Queens Grill - Ordering Off-menu

[WestonOne]

I have heard that it is possible to order off-menu in the Queens Grill, assuming the ingredients are on board and you are happy to give reasonable notice.

My brother-in-law is a high-calibre chef and I am tempted to ask for some dishes from his books.  However, they are breakfast dishes, not evening meal.  Has anyone here ever ordered off-menu, and in particular for breakfast?

[Victoria2]

1 hour ago, WestonOne said:

I have heard that it is possible to order off-menu in the Queens Grill, assuming the ingredients are on board and you are happy to give reasonable notice.

My brother-in-law is a high-calibre chef and I am tempted to ask for some dishes from his books.  However, they are breakfast dishes, not evening meal.  Has anyone here ever ordered off-menu, and in particular for breakfast?

Yes to often ordering off menu lunch and dinner but and no to breakfast off ordering experience apart from varying what's on offer but would imagine it's perfectly OK as long as you give notice and of course, the chef knows how to prepare whatever it is you request. Take a copy of your b-in-l's recipes, just in case.

[BigMac1953]

I'm curious to know what what special dishes you are interested in ordering.

[WestonOne]

21 minutes ago, BigMac1953 said:

I'm curious to know what what special dishes you are interested in ordering.

One which caught my eye is from "Hering's Dictionary of Classical and Modern Cookery", which is called Eierrosti, which is a Swiss recipe rather like a rosti, but bread based rather than potato (it is listed under the scrambed eggs heading.)

  I am also considering shirred eggs, for which there are perhaps 50 variants listed, for no better reason than they were on the 1st class breakfast menu of the "Titanic" on 14 April.  But as I have made those myself, I am perhaps more inclined to something else.

As for bringing the recipe, my Brother in Law tells me had several set books during training, one of which was Escoffier's "Le Guide Culinaire". The examiner would pick three recipes from it  by name and you had to prepare them from memory without referring to the book ...

Edited April 4, 2022 by WestonOne
typo

[Victoria2]

7 minutes ago, WestonOne said:

One which caught my eye is from "Hering's Dictionary of Classical and Modern Cookery", which is called Eierrosti, which is a Swiss recipe rather like a rosti, but bread based rather than potato (it is listed under the scrambed eggs heading.)

  I am also considering shirred eggs, for which there are perhaps 50 variants listed, for no better reason than they were on the 1st class breakfast menu of the "Titanic" on 14 April.  But as I have made those myself, I am perhaps more inclined to something else.

As for bringing the recipe, my Brother in Law tells me had several set books during training, one of which was Escoffier's "Le Guide Culinaire". The examiner would pick three recipes from it  by name and you had to prepare them from memory without referring to the book ...

I can do a mean shirred [basic] egg so no problem there. I thought you were going to come out with something like  Char Sui Bao and even more exotic.

I've had Frittata and if course, hash browns so a Rosti should be OK and if it's bread based, bring a basic recipe just in case.

[wolfie789]

My advice would be that asking politely will do no harm at all. Like others, our off-menu requests have always been at lunch and dinner (by off-menu I mean something entirely different to what is offered, rather than tweaks to it) but that surely doesn't rule out breakfast. Part of the fun of QG is off-menu ordering so within reason one shouldn't feel bad about making use of the facility.

[WestonOne]

1 minute ago, Victoria2 said:

I can do a mean shirred [basic] egg so no problem there. I thought you were going to come out with something like  Char Sui Bao and even more exotic.

I've had Frittata and if course, hash browns so a Rosti should be OK and if it's bread based, bring a basic recipe just in case.

No, I didn't want to put too much stress on them making it!  Also, I didn't want something that would take a long time to prepare because that would tie me to a specific breakfast time.  So I just had something in mind that I have never bothered to make for myself, but is a little different to the traditional breakfast. 

Having looked it up, Hering's has 46 recipes for shirred eggs, which to me look mainly like 'with ingredient X added'.  I usually make 'Tosca', which is a sour cream base, eggs, milk and parmesan, but if I do ask them for shirred eggs, I would go for something like Josephine, which is a mushroom puree base, eggs and cheese sauce coloured with tomato puree.  Nothing complicated, just a bit out of the ordinary.

[BigMac1953]

My cornflakes and a slice of toast pales into insignificance.

 

 

[Colin_Cameron]

1 hour ago, WestonOne said:

 I am also considering shirred eggs, ...

That’s the one thing I have requested (at breakfast). Not every morning, but maybe a couple of times a cruise. It used to be on the menu, but not for a number of years now.

[Victoria2]

21 minutes ago, BigMac1953 said:

My cornflakes and a slice of toast pales into insignificance.

 

 

My occasional must haves apart from daily blue/raspberries are hard brittle American bacon and occasional black pudding. Not with cornflakes, obvs but add a  slice of cold toast and unsalted butter...yum yum!  😀

[MarkBearSF]

Shirred eggs should be no problem (you may want to request the day before).
They were a regular QG item on the QE2 years ago, and should be known to well-trained chefs. (and don't have items which might be unavailable)

[majortom10]

There was always enough to please us on the menu for dinner without the need for ordering off menu. To be honest I wouldnt know what to ask for.

[WestonOne]

Maybe a word of explanation why I am asking.  I am in a Queens Grill in August, then in October I have a 14 day round trip Transatlantic in Britannia class, where I will be restricted to the 'conventional' breakfast offerings for around two weeks.  So I thought it worth trying to get the variations with Queen's grill breakfasts while I can.  I know they have a wider choice anyway, but why not explore a little further.

[BklynBoy8]

1 hour ago, MarkBearSF said:

Shirred eggs should be no problem

 

Shirred Eggs is a common item in our home for Breakfast.... Enjoyable and Different

[BklynBoy8]

We remember how we enjoyed the Smoke Salmon Platter in Princess Grill on the QE2.

