New Menu, as of May 2022

[kwokpot]

2 minutes ago, cruisemom2 said:

 

I guess it's a good thing I don't cook anymore.

The point being that obviously a commercial kitchen wouldn't have an issue with pots being too small, so why does Carnival do it?  Because they THINK Americans aren't smart enough to know that that's no longer the accepted way of cooking pasta. They don't do that in any restaurant in the US, not even Olive Garden. It goes to show you what lengths (pun unintended) Carnival will go to appeal to a certain American demographic. There's absolutely no other logical reason for Carnival to do that.

[mz-s]

I don't notice many changes on this menu. I got the fried chicken once and it was about 50/50 bones to meat ratio and way overcooked.

 

The beef tenderloin is quite good, I don't know if it's new or not though.

 

I wish the dining room served baked potatoes more. They used to be served a lot more often than they are now. Not sure why they moved away from them - maybe too much waste. The half potatoes they serve with the prime rib are always overcooked for me.

[BlerkOne]

13 minutes ago, kwokpot said:

The point being that obviously a commercial kitchen wouldn't have an issue with pots being too small, so why does Carnival do it?  Because they THINK Americans aren't smart enough to know that that's no longer the accepted way of cooking pasta. They don't do that in any restaurant in the US, not even Olive Garden. It goes to show you what lengths (pun unintended) Carnival will go to appeal to a certain American demographic. There's absolutely no other logical reason for Carnival to do that.

I don't think the cooks on Carnival eat much spaghetti. The only reason for not breaking spaghetti is so you can twirl it around a fork. But as with wine, whatever floats your boat is the proper way for you.

[BlerkOne]

19 minutes ago, kwokpot said:

The point being that obviously a commercial kitchen wouldn't have an issue with pots being too small, so why does Carnival do it?  Because they THINK Americans aren't smart enough to know that that's no longer the accepted way of cooking pasta. They don't do that in any restaurant in the US, not even Olive Garden. It goes to show you what lengths (pun unintended) Carnival will go to appeal to a certain American demographic. There's absolutely no other logical reason for Carnival to do that.

I would think Cucina cooks spaghetti the "proper" way. Maybe not.

Edited August 8, 2022 by BlerkOne

[Jamman54]

1 hour ago, kwokpot said:

And pasta should NEVER, EVER be cut/broken! Why does Carnival continue to do that? Yes, that used to be the way Americans cooked spaghetti, bu that was 50 years ago.

Hey! I resemble that remark! Still break my pasta in half and it's still long enough to twirl on my fork. Please don't think badly of me and report me to the pasta police! 😁

[wemjam]

51 minutes ago, mz-s said:

I don't notice many changes on this menu. I got the fried chicken once and it was about 50/50 bones to meat ratio and way overcooked.

 

The beef tenderloin is quite good, I don't know if it's new or not though.

 

I wish the dining room served baked potatoes more. They used to be served a lot more often than they are now. Not sure why they moved away from them - maybe too much waste. The half potatoes they serve with the prime rib are always overcooked for me.

Ask for the baked potato.  My husband gets it every meal and simply asks.  They are always able to provide it.

[BlerkOne]

1 minute ago, Jamman54 said:

Hey! I resemble that remark! Still break my pasta in half and it's still long enough to twirl on my fork. Please don't think badly of me and report me to the pasta police! 😁

I remember thinking I was going to be thrown in jail for cutting my spaghetti in Italy one time. Sheesh.

[mz-s]

1 minute ago, wemjam said:

Ask for the baked potato.  My husband gets it every meal and simply asks.  They are always able to provide it.

 

I will! Thank you! So simple and I did not even think! 🙂

 

I don't want a baked potato every night but I do like them.

[Jamman54]

2 minutes ago, BlerkOne said:

I remember thinking I was going to be thrown in jail for cutting my spaghetti in Italy one time. Sheesh.

You actually cut your spaghetti? Oh, the horror! 😁

[mz-s]

3 minutes ago, Jamman54 said:

You actually cut your spaghetti? Oh, the horror! 😁

 

I don't even chew mine! Just slide it down my throat like a snake! That way I can appreciate the entire strand of pasta.

[bambam]

WOW… how’d we get off track with spaghetti…. I was hoping folks would chime in with the good/bad/ugly dishes.  We’re going on the Sunshine next month. TIA…

[Tradestock]

To this day, I break my pasta (and cookies too) because I think some of the calories will fall out.😜

[kwokpot]

10 minutes ago, Jamman54 said:

Hey! I resemble that remark! Still break my pasta in half and it's still long enough to twirl on my fork. Please don't think badly of me and report me to the pasta police! 😁

You can redeem yourself. Fettuccine Alfredo or Fettuccine Carbonara? Choose carefully!😜

[jemrtt]

3 hours ago, bambam said:

This is a link to the fleetwide menu, including sea day brunch. Enjoy!!

Thank you so much posting this! 

