Review of Mariner

[Bstein493]

We just got off the Mariner of the Seas this morning.  Cocoa Cay was wonderful, all the staff on the ship was caring and attentive.  Entertainment was good and Brian, the cruise director, was engaging and entertaining.  It was evident that he really enjoys his job!  However, the food is another thing altogether.  The food in the Main Dining Room leaves much to be desired.  Some dishes were at best mediocre, but the standards have definitely declined.  Don't know if the cutbacks are post covid or just lack of quality chefs in the kitchen.  The specialty restaurant, Jamies was wonderful.   After reading other reviews I hope Royal Caribbean takes to heart what guests have to say about the food.

[Cruiser_1977]

I hope you let Royal know directly as who knows if they monitor Cruise Critic....

[Bstein493]

We will once we get our surveys

[PhillyFan33579]

I realize food is very subjective, but on the dozen RCI cruises I have been on over the last year the food in the MDR has been good to very good. Just because you didn’t personally like the food doesn’t mean food has gone down as a whole.  

[SplashOfWater]

We just got off Mariner too. We found the MDR meals to be a mixed bag. Some dishes were very good and others were mediocre. For instance, on the first night (Welcome Aboard menu), my husband had the prime rib and it was tender and perfectly cooked. I had the fish filet (mystery white fish) and it was nothing special.

 

The length of the MDR service seemed slower than our previous cruises in the fall. I don't think it was an issue with our wait staff. Traditional dining was 5:30pm. It seemed like they started to seat My Time Dining at 6pm (at the available empty tables). The wait staff had to go back to the kitchen and get more appetizers and main courses. It really slowed the dessert service for Traditional dining.

[gizmoe]

On 2/3/2023 at 12:47 PM, PhillyFan33579 said:

I realize food is very subjective, but on the dozen RCI cruises I have been on over the last year the food in the MDR has been good to very good. Just because you didn’t personally like the food doesn’t mean food has gone down as a whole.  

Excellent comment and so true.The variety and quality are very good,

 

 

[rolloman]

15 minutes ago, gizmoe said:

Excellent comment and so true.The variety and quality are very good,

 

 

Really? Anyone who has been cruising for any length of time will tell you the service and quality and quantity of food in the MDR has gone downhill drastically. It all started with the invention of Specialty dining. IMO it will continue to decline until it (MDR) is completely removed as an option. As for food being subjective... as an example, I am sure if one eats bologna sandwiches as their main staple of food each and every day, coming onboard eating and dining in the MDR would be an incredible experience. 

[smokeybandit]

1 hour ago, rolloman said:

Anyone who has been cruising for any length of time will tell you the service and quality and quantity of food in the MDR has gone downhill drastically

 

Yes, they want to remove dining that can accommodate the entire ship and force you to eat in restaurants that can accommodate about 1/5th of the ship. Makes total sense.

[orville99]

On 2/3/2023 at 12:47 PM, PhillyFan33579 said:

I realize food is very subjective, but on the dozen RCI cruises I have been on over the last year the food in the MDR has been good to very good. Just because you didn’t personally like the food doesn’t mean food has gone down as a whole.  

Food experiences prior to January when the new menus/cuts were introduced fleet wide are going to be substantially more positive than those post January. 

[orville99]

1 hour ago, gizmoe said:

Excellent comment and so true. The variety and quality are very good,

 

 

Have you cruised RCL since January? if not, than your opinions are irrelevant.

[smokeybandit]

22 minutes ago, orville99 said:

Have you cruised RCL since January? if not, than your opinions are irrelevant.

I've cruised with the new menus. There was no difference in quality between the new and old menus.

[PhillyFan33579]

50 minutes ago, orville99 said:

Food experiences prior to January when the new menus/cuts were introduced fleet wide are going to be substantially more positive than those post January. 

I have been on 6 cruises since January (Wonder 3 times, Grandeur, Odyssey and Freedom) and if anything the food has improved with the new menus. My only complaint is escargots are no longer available every night. 

