Rare ORV Posted July 15 #26 Share Posted July 15 1 minute ago, 1985rz1 said: Here in Flagstaff, AZ, a relatively small city with small city prices, we feel lucky if we can get a glass of wine at an upscale restaurant for less than US$15 plus tip. Same here in the middle of the Midwest. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kay S Posted July 15 #27 Share Posted July 15 7 minutes ago, Stockjock said: , although I'm not so sure about their "Finest Cuisine at Sea" motto. I guess these folks took it literally, although it is a bold statement by Oceania, and at least some degree of backing it up would seem to be appropriate. I guess they thought it would work better than "Not the Worst Cuisine at Sea." Any marketing slogan is hype, and I think most people realize that. Judging from some of the glowing remarks about various dishes here on CC (the Dover Sole comes to mind) I think at least some people find "a degree of backing it up" in the claim. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Harters Posted July 15 #28 Share Posted July 15 21 minutes ago, Stockjock said: I'm not so sure about their "Finest Cuisine at Sea" motto I think it does something to raise expectations for first time O cruisers. Now, having only cruised with O in recent years, I have nothing by which I can make a comparison. But if O's food is the "finest", then there must be some pretty mediocre offerings out there. That is not to say that I don't enjoy the food on O. I do but I accept the limitations of mass catering and do not have high expectations. My "holiday restaurant" rule applies here - if this was a restaurant at home, would I become a regular. And the short answer is generally "no" (with possible exception of Toscana which is generally as good as the Italian place we go to regularly). The video did resonate with me in at least a couple of aspects. First, the wait for a sommelier in the restaurants (both GDR and specialities). Not all the time but often enough to be something of an issue. And, second, the comment about plating of food which often seems that there's been little attempt to finesse the presentation. 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunlover12 Posted July 15 #29 Share Posted July 15 1 hour ago, Harters said: I shall lose all credibility with you as well, in agreeing that $11 is expensive. Depending on location, that'd be anything from 50% to 100% more expensive than a glass of wine in the UK. The couple sound as though they are from South East England, where alcohol prices tend to be dearer than in other parts so probably 50% more expensive than they are used to whereas I'd reckon it's getting on for double my local prices. I have previously commented on the forum how expensive we find O's drinks prices (including, say, their alcohol free beer)- fortunately, I don't drink alcohol and my partner only very sparingly, so it is not an issue for us. I agree that it depends on where you are from and what you are used to. I live in a medium size city in the Great Lakes area. $11 for a glass of wine is not expensive and in many restaurants you will find a lot of wines that are more than that. When comparing Oceania's drink prices to other cruise lines, Oceania is not at all out of line. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Stockjock Posted July 15 Author #30 Share Posted July 15 25 minutes ago, 1985rz1 said: Here in Flagstaff, AZ, a relatively small city with small city prices, we feel lucky if we can get a glass of wine at an upscale restaurant for less than US$15 plus tip. I'm straying slightly here, but late last year, we spent a few nights pre-cruise in Barcelona and visited a Tapas restaurant near our hotel. I ordered a glass of a Spanish white wine that was in the 12-13 Euro range. Turns out, I hadn't ordered a glass, but a bottle at that price and it was pretty good, actually (one of the many reasons I enjoy visiting Europe). The restaurant is Ciutat Comtal, and I do recommend it for those visiting Barcelona. https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g187497-d25241875-Reviews-Ciutat_Comtal-Barcelona_Catalonia.html 2 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare 1985rz1 Posted July 15 #31 Share Posted July 15 Just now, Stockjock said: The restaurant is Ciutat Comtal, and I do recommend it for those visiting Barcelona. https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g187497-d25241875-Reviews-Ciutat_Comtal-Barcelona_Catalonia.html Thanks. We will be there in March. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Stockjock Posted July 15 Author #32 Share Posted July 15 1 minute ago, 1985rz1 said: Thanks. We will be there in March. We enjoyed the food and thought the prices were reasonable. 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Harters Posted July 15 #33 Share Posted July 15 1 minute ago, Stockjock said: I hadn't ordered a glass, but a bottle at that price Spain has very low taxation on wine and, of course, is a major producer. In the UK, we have high taxation on booze. It's approximately 30% of the price of a bottle of wine. But, even so, I can buy a 125ml glass of Californian wine at a local restaurant for under £5 ($6.48) including all taxes and no tip required. