to pay for cabin amenities that have no impact on the rest of the experience.

[goldenrod]

We have never had such bad food on any mass market line, including Carnival! Just ok would have been ok! This was bad for 3 weeks!

 

 

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[Cyber Kat]

if you had spent a fraction of the time you've spent complaining on this forum during your cruise, researching before you booked, you'd never have made that mistake.

 

Pick the cruise line that meets your requirements and offers the itinerary you want first then see which cabins your budget allows and decide to book or not.

 

Booking a suite on a mid-range cruise line is never going to give the same dining experience as regent as you are just choosing to pay for cabin amenities that have no impact on the rest of the experience.

 

^^^^ this! :d

[Rosieo]

goldenrod, life is short! You are 72, seem healthy, can afford a long cruise and are happily married for 50 years. Celebrate what life has given you. What if tomorrow you have a heart attack and die, do you really want your spouse remembering the horrible experience you had or maybe, just maybe you could have tried to enjoy it, good food is waiting for you at home, and then your spouse could have had your last memories with you wonderful ones. Life is not guaranteed. Don't dwell on things you can't change. I am hoping and praying that I make it to 72, can afford nice trips and still have my spouse around to enjoy our 50th.

[E@syPe@zy]

goldenrod, life is short! You are 72, seem healthy, can afford a long cruise and are happily married for 50 years. Celebrate what life has given you. What if tomorrow you have a heart attack and die, do you really want your spouse remembering the horrible experience you had or maybe, just maybe you could have tried to enjoy it, good food is waiting for you at home, and then your spouse could have had your last memories with you wonderful ones. Life is not guaranteed. Don't dwell on things you can't change. I am hoping and praying that I make it to 72, can afford nice trips and still have my spouse around to enjoy our 50th.

 

Well said! Find the good in each day. :)

[Cyber Kat]

I'm posting this for those who have never cruised Viking, and are booked on one of their cruises, or are considering booking one.

 

I can not actually address the experience the OP had because I wasn't on that cruise. Perhaps there was an issue with that particular ship or that particular chef. I don't know. I will say that I find it difficult to believe that the food was "garbage" for the whole 23 days - 3 meals a day, with 2 venues to eat at. And I would find it difficult to believe for any cruise line - river or ocean. Seriously - every meal that bad? JMO on the subject.

 

My main reason for posting is to offer another view, and to urge those considering, or booked on Viking to read other postings. I did a TON of research before booking my cruise. I checked into and considered several lines - AMA, Avalon, Vantage & Uniworld. There were a number of reasons we chose Viking that had nothing to do with their TV ads or their promos or the price. They are mostly to do with us, so I'm not going to go into them here, because they are irrelevant - we were on Viking.

 

I read just about everything on the Viking web site as I narrowed down my choices. To me, this "Our highly trained chefs are passionate about food and committed to providing an enriching culinary experience, whether you’re savoring authentic regional specialties or American classics. " meant a mixture of food styles - and we got that.

 

I was not surprised to find freshly grilled hamburgers and hot dogs on the Aquavit Terrace one day for lunch - American classics. I don't eat yellow mustard, but choice, so I can't say whether there was any - I doubt it. :D IIRC they also had some bratwurst or knockwurst - a German sausage of some kind. I usually ate one of several types of sandwiches offered, soup, if it looked interesting (the Dutch cheese soup was very good, but it was kind of hot on our cruise for soup) and some of the salads. The salads were fantastic - at least IMO. They always seemed fresh and there was a nice variety.

 

We had a large percentage of people from the UK (England, Ireland and Scotland) & Canada, so I was not surprised to find fish & chips for lunch one day - again I didn't check the menu in the dining room, but I do know that food was different in both places. There were more hot offerings in the dining room.

 

I would have liked to have eaten in the dining room for lunch, but my husband always made a bee line for the Aquavit Terrace - we just loved sitting out there. We are planning another Viking river cruise and I will probably see if I can get food from the dining room/restaurant and take up to the AT.

 

Breakfast had all sorts of offerings. The Aquavit Terrace had pastries and muffins, the best yogurt (they make it on the ship) a selection of meats, cheeses, breads. Usually a hot cereal (loved the muesli) and a couple of cold cereals. The restaurant had all sorts of hot choices and you could order eggs, pancakes or waffles. They had a whole section of little dishes with fish, a bit of bread and some other goodies - loved that. The fish always tasted fresh to me and I'm a fish eater!

 

For dinner we always ate in the restaurant, although you could eat on the Aquavit Terrace. I think they had grilled offerings each night (there is a grill out there). I thoroughly enjoyed every meal. I mostly ordered whatever the fish dish was and they were all good. My husband is a fussy eater and he found something every night that he enjoyed. He liked a fruit selection they had one night as an appetizer. The next night, none of the appetizer selections appealed to him. Our waiter brought him fruit without him asking. He was a happy camper!

