Dissapointing Food on QM2

[pb82]

We have sailed both RCL and NCL and found their food to be the most disappointing, and at the bottom of our list of all cruise lines. Celebrity, Carnival...yes, Carnival..their food is very underrated, in our opinion..Princess, and HAL all surpass RCL and NCL by leaps and bounds. Princess and HAL are our favorites. We will sail QM2, our first Cunard, in June, in the Britannia, and if the food there is on par with RCL and NCL I am sure we are in for a great disappointment.

 

Please tell me it's not so! Can anyone that has experienced all or some of these lines share a comparison?

 

Thanks,

Judy

We don't have enough cruising decades left to waste even a year on comparative cruising. After four times on the QM2 we are hooked on that grand ship. But whatever line, whatever ship, if something displeases you, you must complain about it instanter (that means instantly, with a vengeance).

[Thames476]

:) :)

We have sailed both RCL and NCL and found their food to be the most disappointing, and at the bottom of our list of all cruise lines. Celebrity, Carnival...yes, Carnival..their food is very underrated, in our opinion..Princess, and HAL all surpass RCL and NCL by leaps and bounds. Princess and HAL are our favorites. We will sail QM2, our first Cunard, in June, in the Britannia, and if the food there is on par with RCL and NCL I am sure we are in for a great disappointment.

 

Please tell me it's not so! Can anyone that has experienced all or some of these lines share a comparison?

 

Thanks,

Judy

Have experienced all of the others except for HAL which I will be on this Nov. And I must say that the food in the Brittannia and Queens Grill was top notch!! You won't be dissappointed

[travel-to-go]

And just one other thing--it sounds rediculous, but I have never flown (except on my broom), so does H** go out of New York? I'm pretty sure that Princess does, but I'm not sure of how often? Perhaps I should try it once--maybe it's not too bad, fly, I mean.

 

Gail

 

Aw, Gail. You're too sweet to have flown a broom!

As stated,, the Noordam did go out of New York. We've done 3 HAL trips and were delighted with each, although we, and other passengers, did feel on the last one that Carnival's touch had made service slower, food less impressive and cabin service worse. Talking to our staff members (as we always do) we learned that Carnival had recently doubled the number of tables wait staff handled, and doubled the number of cabins each steward had to clean. First time we ever had our cabin cleaned in the afternoon when we were up and out early (and hung the door tag so they knew they could enter at will) We were about to book the Noordam maiden or one soon after when the QM2 past guest offer for the Jan '04 Panama 13 day came out. Have not looked back (yet!) But it depends on what comes up.

 

IMHO, the food on QM2 while good is not up to what it was on several Cunard ships in the 90s. OTOH, QE2 food recently was WAY below par, and service was often surly, rushed, and it was obvious they wanted you out of there so they could clean up and go to their cabin. They were often cleaning glasses and such in the station near us while we were still eating, Often neglected to bring butter, or even salt and pepper! We were missing a salt shaker the entire cruise. Would bring tea (When sweet and low was even specified) and not bring sugars and creamers to the table or with the drink. We were told the waiters often get testy at the end of the World Cruise (which we were) having "put up with" some less than sterling passengers for over 3 months. Well that wasn't us. Two couples at our table were on only for the crossing, and the other couple, who were delightful (as were our cc tablemates) had only been on since Sydney. Our QE2 wait staff got no additional tips (our cabin Stewardess couldn't have been better! Anna was a delight!) However, Rusty, our waiter on QM2 got extra, as did our Matire D' (Jamie) sommelier and assistant waiter. They were very special, and we were thrilled when our waitress from our previous trip came rushing over to our table to welcome us aboard. She was excited to see us back on board! How marvelous is that when your previous wait staff remembers you by name! Not the first time it has happened on QM2 or indeed, some of our Cunard trips in the 90's!

 

Well, that is not exactly true. I did fly once in a sea plane on and over a lake in Maine. It had four wings and was very bumpy, both in the air and when it landed. I couldn't even hear myself think. I believe it held four people. I was eighteen and it wasn't the most stellar experience in my life. So I guess I haven't exactly rushed to do it again.

