Buffets on cruise lines

[Rkbmr73]

Are the cruise lines going to have buffets on Lido decks under CDC regulations?

 

[rucrazy]

3 minutes ago, Rkbmr73 said:

Are the cruise lines going to have buffets on Lido decks under CDC regulations?

 

Yes of course!

I think the more appropriate question would be "Will they be Self Serve?"

Joseph

Edited April 8, 2021 by rucrazy
spelling

[RedneckBob]

7 minutes ago, rucrazy said:

Yes of course!

I think the more appropriate question would be "Will they be Self Serve?"

Joseph

Just use the Oceania model before the pandemic. There buffet is not self served.

Everything served by a server

[rucrazy]

13 minutes ago, RedneckBob said:

Everything served by a server

I prefer to be pampered I want EVERYTHING served to me... 🙂

[kazu]

Very little of HAL’s buffet has been self serve for some time.  At least, that’s been my experience 😉 

[Hlitner]

It does seem that the old self-service buffet is a thing of the past.  To some degree it was already waning before COVID, but COVID seems to have finished the job.  The irony is that is you do some online research it seems impossible to find any studies or scientific evidence that buffets have anything to do with spreading COVID other then the lack of social distancing.  Even the CDC now admits that the incidence of COVID spread from surfaces is very rare.   But self-service buffets have long been a big problem for Norovirus and that is not a good thing.

 

But I do think most of have used self service buffets have been disgusted, from time to time, by the way some folks use buffets.  We have watched folks taste test and then put things back, touch items which they then leave for other folks, etc.  The HAL model (prior to COVID) of using servers for many items and allowing some self-service of items that are already plated or in a bag was actually somewhat of an improvement.  

[NavyCruiser]

It'll be like the buffet at our last AI resort:

Each time you go to buffet station, which will be roped off, you'll have your own private staff member to greet you & to escort you to the various buffet stations, hold your plate, you point out which item you want, staff hands plate to server behind the counter, then walk around with you to repeat the process, walk with you back to your table or to outside the roped area to give you your food plate. 

You just simply do not touch anything within the buffet zone area.

Slightly slower, but much safer for everyone...

 

[JeffElizabeth]

Seems silly because we will all be vaccinated,  right? But I always was more worried about Norovirus anyway.  

[vicd1969]

I imagine that at least until Covid effectively disappears, we'd also have to wear masks while getting the buffet food and stand at least 3 fee apart. They may have to open the MDR for lunch even on port days to accommodate all the protocols. But on the plus side, there probably be fewer Noro outbreaks as well post-Covid.

[Mary229]

@Kazu said Hal has been that way for a while.  Some of our fellow passengers just don't have the hygiene skills to handle self service🥺

[rucrazy]

7 minutes ago, Mary229 said:

Some of our fellow passengers just don't have the hygiene skills to handle self service

The people I have seen..smh just nasty.....

 

Joseph

[igraf]

4 hours ago, Hlitner said:

It does seem that the old self-service buffet is a thing of the past.  To some degree it was already waning before COVID, but COVID seems to have finished the job.  The irony is that is you do some online research it seems impossible to find any studies or scientific evidence that buffets have anything to do with spreading COVID other then the lack of social distancing.  Even the CDC now admits that the incidence of COVID spread from surfaces is very rare.   But self-service buffets have long been a big problem for Norovirus and that is not a good thing.

 

 

 

Self-serve buffets are more a norovirus concern.   Or even colds and the flu.  We have to remember that COVID isn't the only contagious disease going around on a ship.

 

igraf

 

 

[RuthC]

7 hours ago, RedneckBob said:

Just use the Oceania model before the pandemic.

I would hope that HAL would never use any Oceania model of any procedure. They are not the standard to judge by. 

[T8NCruise]

7 hours ago, kazu said:

Very little of HAL’s buffet has been self serve for some time.  At least, that’s been my experience 😉 

Mine too.  There have been threads on here about the buffet being serve by crew only for a long time.  I much prefer it that way.

[fatcat04]

I like HALs model personally. They have been ahead in that game for a while and I really prefer it. Almost everything is served by their gracious staff (who usually give me way too much food even when I say "oh, just a little" ) or it is on individual serving dishes or packaging. Maybe we will have to be handed those individual servings now but even still, I am totally fine with not sharing utensils with others. Plus I bet noro goes way down too!

[Hlitner]

1 hour ago, RuthC said:

I would hope that HAL would never use any Oceania model of any procedure. They are not the standard to judge by. 

