Pinnacle Grill Prime Steaks ????????

[dogo88]

3 hours ago, Billthekid said:

THIS IS NOT A COMPLAINT:  Out of curiosity has anybody received a refund, or a credit to their account for a meal at the Pinnacle, or any other specialty restaurant,  that was not satisfactory and was unacceptable?  

 

I don't think so myself.  But...........

We did get our meal refunded. It was four of us on the Nieuw Statendam in October of 2022. Worst Pinnacle meal we ever had. Ever. I have posted that info on prior threads so won't revisit it. But the short version is the sides were cold, Halibut cool and oily, and the rib eye like shoe leather. Along with a good dose of waiting. DW chicken was good. Walked out with even finishing the meal and straight to customer service. Other than  the charges getting removed, never heard a word from them. 

 

But on our last two Rotterdam cruises the Pinnacle was acceptable. But not like before Covid.

 

 

[gtragitt]

2 hours ago, IAcruising said:

 

I think you're confused. The Rolling Stone Rock Room has nothing to do with the band called the Rolling Stones. It's the Rolling Stone magazine.

 

 

I am not confused. I know what the venue is called and why. It just seems odd that a band with 3 very good guitarists didn't get to play some good Rolling Stones guitar riffs.

[horseymike]

On 1/7/2024 at 8:54 AM, sambamama said:

If the ports were shopping stops with beach activity, that's on you, not on HAL. Does that mean you took all HAL tours and that is what they were? I am sure they were described. Does it mean that you went to Caribbean islands with beaches? That's where the ship sailed to. If you just got off the ship and just walked around the port, that's on you. The port is what you make it, not what HAL makes it. Do a private tour. Go sailing or snorkeling. Explore the island on a jeep. 

And most of the ship activities don't have sale pitches. The shows don't. The trivia contests don't. Many of the crafts don't and the contests don't. The photo gallery and art gallery always did. As far as the officers, I think that's pot luck as to each ship. You usually see a few in the bars or walking around and you can usually approach and say a few words. 

Don’t understand what your post has to do with steaks 🥩 in the Pinnacle Grill ?

[Seasick Sailor]

Well.. I'm sorry to say our dinner in PG tonight was not delightful. Does this look like broiled lobster?

 

 

DH had the halibut and it was dry. Our baked potatoes tasted wet if that makes sense.

 

We requested a cappuccino and passed on dessert.. left as soon as possible. 

[mawvkysc]

@Seasick Sailor that just looks weird! 🤔 

[Seasick Sailor]

1 minute ago, mawvkysc said:

@Seasick Sailor that just looks weird! 🤔 

 

Right? 

[Blackduck59]

@Seasick Sailorthat looks more like lobster Thermador. I'm pretty sure I would be sending that back.

A chat with the maitre de and an early exit to get the charge reversed on my account. 

[POA1]

4 hours ago, gtragitt said:

The problem there is on 2 nights you will hear all their material that doesn't even include Rolling Stone songs.

If I might be so brave, the "Rolling Stone" is a licensing thing with the magazine.

[sambamama]

I went to the Pinnacle twice and had bad service, but not bad food. Both times, they gave me a free meal. I've had them make me items that weren't on the menu- both on the night and with a days notice. They've brought escargot from the dining room before. I've never had a bad meal there, and I've eaten there many times. 

 

As far as your ports, the ABC islands and Grand Turk are known for snorkeling, especially Bonaire. No one would ever travel to the Caribbean and expect significant cultural or historical experiences. Go to Europe or Asia or Africa. That being said, there are some cool things to see. Sea caves, old Jewish synagogues, amazing sea coastal those are either on Aruba or Curacao. Bonaire is one of the top 20 drift snorkeling spots in the world with water clarity to 100 feet. Its common for the town to not be by the port. How do you know Samana isn't nice if you haven't gone there? I think I went on a dolphin and whale watch there. Its unfair to knock an island for being a beach resort when you knew that was what it was. About the only one that may have what you want is Bermuda and that's not in the Caribbean. To get what you want, you need to do research, spend money and go on a tour or hire a taxi. Or stop going to the Caribbean. I agree that I'm not fond of the private islands. Many times, I don't bother getting off the ship. 