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Stockjock Posted July 15 Author #34 Share Posted July 15 (edited) 5 minutes ago, Harters said: Spain has very low taxation on wine and, of course, is a major producer. In the UK, we have high taxation on booze. It's approximately 30% of the price of a bottle of wine. But, even so, I can buy a 125ml glass of Californian wine at a local restaurant for under £5 ($6.48) including all taxes and no tip required. I'm in Southern California. It's hard to get a glass of wine for under $14 or so, excluding tax and tip, unless it's swill. Edited July 15 by Stockjock 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare ORV Posted July 15 #35 Share Posted July 15 26 minutes ago, Harters said: Spain has very low taxation on wine and, of course, is a major producer. In the UK, we have high taxation on booze. It's approximately 30% of the price of a bottle of wine. But, even so, I can buy a 125ml glass of Californian wine at a local restaurant for under £5 ($6.48) including all taxes and no tip required. I think the average pour here is a little bit bigger. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WESTEAST Posted July 15 #36 Share Posted July 15 We watched the original post on Dining and then looked at their recent one on the their Full Experience. Have never watched nor read their reviews prior. They seem to compare Oceania with Luxury lines like Regent etc. which is unfair IMO. On this O cruise they were on Deck 4 in an Ocean View stateroom and interesting that they didn't book a higher level stateroom if comparing to luxury lines where staterooms are larger and additional services are offered e.g., complimentary laundry which seemed to bother them (Concierge and above have complimentary laundry). They did use the free laundry room and no surprise it was crowded on a sea day as there is only one launderette onboard the R ships. That said, they seem to enjoy the ship and the two Speciality restaurants especially Red Ginger. With respect to their comments of the GDR and Waves, we too have had some meals that were not the best. As to the service and waiting to be served wine, we haven't had this issue pre-SM and now with SM and overall excellent service all round. Glass of wine in our neck of the woods is at least $12.00 upwards. Use of the word 'Finest' is subjective as we are all well aware of. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tr1v1alCru1ser Posted July 15 #37 Share Posted July 15 They lost all credibility to me when they said the food was better on P&O - I can quite categorically say when we went on P&O the food was very poor. Our experience of Seabourn (albeit quite some time ago now) was also lacking in service and the food was nothing special either. Our TA was telling us the other day that O and other cruise lines are having a hard time recruiting staff. Before Covid we were on Sirena and felt then that the staff in the GDR were absolutely run ragged and food sometimes arrived only lukewarm. Our most recent cruise on Vista, the service, the food (apart from our meal in Ember) was of a consistently high standard. We’ve never been that desperate for a drink that we’ve felt the need to Vlog about it 😆 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Jim_Iain Posted July 15 #38 Share Posted July 15 52 minutes ago, Harters said: I shall lose all credibility with you as well, in agreeing that $11 is expensive. Depending on location, that'd be anything from 50% to 100% more expensive than a glass of wine in the UK. The couple sound as though they are from South East England, where alcohol prices tend to be dearer than in other parts so probably 50% more expensive than they are used to whereas I'd reckon it's getting on for double my local prices. I have previously commented on the forum how expensive we find O's drinks prices (including, say, their alcohol free beer)- fortunately, I don't drink alcohol and my partner only very sparingly, so it is not an issue for us. I don't disagree, I also don't drink but my partner does. I thought it was a fair price when I compare it to Celebrity where the Basic Drink Package cover drinks up to $10 and the Premium covers drinks up to $18. Drinks above that price you only pay the difference plus 20% gratuity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Jim_Iain Posted July 15 #39 Share Posted July 15 3 hours ago, Stockjock said: Our cruise is in 5 or 6 months. I'd say my GF and I are in the "easy to please" category. We do address notable issues, but we try not to let them spoil our vacations. Not sure if it matters, but I've been an Amazon product reviewer (aka "Free Stuff") for 16 years, so I try to be very fair in my reviews and I do look at these trips from a reviewer's perspective, while still trying to let what's left of my hair down and have a good time. We enjoy the food in the MDR on MSC, so