Food Quality

[k2]

Our first cruise was 5 years ago... I feel that the overall quality of the food has decreased signigicantly. Yes there was still lobster and prime rib, but I was also served the frozen stuffed chopped chicken breast that you buy in the grocery store for $1 a piece for dinner!!!! Are you kidding me? I was also served frozen undercooked ravioli in the dining room. Don't even get me started on the new offerings at the lunch buffet.. Let's just safice it to say that I do not want to see fast food for a very long time... That is my opinion... what is yours???

[stbmom]

Hopefully there will be much improvement on our cruise next week. However, there has been a big decline since I first started cruising in 1997. On my last cruise (Carnival) they actually over cooked the lobster - a waste of a perfectly good lobster tail. I am also offended by the fact that they now want to charge an additional $20 - $25 per person to enjoy are really good meal in the speciality resturants.

You don't have to use the most expensive ingrediants if you cook the food right. There has definitely been a change. Like I said, hopefully I will be pleasantly surprised next week.

[BethCarp]

I've only been on the Radiance and the Majesty. Last summer on the Radiance the food was excellent. This past weekend on the Majesty, the food was OK. I had a beef tenderloin one night that was very good. The next night I had a NY strip steak that wasn't very good. But, I have no complaints. I didn't have to cook it and I didn't have to clean up!

[skiiergirl]

Yes, the foood quality has decreased in the last few years. BUT so have the prices. We are paying about 30% (or so) less than we were 4 years ago. I would be willing to pay higher fare for better food. What about you?

[hstrybuf]

We sailed on the Enchantment two years ago and more recently on the Navigator. I had absolutely NO problems with the food either time. While I had heard about the decline in quality, the only thing I found on the Navigator was scrambled eggs that were a tad too runny. I still ate them.

[Honey's Gal]

I have to say that I think the food quality is fine. Yes, they have changed the menus and offerings, they portions may be smaller, but I think that is due to waste. Many people see so much, order so much and then do not do more than taste. The rest is waste. If you want more, order it. You can't possibly starve.

 

On the Serenade in October, I had the steak, I had chicken and many other things and it was very good. None of us had any complaints. I love to cook and am considered a very good cook to those who are quests at my table. I am not a connoisuer, however I certainly know good from bad.

 

We have never had anyone say no to us when we have asked for something other than what was on the menu. We have been told, "if we can get it you can have it". And we got it.

[TonyaJune]

Just returned from the Jewel and the food in the dining room was very good! I had the best shrimp scampi that I've ever tasted and the lobster tail was cooked perfectly. My husband had 3.:D In fact 2 of the dinners that were served in the dining room were more enjoyable than the meal we paid for at Portofino's.

[Ceemore]

"Our first cruise was 5 years ago... I feel that the overall quality of the food has decreased signigicantly. Yes there was still lobster and prime rib, but I was also served the frozen stuffed chopped chicken breast that you buy in the grocery store for $1 a piece for dinner!!!! Are you kidding me? I was also served frozen undercooked ravioli in the dining room. Don't even get me started on the new offerings at the lunch buffet.. Let's just safice it to say that I do not want to see fast food for a very long time... That is my opinion... what is yours???"

 

And I bet you ate 3 helpings of everything!

[davidaperryman]

I have only been sailing for a couple of years but I think the food is fine. Some days/nights I may only find one item on the main course that I like. Some nights I order two items that look good. I have found that after the second day I have eaten so much that for lunch I only have soup and salad. The breakfasts are always great.

[HorrorFan]

I've only cruised once, but we all thought the food was great. We didn't have any complaints at all.

[silverhuntress]

I understand that they are trying new menus with upgraded food on Navigator of the Seas. Hopefully they will go fleetwide soon. I've heard great things so far from passengers.

[Tmmull]

Six cruises in two and a half years, the food has been very good to excellent on every one! :)

[Badlands99]

This might be slightly off topic, but it might help some folks so...

 

Although we've only cruised once, I learned after only a couple of days to pay attention to what the waiter recommends. As it was explained to me, the wait staff samples each of the entrees every night. Our waiter would make a recommendation every night of what was good and what was not so good. The one time I ignored his warning, I found out that he knew of what he spoke. Not that anything I had was bad, but by sharing a little food around the table, we found out that he was right on the money.

 

Best regards,

Michael

[Ceemore]

I do not pay a lot of atension to people complaining about the food because they usualy have stuffed themselves before complaining. Most food complainers are overweight as it is.

[milt]

Cruise ship kitchens serves thousands of meals everyday. You are bound to be disappointed one in a while. It is impossible to compare dining aboard a mega ship with a small restaurant that can dote on a few meals at a time. I have been on at least 10 cruises and am always amazed at how the kitchen can produce so many really good meals at each seating. Let's face it; if you go back to your favorite restaurant too often you will probably get a bad meal eventually. Ships often get food supplies at the various ports on their itinerary.