[PhillyFan33579]

52 minutes ago, orville99 said:

Have you cruised RCL since January? if not, than your opinions are irrelevant.

 

People who don’t know the current name of the cruise line (it’s RCI not RCL) are probably not the best source for information. 

[orville99]

10 minutes ago, PhillyFan33579 said:

 

People who don’t know the current name of the cruise line (it’s RCI not RCL) are probably not the best source for information. 

Have cruised Wonder twice and Serenade once since January, and compared to November and December on those same ships, food quality has fallen off a cliff

 

BTW Bought RCL at $5 way back when, sold it at $100 so really don't care about stock mnemonics as long as it made me money🤑

Edited April 2, 2023 by orville99

[PhillyFan33579]

7 minutes ago, orville99 said:

Have cruised Wonder twice and Serenade once since January, and compared to November and December on those same ships, food quality has fallen off a cliff

 

BTW Bought RCL at $5 way back when, sold it at $100 so really don't care about stock mnemonics as long as it made me money🤑

I was on Wonder in December and did not notice any quality difference in the MDR the three times I have cruised on her this year. I will say the food in Mason Jar is marginal at best. I have no plans to eat there again. I can’t speak about Serenade since I have not sailed on her post COVID. 

[rolloman]

2 hours ago, smokeybandit said:

 

Yes, they want to remove dining that can accommodate the entire ship and force you to eat in restaurants that can accommodate about 1/5th of the ship. Makes total sense.

Pfffft...NCL is basically doing it...there is no real main dining room on their ships. Nice try to spin what I said.  In reality all the cruise lines have to do now is flip the switch and make every dining area (other than the buffet) charge an extra fee...

[smokeybandit]

3 minutes ago, rolloman said:

Pfffft...NCL is basically doing it...there is no real main dining room on their ships. Nice try to spin what I said.  In reality all the cruise lines have to do now is flip the switch and make every dining area (other than the buffet) charge an extra fee...

 

And NCL seemingly screws up with every decision they make and are still struggling to fill ships.

Meanwhile RC is packed to the gills.

[orville99]

1 minute ago, smokeybandit said:

Meanwhile RC is packed to the gills.

I think that is the part of the "white" fish they are now serving - packed gills😱

[rolloman]

3 hours ago, smokeybandit said:

 

And NCL seemingly screws up with every decision they make and are still struggling to fill ships.

Meanwhile RC is packed to the gills.

Not sure why you are going out of your way to be snotty. I am not an NCL fan... their history is to start trends...some of them have worked (drink package) some have not. Whether you like it or not, the future scenario I provided (elimination of MDR as we know it) is coming to life. You want that extra dish or another lobster...you now pay for it. You want room service... you pay for it.  Just like we were groomed for specialty restaurants, we are now being groomed for "self-serve buffet... or you are going to have to pay". 

[PhillyFan33579]

3 hours ago, smokeybandit said:

 

And NCL seemingly screws up with every decision they make and are still struggling to fill ships.

Meanwhile RC is packed to the gills.

I have never sailed on NCL, but I know several people who prefer NCL and cruise on them frequently. All of them canceled and/or booked cruises on other lines when NCL reverted back to the old muster briefing. Granted this is a very small sample, but my guess is a lot of other people did this too. 

[fair-winds39]

20 minutes ago, rolloman said:

Not sure why you are going out of your way to be snotty. I am not an NCL fan... their history is to start trends...some of them have worked (drink package) some have not. Whether you like it or not, the future scenario I provided (elimination of MDR as we know it) is coming to life. You want that extra dish or another lobster...you now pay for it. You want room service... you pay for it.  Just like we were groomed for specialty restaurants, we are now being groomed for "self-serve buffet... or you are going to have to pay". 

Just off Anthem and we found MDR to be okay. All our meals were good, but I agree; sooner, rather than later specialty dining or buffet will be implemented for most cruise lines. Cruise dining has definitely changed over the years. Those days of traditional MDR early/late dining will be obsolete.