What foods to AVOID? (a different wrinkle)

[Philly Steve]

Fresh fruit from the outdoor afternoon buffet.

[sebas030]

Oh my god ... the fish and chips at the blue lagoon on our gem cruise was so bad.

 

A small small piece of fish, over done, tough, dry and :eek:

 

And over dipped in batter cooked at least 3 or 4 times to reheat it over and over, could have greased the ships main engine with it...... Maybe it was cooked in engine oil :p

 

Just the worst

[OceanDreaming2]

I really love the museli, although I can't say why. It doesn't seem like it should be that exciting, but I find it addictive. I'm sad to hear it's gone.

 

I tried the museli for the first time in April and thought it was pretty good. And now it's gone?!? :eek:

[halos]

The lobster tail...definitely. (in the mdr....elsewhere on the ship, the lobster is wonderful)

They really kill it.

so does RCCL

BAD.

[ColinIllinois]

It probably WAS Noro. Food poisoning on a cruise is exceedingly rare. If you think it was food poisoning because the lobster was the last thing your boyfriend ate, you are mistaken... if that's the case, it was decidedly NOT food poisoning, because that takes about 30-36 hours to take effect.

 

 

Not true. Depending on the type of food poisoning and the person involved you can get symptoms within 4-6 hours.

[alidee12]

he's had noro. it wasn't noro. worst stomach ache of his life among other unpleasant symptoms.

we are both in the medical field as well. food poisoning can onset as quickly as 1 HOUR! believe me. we know. ever heard of staph aureus? campylobacter?

 

and can i just say that stuff on his plate did not look too fresh or appetizing. and for people cruising out of new york, they should specify what TYPE of lobster they are serving since we are obviously used to maine lobster.

 

It probably WAS Noro. Food poisoning on a cruise is exceedingly rare. If you think it was food poisoning because the lobster was the last thing your boyfriend ate, you are mistaken... if that's the case, it was decidedly NOT food poisoning, because that takes about 30-36 hours to take effect.

[halos]

The steak at Cagney's. If you're from Texas they just can't get it right. We stick to the Prime Rib. Delicious.

I have to agree...we have never been 'wow-ed' by Cagney's...we much prefer LeBistro.

Actually, the breakfasts we had at Cagney's were far superior to the dinners....

 

I am shocked and amazed I could have forgotten NCL's Tex-Mex restaurant. I guess it is a memory I have tried to bury deep in my mind. The absolute only thing I have had there that was good was their guacamole. It was actually delicious. The rest was HORRIBLE. Trust me when I say, Tex-Mex it isn't.

 

 

 

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You didn't like Salsa on the Dawn??

 

Wow, we enjoyed it enough to go back a second time.

 

 

 

I had the tuna appetizer and the lobster tacos both times. I loved them :D

 

oh and the guacamoli was indeed very good :)

[SnootieTootie]

Didnt see the Muesli on the Dawn last month.

 

The Dawn seemed to have implemented quite a few new menu changes, and most of them were favorable.

 

And that spinach artichoke dip....I love it...each to their own I guess ;)

 

And Salsa, my parents, and husband thought it was the only not acceptable food that they had all week, but I ordered chicken fajitas, and they were quite good.

[guyver]

I had the tuna appetizer and the lobster tacos both times. I loved them :D

 

oh and the guacamoli was indeed very good :)

 

 

I agree!! Gotta love them tacos. As far as the guacamole, it is the best I have ever had.:)

[nderoche]

I had the tuna appetizer and the lobster tacos both times. I loved them :D

oh and the guacamole was indeed very good :)

I agree!! Gotta love them tacos. As far as the guacamole, it is the best I have ever had.:)

 

We agree the guacamole is great. We have had better, made at our table in various ports, but NCL's is close to what we feel is the best.

I want to add we are sushi lovers and we have it on many NCL ships.

It is very good and you can ask for items not on the menu and they will

go out of their way to make you happy. All you have to do is ask.

We have asked for deserts (not on the menu) and we have received

them in a wonderful gala presentation with the desert chef present.

How could you not like that???? So why do we sail with NCL?

:D:D

[jwoap]

I love red food! (and green, and blue, and yellow, and white etc etc etc)

 

Me? I am on a "seafood" diet.

 

I see food I eat it:)

 

I also hear the eggs on a buffet aren't real.

[flowerchild]

Cagneys: I also thought Cagney's was a little overrated. I loved Le Bistro.

 

Lobster: Usually, cruise lines use caribbean, warm water lobster aka spiny lobster. No claws, just tail, a little different in texture (stringuer, maybe) but IMO, tastier. If you do not like your lobster overcooked (who does) I highly recommend eating SUPER EARLY on lobster night. I've always had good luck using that strategy.

