Worst food item you tasted on a cruise??

[JolieMadam]

After reading all of these threads from the beginning, I'm starting to see that it's got to be a good idea to stay away from the buffets on the mainstream cruise lines. I've never been a fan of buffet-style dining and on a cruise, we don't eat at them more than necessary.

 

I'm convinced that the majority of the offerings at these buffets is food that is leftover from the dining rooms' previously served meals. I once was employed at a large hotel in Los Angeles and we were served a daily buffet lunch (gratis). This is where I came to find out how many different dishes could be "re-designed" from the previous day's dining room and banquet menu. My position was in the Banquet Dept. so we knew what the chefs had prepared the day before. Fortunately, for the employees, the food was nicely presented and was always very tasty.

 

As far as the worst item, it would have to be venison which my FIL ordered for dinner on a Princess cruise. It came very underdone and he ended up sending it back 3 times in an attempt to have an edible meal. In the end, it was not good and he barely ate any. However, the next day the waiters got him good...it was lobster night and he was the last one at our table of 8 to be served. Everyone was waiting for him to get his plate and when it arrived it was a whole lobster including antennae. Turned out it was rubber, but absolutely real looking!

[papadave]

As far as the worst item, it would have to be venison which my FIL ordered for dinner on a Princess cruise. It came very underdone and he ended up sending it back 3 times in an attempt to have an edible meal. In the end, it was not good and he barely ate any. However, the next day the waiters got him good...it was lobster night and he was the last one at our table of 8 to be served. Everyone was waiting for him to get his plate and when it arrived it was a whole lobster including antennae. Turned out it was rubber, but absolutely real looking!

 

Most people have never cooked venison. Medallions should be served very rare as the meat is quite lean. It will have a chewy texture. It is not for everyone. Cooked past rare it is like eating a shoe. Otherwise, venison is tasty in chili or a stew.

 

Were you able to order a different main course without ruining the entire dinner?

 

The worst thing I remember on a cruise was osso bucco (RCC) which was cooked through but was not cooked for a long time. Imagine an Irish stew thrown together in 15 minutes and you may get the picture. All the ingredient were there except for the long and slow simmering that melts away the fat and gristle to create a superb dish from a cheap cut of meat. That much said, I was able to get a different entree in just a few minutes.

[CatgirlNC]

I was disappointed with the food at the Grand Gala Buffet, the one with all the elaborate fruit carvings and ice scuptures. I quickly figured out that they put all the effort into presentation (it really does look beautiful), rather than taste.

[MEcruzr]

I've had dishes I didn't care for... personal preference and all. But there have been two instances when it was horrendous. The first was on Crystal Harmony. They have a pasta course and we usually try it. This one, I swear, was Kal Kan dog food warmed and served over penne. It smelled like it and it tasted like it. Yes, we both tried it. I tried it first... when my mom put some in her mouth I said, "RUFF!" Her eyes popped and she gagged. LOL We still laugh until we cry when we talk about it. The other dish was an entree I had this past April on the Constellation (Celebrity). When we walked into the dining room we both (mom and I) said it "smelled funny". There was an odor we couldn't put our finger on... but it reminded us of bait. Uh huh, BAIT. Well, I found out what it was. I ordered the fish entree. Why I didn't put 2 and 2 together I don't know. Let's just say, I couldn't get it off our table fast enough. The next day we saw our waiter at breakfast and when he asked me about my dinner the night before, I told him it reminded me of bait. He couldn't stop laughing. He made me promise to tell him if I didn't like a dish again so he could replace it.

 

Two bad meals out of 18 cruises... not too shabby. :)

[therhodes]

Voyager of the Seas Med Sept 8-15. The "crab" and mushroom ravioli had.......FAKE crab in it. Unbelievable!

 

Food is subjective, but honestly there was really nothing other than the beef (steak or prime rib and the desserts) that was terribly good. No lobster.....apparently they can't get "good" lobster in the Med (?????). It was suggested to us by the waiter and maitre'd to put a comment on the customer satisfaction survey, which we did.

