What do you think of the new 2021 menus?

[stellarose]

seafood tower?????

[jlseymour3]

On 7/20/2021 at 9:54 AM, zzdoug said:

I am basically ok with the menus and usually find something I like.  That said, I wish Carnival would also give each ship's chef a little more latitude to be creative and offer one or two specials unique to that kitchen, based on what is seasonally available, in addition to the standard menu of American and Americanized European food.  I would love to see a couple more recipes from the home countries of various people working in the kitchen, many of whom may be from East Africa, Southeast Asia, various regions of India, Eastern Europe, Latin America etc, each of which has its own rich food culture.  I know there is one Indian vegetarian option but it seems to be the same thing every day on every ship.

Carnival does bend over backwards to meet the needs of people with dietary restrictions - sailed last year in February just before the industry shutdown with my brother-in-law from Korea who is vegetarian, and they worked pretty hard to find a combination of things he was happy eating.  They would bring something - ask how it was and what he liked best, and the next night he would get something similar.

[BlerkOne]

On 7/20/2021 at 9:54 AM, zzdoug said:

I am basically ok with the menus and usually find something I like.  That said, I wish Carnival would also give each ship's chef a little more latitude to be creative and offer one or two specials unique to that kitchen, based on what is seasonally available, in addition to the standard menu of American and Americanized European food.  I would love to see a couple more recipes from the home countries of various people working in the kitchen, many of whom may be from East Africa, Southeast Asia, various regions of India, Eastern Europe, Latin America etc, each of which has its own rich food culture.  I know there is one Indian vegetarian option but it seems to be the same thing every day on every ship.

Cruise ship food is institutional food, prepared in large quantities and pre--plated. Economies of scale are what makes mass market cruising affordable.

[Joe817]

23 minutes ago, stellarose said:

seafood tower?????

Where have you been, stella? It was the talk of the forum this past week. Someone even posted a pic of it. It's gigantic!  

[BlerkOne]

On 7/20/2021 at 6:23 AM, jimbo5544 said:

Be interested in your thoughts on any changes from your cruise.

I thought there was a good selection of choices, well prepared. If anything, some dishes seemed to have a smaller serving size than before, yet still satisfying. There were no limits on how much you could order, but certainly seemed like less food was wasted.

 

You ordered dessert when you ordered your meal, there was not a separate dessert menu.

 

Paper menus are available, but are not offered and slow everything down. It is just more efficient to have them available on your phone, tablet, whatever. 

 

We had assigned late dining, a table for 4 for just 2, and a great waitstaff that we would love to have on a future cruise. My biggest complaint was that I got a little tired of being asked if everything was okay or if they could bring us anything else. Truly a first world problem.

 

Other random thoughts - can't believe some of the absurd complaints I heard, but will leave those for another post.

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

12 hours ago, Joe817 said:

Where have you been, stella? It was the talk of the forum this past week. Someone even posted a pic of it. It's gigantic!  

 

I was just trying to find something on this topic (Seafood Tower) - could you direct me to the pic?  🙂

 

Is it something which is just offered 1 night in the MDR? I'd love to get something like that delivered to our balcony for lunch one day !

 

Tom

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

6 hours ago, Tom-n-Cheryl said:

 

I was just trying to find something on this topic (Seafood Tower) - could you direct me to the pic?  🙂

 

Is it something which is just offered 1 night in the MDR? I'd love to get something like that delivered to our balcony for lunch one day !

 

Tom

 

So, I found a link to the some of the recent menus - and I now realize that the Seafood Tower is under the STEAKHOUSE SELECTIONS.

 

Can I assume that means that the Seafood Tower is now on the Steakhouse menu nightly? If so, can anyone comment as to the upcharge in the Steakhouse for that?

 

Tom

[mondello]

5 minutes ago, Tom-n-Cheryl said:

 

So, I found a link to the some of the recent menus - and I now realize that the Seafood Tower is under the STEAKHOUSE SELECTIONS.