 

The rolling table was always near our table and so hard to resist. Also the table with all the Jellies, Jam, Preserves was in eye shot. 

[rafinmd]

47 minutes ago, BklynBoy8 said:

We remember how we enjoyed the Smoke Salmon Platter in Princess Grill on the QE2.

 

The rolling table was always near our table and so hard to resist. Also the table with all the Jellies, Jam, Preserves was in eye shot. 

Is off menu ordering permitted in Princess Grill as well?

 

Roy

[Lakesregion]

2 hours ago, WestonOne said:

Maybe a word of explanation why I am asking.  I am in a Queens Grill in August, then in October I have a 14 day round trip Transatlantic in Britannia class, where I will be restricted to the 'conventional' breakfast offerings for around two weeks.  So I thought it worth trying to get the variations with Queen's grill breakfasts while I can.  I know they have a wider choice anyway, but why not explore a little further.

One can obtain a number of interesting off menu items in Britannia by asking your regular waiter. We have had floating Island as a dessert on evening and can get gorgonzola cheese omelets in the morning. Almost had lignin berry pancakes one am when they had them in QG but the waiter got caught out on it.

[BklynBoy8]

2 hours ago, rafinmd said:

Is off menu ordering permitted in Princess Grill as well?

Roy

 

IMHO......We have never been turn down while we have been in Club Britannia over the years from asking for a off the menu request. We truly are getting a Pre Grill Experience and treat.

 

I think is the way you approach the staff and your interaction especially on a longer sailing that is developed. 

 

It's only an item stored in the Refrig that has to be pulled out and placed.

Edited April 4, 2022 by BklynBoy8

[MarkBearSF]

3 hours ago, WestonOne said:

Maybe a word of explanation why I am asking.  I am in a Queens Grill in August, then in October I have a 14 day round trip Transatlantic in Britannia class, where I will be restricted to the 'conventional' breakfast offerings for around two weeks.  So I thought it worth trying to get the variations with Queen's grill breakfasts while I can.  I know they have a wider choice anyway, but why not explore a little further.

I honestly cannot recall a difference in the QG breakfast menu from Britannia. 

No complaints - it is a nice, extensive menu in any case. 

I'm also thinking about lunch and there may not be a difference there either. (Lunch is a bit more difficult to answer because it varies day-to-day, unlike breakfast.)

Of course the execution and service is impeccable in QG.

[ClipperinSFO]

30 minutes ago, MarkBearSF said:

I honestly cannot recall a difference in the QG breakfast menu from Britannia. 
 

There isn't one!  I think they do one breakfast across the whole ship with no differentiation by dining room.   

 

You have all inspired me for my next QG crossing in May.  I find the breakfast menu in QG and PG really underwhelming in terms of creativity.  That said, I consume plenty of calories during the day, so not looking for more, but still.

 

I may request some of my favorite breakfast dishes next trip  - like pasta with eggs, a frittata or the shorted eggs mentioned above .  Happy to make it to brekkie at a specific time for a dish ordered in advance.

 

 

[Se1lad]

5 hours ago, ClipperinSFO said:

There isn't one!  I think they do one breakfast across the whole ship with no differentiation by dining room.   

 

You have all inspired me for my next QG crossing in May.  I find the breakfast menu in QG and PG really underwhelming in terms of creativity.  That said, I consume plenty of calories during the day, so not looking for more, but still.

 

I may request some of my favorite breakfast dishes next trip  - like pasta with eggs, a frittata or the shorted eggs mentioned above .  Happy to make it to brekkie at a specific time for a dish ordered in advance.

 

 

There are a few differences in the breakfast choices - example menus here:

https://www.cunard.com/content/dam/cunard/marketing-assets/pdf/life-on-board/example-menus/britannia-breakfast.pdf

 

 

https://www.cunard.com/content/dam/cunard/marketing-assets/pdf/life-on-board/example-menus/queens-grill-breakfast.pdf

[WestonOne]

6 hours ago, ClipperinSFO said:

There isn't one!  I think they do one breakfast across the whole ship with no differentiation by dining room.

 

 

All I can go on is the menus on the Cunard website.  I went to the bother of highlighting the differences, though whether these apply in practice is another matter!

queens-grill-breakfast.pdf

[MarkBearSF]

1 hour ago, WestonOne said:

All I can go on is the menus on the Cunard website.  I went to the bother of highlighting the differences, though whether these apply in practice is another matter!

queens-grill-breakfast.pdf 154.23 kB · 5 downloads

Thank you. 
For some reason, I don't recall most of the highlighted items being on the menu on our trip in December 2019 (although I'm sure they were) ...and I seem to recall waffles and french toast being on the Britannia menu. But I appreciate being corrected. 

Edited April 5, 2022 by MarkBearSF

[BrisbaneR]

I haven't ordered breakfast off menu but I wanted to share an evening experience in QG a few years ago.  Knowing that we could order off menu, our table decided to set the chefs the challenge of making Peking Duck for the whole table. Of course, our Maitre D said,  just give us 24 hours notice.  And they came through,  producing a very creditable rendition, with the duck, pancakes and condiments.

 

I'm wondering what challenges are left? Is there anything they couldn't do? Anyone got a dish in mind?

 

 

 

 

[Se1lad]

47 minutes ago, MarkBearSF said:

Thank you. 
For some reason, I don't recall most of the highlighted items being on the menu on our trip in December 2019 (although I'm sure they were) ...and I seem to recall waffles and french toast being on the Britannia menu. But I appreciate being corrected. 

When I did a TA in 2018, waffles were on the Britannia Club menu but not the Britannia.

 

Also - only a minor but welcome point, the OJ in QG is freshly squeezed!