that being the case, I'd be surprised if we didn't enjoy the food on Oceania, although I'm not so sure about their "Finest Cuisine at Sea" motto. I guess these folks took it literally, although it is a bold statement by Oceania, and at least some degree of backing it up would seem to be appropriate. We head to "Rome" in a few weeks for a cruise on Celebrity Ascent, so I'm looking forward to that one. It will be my first cruise in an Edge-Class ship, and we have the controversial "Infinite Veranda" booked. First trip of the year, and I've been itching to get away. Hope you post on Celebrity about your Ascent cruise. I've spent a couple months this year on E-Class ships this year and will be interested to hear your perspective. We have grown not to be a big supporter of the E-Class ships. Our sweet spot are the S-Class. I personally don't pat attention to tag lines like "Best Food at Sea" - Oceania nor "Nothing comes Close" - Celebrity's newest tag line. Just marketing. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Jim_Iain Posted July 15 #40 Share Posted July 15 3 hours ago, Kay S said: I guess they thought it would work better than "Not the Worst Cuisine at Sea." Any marketing slogan is hype, and I think most people realize that. Judging from some of the glowing remarks about various dishes here on CC (the Dover Sole comes to mind) I think at least some people find "a degree of backing it up" in the claim. I had to chuckle. A friend on a trip to Nirobie posted this yesterday. 2 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Solar Yellow Posted July 15 #41 Share Posted July 15 I was on the same cruise as a solo cruiser. This was my fifth Oceania cruise and probably my last. The food definitely wasn't as good as I remember (my last Oceania cruise was in 2019). Everything looked, smelled, and tasted the same, somehow. No, I didn't have COVID. It seemed like every dish in the Terrace and GDR had a long list of fancy ingredients but it just didn't taste all that great. There was also way too much veal, lamb, and suckling pig. I watched a woman squeal (no pun intended) with delight as she asked for the cheek of the suckling pig on the buffet. I'm from Iowa (30 million pigs) and it grossed me out! I often had trouble finding anything I was excited to eat. Perhaps I'm a luddite, but Embers on Vista actually sounds good to me. I don't drink so I can't comment on the bar service but I found the crew to be great! Everyone around me was drinking a lot of beer and wine and refills seemed to be coming quickly. The condition of the ship was very good but it is difficult to justify it as a premium/luxury line when the bathrooms are so tiny. Don't get me wrong, I knew this before booking and got along fine with the tiny bathroom but it can't help but impact the impression of a premium/luxury cruise line. But here's why I won't be back... Simply More ruined the cruise for me. I booked six tours and four of them were absolutely awful. The tour of the Alcazar Palace in Seville and the tour to Mount Saint Michel were good but the rest of them were beyond boring - especially the one in Falmouth. I like to book private tours with folks I meet on the Roll Calls but Simply More has made the Roll Calls irrelevant. As a result, I really struggled to meet anyone to hang out with. For me, it was a fairly lonely cruise. Simply More also made this the most expensive cruise I've ever taken and far and away the worst value of them all. I'm sure Oceania is still a great cruise line for many people, just not for me anymore. 6 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare mauibabes Posted July 15 #42 Share Posted July 15 When it comes to a glass of wine prices, in our little town (under 50,000) in No. California close to various wine regions and hundreds of wineries, it isn’t until you might hit $18.00 for that 9 oz. pour that I consider it expensive. Gosh, our favorite little local Pizza and Grill charges $14.00 for a glass of Kim Crawford Sau Blanc and I hardly consider KC to be a “Fine” wine. Remember, our esteemed Governor has pushed fast food or Wait Staff rates to $20 hr. so everything has gone up by 25% or more. On board, I would gladly pay $14+ for a nice glass of wine, especially if I can get a 2 for 1 at Happy Hour in Martini’s or Horizons. If you are getting glasses of wine for $10 or less on board, IMHO you are getting less than Two Buck Chuck wine. This conversation is moving back to MD 20-20 level wines that are still passed around with the brown bag still around them so no one knows what you are drinking. As S Gary shares often, we all need to manage expectations, attempt to compares apples to apples and look forward to enjoying your cruise vacation. I have watched several recent videos posted by newby or inexperienced Oceania cruisers and I certainly do not find them to be the most credible Vloggers. It is always amazing when you read posts that are 180 degrees apart from people on the same cruise. Everyone gets their own opinions and I certainly have learned what we like when we sail on Oceania. Just ENJOY, Mauibabes 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tranquility Base Posted July 15 #43 Share Posted July 15 7 minutes ago, Solar Yellow said: Everyone around me was drinking a lot of beer and wine and refills seemed to be coming quickly. That's good to hear. That was one of my queries when SM was introduced. Would there be enough staff serving drinks during meal times to meet increased demand. 