Celebrity DINE AWARE Program for People with Allergies and Food Sensitivities

Princess is the best cruise line for dietary needs that we have travelled with - with proper dessert! Their vegan desserts were suitable for coeliacs, egg- and dairy-allergy passengers (apple pie, cobblers etc)

I disagree.

You have to be very alert and careful on all cruise ships.

Azamara, Celebrity and Princess have all catered well for me, serving me Lactose Free deserts, but on the next to last night on Crown Princess in May 2017, I was served a Specially made desert, which had Ice Cream on it ( I am Lactose Intolerant)

This was down to the assistant waiter not being sufficiently vigilant and bringing the incorrect desert.

I also had to specifically request a baked potato on Princess, i.e. If I choose Lamb they would leave off the sautéed potatoes, but not replace them.

I far prefer the menus that are symbol related on Celebrity, so I can choose an entire meal, which is not a general meal. 'Which we will adapt for you.'( Princess)

 

I far prefer the menus that are symbol related on Celebrity, so I can choose an entire meal, which is not a general meal. 'Which we will adapt for you.'( Princess)

Unfortunately you cannot rely on the symbols on Celebrity's menus. For instance, we realised last year that they had dishes marked with a V that contained non vegetarian cheese with animal rennet in it. Months of emails back and forth with the UK Managing Director led to a meeting when we boarded the Eclipse in June.

They had changed all of the vegetarian menu in the MDR to remove any non vegetarian cheese fleetwide but the main MDR menu still had Vs against dishes that had cheese with meat extract in it though they were working to change this.

Whilst their changes were positive, they are still telling customers that their MDR dishes are vegetarian when they are not as they contain cheese made with animal rennet It's disappointing as we thought their dine aware program would tidy this up.

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I have Celiac disease, and I sailed on the Summit a few years ago, before the "Dine Aware" program, and they took very good care of me. They showed me the dedicated food allergy kitchen, and walked me through the buffet area. They even made me my very own chocolate cake. All I had to do was ask for a piece, and they brought it to me. On the last night, they brought the last third of the cake to the table for dessert. =) That being said, cross contamination does sometimes happen, so I always make sure to take care of myself. Ultimately, it is my responsibility to make sure whatever I consume is safe.

I sail on Reflection in a few months, and I have contacted the special needs dept. I will talk to the Maitre D, and I have assigned dining so I will have the same dining staff every night. They will know that being gluten free in not a "Trendy Choice" for me. So I am cautiously optimistic but I will be prepared for whatever happens, and the Dine Aware program will help. :)

We just got off Solstice last Friday. My son is highly allergic to all nuts. I didn't know there was a specific "Dine Aware" program, if there was such a thing, they never advertised it as such while we were aboard. Some months before our cruise, I filled out the special needs survey and sent it in online. After that, we did the same thing we have done on every cruise. Met with Maitre D in the main dining room on the first day, and then from that point on, pre-ordered food for the next night at each night's dinner.

I fully understand the concerns about the buffet, but my son has always been able to eat in the buffet for breakfast and lunch, no matter what the cruise line. It's all about being vigilant. You need to find a chef or maitre D who will walk you around and explain to you what to avoid. And if cross contamination is an issue, we found that chefs were more than happy to get us something from the back. One day my son really wanted some of those little donuts, which are perfectly safe for him. But we were a little concerned about the proximity of the cake with the pistachio crumble right next to them. The maitre D went to the back and came back with a plate of little donuts.

I think that cruise lines are happy to take care of you, you just need to be patient and explain clearly what your needs are. And don't just blindly expect them to take care of you or blame them for not taking care of you. It's your life (or your kid's life) so it's up to you to take precautions. Nut allergies are fairly common so I think most waiters and chefs are aware of how to handle them. I guess we are "lucky" in that respect. For things that are less common... for example, the post above talking about animal rennet in cheese. Sorry, but I don't even know what that means. I think a waiter who doesn't know what "animal rennet" in cheese is probably wouldn't even have the slightest clue as to how to determine if the particular cheese they were serving contains "animal rennet". So in that situation... I would say you have to be responsible for yourself and just avoid cheese (assuming that it's the result of some kind of allergy and not simply a vegetarian preference).

Regarding the hand scooped ice cream... I don't think it's realistic to expect them to get a new scooper every time an allergic guest wants ice cream. Even then, I wouldn't trust that none of the butter pecan or peanut butter or any other nut-containing ice cream didn't drip into the non-nut ice cream. On land, when we go for ice cream, the servers are more than happy to go to the back and open a new container and use a fresh scoop. But I just don't think it's practical on a cruise ship. However... the soft serve is perfectly safe, especially since on Celebrity the workers do it for you. My son had soft serve strawberry whenever he could. Delicious.

