Disappointing meals on Brilliance...

[enchilada72]

Just off the Brilliance 10/15. The food in the main dining room was terrible. Did anyone else notice that? Service was lacking also, but the food was surprisingly bad. Glad that we booked 2 of the 4 nights in Chops and Giovanni's. The special restaurants were amazing. But the Minstrel was bad. Especially on Formal night. We were dressed to the nines for subpar food and service. I realize there is a mass production of food in the Minstrel vs. a la minute in the specialties. But the Minstrel was not much better than Windjammer. I know for our next cruise (nothing planned just yet), I will look into the specialty restaurants for as many nights as possible. I took a few years off of cruising. On return I was quite surprised. Thinking of trying a Celebrity cruise next. But nothing planned just yet. 

Anyone else notice the decrease in quality of food?

 

[cb at sea]

I have to agree that Brilliance was our worst DR service/food, too.  Our waiter was awful, but the ass't waiter tried his best to "make up" for the waiter's shortcomings.....Therefore, the Ass't waiter got extra tips...the waiter did not get any extra.  I don't know why this was, but it was!

[vickiw0318]

On our recent TA, our group of friends found the food in the Windjammer to be very good - so much so that most of us didn't try the dining room.  We did eat several meals in the Specialty restaurants as well.

[jbr5049]

We got off the 10/11/18 Brilliance Sailing and we had amazing MDR food. Typically we do 2-4 nights in Premium dining, but we decided to roll the dice and do all MDR for this Sailing. We did the 5:30 seating, and the service was quick and attentive. One in out party ordered steak on the second to last night which was a rather poor cut of beef, but other than that there were no complaints. 

[mac_tlc]

50 minutes ago, vickiw0318 said:

On our recent TA, our group of friends found the food in the Windjammer to be very good - so much so that most of us didn't try the dining room.  We did eat several meals in the Specialty restaurants as well.

We were on the TA and thought the MDR was excellent. Both my wife and I had the same impression. Better than we have had on Oasis and Freedom for the past several years. We were going to do the specialties more, but saved the money and thoroughly enjoyed the MDR— especially the French onion soup! 

mac_tlc

[luvscruising2007]

OP, please, explain why felt the food was terrible.  Too cold, not flavorful, under-cooked.  Being general doesn't help the reader.  And since food is so subjective, what you feel is bad and someone else might enjoy.

Thanks

[ano]

If they want you to "upgrade" to good food in the specialty restaurants, what incentive do they have to give you good free food?  Mark my words, in 5 years they will be charging you for all food. They will do it in steps. First, they will give you a credit with which to buy your food, so if you only go to the dinning room and buffet you "credit" will last you the cruse. Then slowly they will lower the credit, and soon, poof, you pay for all your meals. Just wait.

[retired dude]

we are on an upcoming sailing of the brilliance and are saddened to hear of the poor quality food/service on the brilliance..We sailed on rccl enough in the past to get to diamond status but about ten years ago we started sailing with celebrity and found the food and service to be outstanding.....That said, we live 10 miles from the tampa port and we thought we would give rccl another try due to the close proximity of the port.. I don't expect gourmet food in mdr, but hope it is edible....My only other comment is that I would love to see the meals that the average cruiser prepares in their respective homes during the nights that they are on dry land, I bet it would be amazing to see how many ways the hot dog can be prepared...….good sailing to all

[enchilada72]

13 hours ago, luvscruising2007 said:

OP, please, explain why felt the food was terrible.  Too cold, not flavorful, under-cooked.  Being general doesn't help the reader.  And since food is so subjective, what you feel is bad and someone else might enjoy.

Thanks

 

The problem is the food was terrible in general. Here are some specifics since requested:

French Onion Soup- this was literally broth and cheese. There were no onions or croutons in the soup bowl. Nothing but a bowl of broth. 

Prime Rib- ordered Medium - came out well done. Sent back and I swear they brought out the same slice that was just sent back.

Chicken Marsala- it was gray. Gray... nothing else to say.

Calamari- so tough they were inedible. Little fried rubber bands.

Shrimp Cocktail- shrimp was chewy and fibrous. Also, even after 2 requests, no cocktail sauce.

Creme Brulee- more like flan soaking in sugar. Now this tasted just like flan. I am a fan of flan and ate every bite of it. But why not just call it flan?

Other than the flan... I mean creme brûlée, I couldn't get past the issues to eat these items. As a reminder, we also visited Chops one night and Giovanni's one night. So the issues above were from only 2 nights in the MDR. 