 

Gail

 

Gail. I'd give my eye-tooth to have been in that plane! Marc tried to get me float plane lessons on Sebago a few years back, but the woman he took lessons from took her plane to Alaska for Bush flying in the sumer. Was just talking to a contractor from Sebago yesterday about various float plane owners around Sebago. Marc used to land a helicopter on the beach by their camps us there, and I have flown my plane into and out of Limington Harmon and up to Twitchell's north of Portland area.

 

Let me know next time you get a shot at a bi-plane float plane ride, and I'll go in your place! (But it's been a LONG time since I was eighteen <LOL>

 

Karie,

haven't been on cc in a while, but good to see a few old friends! we've got to get together soon, but it has been hell week at work this week! Stayed til 7 tonight bringing a new cell site on line for the new MGM Grand at Foxwood's grand opening- last minute thing- and last night, Colchester site was still down at 5:00 for work repairing wind damage to an antenna! Sorry I haven't called!

[The Real PM]

Hi Karie,

 

Yeah, that's what Sea----(can't remember the last part of his name said about H**. I might give it a try, if I can't find the right one from Cunard--but I'm not giving up hope yet.

 

Flying is just not for me--although everyone says that the big commercial ones are probably better than what I went on.

 

By the way, give up your eye teeth because I think that terrible plane still sits on Long Lake in Naples Maine.(at least it looks very much the same--maybe been painted). It just gives me the creeps just thinking I went up in a thing like that.

 

[The Real PM]

We don't have enough cruising decades left to waste even a year on comparative cruising. After four times on the QM2 we are hooked on that grand ship. But whatever line, whatever ship, if something displeases you, you must complain about it instanter (that means instantly, with a vengeance).

 

The food on the QM2 was very good--not excellent. I don't think you can complain about very good. It is a very subjective thought. Our table mates were quite thrilled with the food and more than likely you would have been thrilled as well, we just were not. There was nothing wrong with it. I guess I should put it this way--if a meal is not as good as what I cook at home, than it is not excellent. And it wasn't. My meals at home, most times are excellent and that is how I compare. I rarely go out to dinner anywhere and would rate the meal excellent--but I would never complain about food merely being very good--only if it were mediocre or worse and even then it is only my opinion.

 

 

 

And Karie--Upon second look at that plane, I think it doesn't have enough wings to have been the plane that I actually flew in--close, but no cigar!

 

And Karie-very nice to hear from you. Nice to seethat you're on the boards again.

[rrunner]

Can anyone elaborate as to how the quality went down ??

 

 

The food was great back in January. It's hard to believe that there would be such a drastic change in 5 months. :confused:

I agree with Vic the Parrot. We were also on QM2 in January - the food and service was excellent. There is a web site that details how much a cruise line spends for food on each passenger. Does anyone know how to find it.

[cacoethes]

My 2 cents - I agree w/ Vic - can you quantify what has gone bad??? If you can't measure it, you can't manage it.

 

 

Do you measure your emtions?

[pb82]

My 2 cents - I agree w/ Vic - can you quantify what has gone bad??? If you can't measure it, you can't manage it.

 

 

Do you measure your emtions?

We're not asking about emotions, we're asking about taste, texture, timeliness, temperature, toughness, and tender loving care.

[travel-to-go]

Hi Karie,

 

By the way, give up your eye teeth because I think that terrible plane still sits on Long Lake in Naples Maine.(at least it looks very much the same--maybe been painted). It just gives me the creeps just thinking I went up in a thing like that.

 

 

Hm, I might make it up to Long Lake if we go up to Sebago for Memorial day. I'm not sure if we will. It looks like I will have to work Monday night. We used to go up every year. Now that the "next generation" has taken over, I just can't be bothered. I can't sit on the beach and read a good book0 Kids tried to bury me in the sand last time I tried! (not quite enough sand for that, but they still tried! <LOL>) Just not relaxing enough for me!