[kwokpot]

11 minutes ago, bambam said:

WOW… how’d we get off track with spaghetti…. I was hoping folks would chime in with the good/bad/ugly dishes.  We’re going on the Sunshine next month. TIA…

Although the menus are fleetwide what really makes the difference is how each ship's kitchen actually prepares the same dishes varies wildly. In April I was on a B2B on the Mardi Gras and in May-June 31 days consecutive on the Pride. Mardi Gras's restaurants was quite consist in how they prepared the food and it was fresh and tasty. Contrast that with my time on the Pride and the same dishes were the food just wasn't cooked well. For example I had both the Egg White Frittata and regular Frittata multiple times on both ships. Each time on the Mardi Gras is was fresh, fluffy, and light. But on the Pride it was just the opposite, as if the Frittatas were prepared days in advance, refrigerated, and then just warmed up. The frittatas were dense, solid, old tasting.   

 

One of my favorite dinner entrees is the Teriyaki Salmon. They use to serve it with Bok Choy and Jasmine rice. It was tasty and well prepared, a perfect combination of ingredients.  They have now changed it and instead of rice and bok choy it's stir fried noodles. The noodles doesn't complement the Teriyaki Salmon in the least. A ruined dish.

 

Another dinner entrée that can be a disaster is the Lasagna. On the Pride what came out looked more like meat loaf, this huge hunk of ground beef with dried up cheese on top of it. 

[BlerkOne]

36 minutes ago, Jamman54 said:

You actually cut your spaghetti? Oh, the horror! 😁

You'd think I'd committed a war crime. The proprietor was very offended.

[cruisingguy007]

43 minutes ago, Jamman54 said:

Hey! I resemble that remark! Still break my pasta in half and it's still long enough to twirl on my fork. Please don't think badly of me and report me to the pasta police! 😁

 

Same here, it's spaghetti, not exactly a gourmet dish. It just makes a mess and is harder to eat when long. This reminds me of the great hot dog debate, some say only mustard (and extra onions for me) should go on a hot dog and get all bent out of shape when someone puts ketchup, mayo or other condiments. It's a hot dog, who cares? It's spaghetti, who cares? The only sin is not having good garlic bread to serve with it. Oh, and I mix my sauce with my noodles most of the time in one pot as well. 🤯     

[BlerkOne]

Unlike hotdogs, a normal person can't eat a nickles worth of spaghetti (at wholesale prices).

 

[kwokpot]

17 minutes ago, cruisingguy007 said:

 

Same here, it's spaghetti, not exactly a gourmet dish. It just makes a mess and is harder to eat when long. This reminds me of the great hot dog debate, some say only mustard (and extra onions for me) should go on a hot dog and get all bent out of shape when someone puts ketchup, mayo or other condiments. It's a hot dog, who cares? It's spaghetti, who cares? The only sin is not having good garlic bread to serve with it. Oh, and I mix my sauce with my noodles most of the time in one pot as well. 🤯     

In the scheme of things, no it's not a major culinary faux pax, but as the world has become more interconnected thanks to the Internet and now social media, one would like to think as we become more knowledgeable about certain things that we are willing to adapt for a more authentic experience.

 

To tie this back to Carnival and food menus, the number one thing people love about the Mardi Gras is the different types of food that you can find on this ship. Who on earth would have thought a Carnival Ship would serve Shawarma? Steamed Sticky Rice and chicken in Lotus Leaf? These offerings broaden our knowledge and enjoyment of foods from other cultures. So if we have come to learn that the Italians don't traditionally break their Spaghetti when cooking it Carnival can update their cooking procedures for a more authentic experience. 

Edited August 9, 2022 by kwokpot

[RD64]

Breaking / cutting pasta? To an Italian or someone of Italian heritage this is truly barbaric. As for the Carbonara - unless Guanciale is used - it cannot be called Carbonara.

[BlerkOne]

Are we talking about the same Carnival that did away with tablecloths, cocktail forks, and butter knives? Get real 

[Tradestock]

If I remember correctly, Carnival does not provide the large spoon for twirling long pasta noodles.   On a serious note, I thought the shorter cruises of 4-5 days deleted the lobster from the elegant night menu?  Or has this changed, too?

[andrek]

Can someone please tell me what day is day 1. Is it Saturday. We are going on a 5 day trip, leaving on a Monday. What day of the menu cycle will that be. Thank you in advance.

andrek

[Tradestock]

Day 1 is the day you get on the ship at port. In your case, it would be Monday as it is the day of embarkation.

[kwokpot]

23 minutes ago, BlerkOne said:

Are we talking about the same Carnival that did away with tablecloths, cocktail forks, and butter knives? Get real 

Funny story. I was on the Carnival Vista's 11/16/16 sailing, which was an Inaugural season repo from NYC to Miami. At the start of the cruise in the MDR during dinnertime the tableware was consistently not set right. In other words, one seat had a salad fork, another didn't, another did. And it just was our table, every table was setup haphazardly this way. By the third night I asked to speak to the Maitre D' and showed him how the dining room staff wasn't properly setting up the dining tables. Either you set the table with a salad fork or you don't. While the Maitre D' apologised it was never done correctly for the whole cruise. It was apparent the Maitre D' or whomever was in charge of this didn't care enough to set expectations for the staff to follow. 

Edited August 9, 2022 by kwokpot