 

Can I assume that means that the Seafood Tower is now on the Steakhouse menu nightly? If so, can anyone comment as to the upcharge in the Steakhouse for that?

 

Tom

I haven't been able to find the picture either and I love me some food porn. The seafood tower at $60 for two guests (recommended) is only a $30pp value so, $38 Steakhouse tab would be a losing proposition. I don't believe I've seen it on the Steakhouse menu. It may just be lumped in with the "Steakhouse Selections" part of the menu. I had commented on it previously about being a great new item and @BlerkOne said they had it pre-Covid on some ships. Hoping they have it on Valor next July.

[BlerkOne]

11 minutes ago, Tom-n-Cheryl said:

 

So, I found a link to the some of the recent menus - and I now realize that the Seafood Tower is under the STEAKHOUSE SELECTIONS.

 

Can I assume that means that the Seafood Tower is now on the Steakhouse menu nightly? If so, can anyone comment as to the upcharge in the Steakhouse for that?

 

Tom

It isn't a steakhouse item. Best bet might be ask the Seafood Shack.

[Joe817]

Well, I THINK I found a picture of the Seafood Tower. In fact, our own Blerk One posted a pic on the Carnival UK forum back in Sept. 2019:

 

[kitten816]

23 minutes ago, mondello said:

I haven't been able to find the picture either and I love me some food porn. The seafood tower at $60 for two guests (recommended) is only a $30pp value so, $38 Steakhouse tab would be a losing proposition. I don't believe I've seen it on the Steakhouse menu. It may just be lumped in with the "Steakhouse Selections" part of the menu. I had commented on it previously about being a great new item and @BlerkOne said they had it pre-Covid on some ships. Hoping they have it on Valor next July.

From the menu that JH posted, it was grouped in the MDR menu under steakhouse selection. Right, now we just need to figure out which ship has the option!

[KmomChicago]

1 hour ago, Joe817 said:

Well, I THINK I found a picture of the Seafood Tower. In fact, our own Blerk One posted a pic on the Carnival UK forum back in Sept. 2019:

 

 Decadent and pretty to be sure. The photo looks like something out of a 1960's cookbook. Very retro.

[Aplmac]

22 hours ago, jlseymour3 said:

Carnival does bend over backwards to meet the needs

of people with dietary restrictions - sailed last year in February just before the industry shutdown with my brother-in-law from Korea who is vegetarian,

and they worked pretty hard

to find a combination of things he was happy eating. 

They would bring something - ask how it was and what he liked best,

and the next night he would get something similar.

 

I think some 'ethnic' chefs in the galley below (S-East Asian guys)
will sometimes take this as a friendly challenge

- and cook some serious Home Food for the guest!

 

[jlseymour3]

47 minutes ago, Aplmac said:

 

I think some 'ethnic' chefs in the galley below (S-East Asian guys)
will sometimes take this as a friendly challenge

- and cook some serious Home Food for the guest!

 

Could be - they even tried to produce Kimchee.  It wasn't too bad, but didn't have the rich flavor or pungency generated by fermentation.😃  Of course, they didn't have time for that, and the rest of the guests probably wouldn't have appreciated it.

[relmondcrsise]

On 7/21/2021 at 6:24 PM, jlseymour3 said:

But it looks like a more limited selection each night.

 

Yes, just two to choose from.  

[BlerkOne]

The world is still in the middle of a pandemic and there are supply chain issues both on land and at sea. You still won't go hungry.

 

Pig and Anchor ran out of pulled pork early on our cruise. Oh the horror.

 

[sanmarcosman]

21 hours ago, Aplmac said:

 

(S-East Asian guys)

 

 

The majority of the cooks and the chefs who manage them on Carnival ships are from South Asia and not Southeast Asia. This is the reason that some foods from India are on the MDR menu at times. Also, there is a special Indian meal that can be ordered one night in advance through the maitre d' and served in the MDR.