 

This was the first time that I actually think the buffet had better food. Everything was presented well and the service was excellent, however the food itself just wasn't anything exceptional. Nothing special on either of the formal nights to distinguish it from any other night.

 

Unfortunately, it was very disappointing.

[Fogfog]

On our last cruise

Carnival Miracle 2006

 

One son had a truly terrible Beef Wellington--

He ordered it rare--it was way into well done and rare wasn't possible. Can't stand the smell of overcooked beef.

and

The other son had one terrible Lamb dinner--also terribly overdone though he asked for it rare..lamb is tough and has a bad smell overdone.

 

yuck--

 

On the other hand

the basil ice cream, and the black peppercorn ice cream served with desserts were awesome.

[cruisinbuddy]

It wasn't be, but DW. Soft shell crab. She didn't realize that you are supposed to eat the entire thing, shell and all.

[The Monocled Mutineer]

The line probably serve medium to well-done as they fear litigation(?).

[grumpycajun]

Fois gras creme brulee???:eek: You're kidding, right? Please tell me it didn't have the carmelized sugar on top!!

[Rirruto]

Reading this whole thread was very entertaining for some reason. I don't really have any horror stories to contribute though. I don't know if I've just been lucky or I'm just not a very picky eater but I don't think I've ever had a bad meal on a cruise before. Probably average at worse, but most of my meals have been good to great.

[cigal]

Our absolute worst was the cheesecake on Carnival Spirit. It was this weird tasteless jello-y jiggly thing. Really horrible !!

 

I was on the Inspiration a few years back - there were 8 of us travelling together so we all sat at the same table. We all ordered the cheesecake. It was nasty!! Kind of jello-y and warm:eek:. I thought they made it from that boxed cheesecake mix. After we all took one bite we unanimously agreed it was the worst. We put all 8 plates in the middle of the table, each with one bite of the cheesecake missing. Our waiter came by and said: "Didn't like the cheesecake, eh??" :D

We all ordered something else, and never again the cheesecake.

[CrystalWater]

Worst food I ever had on a cruie was Holland America's Noordam's steak and lobster. It was absolutely horrible!

[arcanium]

Carnival Conquest's chocolate buffet had something that I think was supposed to be funnel cake, all lacy and with powdered sugar on top. I said I think it was supposed to be funnel cake because it was inevitable. Neither teeth or flatware could break the thing. I'm not sure but I think I saw a few kids playing frisbee with them a few hours later.

 

I'm not certain if that qualifies as the worst food item I've tasted, since I didn't actually get to taste it, but that's my contribution. :D

[JHCALLAHAN]

Wow, lots of horror stories! I've only been on one cruise so far, but I don't remember having anything that was really terrible. One night the lettuce in the Caesar salad was really bitter, but the other 2 or 3 times I had it it was fine. The chateaubriand I had tasted like they'd soaked in in worcesthershire sauce a few days, really strong. Only time I've had it, so don't know if that's how it's supposed to be or not. I was a little disappointed the one time I got a pizza after hearing all the raves about it. It wasn't terrible, just a bit undercooked for my taste.

 

I guess the only really bad thing I got was the coffee. UGH! (But that's why I ALWAYS travel with my own little coffee maker and coffee ;) )

 

Sus amigo,

JHC

[smrn]

Only once have I gotten something that tasted bad to me and that was the Tiramisu on the Holiday. It was warm and soggy with a very sour taste to it. I love Tiramisu but this was inedible to me. Aside from that, I have never had a bad experience!

[rdsqrl]

The veggie burger on Princess. It inevitably arrives charred on the outside and still cold on the inside. It's more a liquid than a solid, as one bite will cause it to start oozing out of the bun. Visually, it's appalling -- a sort of muddy color with mysterious flecks of bright green and orange. And the taste is indescribable, a musty combination of damp cardboard and old parsley. Clearly a recipe developed by the Beef industry to prevent the spread of vegetarianism.

[broberts]

. . .

So...it was on Carnival Elation in 2003, and it was some sort of stuffed roasted squab. I don't know if it was actually the chef's fault or if squab (which is essentially a meatless pigeon, as far as I could tell) is just universally awful. I was an inexperienced cruiser at the time. Now I would just send it back and get something else and be pleased that I had gotten to try two different things on the menu.