[Razz21]

On 1/6/2024 at 7:23 PM, CineGraphic said:

Our one and ony dinner at the Pinnacle was not good at all.

I knew we were in for an interesting evening when the waitress started spouting some nonsense about the beef being juicy because the cows were only fed wet corn instead of dried corn.

As we left, we asked to cancel our reservations later in the week.

The F&B manager found us a day or two later to find out what was wrong, and invited us to be his guest at Rudi's. We've not bothered with specialty dining on HAL since then.

 

[Petronillus]

3 hours ago, Blackduck59 said:

@Seasick Sailorthat looks more like lobster Thermador. I'm pretty sure I would be sending that back.

A chat with the maitre de and an early exit to get the charge reversed on my account. 

To me it looks more like mac & cheese. Maybe there's some lobster in there, but if so my eyes can't make it out.

This has been very much a worthwhile thread. It's helped me develop an appreciation for what the PG is supposed to be and some useful tips for what to do when the PG falls short of its standards.

[OlsSalt]

4 hours ago, Seasick Sailor said:

Well.. I'm sorry to say our dinner in PG tonight was not delightful. Does this look like broiled lobster?

 

 

DH had the halibut and it was dry. Our baked potatoes tasted wet if that makes sense.

 

We requested a cappuccino and passed on dessert.. left as soon as possible. 

 

If you google broiled lobster images, this looks like lobster to me - just minus any colorful seasonings on top. A rather naked presentation to say the least, but at least you don't have to go digging for it.. Definitely not lobster thermidor, which could have been quite wonderful.

 

Lobster Thermidor is a French dish of lobster meat cooked in a rich wine sauce, stuffed back into a lobster shell, and browned. The sauce is often a mixture of egg yolks and brandy (such as Cognac), served with an oven-browned cheese crust, typically Gruyère. The sauce originally contained mustard (typically powdered mustard).

[Real NHDOC]

14 hours ago, Seasick Sailor said:

Well.. I'm sorry to say our dinner in PG tonight was not delightful. Does this look like broiled lobster?

 

 

DH had the halibut and it was dry. Our baked potatoes tasted wet if that makes sense.

 

We requested a cappuccino and passed on dessert.. left as soon as possible. 

Well however it was cooked (probably steamed and not broiled) it is clearly NOT a Maine tail as it is advertised to be. That is a warm water spiny lobster tail. It’s my pet peeve that they continue to misrepresent the lobster. Those are two completely different types of lobster and an insult to those expecting a cold water tail!

[CineGraphic]

25 minutes ago, Real NHDOC said:

It’s my pet peeve that they continue to misrepresent the lobster. Those are two completely different types of lobster and an insult to those expecting a cold water tail!

 

I feel the same way about "Maryland" Crab Cakes.

[taxmantoo]

14 hours ago, Seasick Sailor said:

Well.. I'm sorry to say our dinner in PG tonight was not delightful. Does this look like broiled lobster?

 

 

DH had the halibut and it was dry. Our baked potatoes tasted wet if that makes sense.

 

We requested a cappuccino and passed on dessert.. left as soon as possible. 

Why did you accept it?  You should have said something the instant it was brought to the table!

[3rdGenCunarder]

19 minutes ago, Real NHDOC said:

Well however it was cooked (probably steamed and not broiled) it is clearly NOT a Maine tail as it is advertised to be. That is a warm water spiny lobster tail. It’s my pet peeve that they continue to misrepresent the lobster. Those are two completely different types of lobster and an insult to those expecting a cold water tail!