But most important I have found that if you are selective in what you order, use good judgment and talk to your waiter (who you know would like to please you) for recommendations you will have a decent dining experience.

It is true that the specialty restaurants have eroded the level of menu offerings.

[reggierail]

Cruise ship kitchens serves thousands of meals everyday.

 

Ships often get food supplies at the various ports on their itinerary.

 

Cruise ships have been turning out thousands of meals for a very long time.

One of my favorite dining room overall experiences was on the Voyager. At the time it was the largest cruise ship in the world and cranked out about ten thousand meals per day.

 

Ships are fully provisioned for the entire cruise at the port of embarkation, they do not pick up food at ports on the itinerary.

 

Reggie:D

[k2]

Yes, the foood quality has decreased in the last few years. BUT so have the prices. We are paying about 30% (or so) less than we were 4 years ago. I would be willing to pay higher fare for better food. What about you?

I agree... It is not a question of quantity for me... I could never finish one meal in the dining room. I would however be willing to pay the prices of 5 yrs ago to get the return in quality.

[bpear1600]

The food is fine with us. We're fitness buffs who don't see cruising as a reason to be gluttons nor do we try to eat everything in sight "to get our money's worth".

 

Our first RCI/RCCL cruise was on the Song of Norway in 1981 and we didn't think the food was anything to write home about but it was perfectly acceptable, as it was on subsequent Song of America and Sovereign cruises in the 80's and early 90's. After we moved south we took a break from cruising altogether until a few years ago when we joined family and friends on the Sovereign for a short cruise out of Miami. Although we had plenty to eat we did think the food on that ship was sub-par with few exceptions. The food on the Mariner last January was perfectly acceptable although 2-3 hour evening meals tried our patience.

 

Has the food gotten worse? I don't really know. In our 25 years of cruising on what are now considered mass market lines, we have always felt the DR food was banquet quality at best. Maybe the menu has shrunk but the food on the Mariner in 2004 was every bit as good as that on the Song of Norway in 1981.

 

Honestly, the DR food on the Norwegian Majesty, a ship we'd never go on again, was superior to any we've ever had on any RCI/RCCL ship.

[bUU]

The food is fine with us. We're fitness buffs who don't see cruising as a reason to be gluttons nor do we try to eat everything in sight "to get our money's worth".

Amen! I figure that the food is rather incredibly good, given only $10 per day of my cruise fare goes towards it!

 

And I'd rather they not increase that amount to make the food any better than is -- the last thing I need is a little more incentive to rejoin the World of Obesity.

[cruising lady]

I have sailed many times on both Princess and RCCL. Last year I sailed on Serenade and was not happy with the dinners in the main dining room, I feel the quality of the food has fallen they had a steak they called a ranch steak which I feel could be the worst cut of steak there is. I enjoy eating but am not a person who over eats, just likes every day food. I am sailing on the Empress in Feb. and hope there food is what I am used to having on other RCCL ships in the past. If not this may be the last time I sail on RCCL. I always felt RCCL had better food then Princess but now I am not so sure.

[seattlelover]

I do not pay a lot of atension to people complaining about the food because they usualy have stuffed themselves before complaining. Most food complainers are overweight as it is.

And what exactly has being overweight got to do with complaining? I can't see the connection. Just because somebody is overweight doesn't mean they complain about everything.

[hstrybuf]

Well, let me see. I'm slightly overweight, I don't stuff myself before or during dinner and I have few if any complaints when I'm on a ship. Guess I don't fit the mold. :rolleyes: Have to agree with seattlelover on this one.

[Tatka]

I sailed on Splendour after sailing on Century (Celebrity) and wasn't really impressed with the food. Same dishes tasted differently. There were very good nights too. I also noticed that the worst dinners were the first and the last and the best were in the middle. I absolutely loved everything else about that ship...so don't think I am some kind of complainer.;)

[savva0122]

It would be fair to assume that the cost per passenger for food has decreased in the past 5 years. However having done 7 cruises now it is becoming apparant that the quality of the fod varies ship to ship, probably depending on the galley team.

 

The food on our recent BOS was probably as good as any we'd been on though on EOS last year it was probably weaker.

 

Generally the food is still good quality

 

PS Like the previous poster I thought the food on Splendour was no great shakes in June (although the service was exceptional)

[CoBob]

On both our RCI cruises the food has been excellent. There are going to be certain items that for some reason don't get out to your table the right way and even a few that are just not designed properly. Out of all the food we ate in the dining room on the Navigator only one of them wasn't "great". We have been on Carnival 3 times and the food had gottern worse with each cruise until finally on our last one just about everything we ate was no better than average. Really disappointed. HAL (twice) the food was great and I would rank it up there with RCI. Surprisingly our cruise on the Norwegian Dawn was our least favorite culinary experience. I say surprisingly because I was a Chef on the SS Norway back in the early 80's and always regarded their food as great. RCI has also earmarked more money for food upgrades since the beginning of 04. We have been so happy that we have decided to go back next thanksgiving.