I have Celiac disease, and I sailed on the Summit a few years ago, before the "Dine Aware" program, and they took very good care of me. They showed me the dedicated food allergy kitchen, and walked me through the buffet area. They even made me my very own chocolate cake. All I had to do was ask for a piece, and they brought it to me. On the last night, they brought the last third of the cake to the table for dessert. =) That being said, cross contamination does sometimes happen, so I always make sure to take care of myself. Ultimately, it is my responsibility to make sure whatever I consume is safe.

I sail on Reflection in a few months, and I have contacted the special needs dept. I will talk to the Maitre D, and I have assigned dining so I will have the same dining staff every night. They will know that being gluten free in not a "Trendy Choice" for me. So I am cautiously optimistic but I will be prepared for whatever happens, and the Dine Aware program will help. :)

I hope you'll post here about your Reflection cruise!

You make an interesting point about being ultimately responsible for yourself. I agree with you. I had an experience on the Summit in 2016, and I take much of the responsibility for it.

Note: The following is meant to talk only about those times when there MIGHT be the risk of cross contamination or when someone is not 100% sure if a food item will be safe. Okay, here goes:

On the oversized menu posted outside of the main dining room, Pad Thai was listed as being gluten-free.

Pad Thai is a dish that is often available gf, as you probably know, so I was excited to see it offered.

However, on the actual dining room menu, the gf symbol did not appear. I asked my server to check to see if the dish was indeed gf. He checked, and his answer was, "If it is labeled gluten-free, it is gluten-free." So, I ordered it.

One bite and I knew I was in trouble. I detected soy sauce. I'm sure you've guessed the rest. Upon checking further, the dish was not gluten free.

I'm going to quote from my blog (note that I am not giving the name of my blog here. This is not to attract people to my blog, which is not what this forum is all about, I just want to quote it rather than retype it all):

"While I only had one small bite, after returning to my room, I started to feel sick, and oh boy, was I ever!

Did I get so sick that I clogged the plumbing system in my room?

Don’t ask.

Okay, ask.

Indeed, I did. And, even if I must say so myself, I did a fine job of it.

Now here’s the thing: Those of us who must keep vigil on food know that sometimes mistakes happen. We must be steadfast in guarding every bite. Diligence is the curse of having to deal with food allergies and intolerances—difficult and sad, but true.

Who's fault was it that I received contaminated food?

Celebrity’s? Yes, but also my own. I should have made sure the server spoke with the chef directly, and I should have known that “If it is labeled gluten-free, it is gluten-free,” is a questionable answer, especially since it was not labeled gluten free on both menus.

Truth told, on a 14-day holiday, I expected to have at least one setback. Mistakes have happened to me everywhere, including Walt Disney World, which I adore and which has the reputation of offering the most responsible gluten-free options in the world.

If I have food issues, vigilance is the key, and when it comes to questionable offerings, I hold the key."

I hope you'll post here about your Reflection cruise!

 

You make an interesting point about being ultimately responsible for yourself. I agree with you. I had an experience on the Summit in 2016, and I take much of the responsibility for it.

 

Note: The following is meant to talk only about those times when there MIGHT be the risk of cross contamination or when someone is not 100% sure if a food item will be safe. Okay, here goes:

 

On the oversized menu posted outside of the main dining room, Pad Thai was listed as being gluten-free.

 

Pad Thai is a dish that is often available gf, as you probably know, so I was excited to see it offered.

 

However, on the actual dining room menu, the gf symbol did not appear. I asked my server to check to see if the dish was indeed gf. He checked, and his answer was, "If it is labeled gluten-free, it is gluten-free." So, I ordered it.

 

One bite and I knew I was in trouble. I detected soy sauce. I'm sure you've guessed the rest. Upon checking further, the dish was not gluten free.

 

I'm going to quote from my blog (note that I am not giving the name of my blog here. This is not to attract people to my blog, which is not what this forum is all about, I just want to quote it rather than retype it all):

 

"While I only had one small bite, after returning to my room, I started to feel sick, and oh boy, was I ever!

Did I get so sick that I clogged the plumbing system in my room?

Don’t ask.

Okay, ask.

Indeed, I did. And, even if I must say so myself, I did a fine job of it.

Now here’s the thing: Those of us who must keep vigil on food know that sometimes mistakes happen. We must be steadfast in guarding every bite. Diligence is the curse of having to deal with food allergies and intolerances—difficult and sad, but true.