. . .

 

Interesting. I had a stuffed squab on Elation, fall 2006 that was an incredible. What made the dish memorable were the stuffing and sauce.

 

Perhaps I've been fortunate, but I can't recall having anything that tasted awful. The complaints I usually have, (I rarely express them), are more about temperature. Occasionally I'm disappointed by the reality of a dish that was described magnificently on the menu. Desserts seem prone to this later problem.

 

I often listen to the waiter's recommendation, especially if they "politely" question a choice I'm making.

[CrossMyHeart]

Some kind of Mexican dish I ate during lunch on Carnival Miracle. This was in the dining room and not the buffet. It tasted like burnt spam. Something in that plate didn't agree with me :eek:

[CruizinChef]

On the Coral Princess last March, my wife tried the Chicken Pasta dish on the first day out of Fort Lauderdale. During the evening show, she started to feel a little uncomfortable and by the time we got back to the cabin (running down the hall!), she had a bad case of food poisoning. She was laid up for a day and a half - sick as a dog.

 

All of the other offerings on the menu were very well presented but lacked a lot of taste.

[cruisinggrammie]

Hi,:)

Everything we had on carnival-estasy was wonderful. I will make a coment on the make your on fajita though the meat and the vegis were all sauteed together and sprinkled with cheese with sour cream on top. My dd ordered this and this was not what she expected. She expected it to be in seperate piles of vegis sour cream, gaucamole and the meat to be on a sizziling plate and it wasn't. The flavor was tasty, it did not look apetizing though and she would not eat it she did taste it and said it was ok, she just couldn't get over the sight of it. That cruise was over a year ago and she still talks about it.

She also talks about the warm melting cake she just loved that dessert and had it every night, our waiter even on the one night they did not offer it, had it waiting special for her. He was such an awesome, wonderful waiter.

:) cruisinggrammie's daughter

[digital_curator]

I have been on 2 RCI cruises (Navigator and Explorer) and like many of the other posters, can't really think of anything horrible. I also haven't had a problem with over/undercooked items or food brought out when it was not hot, etc.

 

However, I have noticed a difference between ships. On the Navigator I thought the desserts were just o.k. Many of them seemed to have a heavy gelatin base (in the cheesecakes, mousses, etc.). Didn't find this with the same desserts on Explorer. Now, we had incredibly rough seas on that Navigator cruise and I wonder if they added gelatin as a stabalizer....

 

I have been pleasantly surprised at how well RCI handles meals for so many passengers and how quick to act the waiters are if they think you aren't enjoying something. Once I ordered an Asian noodle dish and my waiter seemed very hesitant to let me have it. It was good (not great) but he came back 3 times to make sure that it was o.k. or if he could bring me something else!

 

Cheers,

[Georgee]

Hi,

 

All the food we had on the Carnival Estasy was wonderful. That is the only cruise we have been on so far. I can hardly wait to taste all the wonderful food on our Christmas Cruise.

[MaryKateAshly]

On carnival I liked everything especially the warm chocolate melting cake. I did not like escargo. It was chewy and tasted like a balloon.

[Lainy67]

On Carnival Glory in June 2006 - Some sort of Lavender pie or mousse thing. OMG... spa lotion. I swear. We ordered one just to see what it was, because we could not imagine it. We passed it around the table of 10-12 people. Still some left at the end. We were laughing so hard that we were crying. We were all like - did they run out of ingredients and go to the spa for something? ICK. After that experience we never tried to order any interesting thing again - hence the basil ice cream was passed over.

[The Monocled Mutineer]

I make and enjoy eating these very much.

 

Basil, eg is a very sweet herb that is quite subtle in an ice cream.

 

I have had lavender and camomile custard at the Carved Angel (in the days before Burton-Race) when the incomparable Joyce Molyneaux was at the stoves there.

 

Aniseed flavour from melted "Pontefract Cakes" rippled into a homemade vanilla ice cream (vanilla initself being a herb/"spice") makes a subtle ice cream dish too.