[Babyblue]

We had a meal in the Italian restaurant that was amazing. Extra charge but worth every penny. I cant remember the name but it was so good. It has crab . Think it was called a crab feast. (not the seafood tower). Cant fin I have a picture but its on my phone and wont load to my computer. I think it may be in my  cloud. let me see if I can get it Cant find the picture

I hope Its on the breeze when I go August 21st .

[mondello]

18 minutes ago, Babyblue said:

We had a meal in the Italian restaurant that was amazing. Extra charge but worth every penny. I cant remember the name but it was so good. It has crab . Think it was called a crab feast. (not the seafood tower). Cant fin I have a picture but its on my phone and wont load to my computer. I think it may be in my  cloud. let me see if I can get it Cant find the picture

I hope Its on the breeze when I go August 21st .

Sounds like you had the Captain's Special. It can vary between ships.

[IntrepidFromDC]

On 7/22/2021 at 5:34 PM, Tom-n-Cheryl said:

 

So, I found a link to the some of the recent menus - and I now realize that the Seafood Tower is under the STEAKHOUSE SELECTIONS.

 

Can I assume that means that the Seafood Tower is now on the Steakhouse menu nightly? If so, can anyone comment as to the upcharge in the Steakhouse for that?

 

Tom

Carnival Adds $60 Appetizer To Main Dining Room Menu (cruiseradio.net)

[mondello]

8 minutes ago, IntrepidFromDC said:

Carnival Adds $60 Appetizer To Main Dining Room Menu (cruiseradio.net)

I've seen that picture but this article confirms that the ships with the Seafood Shack should have the seafood tower on the MDR menu. This is great news for me as our next cruise is B2B on Valor. Don't see Mardi Gras listed for Tom.

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

20 minutes ago, mondello said:

I've seen that picture but this article confirms that the ships with the Seafood Shack should have the seafood tower on the MDR menu. This is great news for me as our next cruise is B2B on Valor. Don't see Mardi Gras listed for Tom.

 

Perhaps because the Mardi Gras isn't officially "live" yet (I've seen it omitted from some other listings as well). But, there is a Seafood Shack on the Mardi Gras, so that gives me hope. (edit - just noticed, that article was from 2018!!)

 

We'll be giving this a try (hopefully not in the MDR).

 

Tom

[mondello]

1 minute ago, Tom-n-Cheryl said:

 

Perhaps because the Mardi Gras isn't officially "live" yet (I've seen it omitted from some other listings as well). But, there is a Seafood Shack on the Mardi Gras, so that gives me hope.

 

We'll be giving this a try (hopefully not in the MDR).

 

Tom

I was wondering why it wasn't listed. Couldn't see an Excel class ship without a dining venue already available on older ships.

I know you dine in the Steakhouse most nights but it may not be available there. They may run down and get you one since you are the Presidents Suite holder.

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

28 minutes ago, mondello said:

I was wondering why it wasn't listed. Couldn't see an Excel class ship without a dining venue already available on older ships.

I know you dine in the Steakhouse most nights but it may not be available there. They may run down and get you one since you are the Presidents Suite holder.

 

Hopefully we can arrange something through the Seafood Shack for a midday snack.

 

I don't think our cabin will make a difference (well, I don't think it does on Carnival).

 

No matter - we won't go hungry on this ship! 🙂

 

Tom

[KmomChicago]

Tom doesn't know this but I plan to follow him around the ship and any time anyone tries to disrespect him, no matter how insignificant, I plan to holler, HEY!!! KNOCK IT OFF!!! THIS HERE IS TOMMMMMMMMMMM!  OF TOM AND CHERYL AND OF THE PRESIDENTIAL SUITE!!! SO WATCH IT!

 

I'm sure that will get him his seafood.

Edited July 24, 2021 by KmomChicago