In your Opinion: One thing that could be done to improve the MDR

[Brad1185]

Stop charging for food in the mdr

[yuvraj]

Smaller MDRs with calmer service. I believe they had the right idea with Anthem where you had a number of smaller venues. Getting guests to book their slots solved the problem of people on fixed dinning not turning up.

 

Trouble is that what I saw as an improvement upset a lot of people who preferred the traditional dinning concept. So you can't win.

[JamesEM]

Enforcement of some kind of dress code, no ball caps, no shorts, no wife beater t-shirts, no flip-flops, those folks should be sent to the Windjammer.

[time4u2go]

We still have this option..... kind of..... It's called 5 night specialty or Ultimate Dining Package.

You choose what and where you eat each night, what time, different menu/server/table/chair/view each night.

Look at all the complaints above: "lines even with reservations","better food","hot food","rushed waiters","not enough staff","tables too close to each other"....

None of this occurs in specialty from my experience.

But doesn't that cost extra? If so, it doesn't seem like a valid comparison.

[birdylady]

Better Desserts! They look wonderful but the texture is like eating a sponge. Heck, how sad is it when a 'chocolate cake' doesn't taste like chocolate. I'm a sweets person and I rarely have dessert.

Erika

[Clarea]

Dynamic Dining

Only if they have enough crewmembers to do it efficiently.

[Jasukkie]

Kid-free dining. Actually, most kids are fine, but I'd love to be able to dine in a space without the parents who do nothing when their kids are crying, whining, fighting, throwing things, standing on chairs, etc.

 

I've been on Anthem twice recently, once with traditional late seating, and once with MTD. The traditional late was half empty every night. I guess people are assigned but eat elsewhere. I love traditional late and would have chosen it for my second cruise but it was not available. They need to work that out somehow. MTD was okay, but we felt like we had to get there at opening or face a long line. The first night, when we had an 8pm reservation, was really bad.

[washie24]

Just off the Freedom, Jan 20 to 28th, Mdr waiters seemed way over booked with tables, no time to pay attention to basic requests, also do not need to hear the speech on how they should be rated, this happened several times even in specialty restaurants. Tables way too close together.

[poncho1973]

Duh! Pepper grinders.

[Beachammo]

Duh! Pepper grinders.

On our first cruise (2012) they came by with the pepper grinder.......haven't seen it since.

 

Would be nice to have a small one on the table.

 

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[Beachammo]

Just off the Freedom, Jan 20 to 28th, Mdr waiters seemed way over booked with tables, no time to pay attention to basic requests, also do not need to hear the speech on how they should be rated, this happened several times even in specialty restaurants. Tables way too close together.

Yep....

 

We were on the same cruise. I have never seen soo many waiters that were stressed out. We had late seating that was suppose to start at 730pm. We never got in before 745pm. Freedom changed it back to 8pm after we left according to our Head waiter.

 

 

 

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[jsf]

Less tables for waiter and helper, that would be for better service. Bring back the old days when they could take care of you.

I'm the " Get off my lawn guy"

[cruiselvr04]

More wait staff. That would improve most of the service issues stated.

[Bobal]

More room between tables especially the two tops. I don't appreciate hearing other peoples' conversations nor do I wish them to hear mine.

 

That's exactly what I would say - and if I wanted to share a table I would have requested a large table not a two top. The very small distance between the two tops makes it like sitting at long table of 8 or 10. It's driven us to eat more in speciality restaurants or eat very late when many of the tables have cleared.

[coaster]

Stop the sales pitch hawking the specialty restaurants while you are seated in the MDR. Take the cards off the table advertising them also. The emphasis to upsell is nauseating. I am content with the MDR in regards to everything else.

[sellwingri]

Lock the doors 10 - 15 minutes after the start of dinner time. If you can't make it eat at the buffet. Too many dinners ruined by late table mates and now the waiters are killing themselves trying to get everybody caught up and at least close to the same course.

 

I recommend this in my survey comments every cruise. We’ve seen diners coming in 45 minutes late and still be served, stopping everyone else’s service.

 

I also agree with lessening the number of passengers per waiter like it used to be. Now there’s no time to establish any type of rapport.

[Hoopster95]

That's just dumb. Why should someone have to pay extra so that they don't have all the problems? If that's your choice go for it, but others shouldn't have to. The food is already in the cruise fare so there shouldn't be so many problems.

 

What is dumb is a majority of cruisers continually complaining on these forums over and over again of the same issues in MDR, yet they go back day in and day out.

 

 

But doesn't that cost extra? If so, it doesn't seem like a valid comparison.

 

I think it is. As Bob already clearly said, the answers to all the issues discussed is increased staffing. I would add you also need more real estate on the ship in order to remove the cramped tables. Both costs money. Who pays for this?

 

So we can all take our ridiculously low $599 base cruise fare (with OBC's!!!) on Oasis Class and everyone add $200 per person to that. Are the consumers on this forum willing to do that, or simply complain about the "higher cost" of cruising and threaten to move to another cruise line?

 

Actually, many people do pay moe.... they buy a more expensive suite and get superlative service and quality dining in Coastal Kitchen. We all know as experienced intelligent adults in this world.... "you get what you pay for".

[dadofjessie]

Fewer tables for the wait staff.

 

More wait staff.

[marci22]

More wait staff.

[lbjen]

That's just dumb. Why should someone have to pay extra so that they don't have all the problems? If that's your choice go for it, but others shouldn't have to. The food is already in the cruise fare so there shouldn't be so many problems.

 

 

 

ABSOLUTELY NOT! I want to eat whenever I want to eat. I don't want to be restricted to a certain time. If we get back from a tour and are tired I would like to relax first and then go down when we want or for any other reason. Making set dining times is for children not unless someone wants it. My parents lile a set time, but we do not.

 

So far I think they are all great ideas except for the 2 that I quoted. Sorry I didn't just answer with one. :)

 

Then maybe they just need to get rid of traditional dining and have everyone be MTD, of course you can still book an early or late dinner for each night if that’s what you want. I just think they could do more to make MTD flow better so that people aren’t waiting for hours to get in.

[RocketMan275]

The main dining room is too noisy.

The main dining room is too crowded.

A more upscale and enforced dress code for Traditional.

A more relaxed dress code for MTD.

[LMaxwell]

Many reasonable suggestions; I thought there might be some way out there ones, but really the majority seem to be around service. Good food but bad service can leave a bad memory. Mediocre food and excellent service can leave a great memory.

[depplep]

I just think the quality of the food has degenerated over the years. And I do not care for the selections on almost every night. We've been on 7 day cruises where we never stepped foot in the dining room, eating at Johnny Rocket's or Cafe Promenade.

[Junkhouse]

Better way to manage table assignments if tablemates don't show up. We were at a table for 10 but only another couple and us showed up and we missed the first night because of first night done right.

[SG65CB]

I wish they would get rid of MTD and just have 4 seatings, they could organize it between the various dining rooms so that nobody had to rush out at the end of their meal if it was planned right.

 

I think this would help. Before there was MTD it seemed like the dining room was in more of a rhythm with all tables at the same point in their dinners. Now with MTD, especially later in the evening with every table on a different schedule it seems the waiters are rushing around more and doing too many different things at once.