 

But who knows. We might go up. Our camps are down on Harmon's Beach, But we have friends up in Naples or Bridgeton area.

 

Karie,

Not really here, but thought I would check in!

(And today was even worse! But got that site up and 911 fully tested and working for the grand opening!)

[We2Cruzers]

We were on our third QM2 cruise in March and I have to agree - my husband and I felt the food was far better when we went on our cruise aboard QM2 in 2005 and think it has declined noticeably. It's unfortunate. Still it's a beautiful ship and we enjoyed our cruise - but the food seemed on the whole just acceptable.

[gardenbunny]

Thanks Pb82 - that is what I meant. I'll be back on board May 22 and I'll report back - I didn't notice that much of a change from Jan 2005 to Feb 2006. But I shall be open minded - and I'm a tell it like it is person. If it seems a significant change, I"ll say so.

[PianoManNYC]

We're not asking about emotions, we're asking about taste, texture, timeliness, temperature, toughness, and tender loving care.

 

Feb 2008 4-night Britannia Club - lowest ratings on all measures of any cruise of mine, ever. Just my opinion after 101 days and 11 voyages on 3 lines. Note as well, that I dine out from time to time in New York City, and may have very particular tastes/standards. That said, many of my onboard experiences have been as good or better than in Manhattan restaurants. This is not meant to be another bash against QM2 food, but you were asking for specific measures on which it was found wanting, so there's my view. Lastly, the voyage mentioned was my first and only trip on QM2 so far, so I cannot say whether it was better, worse or the same as normal. I sincerely hope that it was the worst ever!

 

Oh, and complain we did, to a degree. Could not be bothered to request meetings with Food and Beverage manager, as some would have done...in the final minutes of the final meal (when hoped for tips might be coming) the waitstaff perked up and went all lovey-dovey. Well you can guess what they got from me.:eek:

[hansol1966]

Just returned from B2B transatlantic 16/5/08 and want to add my pennyworth. This was our third crossing but first back to back. We did not try Todd English this time as the Brittania meals were very good ,with great service in a very nice dining room. All dessert orders and coffee were taken after our main meals with the option of a combination of desserts if we wanted. My wife likes a nice amount of sauce with her main meal and when asked it was not a problem and served promptly. My only gripe was with 800 passengers on a back to back VOYAGE a lot of thethe menus or choices were repeated on the return journey.

Brittannia breakfast..excellent....had 6 days..slow one day

Brittannia lunch...excellent..had 4 days..good service

Brittannia dinner..excellent...had 10 nights...very good service

Lotus dinner...very good..had 1 night..excellent service..saw a whale out of the window on deck 7

Stateroom breakfast good but was very good when i learnt you could order lots of different items not on the card...more later.

Room service was good apart from the vegetable lasagne...ughhh.

Afternoon tea was fantastic with enthusiastic passengers dancing to the band...sandwiches..cakes..tea..superb...epitomises the experience on QM2

Fred&Sian

[gardenbunny]

Thanks Fred & Sian for a recent review - I would imagine a B2B might have some repeats - I've often wondered about that - but glad to hear your experience was favorable. Thanks for sharing.

[FranKes2000]

I thought the extra paid for Todd English was a waste of money, the meal was no better than was served in Brittania, the service was slow and the food was not as hot as I would have liked, the waiter disappeared after telling us to be careful, "the plates are hot", he was right, the plate was hotter than the food.

[AAAAmerican]

Food Opinions are so very subjective ..but on Ships and Trips you do have choice.

 

Thats really a great reason to rejoice..

 

Who was your Chef aboard? Did you explain your opinions of the food?

 

Did you discuss service with the Hot Man (Hotel Manager)?

 

 

The comment cards do have a lot of input for decisions on the corporate level in California where there HQ is.

 

This is vital as to express your opinion so as corrections may be made.

 

On another Carnival Line (CCL :NYSE CUK :LSE) HOLLAND AMERICAN LINE they have phenomenal Culinary Skills and Shows .. there Staff does have a distinct advantage of having Schools for Training in there craft trade in Indonesia and the Phillippines too.