7 minutes ago, Solar Yellow said: ..... the tour to Mount Saint Michel were good .... I am booked for this next year....how long did you have inside ? 7 minutes ago, Solar Yellow said: I'm sure Oceania is still a great cruise line for many people, just not for me anymore. That's a shame, but thanks for the balanced review. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Stockjock Posted July 15 Author #44 Share Posted July 15 (edited) 16 minutes ago, Solar Yellow said: I was on the same cruise as a solo cruiser. This was my fifth Oceania cruise and probably my last. The food definitely wasn't as good as I remember (my last Oceania cruise was in 2019). Everything looked, smelled, and tasted the same, somehow. No, I didn't have COVID. It seemed like every dish in the Terrace and GDR had a long list of fancy ingredients but it just didn't taste all that great. There was also way too much veal, lamb, and suckling pig. I watched a woman squeal (no pun intended) with delight as she asked for the cheek of the suckling pig on the buffet. I'm from Iowa (30 million pigs) and it grossed me out! I often had trouble finding anything I was excited to eat. Perhaps I'm a luddite, but Embers on Vista actually sounds good to me. I don't drink so I can't comment on the bar service but I found the crew to be great! Everyone around me was drinking a lot of beer and wine and refills seemed to be coming quickly. The condition of the ship was very good but it is difficult to justify it as a premium/luxury line when the bathrooms are so tiny. Don't get me wrong, I knew this before booking and got along fine with the tiny bathroom but it can't help but impact the impression of a premium/luxury cruise line. But here's why I won't be back... Simply More ruined the cruise for me. I booked six tours and four of them were absolutely awful. The tour of the Alcazar Palace in Seville and the tour to Mount Saint Michel were good but the rest of them were beyond boring - especially the one in Falmouth. I like to book private tours with folks I meet on the Roll Calls but Simply More has made the Roll Calls irrelevant. As a result, I really struggled to meet anyone to hang out with. For me, it was a fairly lonely cruise. Simply More also made this the most expensive cruise I've ever taken and far and away the worst value of them all. I'm sure Oceania is still a great cruise line for many people, just not for me anymore. I appreciate your comments. It lends credibility to some of the remarks of the reviewers. Just watched their 2nd video, and most of their remarks seemed to be pretty fair and reasonable, but obviously I wasn't there. They did spend an awful lot of time focusing on the "Finest Cuisine at Sea" motto, but I guess that's not entirely unfair, if a cruise line is so bold as to make that statement. What I didn't think was fair were several comparisons to Seaborne, Regent Seven Seas, and Explora, which would seem to be in a different class. Edited July 15 by Stockjock 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare ORV Posted July 15 #45 Share Posted July 15 (edited) 35 minutes ago, Solar Yellow said: I was on the same cruise as a solo cruiser. This was my fifth Oceania cruise and probably my last. The food definitely wasn't as good as I remember (my last Oceania cruise was in 2019). Everything looked, smelled, and tasted the same, somehow. No, I didn't have COVID. It seemed like every dish in the Terrace and GDR had a long list of fancy ingredients but it just didn't taste all that great. There was also way too much veal, lamb, and suckling pig. I watched a woman squeal (no pun intended) with delight as she asked for the cheek of the suckling pig on the buffet. I'm from Iowa (30 million pigs) and it grossed me out! I often had trouble finding anything I was excited to eat. Perhaps I'm a luddite, but Embers on Vista actually sounds good to me. I don't drink so I can't comment on the bar service but I found the crew to be great! Everyone around me was drinking a lot of beer and wine and refills seemed to be coming quickly. The condition of the ship was very good but it is difficult to justify it as a premium/luxury line when the bathrooms are so tiny. Don't get me wrong, I knew this before booking and got along fine with the tiny bathroom but it can't help but impact the impression of a premium/luxury cruise line. But here's why I won't be back... Simply More ruined the cruise for me. I booked six tours and four of them were absolutely awful. The tour of the Alcazar Palace in Seville and the tour to Mount Saint Michel were good but the rest of them were beyond boring - especially