Food on Oceania

[ldubs]

I have a question about the primary eating areas on Oceania ships which I believe are commonly referred to as the GDR and Terrace (or Buffet).  In those places do the menus vary from day-to-day during the cruise.  I was reading elsewhere the claim that menus in the GDR & Buffet (or Terrace or whatever you call it) stays the same during the entire cruise.  I find that kind of hard to believe.   

[Jay23]

6 hours ago, ldubs said:

I have a question about the primary eating areas on Oceania ships which I believe are commonly referred to as the GDR and Terrace (or Buffet).  In those places do the menus vary from day-to-day during the cruise.  I was reading elsewhere the claim that menus in the GDR & Buffet (or Terrace or whatever you call it) stays the same during the entire cruise.  I find that kind of hard to believe.   

The menus change throughout the cruise in those restaurants.   What you have read is that the menus maybe don't change as much as some guests would prefer.  

[StanandJim]

7 hours ago, ldubs said:

I have a question about the primary eating areas on Oceania ships which I believe are commonly referred to as the GDR and Terrace (or Buffet).  In those places do the menus vary from day-to-day during the cruise.  I was reading elsewhere the claim that menus in the GDR & Buffet (or Terrace or whatever you call it) stays the same during the entire cruise.  I find that kind of hard to believe.   

The menus in the Specialty Restaurants are static.

The menus in the Buffet (Terrace Restaurant) and Grand Dining Room change daily.  

[Shawnino]

2 hours ago, Jay23 said:

The menus change throughout the cruise in those restaurants.   What you have read is that the menus maybe don't change as much as some guests would prefer.  

 

It's this.

 

Just as an example in the main dining room there is the staple "always available" mains: steak, piece of salmon, or quarter chicken, pasta bowl I think... as all cruise lines do. The O ones are pretty good BTW--don't let the always available nature scare you off.

The rest of the mains rotate no more frequently than once a week, maybe once every 10-14 days. There are usually six or seven, of which one is vegan and one is a lighter choice (sometimes those are the same one).

Often, a random main dish from one of the Specialties will be offered as "a taste of [Restaurant X]". This is less likely to be Polo, as the the steak option is "always available" and other steak preparations and chops show up in the regular list of rotating Mains.

 

About 1/3 to 1/2 of the starters seem to be "always availables" although they are just listed among the others... last year we could not escape the bisque being one of the three soups, nor the nightly prosciutto (sp?) and melon or Coquilles St. Jacques. The other starters rotate, but a bit more frequently than the mains.

[bitob]

Getting back to food

 

I agree with my friend Paul who noted earlier that the food on O is not as good as it was long ago.  Also, as others have noted, the food is not consistent from cruise to cruise.  The quality in the specialties could vary greatly from cruise to cruise as well.  A chef is the key.  The executive chef makes a world of difference.  On our last Oceania cruise on Marina in July we were 3 couples with 40+ O cruises combined and we all agreed it was the best food we had had on Oceania in memory.   The Executive Chef was from Paris.   Having said that,  past performance is no predictor of the future.

 

I also feel that the food on Oceania is somewhat boring and repetitive.  The salads at the lunch buffet haven't changed much in years.  Nevertheless, I believe most cruisers will find the food more than acceptable.  

 

I think the food on Crystal is far superior with more variety.  I'm not a big fan of the food on Seabourn (except all that caviar).

On most ships you will not starve.  You can always find something good to eat.

[Hawaiidan]

18 hours ago, clo said:

Bob just couldn't resist...and did a decent job of it.

 

Pork, day in and day out, is our fave meat but it depends on the beef. We have a local ranch/butcher that has crazy good grass-raised and finish beef and will age it up to something like 60 days IIRC.

Personally  I avoid grass fed as the flavor and texture is inferior  to grain mix  I get my beef  from Snake River Ranch/DoubleRR...   The same that Thomas Keller, Wolfgang Puck..Cat Cora  etc    American  Waygu mix breed.  It aint cheap but man  you will never have another beef tast as rich and be as tender.   What is IIRC aging?    never heard of it???

