Disappointed in Majestic food

[rhsjr]

Ok, I do like hamburgers and french fries, but a lot of other food too.  Just returned from 12 days on the Majestic Princess, Sydney to Auckland.  The cruise itself was great, but we were disappointed in the food selection.  This was our 11^th Princess cruise and have really liked the food in the past.  Absolutely, repeat nothing against Asians, but 70% of the buffet was Asian and noted as that.  I love soup and nothing against carrot soup or 4 flavor beef consommé, but come on, No one was eating it.  We only went to the dining table service twice, once for Fettucine Alfredo and once for the lobster, no other night looked all that great.  The pizza restaurant was very good but missed the pizza station near the hamburger station on the pool deck. Did anyone else notice the difference in food selection?

[PurpleTraveller]

I was on Majestic Princess in December last year and do agree with you that the food was not great in the buffet. We usually like to eat in the buffet on nights when we have had a very busy day and can't be bothered changing for the dining room and have had some great meals with variety each night on other Princess ships. I have particularly enjoyed the buffet on Regal and Royal, however Majestic's buffet was uninspiring and lacked variety. The food was the same for every night of our cruise with no theme nights that I noticed. Even the desserts were the same every night and very uninteresting. I found the food in the Dining Room to be much better than the buffet but sometimes a little uninspiring, however the service was great and with a much more pleasant ambiance than the Crown Grill. 

[Colo Cruiser]

This is disappointing to hear.

[OzKiwiJJ]

We were on Majestic in November for the six night Tasmania Cruise. We ate in the MDR on three nights and I was very disappointed in the menu selections and the quality of the meals there. The worst I've ever had in seven Princess cruises since 2014.

 

We tried La Mer. The appetisers and mains were very poor - I had to get my duck main replaced with something else as it was inedible - but the desserts were fantastic.

 

We went to Harmony twice and really enjoyed it. The duck salad is to die for! Great desserts too.

 

We also enjoyed very nice pizza for lunch one day at Alfredos.

[Ombud]

Is Alfredos a restaurant like on the Regal with minestrone, lasagne, pasta, dessert or is it just pizza?

[LSGDRG]

I have read that the menus on the Majestic Princess have been tweaked to appeal to Australian tastes.  Being from California, I am not sure what that means.  My hope for my upcoming cruise on the Majestic is that there is enough variety among the dining menus.  

[OzKiwiJJ]

11 hours ago, Ombud said:

Is Alfredos a restaurant like on the Regal with minestrone, lasagne, pasta, dessert or is it just pizza?

Not sure about Regal but the menu looked similar to Royal so I assume they are all the same.

Edited March 7, 2019 by OzKiwiJJ

[OzKiwiJJ]

5 hours ago, LSGDRG said:

I have read that the menus on the Majestic Princess have been tweaked to appeal to Australian tastes.  Being from California, I am not sure what that means.  My hope for my upcoming cruise on the Majestic is that there is enough variety among the dining menus.  

If those menus had been tweaked to appeal to Australian tastes then Princess must have done some time travel back to the 50's and 60's. Good Australian cuisine is lighter, fresher and better quality than some of the stodge on the Majestic menus. But it wasn't just the menu choices that were poor, it was the quality. Tough beef tournedos on formal night. Dry overcooked tasteless salmon (the always available option).

 

All but one of our Princess cruises have been on Australian based ships and I have never seen menus that unappealing day after day. One waiter did comment that they don't use the more interesting menus on short cruises.

 

We did notice some menu differences when we cruised the Med on Royal in 2017 but many of the menu items were familiar. However even in the short time since our first cruise in Dec 2014 I have noticed a slow but steady decline in the MDR menus. It's a bit of a worry as we're booked on a 35 night cruise on Sea Princess in August and that has limited alternative dining.

[toescat]

One has to say to themselves when was the last time they went to a restaurant that serves 2000+ people in a 3 hour window.  My guess is never.  I keep my expectation low as it is very difficult to serve that many people so I stay with my normal food, steak, salad while in the MDR. The Buffet I would jump all over Chinese food.  Yum Yum Yum  

[Ombud]

42 minutes ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

Good Australian cuisine is lighter, fresher and better quality than some of the stodge on the Majestic menus.

When I was in Sydney last March, the food was a lot like that in SF. Hope it's the same in Melbourne as I'll be there for 3 days b4 my cruise this November 

 

But to thread: glad to hear that pasta choices / soup / salad / desserts are still in Alfredos

[Saint Panda]

Recently returned from a cruise on the Majestic and totally agree about the food. Main dining room options were poor and some of the dishes when they came out were nothing like the description. I ordered chicken broth one night and some dark brown liquid that tasted like soy sauce was served. Even the everyday options were different to other cruises we has been on. My husband ordered the Love Boat dessert as he had previously loved it, but didn't like it this time. It was a lot more gelatinous in texture and the waitress acknowledged that they had been getting complaints about its lack of creaminess.

 

 

 

 

[land lover]

On 3/6/2019 at 1:37 PM, rhsjr said:

Ok, I do like hamburgers and french fries, but a lot of other food too.  Just returned from 12 days on the Majestic Princess, Sydney to Auckland.  The cruise itself was great, but we were disappointed in the food selection.  This was our 11^th Princess cruise and have really liked the food in the past.  Absolutely, repeat nothing against Asians, but 70% of the buffet was Asian and noted as that.  I love soup and nothing against carrot soup or 4 flavor beef consommé, but come on, No one was eating it.  We only went to the dining table service twice, once for Fettucine Alfredo and once for the lobster, no other night looked all that great.  The pizza restaurant was very good but missed the pizza station near the hamburger station on the pool deck. Did anyone else notice the difference in food selection?

 I lost 10 pounds( and I didn't need too😉) on my recent 28 +10 day Australian cruises on Sea Princess. On Majestic 2017, 3 weeks Singapore to Shanghai ...we just ate starters or in in Alfredo's....I agree....menus just not to exciting.....However on Majestic I did enjoy the Noddle Bar.

[BritinSoCal]

Just goes to show how selective our opinions of food can be.

 

We sailed the Majestic from Sydney to Auckland as part of a 3 week cruise / DIY vacation to NZ. Mrs SoCal and I both agreed that not only was the Majestic a beautiful ship (would sail again on her in a heartbeat) but the food was excellent. Never had a problem with their being a lot of Asian food in the buffet (although a few more dishes from the Indian sub-continent wouldn't have gone amiss), Alfredos was good (both pizza and pasta) and as for the MDR - without a shadow of a doubt the menus were the best we've ever had on Princess.