Extra charge in Pinnacle for 2nd appetizer - Eurodam starts 10-30-22

[Crew News]

17 minutes ago, canadarocks said:

Wasn't Crab Bisque always on Rudi's Sel du Mer menu?

I don't remember.  French onion soup was added July 2021.

[CruisinNana]

As a 3 star Mariner, will my 25% discount be honored for add ons such as lobster or additional apps?  My dinner is included with HIA if that matters. 
 

Also, if you order room service from the main dining  room and order 3 entrees for 2 people, are you charged extra?

Edited October 31, 2022 by CruisinNana
Left out word

[Sea42]

11 hours ago, albingirl said:

Honestly, ridiculous to even complain with your free cruise. What is up with all these free cruises. You would like Hal to see this is a mistake on their part? 

Not sure why you think I was complaining, I was just trying to point out that maybe HAL knows that the free cruises generate revenue that wouldn't exists otherwise.

[DaveOKC]

16 hours ago, SilvertoGold said:

HAL appetizers are usually quite small: I am thinking of the 2 tiny crab cakes, the 3 medium prawns, the 3 pieces of bacon.  

 

However, in talking to the Manager of the Pinnacle on our Noordam cruises we learned that on 7 day cruises a large percentage of the pax dining there are on freebies, mostly Have-it-all and 5 stars, with some TA gifts of a complimentary dinner.  I guess the profit doesn't add up to much each night, so limiting the number of appetizers limits the loss.

I sort of figured that by giving away all these somewhat free meals in the Pinnacle would be an issue at some point.  Now we see extra charges for extra apps, adding a service charge to each non-free meal, AND HAL increasing the price.  Remember, nothing ends up being free!

[DaveOKC]

Dropping the petite filet is a mistake IMO - I always order it as the larger one is too much for me and I hate to just waste the food.

[iflyrc5]

OK - as a 5 star we can get 2 free meals in the Pinnacle - do we get charged the extra if I want a salad and a jumbo shrimp cocktail?  I guess I will find out next week.

[BetsyS.]

12 hours ago, iflyrc5 said:

I hope we get some more posts from guests currently sailing to see what the policy is on all the different ships.  We are boarding the NA on Nov 6 and will be dining in the Pinnacle and Tamarind with our 5 star "free" meals so will come back after we dine and let you all know what is happening.

Thank you. Bon Voyage!

[BetsyS.]

54 minutes ago, DaveOKC said:

Dropping the petite filet is a mistake IMO - I always order it as the larger one is too much for me and I hate to just waste the food.

I agree. I always order the petit filet. Like you said, the larger one is too much for me and I hate to waste the food.

[BetsyS.]

11 hours ago, oakridger said:

I boarded Rotterdam today. No extra charge for additional appetizers in Pinnacle Grill listed on the menu.   What is Rudy’s doing?  You can get French onion soup every day at the MDR??!!

Bon Voyage!

[SilvertoGold]

As of two weeks ago the KODM had the petit fillet.  It was actually smaller than usual  and unfortunately overcooked.  I don't take a scale with me :) so never can tell exactly the size, but this one was tiny!

[DaveOKC]

1 minute ago, SilvertoGold said:

As of two weeks ago the KODM had the petit fillet.  It was actually smaller than usual  and unfortunately overcooked.  I don't take a scale with me 🙂 so never can tell exactly the size, but this one was tiny!

Changes begin Nov 1

[zelker]

1 hour ago, iflyrc5 said:

OK - as a 5 star we can get 2 free meals in the Pinnacle - do we get charged the extra if I want a salad and a jumbo shrimp cocktail?  I guess I will find out next week.

We're also 5* and wondered about this and/or will they give us our 50% discount on additional menu items?  We don't sail until December 20th so hope you'll post back here.  Enjoy your cruise!  Thx.

[zelker]

13 hours ago, Crew News said:

Just confirmed that the $7 for extra PG appetizers is now applied on my December cruise PG menu.  

Thanks for posting the two menus.  AND, if I'm reading it correctly, additional appetizers will actually be $8.26 after the 18% service charge is added.  

[friendswithdave]

2 hours ago, DaveOKC said:

Dropping the petite filet is a mistake IMO - I always order it as the larger one is too much for me and I hate to just waste the food.

I expect they will gladly provide the petit filet if you request it. It probably comes with the lobster in that paired dish. 

 

Personally, I get the whole extra charge thing. Cruise lines are desperate to stay afloat. The times, they are a changin'. While cruise fares stay relatively unchanged over the years, cruise lines are making their money in other ways. They must, as inflation is a real thing worldwide. This is just the evolution of the industry. HAL is no different than the other lines in this way. The truth is, you can still have a wonderful experience on a cruise ship without spending a dime more than your initial fare. Those who want more, pay more. Makes sense to me. We all want more stuff for less money. Who wouldn't?