After  trying everybody    You local guy is just fine.... but you need to go to the next level if you want perfection...  I go by Keller's rec.

[Hawaiidan]

12 hours ago, ldubs said:

I have a question about the primary eating areas on Oceania ships which I believe are commonly referred to as the GDR and Terrace (or Buffet).  In those places do the menus vary from day-to-day during the cruise.  I was reading elsewhere the claim that menus in the GDR & Buffet (or Terrace or whatever you call it) stays the same during the entire cruise.  I find that kind of hard to believe.   

It changes several times a DAY.... the combinations are endless... Tapas to Asian with grilled in the middle and throw in some Italian............and just for fun  several of the specialties dishes also show up...different every day...........thousands of different options combinations daily................The O ships  are a dream at the terrace....I prefer them to everything except Red Ginger and Jaques.      

[Wishing on a star]

Just to throw this in,  on the line we have cruised most, and maybe others too,  there is a more limited and predictable menu in the MDR.

It is like on rotation, and you know which night will be prime rib, Italian, etc.

Of course the Buffet is another story.

 

But, it actually does beg a fair question about MDR menus and rotations.

 

Dan, that beef looks AMAZING!  And, yes, $$$ too.

 

[clo]

4 hours ago, Hawaiidan said:

Personally  I avoid grass fed as the flavor and texture is inferior  to grain mix  I get

Ah, but, see, that's your opinion. And mine is different. Food IMO is perhaps the most subjective thing, well one of anyway and we all have our preferences. I think grass fed and finished is more distinctive as REAL beef or REAL lamb. I've had lamb that could likely be passed off as beef. We all like different things. Crazy as I seems I actually know people who think they don't like the tasted of rat, chicken feet, tripe, sweetbreads, etc. The rat wasn't bad but was overcooked. The others I'd rather have than a steak most of the time.

[Paulchili]

32 minutes ago, clo said:

I've had lamb that could likely be passed off as beef.

Not in my world - never the two will be confused 😀

[Hawaiidan]

33 minutes ago, clo said:

Ah, but, see, that's your opinion. And mine is different. Food IMO is perhaps the most subjective thing, well one of anyway and we all have our preferences. I think grass fed and finished is more distinctive as REAL beef or REAL lamb. I've had lamb that could likely be passed off as beef. We all like different things. Crazy as I seems I actually know people who think they don't like the tasted of rat, chicken feet, tripe, sweetbreads, etc. The rat wasn't bad but was overcooked. The others I'd rather have than a steak most of the time.

Well   its not really my opinion...its the opinion of many Michelin restaurants  and the worlds top chefs...I was just agreeing with them.....Who am I  to argue with Keller, Puck etc.

[clo]

33 minutes ago, Hawaiidan said:

Well   its not really my opinion...its the opinion of many Michelin restaurants  and the worlds top chefs...I was just agreeing with them.....Who am I  to argue with Keller, Puck etc.

Well, I'll say "preference" then. I tend not to be a follower 🙂

 

[DeeniEncinitas]

1 hour ago, clo said:

Well, I'll say "preference" then. I tend not to be a follower 🙂

 

👍 Love you Cath! Welcome back from South America. I so agree with you!

Denise😊

[clo]

14 minutes ago, DeeniEncinitas said:

👍 Love you Cath! Welcome back from South America. I so agree with you!

Denise😊

Thanks, kiddo. Some folks are kinda grouchy today 🙂  xoc

 

[pinotlover]

Must be a purist. I don’t want my lamb to taste like beef, nor my pork like chicken! Same goes with wines. I don’t want my Pinot Noir to taste like Syrah nor my cab to taste like Zinfandel or Port! I struggle with winemakers and chefs that challenge those preferences! I don’t care how many stars they are given or points awarded. If Keller wants his lamb to taste like beef, I need a different chef. I ordered lamb to get the great flavors of lamb. If I had wanted beef, I would have ordered it.

