My OPINION of RCCL Serenade of the Seas 10/30 - 11/6

[xpcdoojk]

Barbara, I am glad you got that off your chest!:D :p You make some excellent points, but to me I don't care if SB is a snob or not. I do think it is funny that the windjammer and Chops get the exact same scoring of 5. That is too funny, obviously you read her comments in more detail than I did as the implication that the quality is the same in the two places is pretty laughable. You will have to forgive Stretch he is a snob in training and he can't help himself, I expect him to join in some crusade with some of our crusading friends at any moment. You will have to forgive him a little because he was hung over from a gourmet wine tasting the night before, and the nasty tiger came out instead of the cruise buzz tiger! :D :p


jc

[stretch]

[quote name='abridalmaven']Sorry, but that statement is the one that urks me. What nerve. I live in NY and no offense to most of you who think you know Gourmet is, but most of you do NOT, unless you live here. And yes, I am a snob, but alas, not rich. I am over educated and can match wits with the best of you, but would not waste my time on some. But I have eaten in the best and worst restaurants and have a fairly refined palate. But I can and do eat at Arby's and the rest once in awhile for convenience, not a gourmet experience. And what is gourmet to some is slop to others.That statement is an insult, and no one can convince me it is not. And to say they expected gourmet food when you sail on less than Seabourne et al. is a downright lame excuse. No one who portrays themselves as sophisticated is that niave! I do not understand how you can confuse RCI with the upscale lines.
Not all of us can eat gourmet every day to say things like that is a rude thing, no matter the intention. And in my opinion the whole diatribe was meant to impress us, and also put us down if we even dared to like the food we had on RCI. I once ate in a upscale uptown restaurant and the portions were so small, we had to buy snacks before we say a play or we would not have made it through the entire show. I have lots of food experiences on all ends of the spectrum, and living in NY can and do have access to all types of cuisine.
And as for Celebrity, my son and his bride sailed with them and hated the food and the boring ship! So everything is subjective. And again the tone ,more than most of the content was the part that urked most of us.

And while my pals may think I am beating a dead horse.... some of us actually are busy and only get to this board infrequently:p[/QUOTE]
[img]http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/10/10_9_140.gif[/img][img]http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/16/16_3_164.gif[/img]

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[Riviera Deck Randy]

Tahoebob; We are dinks and love Royal Caribbean, but being our past is littered with Carnival and NCL I guess RCI is high end to us. But our next stop after Voyager of the Seas is Princess is that moves us up the high end ladder any. I dont know maybe we are slipping backwards.

[brn2crz]

[quote name='stretch'][img]http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/10/10_9_140.gif[/img][img]http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/16/16_3_164.gif[/img]

[i][font=Comic Sans MS][size=5][color=darkred]Stretch[/color][/size][/font][/i]
[/QUOTE]

[img]http://pages.prodigy.net/indianahawkeye/newpage32/5.gif[/img]

I think this is what you are saying..

By the way...Barbara now speaks for me :D

[Folgy]

LMBO :p

[cwallen]

[quote name='abridalmaven']Sorry, but that statement is the one that urks me. What nerve. I live in NY and no offense to most of you who think you know Gourmet is, but most of you do NOT, unless you live here. And yes, I am a snob, but alas, not rich. I am over educated and can match wits with the best of you, but would not waste my time on some. But I have eaten in the best and worst restaurants and have a fairly refined palate. But I can and do eat at Arby's and the rest once in awhile for convenience, not a gourmet experience. And what is gourmet to some is slop to others.That statement is an insult, and no one can convince me it is not. And to say they expected gourmet food when you sail on less than Seabourne et al. is a downright lame excuse. No one who portrays themselves as sophisticated is that niave! I do not understand how you can confuse RCI with the upscale lines.
Not all of us can eat gourmet every day to say things like that is a rude thing, no matter the intention. And in my opinion the whole diatribe was meant to impress us, and also put us down if we even dared to like the food we had on RCI. I once ate in a upscale uptown restaurant and the portions were so small, we had to buy snacks before we say a play or we would not have made it through the entire show. I have lots of food experiences on all ends of the spectrum, and living in NY can and do have access to all types of cuisine.
And as for Celebrity, my son and his bride sailed with them and hated the food and the boring ship! So everything is subjective. And again the tone ,more than most of the content was the part that urked most of us.