[DaveOKC]

25 minutes ago, zelker said:

We're also 5* and wondered about this and/or will they give us our 50% discount on additional menu items?  We don't sail until December 20th so hope you'll post back here.  Enjoy your cruise!  Thx.

Separate note - we have had issues with getting the free 5 Star meal charged properly and over the past 4 meals on 2 ships we were charged 50%.  Got it fixed of course, but had to hassle to get it corrected.  SO, keep your eyes on you bill.

 

[iceman93]

I have no evidence to support what I'm about to say, but I have faith that the staff on board HAL ships will apply this policy with the proper degree of common sense.  What I mean by that is that if a customer orders two appetizers but no main course, they will not add the surcharge.  I even think they will not add the surcharge for a customer who orders two appetizers plus their main course if they're also ordering cocktails or a nice bottle of wine.

 

I hope I'm right that the idea isn't to start nickel-and-diming, but to cut down on the folks who think "well, I'm paying extra to eat here so might as well get my money's worth" and order basically one of everything, taking a bite or two and wasting the rest.  Seeing a surcharge written on the menu should dissuade that behavior, and as long as HAL is flexible when the situation calls for it, I'm okay with that.

[Wakepatrol]

If you eat in the Pinnacle every night $7 isn’t going to break you.

if it’s a one a trip splurge and the $7 will hurt you, then you have no business taking a cruise

[Tudy]

3 hours ago, DaveOKC said:

Dropping the petite filet is a mistake IMO - I always order it as the larger one is too much for me and I hate to just waste the food.

My guess is that the regular filet is now petite. They didn't really want to call the petite filet the "filet bite" so they left if off the menu. 🙂

 

[VMax1700]

44 minutes ago, iceman93 said:

What I mean by that is that if a customer orders two appetizers but no main course, they will not add the surcharge.

I agree with you on that one, but

 

45 minutes ago, iceman93 said:

I even think they will not add the surcharge for a customer who orders two appetizers plus their main course if they're also ordering cocktails or a nice bottle of wine.

I don't believe that cocktails and wine will make any difference.

 

But, what if I order two appetizers and no dessert?  Will I still get charged for the additional appetizer or will I get credit for no dessert?

(It really doesn't matter to me as I find the appetizers and desserts somewhere between average and mediocre.)

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

15 hours ago, iflyrc5 said:

I hope we get some more posts from guests currently sailing to see what the policy is on all the different ships.  We are boarding the NA on Nov 6 and will be dining in the Pinnacle and Tamarind with our 5 star "free" meals so will come back after we dine and let you all know what is happening.

All the ship's will do the same.

[wdw1972]

37 minutes ago, Tudy said:

My guess is that the regular filet is now petite. They didn't really want to call the petite filet the "filet bite" so they left if off the menu. 🙂

 

LOL - but not true 😉  The petite filet was 6 ounces, which is still a bigger portion than most people need to eat.  The regular was 8 ounces.  On the new menu there's only one choice - an 8-ounce filet mignon.  

 

My husband's coming on my next cruise we can make it work by him ordering something seafood and then getting at least half my filet to make it a DIY surf & turf.  On future cruises when I'm solo I'll be wasting a lot of beef unless HAL can still provide the smaller one by request.  I also hate wasting food - and hope to get a smaller filet.

 

Sue/WDW1972

[DaveOKC]

28 minutes ago, wdw1972 said:

LOL - but not true 😉  The petite filet was 6 ounces, which is still a bigger portion than most people need to eat.  The regular was 8 ounces.  On the new menu there's only one choice - an 8-ounce filet mignon.  

 

My husband's coming on my next cruise we can make it work by him ordering something seafood and then getting at least half my filet to make it a DIY surf & turf.  On future cruises when I'm solo I'll be wasting a lot of beef unless HAL can still provide the smaller one by request.  I also hate wasting food - and hope to get a smaller filet.

 

Sue/WDW1972

I thought it was 6 and 10 ounces last week.

 

[Florida_gal_50]

11 minutes ago, DaveOKC said:

I thought it was 6 and 10 ounces last week.

 

Actually it’s 7 and 10.  I tried to do a screenshot but my iPod is not cooperating.  I still am showing the old menu on the navigator. 

[pnkandpurple]

Maybe it would be fair if charging extra for more than one appetizer, if you are getting a comped

specialty dining. Not if you're paying your own.

[DaveOKC]

53 minutes ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

Actually it’s 7 and 10.  I tried to do a screenshot but my iPod is not cooperating.  I still am showing the old menu on the navigator. 

Thanks - so I am happy to upgrade from 7 to 8 oz.