 

 

So maybe the Other Carnival lines can learn as they have one of the Lowest Turnover Rates as well...

 

The English expression:: PROOF is in the PUDDING does apply so very nicely in that..eh..:cool:

 

PS: Wishing HAL (Holland American Line) was still having many Ship and Trips from NYC/NJ.... as well to Bermuda... ahhh theres always a dream as it used to be..e.h...

 

 

 

Just back from the April 28, 2008 crossing this year.

Our fourth crossing on QM2 since the beginning of the ship.

We were in the Britannia Restaurant, very spectacular as usual.

Service was OK, but they insisted that you order your dessert upfront, at the beginning of the meal. Why?

Sounds not much, but it turned out to be a bore as when dessert time comes, your mood and your appetite may have changed.

 

But the main problem we had was that, overall, the food was much less good than last year, and could only be only called "Mediocre", an opinion unfortunately shared by many repeat passengers on board.

 

Todd English was a big dissapointment with heavy food and huge portions, but we had been dissapointed by his restaurant in Las Vegas as well.

If you go for quantity you will be satisfied.

 

The Spa is wonderful, with great staff.

Shall we go back? I wonder as I was so dissapointed by the food this year.

[yorky]

I thought the extra paid for Todd English was a waste of money, the meal was no better than was served in Brittania, the service was slow and the food was not as hot as I would have liked, the waiter disappeared after telling us to be careful, "the plates are hot", he was right, the plate was hotter than the food.

 

Frankly I'm amazed at your comments because the food and service between the two on our cruise were on a different planet.

 

In Brittania we had one meal that arrived with no veg, one plate of cheese with no crackers, two salts and no pepper pots on two occasions and beef that turned out to be mostly grizzle, along with a low fat dessert that would have shamed McDonalds.

 

The Brittanis food and service was the worst we have had on any cruise and that includes Thomson cruises which I would rate as a three star cruise line.

 

If I cruised with Cunard again which I would love to do because in every other respect the QM2 is the best ship we have ever sailed on with wonderfull staff and actually very good food in all other areas , The golden lion, Carvery, Lotus, room service I would book Grill class or try the club option. Other than that if in Brittania class it would be a combination of the alternative dining options every night because it will never be Brittania dining again.

[cferro514]

I came back today from the Memorial Day Getaway. This was my first time on the QM2.

I found the food to be very good, but not excellent. I like HAL food better, in the dining room and the Lido buffet.

 

The breakfast service was slow. It did not speed up until the maître d' started seating the guest together for breakfast. This was on Monday the 26 th.

He stood outside the dining room at lunch, and told the guests the wait would be more than 30 minutes for a table. I went upstairs to the Kings court for lunch.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

:) It just could be that it all is a matter of taste--no pun intended. Both my husband and I agreed that the food on the QM2 was not excellent, but very good. However, in my experience on ships, I haven't found excellent food yet. Some of it was very, very good, but never excellent. Probably the best food was on the Brittanis, when she was an elderly--past her glory but quaintly charming ocean liner. She was a Greek ship then, and the Greeks seem to know about good food (I've heard that food on the Celebrity ships is excellent as well). Or maybe it just seemed excellent because I was quite young then, eating out was not on my high priority list, and I was not yet a bonafide excellent cook (I'm much better today).

 

I'm trying to come up with just why it is less than excellent to help Vic understand, and the only thing I can conclude is just what I said in the beginning--it comes down to taste--simple but true.

 

Gail

[The Real PM]

I came back today from the Memorial Day Getaway. This was my first time on the QM2.

I found the food to be very good, but not excellent. I like HAL food better, in the dining room and the Lido buffet.

 

The breakfast service was slow. It did not speed up until the maître d' started seating the guest together for breakfast. This was on Monday the 26 th.

He stood outside the dining room at lunch, and told the guests the wait would be more than 30 minutes for a table. I went upstairs to the Kings court for lunch.