Edited January 6, 2020 by pinotlover

[clo]

4 minutes ago, pinotlover said:

Must be a purist. I don’t want my lamb to taste like beef, nor my pork like chicken! Same goes with wines. I don’t want my Pinot Noir to taste like Syrah nor my cab to taste like Zinfandel or Port! I struggle with winemakers and chefs that challenge those preferences! I don’t care how many stars they are given or points awarded. If Keller wants his lamb to taste like beef, I need a different chef. I ordered lamb to get the great flavors of lamb. If I had wanted beef, I would have ordered it.

We're lucky that in the Reno area we have local ranchers. We first bought a local lamb a few years ago and the flavor difference was notable. And now we're getting local beef. The flavor and texture are so good. Yeah, we pay more but, hey, we've already told "the girls" that we plan to "die broke." 🙂 PS: we drink wine every day and know almost nothing about it 🙂 Gotta say though that we had some pleased us a lot in Buenos Aires 🙂

[ldubs]

 

@Jay23

@StanandJim

@Shawnino

@Hawaiidan

 

Thanks for clarifying the "diversity" of food options.  Very helpful in understanding Oceania's product (which sounds pretty darn good - LOL).  

Edited January 6, 2020 by ldubs

[ldubs]

18 hours ago, clo said:

Crazy as I seems I actually know people who think they don't like the tasted of rat, chicken feet, tripe, sweetbreads, etc. The rat wasn't bad but was overcooked. The others I'd rather have than a steak most of the time.

 

You can have mine.  I'll take the steak!  😀😀

 

PS: Are you posting the review of your recent trip here in the Oceania forum?   

Edited January 6, 2020 by ldubs

[RJB]

20 hours ago, Hawaiidan said:

Well   its not really my opinion...its the opinion of many Michelin restaurants  and the worlds top chefs...I was just agreeing with them.....Who am I  to argue with Keller, Puck etc.

I would tend to agree with you.   You quote the right people who cook the food we like to eat even thou we can't afford them all the time. 

[clo]

3 hours ago, ldubs said:

 

You can have mine.  I'll take the steak!  😀😀

 

PS: Are you posting the review of your recent trip here in the Oceania forum?   

I swear I will. We've had multiple trips since the cruise and I seem to get so darn tired. Will be back in our home tomorrow.

[clo]

30 minutes ago, RJB said:

I would tend to agree with you.   You quote the right people who cook the food we like to eat even thou we can't afford them all the time. 

And I think that's great. And I think the food we had on O was very good but not adventuresome. And it really shouldn't be. Pleasing the 'masses.' I would definitely say more people prefer grain finished meat. We don't. Big deal.

[clo]

9 minutes ago, DeeniEncinitas said:

LOL 👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍

lets stay up all night 😉

You go right ahead, gf! We're in our motorhome for the last night. Heading to our house tomorrow. We'll be there for TWO WHOLE WEEKS! We had a late lunch and should probably have something for dinner. Have some pork left from this guy in Chinatown in SF the other day.

 

[DeeniEncinitas]

4 minutes ago, clo said:

You go right ahead, gf! We're in our motorhome for the last night. Heading to our house tomorrow. We'll be there for TWO WHOLE WEEKS! We had a late lunch and should probably have something for dinner. Have some pork left from this guy in Chinatown in SF the other day.

 

Have a safe trip home Cath! Picture looks yummy! Glad your having a good time in your new motor home!

Safe Travels

Denise😊

[Paulchili]

1 hour ago, DeeniEncinitas said:

Watching college football Cath outside! Saw the sunset over ocean while we ate! 
Not time for bed here or in Reno😉

Denise😊

I suspect that you know that Clo in Reno, NV is actually west of you in Encinitas, CA 😀

[clo]

28 minutes ago, Paulchili said:

I suspect that you know that Clo in Reno, NV is actually west of you in Encinitas, CA 😀

Kindred spirits. And we were just here: