Done with Cunard

[david,Mississauga]

The scones we had on the QE in the Queens Room, Princess Grill and the Lido were apparently of the same diameter.  But they were not identical.  Most of them were a little lopsided, some very much so.  Some were taller than others.  

[ExArkie]

On 8/9/2024 at 8:39 AM, QuestionEverything said:

Thanks for sharing! 

I have had the impression for some time that more and more food on ships are now mass market, pre-made, frozen and thawed - that includes Oceania.

I have notice this much more since covid - so I assume it is a cost savings move.

Sigh.

Keep well!

I believe you are right about more food “shortcuts” from all lines following the shutdown. We were on another line for Greek islands late last year and found the food quality noticeably lower than it had been pre-COVID. 
 

Probably worth pointing out for the general discussion that, considering how many scones are consumed daily on a Cunard ship, even if they are made on board, they are still “mass produced.”

[exlondoner]

4 minutes ago, ExArkie said:

I believe you are right about more food “shortcuts” from all lines following the shutdown. We were on another line for Greek islands late last year and found the food quality noticeably lower than it had been pre-COVID. 
 

Probably worth pointing out for the general discussion that, considering how many scones are consumed daily on a Cunard ship, even if they are made on board, they are still “mass produced.”

Of course they are. At least it means they are made by people who have plenty of practice.

[RK-NC]

2 hours ago, 3rdGenCunarder said:

I have never been served tea from a large steel pitcher on Cunard. In the Queens Room, the waiters always carry china teapots (used to be Doulton, now Wedgewood). 

 

I have watched several recent YT videos of afternoon tea in the QM2 Queens Room and tea is served in a stainless steel pitcher.

[exlondoner]

8 minutes ago, RK-NC said:

 

I have watched several recent YT videos of afternoon tea in the QM2 Queens Room and tea is served in a stainless steel pitcher.

Not a teapot? How strange?

[Winifred 22]

10 minutes ago, RK-NC said:

 

I have watched several recent YT videos of afternoon tea in the QM2 Queens Room and tea is served in a stainless steel pitcher.

I thought a pitcher was a jug ? I have never seen tea served in a jug ? Only ever seen it served in a teapot or a coffee pot if it was coffee. Even hot chocolate when you have room service comes in a pot . 

[RK-NC]

I checked the board guidelines and didn't find anything about posted YT videos so hopefully this is OK to post. It's entertaining and you can see how the tea in served.

 

[Winifred 22]

1 minute ago, RK-NC said:

I checked the board guidelines and didn't find anything about posted YT videos so hopefully this is OK to post. It's entertaining and you can see how the tea in served.

 

That’s a teapot. 

[*Miss G*]

25 minutes ago, RK-NC said:

I checked the board guidelines and didn't find anything about posted YT videos so hopefully this is OK to post. It's entertaining and you can see how the tea in served.

 

 

Loved this.  And he pronounces scone correctly!

[3rdGenCunarder]

27 minutes ago, Winifred 22 said:

That’s a teapot. 

 

The person in the video seemed to struggle to spread the cream on top of the jam. That's why I do cream first. I forget which is Devon and which is Cornwall.

 

Nice big china teapots on QE last month. 

Edited August 11 by 3rdGenCunarder

[RK-NC]

6 minutes ago, 3rdGenCunarder said:

Nice big china teapots on QE last month. 

 

I find it interesting how things can vary from ship to ship within the same cruise line. Either type of pot is fine with me! Counting down until we sail....12 days!

[exlondoner]

27 minutes ago, 3rdGenCunarder said:

 

The person in the video seemed to struggle to spread the cream on top of the jam. That's why I do cream first. I forget which is Devon and which is Cornwall.

 

Nice big china teapots on QE last month. 

However, the cream did definitely look clotted.

[3rdGenCunarder]

1 hour ago, Winifred 22 said:

I thought a pitcher was a jug ? I have never seen tea served in a jug ? Only ever seen it served in a teapot or a coffee pot if it was coffee. Even hot chocolate when you have room service comes in a pot . 

 

Yes, a pitcher is a jug.

[Megabear2]

Stainless steel is far easier to clean at high temperatures. Depending on when the sailing took place it may have been an 'elf and safety procedure.

 

 

[Victoria2]

44 minutes ago, *Miss G* said:

 

Loved this.  And he pronounces scone correctly!

No he doesn't!  😂

[D&N]

This was the cream that we had and saw. It was nice but not clotted. It appeared today on a YT video of sixth day of a Westbound Crossing on 9th June. Same stuff on those treacle tarts as served in the little dishes for scones.

 

As an aside. I do jam followed by cream for practical reasons. I'll only want a coating of jam of a few millimetres thick to start with, but I then want as many inches of cream piled on top of that as I possibly can!

 

 

 

[Victoria2]

Oh my. Forget your scon/ scowns. Those chocolate brownie thingys are absolutely delish.

 

Edited August 11 by Victoria2
iPad auto spelling!

[JT1101]

Cunard has spoken to this before and even shown it off on kitchen tours - everything is made fresh on board. It even makes sense as the raw ingredients take less space to store, have a longer shelf life and cost less than buying ready made items. As to them looking alike they should - I've worked bakery before and part of being good at it is consistency - dough patted / rolled out to the same thickness and cut properly and baked uniformly. There are some exceptions - like some American style buttermilk biscuits for example where they are scooped and dropped onto the pan - but uniformity is generally the rule. 

[NE John]

2 hours ago, RK-NC said:

I checked the board guidelines and didn't find anything about posted YT videos so hopefully this is OK to post. It's entertaining and you can see how the tea in served.

 

Great Cunard marketing!

As an American, I’d never order coffee during an Afternoon Tea…”savages” line was classic. I love British humo(u)r. 

[Lemorvan]

1 hour ago, Victoria2 said:

Oh my. Forget your scon/ scowns. Those chocolate brownie thingys are absolutely delish.

 

We call that a mug of builders tea. 

[elmsliebev]

On 8/8/2024 at 12:32 PM, QuestionEverything said:

I was on the QM2 in June.

The "scones" were dry, pre-made and the "clotted cream" was something white/yellow thick paste.

Suffice it to say ourselves and our tablemates never returned to Afternoon Tea. A total disappointment.

You want a real Afternoon Tea - try Oceania - now that are ship made scones and real clotted cream and fabulous sandwiches and tortes etc.

Sorry to say this, but it is reality.

We were on QA in June and had proper clotted cream. We go on Oceania in October - I'll definitely be trying their afternoon tea, thanks for the recommendaton. 

[D&N]

40 minutes ago, Lemorvan said:

We call that a mug of builders tea. 

At home my wife doesn't drink anything else, and often fills it twice from the pot.

 

Edit: In a china mug of course!

Edited August 11 by D&N

[QuestionEverything]

22 hours ago, 3rdGenCunarder said:

 

Where on QM2 did you go to tea? Were the scone and cream pre-plated, or they did they spoon the cream onto your plate from a larger container? I don't recall seeing scones pre-plated with the cream on the plate, but I suppose the buffet might do that. I have never been served tea from a large steel pitcher on Cunard. In the Queens Room, the waiters always carry china teapots (used to be Doulton, now Wedgewood). 

 

I have seen the box of tea bags brought around on other lines, but not on Cunard. 

Greetings. Was on the June 23 westbound crossing QM2.

Was in the Queens Room. Was at a table for 4. Given an empty plate and wait staff came around and placed a scone on the plate. Another waitstaff came around and spooned a wedge of something on the side of the plate. 

The wait staff did Not carry china teapots, they carried steel pitchers with hot tea.

I have in the past had the waitstaff walk around with a box of tea bags and you pick, then they pour hot water from china teapots into your glass.

It seems to me that the service has evolved over the years but that a change has happened lately - many people were complaining about the afternoon tea on the way out.

No one at our table was impressed and none of us went back to the afternoon tea.

Guess the mystery continues!

Keep well and enjoy.

[david,Mississauga]

On my trips on the QM2,  the teapots were silver-plated, not stainless steel.  From the few videos I have seen, they appear to be silver-plated.  When we travel in Britannia or Britannia Club I request a teapot from room service as I don't like making tea in a mug. They have always been silver-plated except once, many years ago, when it was stainless steel.

[exlondoner]

49 minutes ago, QuestionEverything said:

Greetings. Was on the June 23 westbound crossing QM2.

Was in the Queens Room. Was at a table for 4. Given an empty plate and wait staff came around and placed a scone on the plate. Another waitstaff came around and spooned a wedge of something on the side of the plate. 

The wait staff did Not carry china teapots, they carried steel pitchers with hot tea.

I have in the past had the waitstaff walk around with a box of tea bags and you pick, then they pour hot water from china teapots into your glass.

It seems to me that the service has evolved over the years but that a change has happened lately - many people were complaining about the afternoon tea on the way out.

No one at our table was impressed and none of us went back to the afternoon tea.

Guess the mystery continues!

Keep well and enjoy.

I assume you are not serious that they really served tea in a glass on a past voyage. That really is bizarre. And those things may not be china but they are teapots.