 

The absence of any browning makes me agree that it was probably steamed. Does a warm-water lobster always come out of the split carapace like that, looking almost like popcorn?  Cold-water lobster comes out in on piece, with the two halves visible, not broken up. 

 

This discussion made me look up the biology of the lobsters. For those who remember kingdom, phylum, etc from bio class, cold water lobster and spiny lobster aren't even in the same family, never mind genus-species. Langoustines ("Norwegian lobster") are more closely related to the cold-water lobster than the spiny lobster is.  

 

I don't order lobster on a ship because I know it will have been frozen. I prefer to get mine in "lobstah" country.

[Real NHDOC]

6 minutes ago, 3rdGenCunarder said:

 

The absence of any browning makes me agree that it was probably steamed. Does a warm-water lobster always come out of the split carapace like that, looking almost like popcorn?  Cold-water lobster comes out in on piece, with the two halves visible, not broken up. 

 

This discussion made me look up the biology of the lobsters. For those who remember kingdom, phylum, etc from bio class, cold water lobster and spiny lobster aren't even in the same family, never mind genus-species. Langoustines ("Norwegian lobster") are more closely related to the cold-water lobster than the spiny lobster is.  

 

I don't order lobster on a ship because I know it will have been frozen. I prefer to get mine in "lobstah" country.

You are correct. Two completely different animals. But it’s the HAL mentality that you get what we have regardless of what we say it should be. That’s why I have said you cannot believe a word they say about the steaks being “prime” or “dry aged” because it’s just part of their deceptive marketing strategy. 
 

Welcome to “The Holland America Lie”

[Himself]

The steaks used to quite good in the Pinacle Gril However on my recent cruise on the Rotterdam I did not eat there because I thought the fee was too dear.  As I have read some comments here I conclude that I made the correct choice.

[Real NHDOC]

My own opinion is that when they started “giving away” specialty dining liberally (HIA, 5* Perks, Casino Comps) they decided to cut corners so like everything in life “if an offer seems too good to be true it probably is” applies now to eating in the Pinnacle. 

[Petronillus]

10 minutes ago, Real NHDOC said:

My own opinion is that when they started “giving away” specialty dining liberally (HIA, 5* Perks, Casino Comps) they decided to cut corners so like everything in life “if an offer seems too good to be true it probably is” applies now to eating in the Pinnacle. 

More's the pity!

[Seasick Sailor]

2 hours ago, taxmantoo said:

Why did you accept it?  You should have said something the instant it was brought to the table!

 

Excuse me.. I believe I said our dinner was "not delightful", not disgusting. By the time I had my soup and a bread stick I was going on 3/4 full.

 

BTW, If I required a perfect meal, I'd starve to death. 

 

Perhaps if we paid for the meal I would request another evening to dine, but we are closing in on 51 days onboard and have 2 more reservations (Tamarind and Canaletto) and wouldn't want to change them.

[ECCruise]

18 hours ago, gtragitt said:

I am not confused. I know what the venue is called and why. It just seems odd that a band with 3 very good guitarists didn't get to play some good Rolling Stones guitar riffs.

Because the band there has a restricted and defined play list. They cannot play what they want. 

[Billthekid]

2019 I started a Topic about the menu listing a Boiled Maine Lobster at Rudi's and receiving just a tail from a warm water lobster.  Based on the comments above, nothing has changed.  You don't get what you pay for seems to be a theme with Holland.  

[gtragitt]

34 minutes ago, ECCruise said:

Because the band there has a restricted and defined play list. They cannot play what they want. 

Exactly - They will take a few requests - I know this thread is about steaks. I probably should not have responed to a post about entertainment.

[Navybikermom]

I agree that the steaks in the Pinnacle have gone downhill on some ships. For my last two times eating there, I had the lamb and the tomato & eggplant tarte tatin. Both were quite good. I can get a good steak in my home town, so I’m not going to bother with the Pinnacle’s steaks.