Chops and Giovanni's were amazing. The service and food were amazing. We also ate breakfast in Chops since we were Suite guests. The breakfast was perfect each morning.

Hope this helps!

 

[stazerd]

I was on the same sailing as OP.   We ate in the dining room twice,  both times my daughter enjoyed her entrees but on the first night I was disappointed in mine.   Also ate lunch in the dining room on the first sea day, and that meal was fine.  

Food is very subjective, agreed.   

The coffee shop was often slammed but the crew kept up with the orders, I think they did an admirable job.  The bars were also very busy, and I found some of the bars had very limited hours.   

I am of the opinion that I have a better experience on longer cruises.

[Jax129]

After reading this and being disappointed with the MDR on our last cruise I just decided to take advantage of Royal.s latest sale to add an extra night at Chops. Now we've got 2 nights Chops, I night Giovanni's (my first time there) and probably the Windjammer after a long day in Cozumel

[ONECRUISER]

20 hours ago, vickiw0318 said:

On our recent TA, our group of friends found the food in the Windjammer to be very good - so much so that most of us didn't try the dining room.  We did eat several meals in the Specialty restaurants as well.

Sailed on Serenade and Brilliance about 200 nites last few yrs, Ironic thing is WindJammer on these two serve some best food and most choice I've had sailing 30+ yrs on Royal...

[luvscruising2007]

5 hours ago, enchilada72 said:

 

The problem is the food was terrible in general. Here are some specifics since requested:

French Onion Soup- this was literally broth and cheese. There were no onions or croutons in the soup bowl. Nothing but a bowl of broth. 

Prime Rib- ordered Medium - came out well done. Sent back and I swear they brought out the same slice that was just sent back.

Chicken Marsala- it was gray. Gray... nothing else to say.

Calamari- so tough they were inedible. Little fried rubber bands.

Shrimp Cocktail- shrimp was chewy and fibrous. Also, even after 2 requests, no cocktail sauce.

Creme Brulee- more like flan soaking in sugar. Now this tasted just like flan. I am a fan of flan and ate every bite of it. But why not just call it flan?

Other than the flan... I mean creme brûlée, I couldn't get past the issues to eat these items. As a reminder, we also visited Chops one night and Giovanni's one night. So the issues above were from only 2 nights in the MDR. 

Chops and Giovanni's were amazing. The service and food were amazing. We also ate breakfast in Chops since we were Suite guests. The breakfast was perfect each morning.

Hope this helps!

Yes, this is exactly what I was asking for.  If posters reviewing food, drinks, shows or service would be this explicit it would help to understand the review so much better.  Your issues sound    legitimate.  I would be disappointed that so many items were unsatisfactory.

Thank you for explaining your view.

 

 

[patattack]

My friend Kristin and I were on the last cruise before the TA.  We both were unhappy with the food and the service in the dining room.  We blamed it on My Time Dining, although  our last few cruises we have had My Time and it was very smooth.  This time not so much.  

[fla gang]

We did the Enchantment in August and the Harmony in September and both agree the food in mdr on Enchantment was far better than on Harmony. We have experienced both good and bad on our Royal cruises. Our worst food ever was on Carnival Magic. 

[soapbxking]

16 hours ago, fla gang said:

We did the Enchantment in August and the Harmony in September and both agree the food in mdr on Enchantment was far better than on Harmony. We have experienced both good and bad on our Royal cruises. Our worst food ever was on Carnival Magic. 

I sailed Magic last February and it had the best food of any cruise I have been on!!

[danv3]

I found the MDR food on the 10/6 Brilliance sailing tolerable but far short of impressive.  Service was very good though (shout out to Steven and Adil).  I think the biggest problem is that the menu is so uninspiring.  We're too cheap to eat in specialty dining (we've already paid for our meals int he cruise fare; we're not about to pay again) but if MDR food keeps going this way I don't know what we'll end up doing.  At least the Radiance class has a good sized Windjammer.

[mawvkysc]

Just got off the 11/12 sailing. We loved the food and our servers in MTD were fabulous.  We had Noel and Roel. We found if we followed. Noel’s reccomendations on food we were happy. Lamb and beef were the strong points.  Seafood was fine but not outstanding. The French Onion soup was so good. We liked all of the desserts. Creme Brûlée had the crunchy topping. Royal Chocolate Cake  was amazing. Servers kept checking to see if we enjoyed the food and were satisfied. 