 

Artichoke Dip: I did not like it either. Tasteless and goopy, tasted artificial. And where was the artichoke?

[maun]

Oh my god ... the fish and chips at the blue lagoon on our gem cruise was so bad.

 

A small small piece of fish, over done, tough, dry and :eek:

 

And over dipped in batter cooked at least 3 or 4 times to reheat it over and over, could have greased the ships main engine with it...... Maybe it was cooked in engine oil :p

 

Just the worst

 

I agree 100%! After having heard raves about the fish and chips in Blue Lagoon I had to try them on the Spirit last week. Yuck! Never ate in Blue Lagoon again and hated even walking through there after that.

~~Maun

[erpa]

Last November on the Dawn repo we ate at all the other specialty restaurants until the last night,when we treated ourselves to Cagney's. Had always had good to excellent food there on past cruises, but not this time. The shrimp cocktail was truly disgusting, the shrimp were limp and tasted very fishy. I gagged down 1 1/2 of them then went outside for fresh air. That set me up for the rest of the meal, a steak, which was tough and gristly and fishy tasting fries. Oh man, If I didn't look green afterward, I certainly felt green. As my husband pointed out, it was the end of the cruise and perhaps the shrimp weren't particularly fresh...

 

On the other hand, I could eat the foie gras and creme brulee at Le Bistro every single night...:D

[Giantfan13]

I agree 100%! After having heard raves about the fish and chips in Blue Lagoon I had to try them on the Spirit last week. Yuck! Never ate in Blue Lagoon again and hated even walking through there after that.

~~Maun

 

Funny, we were on the Jewel, last year in the Baltics and we loved the Fish and chips from the Blue Lagoon. Maybe they had some Brit making it, out of Dover..

 

On all our cruises, we have eaten many foods that weren't up to par. That is the great thing about cruising. You can order one or several of things just to try it, and if and when you don't like it, just leave it alone. We do this all the time, as we may not have this chance in a regular restaurant. It gives one the opportunity to try many different types of food, to decide if we do like them. We do not eat meat dishes, so we have tried many of the so called 'vegetarian' dishes, and most are discarded immediately after tasting. But when one or two stand out as good, we usually come back for it again and again. Who can remember all those bad one, but we do remember the good ones.

 

Cheers

 

Len

[dockrocker]

No dessert in the NCL buffet is ever worth the calories. They look pretty and taste like...nothing.

[itgeek]

EDIT: Avoid the Tea! Yuck yuck. IMO, NCL had the worst tea from tea concentrate I've ever had. It's not brewed. It's reconstituted from concentrate like the OJ and cranberry juice. No amount of sugar, splenda or other sweetener can take away the bitter blah taste.

 

Agreed w/ others on desserts on the buffet. All truly passable.

 

Also not a fan of the potatoes and green peppers at breakfast. I'd rather have plain hashbrowns.

 

When getting fruit at breakfast, do a smell test, especially after the 2nd day on the cruise. Several times in the past couple years I've ended up w/ soured melon at breakfast. Leftovers from the previous day no doubt.

 

If you want to do dessert, *order it from room service* or ask for the room service items in the restaurant you're in. The room service strawberry shortcake and chocolate cake are very good. In fact, we've made a habit of skipping dessert before shows and one of us sneaking out towards the end of the show to order dessert from room service to have after the show.

 

I'm also lactose intolerant so that limits my choices for dessert. In the MDRs and specialties, I found the best luck asking for "a fruit plate and a piece of chocolate of any kind". Usually after a couple befuddled looks, I end up with exactly that... a plate of sliced assorted fruits (usually honeydew, cantaloupe, strawberries and pineapple) and a random piece of chocolate from who knows where in the kitchen. Hehe.

 

My favorite random piece of chocolate to date came at one MDR seating on the Sky. It was a random piece of a hunk of Scharffen Berger baking chocolate. (No doubt some enterprising kitchen staff person cribbed a piece from Le Bistro's baking ingredients!) It was good and I left an extra tip for that one.

 

- IT Geek

[itgeek]

Oh and avoid the tea. Bitter, nasty stuff made from "tea concentrate" like the OJ and cranberry juice. No amount of sugar, sweetener or dillution can make it pallatable.

 

- IT Geek

[snorklinbarb]

EDIT: Avoid the Tea! Yuck yuck. IMO, NCL had the worst tea from tea concentrate I've ever had. It's not brewed. It's reconstituted from concentrate like the OJ and cranberry juice. No amount of sugar, splenda or other sweetener can take away the bitter blah taste.

