Is There a Reluctance to Eat/Drink in Port?

[Nebr.cruiser]

6 hours ago, ed01106 said:

Me too.  However, I do find eating familiar food to be very comforting when feeling overwhelmed by the travel and/or homesick.  That could have been part of their method of coping with everything else being different.

We enjoy eating locally, but I must admit on a couple of our longer trips, we were very happy to see a Burger King or McDonalds once in a while.  After a couple of weeks in Thailand, with wonderful food, a Burger King at the airport hit the spot.  In Cairo our whole bus cheered when we made a quick stop a McDonalds.

 

In Vietnam, our guide went out of his way to find the french fries my husband was craving.  He actually had them hand made at a couple of restaurants, going into the kitchens to oversee; they were 'interesting'.

 

It is quite a unique experience to eat a 'American' chains in some countries as the old familiars either aren't there or have a different taste.  But, that's fun too.

[getting older slowly]

It depends on the port, we go a cruise for the cruise firstly and secondly the ports, sometimes we eat on shore, but mainly we go to the buffet and take food back to our balcony and eat there on port days. and enjoy the view.

 

Cheers Don

[ilikeanswers]

4 hours ago, Nebr.cruiser said:

It is quite a unique experience to eat a 'American' chains in some countries as the old familiars either aren't there or have a different taste.  But, that's fun too.

 

First time I visited France there was day I forgot that everything closes between lunch and dinner so the only place I could eat was McDonalds and the one difference I did notice was how good the cheese was on that burger compared to any McDonalds burger I ever had😜.

[clo]

23 hours ago, getting older slowly said:

It depends on the port, we go a cruise for the cruise firstly and secondly the ports, sometimes we eat on shore, but mainly we go to the buffet and take food back to our balcony and eat there on port days. and enjoy the view.

 

Cheers Don

And we're 180 degrees from that.  And I'll be honest and say that there's still a part of me that wants to say "What? Are you kidding me?" But I've come a long way, baby 🙂

[getting older slowly]

HI Clo

 

That's all right... everybody likes different things.... which is a good thing...

 

Maybe I should have added that it is because we have only cruised from Australia,...

and there has been no big difference to on shore food to at home  ...

 

Cheers Don

[SRF]

On 10/18/2019 at 2:01 PM, sanger727 said:

 

Possibly. Although, we have found that eating "familiar" foods in other countries can be an experience in and of itself as they interpret our food. I'm sure Chinese people eating at an American Chinese restaurant feel the same way. We did get tired of constantly experimenting with food on that trip and did go for pizza a couple times. One time crust was essentially a croissant dough and it was drizzled with honey. Delicious, but not exactly what I had in mind ;-).

 

I traveled through China in 1983, when they had just opened to tourism.  Due to some relatives, most of the group were American Chinese from Hawaii.  We were in China for over 2 weeks, at a time when ALL the food was local Chinese food.  NO choice.

 

We got to Hong Kong, and all the American Chinese, wanted to go eat Chinese food.  As the food in China was not, to THEM, "real" Chinese food. 😄 😄 😄

 

[SRF]

On 10/18/2019 at 9:51 PM, getting older slowly said:

It depends on the port, we go a cruise for the cruise firstly and secondly the ports, sometimes we eat on shore, but mainly we go to the buffet and take food back to our balcony and eat there on port days. and enjoy the view.

 

Cheers Don

 

Same here.

 

We enjoy the ports, but don't really care which ones.  If we want to see a place, we do it as a land vacation, so we can spend enough time to enjoy and learn the place.

 

We cannot image a Greek Island CRUISE.  We did a full week on Mykonos alone.  And wanted more time.

[SRF]

On 10/18/2019 at 2:27 PM, ed01106 said:

True. I know one young lady, who is all about eating in American chains in other countries and comparing the foreign versions to the original. When she went to Italy her facebook page contained about 25 photos of McDonalds and a very lengthy review.  But almost nothing else about the country.

 

I have avoided American fast food chains when I travel internationally.  But, there is a lot of interesting local takes on things like McDs.  Or KFC.  The local people told me in Trinidad to try KFC, as it is more of a jerk seasoning.

Edited October 20, 2019 by SRF

[clo]

23 hours ago, getting older slowly said:

we have only cruised from Australia,..

That explains a lot.  Thanks.

[clo]

10 hours ago, SRF said:

 

I have avoided American fast food chains when I travel internationally.  But, there is a lot of interesting local takes on things like McDs.  Or KFC.  The local people told me in Trinidad to try KFC, as it is more of a jerk seasoning.

We used to have an apt in Rio and spent a lot of time there.  One day we were in a bit of a rush and did KFC for lunch.  Their sides were rice and beans, ubiquitous there. And we had real plates, utensils and glasses.  And they bused our table.

[SRF]

14 hours ago, clo said:

We used to have an apt in Rio and spent a lot of time there.  One day we were in a bit of a rush and did KFC for lunch.  Their sides were rice and beans, ubiquitous there. And we had real plates, utensils and glasses.  And they bused our table.

 

A couple of years ago, I was in Paraguay and Brazil.

 

Paraguay, McD's had a cheddar cheeseburger with fried onions (I only saw the ads).