[Mikew0805]

I was on the sailing right after the OP. I did Giovanni's and Chops each one night, and the dining room the other three nights. The food was fine. All at the right temperature, and based on past experience with RCI, all with the appropriate taste. Service was just as good in the MDR as it was in the specialties.

 

I couldn't care less about formal night. 

Edited November 18, 2018 by Mikew0805

[crusinpeg]

We were on the TA and thought the Windjammer for lunch was one of the worst buffets we've ever had. Same fish every day, mashed potatoes full of lumps, soup nothing but broth, couldn't chew fajita meat,no variety, etc etc

[WorldofTnT]

On 10/17/2018 at 1:03 PM, enchilada72 said:

 

The problem is the food was terrible in general. Here are some specifics since requested:

French Onion Soup- this was literally broth and cheese. There were no onions or croutons in the soup bowl. Nothing but a bowl of broth. 

Prime Rib- ordered Medium - came out well done. Sent back and I swear they brought out the same slice that was just sent back.

Chicken Marsala- it was gray. Gray... nothing else to say.

Calamari- so tough they were inedible. Little fried rubber bands.

Shrimp Cocktail- shrimp was chewy and fibrous. Also, even after 2 requests, no cocktail sauce.

Creme Brulee- more like flan soaking in sugar. Now this tasted just like flan. I am a fan of flan and ate every bite of it. But why not just call it flan?

Other than the flan... I mean creme brûlée, I couldn't get past the issues to eat these items. As a reminder, we also visited Chops one night and Giovanni's one night. So the issues above were from only 2 nights in the MDR. 

Chops and Giovanni's were amazing. The service and food were amazing. We also ate breakfast in Chops since we were Suite guests. The breakfast was perfect each morning.

Hope this helps!

 

I can report that we had the exact same thoughts on or recent Sept sailing.  The French onion tasted like water with some broth added and no onions or bread.  The prime rib was way over cooked.  The crime brûlée tasted more like a puddling and the sugars on top was not remotely crisp.   We were highly disappointed.

[pcur]

This is more general comment on RCCL main dining room food, and not the Brilliance.  In the past year I've sailed the Liberty, Rhapsody, and Adventure.  I had no problem with the food on any of the ships, and Mr. pcur (a la "the picky one") was satisfied, also.

 

I am so very happy they have escargot as a regular menu item:  it just makes me happy to be able to eat escargot when I want it, since it is virtually impossible in my daily life at home.  I like chewy shrimp:  my palate likes my food to have substance, as I cannot stand limp, "custardy", slimy food textures.  So, flan, puddings, overcooked veggies, etc. are big no-no's for me.  RCCL tends to serve their veggies al dente, which means you rarely get an overcooked one.  Ice cream is my exception, but it's got to be a flavor I like:  mint, pistachio, cinnamon.

 

I'm a fish and chicken eater, and I find these dishes very good on RCCL.  The only fish I will pass on is swordfish, since it goes tough if overcooked.  Their coq au vin is always good, and one of my favorites.  I love the garlic shrimp entry, and the lobster I had a few weeks ago on the Adventure, although small, was extremely tasty.  Order two portions, always, because they have served small lobsters for several years.

 

I also love their appetizers:  many fish concoctions, but almost all of them are good.

 

If I get a truly bad entree, I just order something different.  The waiters are usually jumping to replace something you don't like.  Just a simple comment and it's gone.  Speak up politely if you don't like something.  They will beg to bring you something you do.

 

Mr. pcur has found the beef to finally improved on RCCL, after quite a few years and many, many bad reviews by millions of people complaining about it.  He had good steaks, siced filet, and prime rib on all our recent cruises (and, he's not a fan of prime rib).  The sauces for his beef were good, and he always asks.  If they are serving one he likes with a different entree, he just asks for it to be added to his plate.  No problem.

 

 

[Wine-O]

We were on the Brilliance TA recently, and it's funny you should mention about the French Onion Soup.  I never order it myself, but one of our table mates kept commenting about the lack of onions.  

 

We also thought the food was poor and at some times just couldn't eat.  Of course they offered to get something else, but by the time it would have gotten there, everyone else would have been finished eating their dinner and ready for dessert.

 

I attribute the poor quality/taste to the Executive Chef on board.  Shortly after our TA, we took a 9-night cruise on Anthem.  They had some of the exact same menus, and the food was excellent.