And while my pals may think I am beating a dead horse.... some of us actually are busy and only get to this board infrequently:p[/QUOTE]

Get a life! Geez all we asked for was someones honest opinion and now we are into what part of the country you come from and the rest of US can't possibly know gourmet food unless we live there! Who is out of control now!!!

[Smiles]

[quote name='abridalmaven']I live in NY and no offense to most of you who think you know Gourmet (sic) is, but most of you do NOT, unless you live here.[/QUOTE]

Sorry, but that statement is the one that urks (sic) me!! Guess what, folks outside of NY know what gourmet is too! And to the contrary of your assertion, there is some merit in the phrase "what is gourmet to some is slop to others." I KNOW this because on date night (the 3rd Wednesday of the month--for the past 15 years) my hubby will often say to me: "I don't care what restaurant you pick, but please, no tablecloth tonight--I just want to enjoy the dinner." Now my hubby would never confuse Olive Garden with Olive's, but his preference is for the former (most of times--but that might have to do with his preference for not wearing a tie after 8). Enjoying good dinning, at times, has little to do with the money one has to spend, but more to do with satisfying the appetite and all that it encompasses.

In any event, I said all that to say this: when someone explains--in complete detail exactly what s/he meant--YOU are not empowered to tell them they did not mean so. So what you interpreted it differently. So what you were insulted. The OP explained what she meant. If you don't like it, again, so what? You have agreed that you were the snob in this posting, so leave the OP and her heartfelt opinion out of your anger.

P.S. I would match wits with you at anytime. But then again, I don't fight with those who are obviously unarmed.

[stretch]

[quote name='brn2crz'][img]http://pages.prodigy.net/indianahawkeye/newpage32/5.gif[/img]

I think this is what you are saying..

By the way...Barbara now speaks for me :D[/QUOTE]

[font=Comic Sans MS][size=4][color=darkred]That's exactly the one I wanted but couldn't find it.[/color][/size][/font]
:(
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[brn2crz]

[quote name='Smiles']Sorry, but that statement is the one that urks (sic) me!! Guess what, folks outside of NY know what gourmet is too! And to the contrary of your assertion, there is some merit in the phrase "what is gourmet to some is slop to others." I KNOW this because on date night (the 3rd Wednesday of the month--for the past 15 years) my hubby will often say to me: "I don't care what restaurant you pick, but please, no tablecloth tonight--I just want to enjoy the dinner." Now my hubby would never confuse Olive Garden with Olive's, but his preference is for the former (most of times--but that might have to do with his preference for not wearing a tie after 8). Enjoying good dinning, at times, has little to do with the money one has to spend, but more to do with satisfying the appetite and all that it encompasses.

In any event, I said all that to say this: when someone explains--in complete detail exactly what s/he meant--YOU are not empowered to tell them they did not mean so. So what you interpreted it differently. So what you were insulted. The OP explained what she meant. If you don't like it, again, so what? You have agreed that you were the snob in this posting, so leave the OP and her heartfelt opinion out of your anger.

P.S. I would match wits with you at anytime. But then again, I don't fight with those who are obviously unarmed.[/QUOTE]

as the most infamous board member I know would say...

Pot>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>meet black!

