MDR on Embarkation Day

[JeannyJ]

34 minutes ago, Crew News said:

Nothing beats a platter of nachos to tide you over until dinner. 

 

Tip:  Put some melted cheese on the bottom before adding the chips to keep the layers of goodness from sliding to the floor while walking back to your stateroom. 

This conversation is pure gold! LOL  Who knew I'd be getting pro tips on cruise ship nachos when I asked about lunch at the MDR on embarkation day 😁

[Woofbite]

If only they had heard of tomato salsa for the tacos.  That mango crap may work for Indian chefs, but not great in the eyes of this southwestern U.S. guy.  I started bringing my own on board after two years of pleading without success with various HAL cooks.  But then the taco bar disappeared completely.  Glad it's back.  I'll restock my supply.

 

[Florida_gal_50]

2 hours ago, Woofbite said:

If only they had heard of tomato salsa for the tacos.  That mango crap may work for Indian chefs, but not great in the eyes of this southwestern U.S. guy.  I started bringing my own on board after two years of pleading without success with various HAL cooks.  But then the taco bar disappeared completely.  Glad it's back.  I'll restock my supply.

 

It's just wrong to put fruit in salsa.  Its salsa not a fruit salad.

[loveandpeas]

I mean.... tomato is a fruit? 

I love the mango salsa but there was also a regular one on the Noordam in May.

[Mike07]

The Nieuw Statendam is keeping the MDR open for lunch on embarkation day. In port, it's closed. On Sea days, it's opened. If your itinerary has hardly any sea days, you won't be able to experience the MDR at lunch much and that's a shame as there are some decent items on the lunch menu.

[Florida_gal_50]

The lunch menu I feel is limited.  On my last cruise in April they had daily specials.  I don’t know if that because it was a somewhat longer cruise but the specials appealed to me more.

[oakridger]

I didn't love the MDR lunch menu last fall either.  It didn't seem any better food wise than the Lido.  Of course, the quiet dining room and waiter service is what is really nice!   Way back in 2018 one of the best meals I had on Oosterdam was the embarkation day MDR lunch.....baked trout!!  mmmmmm.....

 

I'm hoping for a lunch MDR menu upgrade before I sail next.  May 2024

 

~Nancy

[Florida_gal_50]

7 hours ago, oakridger said:

I didn't love the MDR lunch menu last fall either.  It didn't seem any better food wise than the Lido.  Of course, the quiet dining room and waiter service is what is really nice!   Way back in 2018 one of the best meals I had on Oosterdam was the embarkation day MDR lunch.....baked trout!!  mmmmmm.....

 

I'm hoping for a lunch MDR menu upgrade before I sail next.  May 2024

 

~Nancy

That would be nice but I suspect it won’t happen.  The absolute worst was when I went in one day and they had the express lunch.  The best of the picks was the club sandwich which I don’t care for.  I’m sure it was made hours before. To say I detest the lido is making it sound like I like it better than I do.  I can’t stand all the people and people that can’t make their mind up on what they want on their salad.  It’s not difficult.  Then find a table.

[Anne614]

We were on the Zaandam in April. We went to the dining room around noon on embarkation day and the Chef happened to walk by when I was talking to a staff person and he said the MDR is never open on port days. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Edited June 17, 2023 by Anne614

[Florida_gal_50]

16 minutes ago, Anne614 said:

We were on the Zaandam in April. We went to the dining room around noon on embarkation day and the Chef happened to walk by when I was talking to a staff person and he said the MDR is never open on port days. 🤷🏻‍♀️

That's mostly true except for embarkation and possibly days when the ship arrives later in port. It was my experience that for a long time after the start up the mdr wasn't open on embarkation day.

[JeannyJ]

3 hours ago, Anne614 said:

We were on the Zaandam in April. We went to the dining room around noon on embarkation day and the Chef happened to walk by when I was talking to a staff person and he said the MDR is never open on port days. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Good to know. Maybe this will go with their sister ship (Volendam). At least we'll be able to check it out and find our table even if we can't eat there.