Menu In MDR Reviews

[MMfan14]

Haven't seen people commenting here about how the new MDR menu is going. Is it a hit or miss?

[jimbo5544]

53 minutes ago, MMfan14 said:

Haven't seen people commenting here about how the new MDR menu is going. Is it a hit or miss?

I posted in my recent review.  Tried as much of new items as I could.  Loved the Emeril selection home run from my perspective.

Edited February 16 by jimbo5544

[Frank12]

The new menu is a welcomed change!  I agree with Jimbo that the Emerils selections are spot on.  I haven't had one that I didn't think was excellent.

[BlerkOne]

3 hours ago, MMfan14 said:

Haven't seen people commenting here about how the new MDR menu is going. Is it a hit or miss?

It's a winner. I posted some here:

 

 

[jsglow]

Enjoyed for two weeks recently. Outstanding.

[wardwhitty]

I thought the new additions were really good.  I too enjoyed the Emeril's selections Chicken Roulade and Chicken Cordon Blue were very good.

[171510Cook]

I enjoyed the new offerings!

[Saint Greg]

On 2/16/2024 at 9:14 AM, wardwhitty said:

I thought the new additions were really good.  I too enjoyed the Emeril's selections Chicken Roulade and Chicken Cordon Blue were very good.

Tried the chicken roulade tonight and enjoyed. The jambalaya pasta i tried as an appetizer twice. On jubilee it was light on the meat. On spirit it had no meat.

 

[DallasGuy75219]

21 minutes ago, Saint Greg said:

Tried the chicken roulade tonight and enjoyed. The jambalaya pasta i tried as an appetizer twice. On jubilee it was light on the meat. On spirit it had no meat.

 

Sounds like my fried chicken salad on Glory... about 9 tidbits of chicken on an entree salad.  I wound up ordering a second entree for some protein.

 

I wish Carnival could get their MDR consistency right.  They're supposed to be using standard recipes across the fleet, and at least when I took the Behind the Fun tour many moons ago there were pictures at each galley station showing exactly how each dish should look when plated.

[sparks1093]

9 hours ago, DallasGuy75219 said:

Sounds like my fried chicken salad on Glory... about 9 tidbits of chicken on an entree salad.  I wound up ordering a second entree for some protein.

 

I wish Carnival could get their MDR consistency right.  They're supposed to be using standard recipes across the fleet, and at least when I took the Behind the Fun tour many moons ago there were pictures at each galley station showing exactly how each dish should look when plated.

I care more about taste than presentation (which is generally lost on me) and since very cook considers himself/herself to be an artist I would expect some variation. The key is being true to the recipe itself (I know that in my own kitchen I use the recipe as a general guide, but then I am only cooking for two and not thousands).

[DallasGuy75219]

41 minutes ago, sparks1093 said:

I care more about taste than presentation (which is generally lost on me) and since very cook considers himself/herself to be an artist I would expect some variation. The key is being true to the recipe itself (I know that in my own kitchen I use the recipe as a general guide, but then I am only cooking for two and not thousands).

When I'm talking about presentation, I mean for example @Saint Greg's pastalaya with no meat, my fried chicken salad with only a handful of chicken tidbits, or the spaghetti carbonara that is sometimes served with too little sauce.  If they were referring to the standard photos and/or cared, they would see that they're not preparing the dish according to standard.

[sparks1093]

12 minutes ago, DallasGuy75219 said:

When I'm talking about presentation, I mean for example @Saint Greg's pastalaya with no meat, my fried chicken salad with only a handful of chicken tidbits, or the spaghetti carbonara that is sometimes served with too little sauce.  If they were referring to the standard photos and/or cared, they would see that they're not preparing the dish according to standard.

Yes, the quantity of the food is definitely something that should be standard.

[Frank12]

11 hours ago, Saint Greg said:

Tried the chicken roulade tonight and enjoyed. The jambalaya pasta i tried as an appetizer twice. On jubilee it was light on the meat. On spirit it had no meat.