 

Agreed w/ others on desserts on the buffet. All truly passable.

 

Also not a fan of the potatoes and green peppers at breakfast. I'd rather have plain hashbrowns.

 

When getting fruit at breakfast, do a smell test, especially after the 2nd day on the cruise. Several times in the past couple years I've ended up w/ soured melon at breakfast. Leftovers from the previous day no doubt.

 

If you want to do dessert, *order it from room service* or ask for the room service items in the restaurant you're in. The room service strawberry shortcake and chocolate cake are very good. In fact, we've made a habit of skipping dessert before shows and one of us sneaking out towards the end of the show to order dessert from room service to have after the show.

 

I'm also lactose intolerant so that limits my choices for dessert. In the MDRs and specialties, I found the best luck asking for "a fruit plate and a piece of chocolate of any kind". Usually after a couple befuddled looks, I end up with exactly that... a plate of sliced assorted fruits (usually honeydew, cantaloupe, strawberries and pineapple) and a random piece of chocolate from who knows where in the kitchen. Hehe.

 

My favorite random piece of chocolate to date came at one MDR seating on the Sky. It was a random piece of a hunk of Scharffen Berger baking chocolate. (No doubt some enterprising kitchen staff person cribbed a piece from Le Bistro's baking ingredients!) It was good and I left an extra tip for that one.

 

- IT Geek

 

Are you talking about the iced tea? I'm no buffet expert but for hot tea there's always a whole selection of tea bags from mint to English breakfast to green tea.

 

At least the last several times I've looked there have been fried hash browns avail. separate from other potatoes on the buffet, but not sure if that's what you're looking for. Also not sure if what's offered in the DR at breakfast for potatoes.

 

If you like fruit and chocolate, I don't know if you've been on NCL since they put those choc. fountains in the Garden Cafe but you might like a skewer of fresh fruit "dunked" in the spinning chocolate. Funny story with the baking chocolate, lol. Wasn't it bitter?;):D

[newmexicoNita]

No dessert in the NCL buffet is ever worth the calories. They look pretty and taste like...nothing.

 

Isn't that the case with all buffets except for the bread pudding on HAL? That is why I don't bother with them, never have..

 

Nita

[dockrocker]

Isn't that the case with all buffets except for the bread pudding on HAL? That is why I don't bother with them, never have..

 

Nita

 

This thread is about NCL.

[peg013]

Isn't that the case with all buffets except for the bread pudding on HAL? That is why I don't bother with them, never have..

 

Nita

 

This thread is about NCL.

 

No need to be rude! Why do you think she said "all buffets" with the only exception being one item on HAL?????:rolleyes:

[alwalaska]

Well, it's red, for starters. There is something in it that I'm not a fan of. I don't know what it is. I just avoid it now.

I had a salad at lunch in the main dining room that was really strange. It was titled "assorted greens", but it was mostly the more bitter "greens" like dandelion. Several of the greens were red and other colors.

 

The really strange part was the dressing. It said "Choice of dressing" in the description so I asked what dressings they had. One they listed was thousand island, so I asked for that. It was red and kinda chunky and more similar to a vinagrette than thousand island, so I wonder if it was the Italian dressing you guys were talking about.

 

It was not a definite Don't Eat, but just something to be warned is very different from the description.

 

To show people's different tastes, I TOTALLY LOVED the Mexican crab dip with corn tortillas on that same lunch menu, but someone else posted in a review that it was one of the worst things they had on the cruise. It was small and didn't have many chips, but it also came with veggies that I enjoyed using for dipping.

[alwalaska]

No dessert in the NCL buffet is ever worth the calories. They look pretty and taste like...nothing.

 

Isn't that the case with all buffets except for the bread pudding on HAL? That is why I don't bother with them, never have..

 

Nita

 

I have found that to be true not only of the buffet desserts, but also many of the main dining room desserts on all of the cruise lines I have been on. There are several really good ones (like the strawberry souffle on NCL), but the rest are just what I call NWC (Not Worth the Calories).

[jorapp]

...it was decidedly NOT food poisoning, because that takes about 30-36 hours to take effect.

 

Actually Micchi, food poisoning can take 30 minutes to over 30 hours depending on the type of allergen/pathogen/poison/contamination, type of food eaten, other foods eaten and amounts, sensitivity to the offensive agent, size and health of the eater.

 

You try serving 2500+ people 3 meals a day and see if someone reacts badly....can't really be surprized at that...and yes, they frequently claim Noro/flu or something else, when it actually is food related...can blame them for trying to pass it off as something else.