the one in Falmouth. I like to book private tours with folks I meet on the Roll Calls but Simply More has made the Roll Calls irrelevant. As a result, I really struggled to meet anyone to hang out with. For me, it was a fairly lonely cruise. Simply More also made this the most expensive cruise I've ever taken and far and away the worst value of them all. I'm sure Oceania is still a great cruise line for many people, just not for me anymore. I appreciate your observations as we are going to be on Nautica in a few weeks. Just an FYI, Roll Calls on Cruise Critic were already irrelevant before Simply More, but for Oceania Roll Calls it's might just be the straw that breaks the camels back. Edited July 15 by ORV Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare 1985rz1 Posted July 15 #46 Share Posted July 15 27 minutes ago, mauibabes said: that 9 oz. pour I could only wish 🍷 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Solar Yellow Posted July 16 #47 Share Posted July 16 2 hours ago, Tranquility Base said: I am booked for this next year....how long did you have inside ? I want to say we had a at least a couple of hours. It seemed like enough time to me. The guide took us all the way to the top and gave a tour of the abbey. I was shocked she was willing to make the climb every time she took a tour there. It wasn't just a "here ya go" kind of tour where they just drop you off and you have free time. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare janelledocb Posted July 16 #48 Share Posted July 16 They mentioned in their longer video that the Chef had to unexpectedly leave the ship during their sailing (or something like that) so this could have affected their dining experience. And like others have said, they kept comparing Oceania to the Ultra Luxury cruise lines, which is quite unfair. I mean, if Oceania was all-inclusive and equal in all other aspects to Regent, then no one would sail Regent since it costs twice as much! And yes, like WESTEAST pointed out, they didn't stay in a Penthouse where they WOULD have had many of the same amenities and services that are provided on Ultra Luxury lines. But, it does seem like the encountered some difficulties on their cruise which is too bad. We are glad we had none of the issues they spoke of on the Vista last month. We loved the food - a few dishes here and there we didn't prefer but those were more personal preference (spices, etc.). Our service was outstanding everywhere! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
osandomir Posted July 16 #49 Share Posted July 16 2 hours ago, janelledocb said: They mentioned in their longer video that the Chef had to unexpectedly leave the ship during their sailing (or something like that) so this could have affected their dining experience. And like others have said, they kept comparing Oceania to the Ultra Luxury cruise lines, which is quite unfair. I mean, if Oceania was all-inclusive and equal in all other aspects to Regent, then no one would sail Regent since it costs twice as much! And yes, like WESTEAST pointed out, they didn't stay in a Penthouse where they WOULD have had many of the same amenities and services that are provided on Ultra Luxury lines. But, it does seem like the encountered some difficulties on their cruise which is too bad. We are glad we had none of the issues they spoke of on the Vista last month. We loved the food - a few dishes here and there we didn't prefer but those were more personal preference (spices, etc.). Our service was outstanding everywhere! I would agree with everything you said. Unrealistic expectations on many counts. One thing I’d like to clarify - the chefs as all the other crew work on their own contracts which are often not correlated with the particular cruise. We experienced the Chef’s switch on several of our cruises. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jondfk Posted July 16 #50 Share Posted July 16 I watched the video and have watched several of their prior videos before sailing on Viking, SB and others. They do spend a lot of focus on food. Typically I would describe them as overly positive regarding cruise food though I do recall a recent review of the new Solis restaurant on SB being less that totally positive, likewise, older reviews of the Keller restaurant focused significantly on the unused veranda space attached to that venue on larger SB ships. I hate to say it but I found myself nodding along as they described very prescriptive staff assignment that make little sense. On our recent Regatta sailing we were occasionally frustrated by service in Barista's and Grand Bar (the same venue) which left the barista or bartender alone without a server and seemingly forbidden from doing more than placing drinks on the bar. As for the quality of food in the different venues I can only say we've been satisfied. Some hits / some misses. Overall though met our expectations. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Please sign in to comment
You will be able to leave a comment after signing in
Sign In Now