 

In Brazil, they had a Mexi burger with salsa and guacamole.  This is when I started wondering if maybe I had been missing something.

 

Rio is in a interesting town.

[clo]

21 minutes ago, SRF said:

Rio is in a interesting town.

We love it and haven't been back in a couple of years.  We begin an Oceania cruise there in December and wind up in Buenos Aires.  We'll embark later on the Saturday so we can have feijoada first.

[SRF]

BA is also very nice.

 

AWESOME beef.  And Malbec wine.

[clo]

10 hours ago, SRF said:

BA is also very nice.

 

AWESOME beef.  And Malbec wine.

We were there for a couple of days and looking forward to returning.  Oh yeah re the food and wine 🙂

 

[SRF]

11 hours ago, clo said:

We were there for a couple of days and looking forward to returning.  Oh yeah re the food and wine 🙂

 

 

On one of the cross streets off Avenue Florida (the walking street downtown) is one of my favorite restaurants.

 

El Palicio de la Papas Frites   

 

The Palace of French Fries. 😄

 

They cut thin slices of potato, then toss them in hot oil, so they puff up.  Almost crispy on the outside, soft and hot inside, and hollow in the middle.

 

I think that steaks are better than at the more famous Kansas steak house, and a LOT less expensive.

 

 

Edited October 23, 2019 by SRF

[clo]

3 minutes ago, SRF said:

El Palicio de la Papas Frites   

 

You're the best!  We will definitely go there.  We have four days post-cruise and Bob's 75th birthday.  And did I mention that Daddy used to say "no matter what's wrong with you a steak will make it better." 🙂

[SRF]

BTW, the steak in the picture is about half eaten.  HUGE.

 

Bife di Lomo  Which is tenderloin.

 

Bife di Chorizo is sirloin.

 

 

[Hlitner]

On 10/20/2019 at 10:35 AM, SRF said:

 

I have avoided American fast food chains when I travel internationally.  But, there is a lot of interesting local takes on things like McDs.  Or KFC.  The local people told me in Trinidad to try KFC, as it is more of a jerk seasoning.

So here are a few reasons to stop in at a McD when traveling.  McD generally offers free WiFi.  The also have rest rooms which are easy to access.  McD is also a good place to get Diet Coke (Coke Lite) when in places where it is difficult to find diet soda.  In Paris, the McD also has decent macarons at a fair price.

 

Hank

[crystalspin]

We stopped at a McD for the restrooms on a land-tour in India. The only meat they served was chicken...

[rkacruiser]

22 hours ago, Hlitner said:

here are a few reasons to stop in at a McD when traveling.   The also have rest rooms which are easy to access.

And, the restrooms are clean.

[havoc2000]

Soon to be 1st time cruiser here, on the Escape. A few questions about eating and drinking. When we board in Miami, will we be able to go to a buffet right after we bring suitcase to room, and grab a bit of lunch? I paid for the free dining, along with some not free, but I'd like to grab a bite in the noontime hours, and start with a cocktail before we even leave port, and not be surprised at trips end with a bill. Secondly, if we get off the boat, for an excursion sponsored by NCL, say snorkeling, and then hang out on the beach where they have burgers and drinks(mentioned in excursion ad by NCL), is that part of the cost of the excursion, cruise, or more out of pocket cash ? Also, I guess an off topic question is also, if I go snorkeling, where do I place my room key\card, cash, phone, etc that is secure while we are snorkeling? I am sure this is a non issue, but I like to be prepared. We are paying as much as possible "up front" and a cruise is costly. Trying to save or limit surprises. Any answers are greatly appreciated! 

[Sweetnspicy]

On 12/10/2019 at 6:55 AM, havoc2000 said:

Soon to be 1st time cruiser here, on the Escape. A few questions about eating and drinking. When we board in Miami, will we be able to go to a buffet right after we bring suitcase to room, and grab a bit of lunch? I paid for the free dining, along with some not free, but I'd like to grab a bite in the noontime hours, and start with a cocktail before we even leave port, and not be surprised at trips end with a bill. Secondly, if we get off the boat, for an excursion sponsored by NCL, say snorkeling, and then hang out on the beach where they have burgers and drinks(mentioned in excursion ad by NCL), is that part of the cost of the excursion, cruise, or more out of pocket cash ? Also, I guess an off topic question is also, if I go snorkeling, where do I place my room key\card, cash, phone, etc that is secure while we are snorkeling? I am sure this is a non issue, but I like to be prepared. We are paying as much as possible "up front" and a cruise is costly. Trying to save or limit surprises. Any answers are greatly appreciated! 

Once you are on board the buffets and main dining rooms are all free! Unless you are booked in a Haven Suite, your room will not be ready until 1-2pm so leave your luggage with the porters and take a backpack with any necessities. A note about drinking while in port, you will pay taxes on the drinks even if you have the beverage packages. 
 

Check the excursion “What’s included” description. If you are at NCLs private Island, Great Stirrup Cay then the food and drinks (With beverage package)are free. Some excursions provide lunch and free drinks. 

For snorkeling I bought a waterproof phone pouch and I keep my ship card and a little bit of cash in there. You don’t need anything else. 

[Kate P.C]

We do eat out at port sometimes, I mean if we get hungry we are not going to head back to the ship just to eat 🙂 No regrets there.