[stretch]

[quote name='cwallen']Get a life! Geez all we asked for was someones honest opinion and now we are into what part of the country you come from and the rest of US can't possibly know gourmet food unless we live there! Who is out of control now!!![/QUOTE]
[i][font=Comic Sans MS][size=4][color=darkred]Yeppers![/color][/size][/font][/i]
[i][font=Comic Sans MS][size=4][color=#8b0000]Us dumb rednecks [img]http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/15/15_8_201.gif[/img] think that possum belly, grits and greens is [/color][/size][/font][/i][i][font=Comic Sans MS][size=4][color=#8b0000]gourmet (correctly pronounced "gore-mett).. but only if served with a Pinot Noir (pronounced "peanut-no-ear")[/color][/size][/font][/i]
[i][font=Comic Sans MS][size=4][color=#8b0000]DUH![/color][/size][/font][/i]
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[Smiles]

if you can't run with the Big dogs, keep your puppy ass on the porch!

P.S. All hat and no cattle has no place here.

[xpcdoojk]

Ooooh, Cathy, I bet you feel well placed!:D I am thinking of a color. Sorry!:D

your puppy a**? :D Who was that infamous poster anyway?;)

jc

[cwallen]

This RCL board is way more fun than the Celebrity Board! When I needed info for my cruise with Celebrity all I got were boring (but honest) opinions and observations. On this board I get all of that PLUS name calling, outrage, and even some good humor. I think I'll stay awhile.....

[Riviera Deck Randy]

ARBYS ISNT GOURMET, no wonder everone gigles when I walk in there wearing my tuxedo. I am so confused now.

[Ocean Boy]

Obviously, you are on of "those" who has to wear a tux even when it isn't formal night.

[stretch]

[quote name='Smiles']if you can't run with the Big dogs, keep your puppy ass on the porch!

P.S. All hat and no cattle has no place here.[/QUOTE]

[i][font=Comic Sans MS][size=4][color=darkred]Me thinks someone found a little something extra in their corn flakes this morning! [img]http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/10/10_2_7.gif[/img][/color][/size][/font][/i]
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[quote name='Riviera Deck Randy']ARBYS ISNT GOURMET, no wonder everone gigles when I walk in there wearing my tuxedo. I am so confused now.[/QUOTE]

[i][font=Comic Sans MS][size=4][color=darkred]That's strange, I've never felt out of place wearing a tux to Waffle House! :D [/color][/size][/font][/i]
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[Riviera Deck Randy]

ah but the Waffle house that is definately gourmet, I mean look at what they can do to hashbrowns.

[brn2crz]

[quote name='xpcdoojk']Ooooh, Cathy, I bet you feel well placed!:D I am thinking of a color. Sorry!:D

your puppy a**? :D Who was that infamous poster anyway?;)

jc[/QUOTE]
Well..I supposed I [b][i]should [/i][/b]feel something....Perhaps if I actually understood what was being "hurled" at me :cool:

Stretch,I think its more of the reality of the reflection in the pot!

[CGTNORMANDIE]

I AM CONFUSED!!! Sunnybunny writes about her cruise and everyone here goes nuts with all these different reactions.

Since when does one get onboard an RCI vessel expecting "gourmet treatment"??? Each ship is a little different in most respects and each cruise is different in some respects. RCI has never been known as an upscale cruiseline...that does not mean it is bad.

I am very experienced with "gourmet"...when I was young I worked my way through college in various restaurants but my best experiences were apprenticing under Anthony Degalus who was Head Chef for the Biltmore Hotel chain. I also worked for Yves Mennes for 2 years at the Boston Ritz Carlton. Yves is probably one of the greatest chefs in the United States...I think he was at the New York Yacht Club a few years ago...as he was awarded one of the highest culinary honors (I have forgotten the name of the award) by Julia Child and others. Yada yada yada...

We just returned from an RCI cruise...JEWEL OF THE SEAS...and we had an absolute blast. We have cruised for many years and have enjoyed many upscale "gourmet" experiences onboard different ships. We never once thought that of our voyage on THE JEWEL OF THE SEAS would be a "gourmet" cruise experience. Our expectations were that the food would be good and wholesome.

Yes...we would wade through the combinations of Chinese, American, almost-Italian and who knows whatall in the Windjammer. The combinations were interesting, to say the least, but we did not starve. We really enjoyed the Indian curries and seafood Paellas. Sometimes they ran out of the featured roast of the day and would substitute something completely different...different but interesting...and not bad. If you ever have a chance to see various ocean liner menus from the 20th. Century you will see these same types of combinations offered. These are the traditions at sea.