My goodness you are right.  After all, we would not HAL to serve lobster and steak at a lunch buffet.  No,...the HAL standard of pre made sandwiches in a paper bag and the usual daily hot chicken is the standard that every line should strive to meet.

 

Hank

[Mary229]

For those who sailed in late 2019/early 2020 did they have any food festivals out by the pool.  On one cruise I was on I was told they could no longer have those special events and serve food outside then the next cruise had them.  What was your experience?

i always liked the special regional fare and festivities out on deck including the pea soup. 

[Mary229]

4 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

My goodness you are right.  After all, we would not HAL to serve lobster and steak at a lunch buffet.  No,...the HAL standard of pre made sandwiches in a paper bag and the usual daily hot chicken is the standard that every line should strive to meet.

 

Hank

Obviously I sailed on a different Oceania than you did.  There was nothing like that on my 12 day Med cruise. 

Edited April 8, 2021 by Mary229

[YXU AC*SE]

8 hours ago, Hlitner said:

 But self-service buffets have long been a big problem for Norovirus and that is not a good thing.

 

This NHK (Japan's state broadcaster) video did it for me ...      Scott. 

https://youtu.be/oB9mAgicwAg

 

 

 

 

[kazu]

1 hour ago, RuthC said:

I would hope that HAL would never use any Oceania model of any procedure. They are not the standard to judge by. 

 

Agree with you, completely.

 

31 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

My goodness you are right.  After all, we would not HAL to serve lobster and steak at a lunch buffet.  No,...the HAL standard of pre made sandwiches in a paper bag and the usual daily hot chicken is the standard that every line should strive to meet.

 

Hank

 

I don’t think RuthC is talking about the langostina (It’s not Atlantic lobster served on Oceania 😉 ) or the offerrings..

 

For me, it was the food out too early, people handling and lack of sneeze guards or preventions to keep people from touching before the serving started.

The centre stations were ok but the ones on the outer edges and the Terrace Grill were not.

Not sure what ship you were on but the one we were had a lot of the same stuff every single day.

And the hygiene that I saw was somewhat scary.  If you wanted a clean table, you pretty much had to grab a cloth or ask someone to do it.  

HAL’s hygiene beat O’s by a long shot for me, especially with a case of Noro.  I’ve been on 2 HAL ships that had Noro and one on O.  O’s handling of it was abysmal compared to HAL.  JMO having the sad advantage of being able to compare.

 

And FWIW, there were a number of repeat O cruisers on with us who shared their disappointment in the cruise.

[Mtn2Sea]

36 minutes ago, Mary229 said:

For those who sailed in late 2019/early 2020 did they have any food festivals out by the pool.  On one cruise I was on I was told they could no longer have those special events and serve food outside then the next cruise had them.  What was your experience?

i always liked the special regional fare and festivities out on deck including the pea soup. 

We last sailed on two different ships in December 2019 (seems like ages ago) and no special food events were held on deck.  In fact, it been years since we experienced such an event.

[Donald]

About 3 years ago the Vessel Sanitation Program (VSP) Inspectors came up with enhancements for food and buffets served outdoors on cruise ships. These enhancements required the cruise lines to install additional handwashing stations, toilets, sneeze guards, overhead protection, deckhead covers, and other equipment to make outdoor dining more safe and sanitary. Nearly all cruise lines complied with the new standards. HAL decided it was too costly, so they just cancelled the outdoor dining and told their passengers that it was no longer allowed.

[fatcat04]

We had the poutine bar on Maasdam back in 2013 and that was the last lido special food buffet we had. It was very good btw but well it was poutine... how could it not be good? 

[Mary229]

9 hours ago, Donald said:

About 3 years ago the Vessel Sanitation Program (VSP) Inspectors came up with enhancements for food and buffets served outdoors on cruise ships. These enhancements required the cruise lines to install additional handwashing stations, toilets, sneeze guards, overhead protection, deckhead covers, and other equipment to make outdoor dining more safe and sanitary. Nearly all cruise lines complied with the new standards. HAL decided it was too costly, so they just cancelled the outdoor dining and told their passengers that it was no longer allowed.

This is what I had heard and in the middle of a long cruise they ceased.   So imagine my surprise the next time I sailed HAL that there was a party on deck.  First ship was the Rotterdam the second ship was the Koningsdam.  I do not recall seeing any special equipment but I was not that observant.  Perhaps they installed the necessary upgrades to some of the newer ships.  Anyway, I was just curious

[KirkNC]

I believe they can have a party and serve drinks but they can no longer do the cooking there unless they comply with the updated rules.  I have seen food served by waiters with trays but not cooking for several years.

Edited April 9, 2021 by KirkNC