 

I had the same experience with the crawfish fettucine. As an appetizer on the Liberty it was loaded with crawfish so I ordered it as a main on the Vista. On Vista the pieces of crawfish were so small ( I mean little specs) and very far and few between.  Flavor was awesome but I want crawfish when I order a crawfish dish!😡

[ledges1]

I have discovered some consistencies in the MDR. The fried chicken is consistently over cooked on every ship.

 

[BlerkOne]

When serving thousands of people, they aren't going to pause to count the crawfish in each dish. The food is consistent; the institutional plating might not be.

[sparks1093]

23 minutes ago, BlerkOne said:

When serving thousands of people, they aren't going to pause to count the crawfish in each dish. The food is consistent; the institutional plating might not be.

If a dish is supposed to have meat then it should have meat and the amount of meat should be generally consistent from plate to plate. 

[BlerkOne]

2 minutes ago, sparks1093 said:

If a dish is supposed to have meat then it should have meat and the amount of meat should be generally consistent from plate to plate. 

I agree, but I can also see someone scooping out plate after plate might miss some.

 

I'm also thinking someone in traditional dining with the same team every night might end up with servers that select food with the better presentation.

[sparks1093]

17 minutes ago, BlerkOne said:

I agree, but I can also see someone scooping out plate after plate might miss some.

 

I'm also thinking someone in traditional dining with the same team every night might end up with servers that select food with the better presentation.

If it is prepared right it shouldn't be too hard for an experienced person to get it right scoop after scoop. Everything is designed with consistency in mind, so when something isn't consistent it can be more jarring. I wouldn't rule out waitstaff picking the better looking plates.

[Warm Breezes]

I loved the new crawfish dishes.  It was my first time trying crawfish.  The crawfish strudel and crawfish fettuccini were delicious.  I also loved the new chicken cordon bleu.  I can't wait to have them again on the Jubilee.

 

Edited February 21 by Warm Breezes

[Warm Breezes]

14 hours ago, Frank12 said:

I had the same experience with the crawfish fettucine. As an appetizer on the Liberty it was loaded with crawfish so I ordered it as a main on the Vista. On Vista the pieces of crawfish were so small ( I mean little specs) and very far and few between.  Flavor was awesome but I want crawfish when I order a crawfish dish!😡

This all reminds me of my daughters wedding last summer.  My daughter wanted pasta for her wedding.  At the tasting they served us fettuccini with lots of chicken and baked ziti with a good amount of meat in the sauce.  My husband specifically asked if there would be that much meat at the buffet so everyone would get meat with their meal.  They assured us it would so we went through them.  Fast forward to the wedding.  We were the first table to go through the buffet after the head table and by the time we got to the fettuccini, I found one small sliver of chicken and the baked ziti's sauce had no meat.  So disappointed.  I haven't come across that on Carnival though.

[DallasGuy75219]

45 minutes ago, Warm Breezes said:

We were the first table to go through the buffet after the head table and by the time we got to the fettuccini, I found one small sliver of chicken and the baked ziti's sauce had no meat.  So disappointed.  I haven't come across that on Carnival though.

I've noticed it at the Lido buffet.  For the dishes that combine a protein with a starch and/or vegetables, there's relatively little protein to begin with.  That gets picked out by the people serving themselves first, leaving primarily the starch and/or vegetables. 

[sparks1093]

5 hours ago, Warm Breezes said:

I loved the new crawfish dishes.  It was my first time trying crawfish.  The crawfish strudel and crawfish fettuccini were delicious.  I also loved the new chicken cordon bleu.  I can't wait to have them again on the Jubilee.

 

I got to try it for the first time when we sailed out of New Orleans last year. We stayed an extra day to see some sights and found a great restaurant for lunch. I'm excited that it's on the menu.

[dacsmom]

The BBQ salmon is outstanding. One of the Emeril selections.

[ledges1]

Every time my wife orders a salad in the MDR, she always has to ask for additional tomatoes. They consistently put very few with the bed of lettuce. The MDR consistently lacks consistency. As I have said before (and people do not like), the MDR is hotel banquet food. I have been to many large hotel conferences and the similarities are tremendous.

[Frank12]

27 minutes ago, dacsmom said:

The BBQ salmon is outstanding. One of the Emeril selections.

Yes it is