 

Except for the German night, I don't remember the food being from any region. As I've said before, I would put it in the category of "Continental." It always was prepared nicely, well-presented and tasted great! Far better than any food on the 3 ocean cruise lines I've been on and far better than a lot of land restaurants. Again JMO - but I did read a lot of reviews, and I don't think I'm alone.

 

There was no pizza, no shrimp cocktail, no surf & turf offered - nor did I expect to find these options ;) The food in general exceeded my expectations and there was always plenty of options to choose from. One of the people we were dining with ordered something she had never tried before, and found she didn't care for it. No questions asked - it was whisked away and they brought her something else that she was happy with.

 

So please don't worry that you won't find anything to eat. If my fussy eater husband was happy, I think you'll be fine.

 

One word on the wine. I had heard that Viking was contracting with a winery to make private label wines. I don't honestly know if that's what we had. I like white. My husband likes red. The red was a Malbec - which he was happy with (he was delighted with the beer choices!) and the white was a sauvignon blanc - which is one of my favorites.

 

We both worked for some time for a wine importer & distributor, so I've had cheap wine and VERY expensive wine. I've found I like some of the cheap ones - sometimes better than those costing more, and sometimes I prefer the better ones. If it tastes good - that's all I really care about. I am most definitely not a wine snob. If you are - you might want to rethink the wine situation. For me - I didn't have to pay extra and it tasted fine.

 

We did eat lunch on shore a couple of times - more to enjoy the experience of sitting outside in a cafe with local food and in Germany - the beer!

 

This is a thread from 2014 - but it has a lot of menus, Viking Dailies and food pics. It's worth checking out

[Roz]

Cyber Kat,

 

Thank you for being a voice of reason.

 

Roz

[lackcreativity]

I'm posting this for those who have never cruised Viking, and are booked on one of their cruises, or are considering booking one.

 

I can not actually address the experience the OP had because I wasn't on that cruise. Perhaps there was an issue with that particular ship or that particular chef. I don't know. I will say that I find it difficult to believe that the food was "garbage" for the whole 23 days - 3 meals a day, with 2 venues to eat at. And I would find it difficult to believe for any cruise line - river or ocean. Seriously - every meal that bad? JMO on the subject.

 

My main reason for posting is to offer another view, and to urge those considering, or booked on Viking to read other postings. I did a TON of research before booking my cruise. I checked into and considered several lines - AMA, Avalon, Vantage & Uniworld. There were a number of reasons we chose Viking that had nothing to do with their TV ads or their promos or the price. They are mostly to do with us, so I'm not going to go into them here, because they are irrelevant - we were on Viking.

 

I read just about everything on the Viking web site as I narrowed down my choices. To me, this "Our highly trained chefs are passionate about food and committed to providing an enriching culinary experience, whether you’re savoring authentic regional specialties or American classics. " meant a mixture of food styles - and we got that.

 

I was not surprised to find freshly grilled hamburgers and hot dogs on the Aquavit Terrace one day for lunch - American classics. I don't eat yellow mustard, but choice, so I can't say whether there was any - I doubt it. :D IIRC they also had some bratwurst or knockwurst - a German sausage of some kind. I usually ate one of several types of sandwiches offered, soup, if it looked interesting (the Dutch cheese soup was very good, but it was kind of hot on our cruise for soup) and some of the salads. The salads were fantastic - at least IMO. They always seemed fresh and there was a nice variety.

 

We had a large percentage of people from the UK (England, Ireland and Scotland) & Canada, so I was not surprised to find fish & chips for lunch one day - again I didn't check the menu in the dining room, but I do know that food was different in both places. There were more hot offerings in the dining room.

 

I would have liked to have eaten in the dining room for lunch, but my husband always made a bee line for the Aquavit Terrace - we just loved sitting out there. We are planning another Viking river cruise and I will probably see if I can get food from the dining room/restaurant and take up to the AT.

 

Breakfast had all sorts of offerings. The Aquavit Terrace had pastries and muffins, the best yogurt (they make it on the ship) a selection of meats, cheeses, breads. Usually a hot cereal (loved the muesli) and a couple of cold cereals. The restaurant had all sorts of hot choices and you could order eggs, pancakes or waffles. They had a whole section of little dishes with fish, a bit of bread and some other goodies - loved that. The fish always tasted fresh to me and I'm a fish eater!

 

For dinner we always ate in the restaurant, although you could eat on the Aquavit Terrace. I think they had grilled offerings each night (there is a grill out there). I thoroughly enjoyed every meal. I mostly ordered whatever the fish dish was and they were all good. My husband is a fussy eater and he found something every night that he enjoyed. He liked a fruit selection they had one night as an appetizer. The next night, none of the appetizer selections appealed to him. Our waiter brought him fruit without him asking. He was a happy camper!

 

Except for the German night, I don't remember the food being from any region. As I've said before, I would put it in the category of "Continental." It always was prepared nicely, well-presented and tasted great! Far better than any food on the 3 ocean cruise lines I've been on and far better than a lot of land restaurants. Again JMO - but I did read a lot of reviews, and I don't think I'm alone.