Who's fault was it that I received contaminated food?

Celebrity’s? Yes, but also my own. I should have made sure the server spoke with the chef directly, and I should have known that “If it is labeled gluten-free, it is gluten-free,” is a questionable answer, especially since it was not labeled gluten free on both menus.

Truth told, on a 14-day holiday, I expected to have at least one setback. Mistakes have happened to me everywhere, including Walt Disney World, which I adore and which has the reputation of offering the most responsible gluten-free options in the world.

If I have food issues, vigilance is the key, and when it comes to questionable offerings, I hold the key."

I am exactly the same way. I have learned the hard way that if I have any doubt about the preparation of food, I better pass, if I don't and I get ill, it is ultimately my own fault. :rolleyes:

Wansbrough, How was your gluten free experience on the Solstice? I have Celiac and will be on the Solstice next year - First time on Celebrity. I would love to hear your in depth comments. Cheers!

DW has a gluten free diet and was extremely well looked after on Eclipse in August.

 

This is the first I have heard of this new program so am very curious to see what Dine Aware has to offer.

 

We are on Solstice early next year so hopefully will be able to find out all about it. :)

I called in and had my allergies listed for my cruise. Most of them are not life threatening. I have some foods I avoid because they cause me to be allergic to smoke. Strange, I know. I have been seeing a Naturopath for almost a year. After he did testing and had me not eat certain foods, I noticed that when I was out and about I wasn't having any asthma attacks from smokers. It was quite quick 2-3 months of not eating dairy, wheat and a few other things that I noticed. It has been great so far. It's quite a change in how I live.

Last year I went to Disney World and had my worst trip ever. I had so many asthma attacks it was crazy. They were bad ones too. I wish I knew about avoiding certain foods earlier.

I'm hoping that I can still find food to eat and enjoy my cruise while trying to avoid foods that aren't good for me.

I'm guessing there is no way to see online that my allergies are noted anywhere. Anyone know for sure?

There is nowhere to see the special needs requests on your reservation on the website.

There is nowhere to see the special needs requests on your reservation on the website.

Thanks, that's what I thought.

While sort of cryptic I have noticed that after my DW sends in her special needs form for dietary restrictions that under Manage Reservation under add ons and celebrations her name is listed. Of course there is no other information listed but it at least lets us know they have recorded her form.

I called in and had my allergies listed for my cruise. Most of them are not life threatening. I have some foods I avoid because they cause me to be allergic to smoke. Strange, I know. I have been seeing a Naturopath for almost a year. After he did testing and had me not eat certain foods, I noticed that when I was out and about I wasn't having any asthma attacks from smokers. It was quite quick 2-3 months of not eating dairy, wheat and a few other things that I noticed. It has been great so far. It's quite a change in how I live.

 

Last year I went to Disney World and had my worst trip ever. I had so many asthma attacks it was crazy. They were bad ones too. I wish I knew about avoiding certain foods earlier.

 

I'm hoping that I can still find food to eat and enjoy my cruise while trying to avoid foods that aren't good for me.

 

I'm guessing there is no way to see online that my allergies are noted anywhere. Anyone know for sure?

Just circle around with the Maitre d' upon boarding to make sure they have it noted. You will also be able to see the next nights menu to either modify, if possible, or select meals which will fit into your requirements.

In OVC, you can ask to speak with the manager or assistant manager who will tour with you to point out items which you can or cannot have, if not obvious. Sometimes, just sometimes on some sailings the chef in OVC will prepare something special for you if they know when you are arriving.

I have special dietary requests and in most instances they have been honored and I have been overwhelmingly happy in all venues.

Please know that there can be slip ups at times, but not intentionally, so be a bit vigilant and ask questions when in doubt, they are eager to make sure it is correct.

bon appetite and bon voyage

Is this only for rhose with food allergies? I have severe gastroparesis and Crohn's disease and have lots of food restrictions because of these diseases but I'm not "allergic" to them.

Is this only for rhose with food allergies? I have severe gastroparesis and Crohn's disease and have lots of food restrictions because of these diseases but I'm not "allergic" to them.

No it is not. Please let them know what types of food you can eat without distress.

As well, when you board, you need to see the Maitre d' to see a menu to see what you can have and let the wait staff know first night then review the menu for the next night so they can prepare for you.

As stated before, if something does not look or taste right, point it out right away so they can correct it. I would recommend having an extra appetizer around just in case it may take them some time to correct, this way you can be noshing while you wait.

bon voayge