We had 3 nights in the dining room where the food actually rose above the usual fare and these nights were most enjoyable. Our experiences in Portofino and Chops were excellent. The service and the food were well above average.

Portofino's was very nicely done. We were a party of 8 and had an 8:30 PM reservation...We were not seated until 9:20 PM (they had taken in more diners than they should have at 7:00 PM). The Maitre d' was so apologetic and nice for this calamity that he gave us complimentary wine and had a special dessert made for our table. The food was outstanding...a definite 8.5 out of 10.

My points are these: Don't expect a "gourmet" experience on RCI. Every cruise is different and every ship is different. Sometimes when there is a crew change you get less than excellent food and service...these things happen.

We were fortunate enough to have had an excellent waiter, assistant waiter and Table Captain. We knew before we went onboard that the food would not be as good as (Yes...we have had some excellent CELEBRITY experiences) other cruises but we still managed to find some gems amongst the usual. The bread and rolls were very good and were better than many other ships in recent memory. The lobster tails were hardshells from Maine and Canada...outstanding!!! I also had one of the best pieces of prime rib I have eaten in many years. All of these came as very pleasant surprises.

Our cruise on the JEWEL was fantastic...for many reasons. The food was "good" but we had no expectations that it would be upscale or "gourmet".

ROSS

[brn2crz]

Ah see Ross...I knew someone would bring us back to reality.(has anyone noticed that we go nuts on Fridays:D )
Your comments are exactly why everyone has gone nuts....Because they are absolutly correct.Does RCI have some food issues that need addressed..obviously.Does any of us (well obviously one does ) have the expectations of (gourmet seems to be the word of choice today) gourmet dining in the [b][i][u]WINDJAMMER ! [/u][/i][/b]..
Its so funny how these threads just perpetuate themselves.Someone posts an opinion..some disagree,some more adamently than others...these are then corrected by someone else...telling them they have no right to state their opinion,and they are wrong...and should not be telling someone that they are wrong...,and that their opinion is wrong...And then they are challenged on their opinion..and then they start hurling insults..

Oh well...ain't this fun...

[baseballmom]

Thank you for the very informative review. I hope our experience on Serenade next June will be as nice as your cruise on Jewel.

And, good, bad, or indifferent, this thread has been highly entertaining and kept me amused all week! For that, I thank ALL of you!:D

Laurie

[wallie5446]

Ross & b2c,

Exactelllllllyyyyyyyyy ! Them that dont know come here to ask them that do.
Yet there are still some that wont listen. To much to do about nothing.

EW

[Smiles]

[quote name='brn2crz']Well..I supposed I [b][i]should [/i][/b]feel something....Perhaps if I actually understood what was being "hurled" at me[/QUOTE]

My sentiments exactly! I defend someone's right to post their opinion--someone who further explains their opinion so that there is no mistaking that she was not casting aspertions--and you come along and sling sh*t at me, for what reason I cannot begin to understand. But I do know that I don't like sh*t slung at me, by ignorant folks no less. And I thought I'd let you know that I don't like it either.

So I hope that my explaination has cleared up your misunderstanding. I still dont get why you choose to get into a battle that was not yours. But I'm not from Texas. Perhaps you can break it down for me?

[cwallen]

[quote name='Smiles']My sentiments exactly! I defend someone's right to post their opinion--someone who further explains their opinion so that there is no mistaking that she was not casting aspertions--and you come along and sling sh*t at me, for what reason I cannot begin to understand. But I do know that I don't like sh*t slung at me, by ignorant folks no less. And I thought I'd let you know that I don't like it either.

So I hope that my explaination has cleared up your misunderstanding. I still dont get why you choose to get into a battle that was not yours. But I'm not from Texas. Perhaps you can break it down for me?[/QUOTE]

Relax, the Red Sox won, your anger is unwarrented...