 

There was no pizza, no shrimp cocktail, no surf & turf offered - nor did I expect to find these options ;) The food in general exceeded my expectations and there was always plenty of options to choose from. One of the people we were dining with ordered something she had never tried before, and found she didn't care for it. No questions asked - it was whisked away and they brought her something else that she was happy with.

 

So please don't worry that you won't find anything to eat. If my fussy eater husband was happy, I think you'll be fine.

 

One word on the wine. I had heard that Viking was contracting with a winery to make private label wines. I don't honestly know if that's what we had. I like white. My husband likes red. The red was a Malbec - which he was happy with (he was delighted with the beer choices!) and the white was a sauvignon blanc - which is one of my favorites.

 

We both worked for some time for a wine importer & distributor, so I've had cheap wine and VERY expensive wine. I've found I like some of the cheap ones - sometimes better than those costing more, and sometimes I prefer the better ones. If it tastes good - that's all I really care about. I am most definitely not a wine snob. If you are - you might want to rethink the wine situation. For me - I didn't have to pay extra and it tasted fine.

 

We did eat lunch on shore a couple of times - more to enjoy the experience of sitting outside in a cafe with local food and in Germany - the beer!

 

This is a thread from 2014 - but it has a lot of menus, Viking Dailies and food pics. It's worth checking out

 

Cyber Kat,

 

I couldn't have said this better if I had written it myself. Except you forgot to mention the cooked to order omelettes, oh, and the fresh baked cookies in the afternoon!

[Cyber Kat]

goldenrod, life is short! You are 72, seem healthy, can afford a long cruise and are happily married for 50 years. Celebrate what life has given you. What if tomorrow you have a heart attack and die, do you really want your spouse remembering the horrible experience you had or maybe, just maybe you could have tried to enjoy it, good food is waiting for you at home, and then your spouse could have had your last memories with you wonderful ones. Life is not guaranteed. Don't dwell on things you can't change. I am hoping and praying that I make it to 72, can afford nice trips and still have my spouse around to enjoy our 50th.

 

Amen to this! Live every day like it will be your last! I firmly believe that finding the positive rather than the negative makes you happier! I choose happy every time!

[BarbarianPaul]

We're actually cruising on Celebrity in a week, two weeks Yokohama to Vancouver. We booked an Aqua Class cabin specifically for the BLU dining room experience. We'll be new to it, but am curious if anyone out there has eaten there. Thoughts?

 

 

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[lackcreativity]

Amen to this! Live every day like it will be your last! I firmly believe that finding the positive rather than the negative makes you happier! I choose happy every time!

 

Our first trip abroad was a bus tour of Italy where I got food poisoning in Venice and my husband had his wallet stolen (luckily, he caught the little scoundrel before she got away!), yet it remains one of our favorite trips. "Why?", you might ask. Because, after all, it was Italy, and because of the wonderful people we met on that trip. To this day, I am still grateful to Marissa of Globus Tours, for the assistance and support she provided during those miserable 36 hours, and her assistance in arranging our return to the group. Short of the truly catastrophic things that can occur, if you allow the unfortunate events of everyday life to color all you do, it will be a long and miserable life, for you and for those around you.

[BarbarianPaul]

Totally agreed! But, all things considered, wouldn't you rather have a good meal than a bad one?

 

 

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[JVilleGal]

Why are we continuing to waste our breath on this thread? Let's let it go and get buried. Continuing just furthers the OP motives!

 

 

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[BarbarianPaul]

You can easily unsubscribe, right?

 

 

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[Rosieo]

We're actually cruising on Celebrity in a week, two weeks Yokohama to Vancouver. We booked an Aqua Class cabin specifically for the BLU dining room experience. We'll be new to it, but am curious if anyone out there has eaten there. Thoughts?

 

 

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We have several times. We loved it!

[rhonpat]

Just read this thread with interest as my sister and I were on this very cruise, although our cruise ended in Budapest. I have been on over 20 ocean cruises like Princess, RCI, Carnival, Disney, NCI, Holland America and thought the food on Viking was similar. Some nights were hits some nights just ok. I have never been on a real expensive line like Reagent or Oceana so their food might be superior. Menu I think caters to the American palate which suited my less adventurous sister. They did have a few regional dishes and one night they had a German buffet which was very good. Overall I would give Vikings food a 6-7, but were satisfied that we had a variety of foods to choose from, plus salmon, chicken, or ribeye if we didn't like the nights selection. I really liked their ships and thought they looked nicer than some of the other ships on the rivers. One advantage is they have many ships at their disposal and they can transfer you to another ship with the exact same layout if they can't get under a bridge. That didn't happen to us but at least they have that capability which is reassuring. I wouldn't hesitate to travel with them again. Just find an itinerary you like and go for it!