 

I found a wonderful alternative for lunch--Sir Samuel's. It had very tasty and different types of sandwiches and quiches served in a very charming atmosphere. It was lovely.

[cferro514]

I liked Sir Samuel's. I would go there for a cup of tea, and found a nice cozy spot to read by a window.

 

I found a wonderful alternative for lunch--Sir Samuel's. It had very tasty and different types of sandwiches and quiches served in a very charming atmosphere. It was lovely.

[lannp]

I just returned from the ship. On the 26th the Britannia was overwhelmed by the numbers in the dining room for lunch. The King's Court was not as busy. Staff were pulled from the other dining venues to assist. I know because the Maitre'd from PG came down and bussed tables.

I've done 5 TAs and several longer cruises and there is a BIG problem in the dining room. They have not cut the numbers of waiters but the service can range from extremely poor to excellent. I experienced both. The kitchen is part of the problem. We waited 1/2 hr. one morning for the entree (eggs, etc.) and they were cold. The next morning the food came out promptly and it was hot.

I noticed a lot of the familiar waiters are gone (one of my favourites was promoted to QG and others have gone to QV). The sharpness to service is missing.

I still had a good time, but yes, Britannia is lacking.

[harbormaster]

We too were on the 5 day cruise. The food in Brittania at dinner was, in our opinion, very good, served hot and promptly. Our waiter did get orders mixed up and served the wrong appetizer twice. But, he was working extremely hard (sweating profusely) and non-stop.

We had two problems. One problem was definitely at breakfast. We eat early in the morning, so the restaurant was not full. The breakfast Maitre'd (I won't name him here) was extremely rude to us and others around us. We were traveling with my elderly parents. There were many empty tables at breakfast on the lower level, but he insisted that we take a table on the upper level, requiring my arthritic parents to climb the stairs or go out and take the elevator. When we protested, he said that was our table and we had to sit there. Another morning we waited for 25 minutes just to get juice and to order. And when we finally received food, our plates were snatched from us before we were finished. This precipitous clearing of plates happened almost every day. We had to fight to keep them on the table. This happened in Brittania, Kings Court,and the Golden Lion pub. We never were dawdling, we were aware of the need to vacate tables for the next seating, but it really got to be ridiculous. Additional training would help here.

The second problem was that my mother is allergic to a certain vegetable which seemed to accompany every entree. Every evening she would ask that it not be put on her plate. Every evening the plate came with the vegetable. The assistant waiter said, "just brush it aside." If someone has an allergy, this can be a serious problem. We had notified Cunard of the allergy, but apparently it never was attended to.

Todd English was very good on the other hand, and the service was marvelous.

I understand that to serve the number of people on the QM2 requires a huge effort and I know how hard most of the staff works. But I do think a bit more attention to detail and some training would help.

[wepar59]

I was on the May 22 5 day cruise. I don't know about Britania but the Queens Grill was outstanding. Great service great food.

[picruiser]

We were also on the 5 day cruise over Memorial Day Weekend. We dined in the Britannia Restaurant. I've been on most other cruise lines and I must say that this was NOT the best food or service that I've had. Our waiter was overworked, as he was the only one servicing our table. Portions were small on some plates and overflowing on others. Not as big a selection as on other cruise lines. Our table mates joked that we can all meet again, later, at he 24 hour food court, which we did!! Even I went to look for something to eat and I never eat after dinner!! I don't think this will keep us from sailing Cunard again, but I'll look to the alternative restaurants next time.

[smoothdancer]

We had the exact same service issues on our short cruise last year. It does take away from the overall cruise experience, still we have just booked another cruise on the QM2.

 

Why, knowing service has not changed? When we think back on the overall experience, the ship, the ballroom, the lounges, we did have a nice enough time to go back for a longer cruise. This time we are a bit wiser knowing in advance of the dining room issues so not to be disappointed and will look at alternative dining options so we do not become fustrated.On our short cruise we could not get a reservation in Todd English, this time I will be sure to book early. Now if I could just figure out how many formal nights there are on a 8 day cruise.