Most awkard moments during dinner

[GlendaleCruiser]

Soon after, they brought us the check, and they said they were sorry that the evening hadn't turned out as planned.(this interesting story cost us $100) Needless to say, we cancelled the second reservation that we had placed for Todd English. That restaurant is so dead to us! When the opportunity presents itself to move tables--DO IT!:eek:

 

 

I CANNOT believe that they didn't comp your meal. I'd have talked privately to the manager.

[GlendaleCruiser]

You should have also filed a customer comment card about the waiter.

 

 

TOTALLY should have. Hope you did.

[lannp]

Kelmac - who was the maitre d' in Todd English? Although it was not their fault the gentleman became ill, they really should have extended something to you.

[kelmac]

Kelmac - who was the maitre d' in Todd English? Although it was not their fault the gentleman became ill, they really should have extended something to you.

 

I think it was Gergana Georgieva, but I saw her many times in the Britiannia Restaurant as well. Not sure?

[dm5201]

My husband and I are going on our first cruise on the Princess in early March. We have chosen anytime dining. At first I thought it would be okay to have dinner with others at our table, now I've changed my mind...it will be just me and the husband!

[lannp]

Thanks, in late October it was Ralph Carvalho.

As I stated these things happen but Cunard could have made some good-will gesture to get you to return. I must confess it would turn me off that room.

I've never dined in todd English but it is the disembarkation point for Platinum and Diamond members so I'm familiar with the room.

[Doug R.]

My husband and I are going on our first cruise on the Princess in early March. We have chosen anytime dining. At first I thought it would be okay to have dinner with others at our table, now I've changed my mind...it will be just me and the husband!

 

Keep in mind the horror stories are a miniscule percentage of the total dining experiences. In six cruises including three with anytime we have not had a truly bad tablemate.

[LuckyStar]

After reading these comments of everyone's adventures with tablemates, perhaps requesting a table for two is the only guarantee of a relaxed dinner atmosphere, LOL! :D

 

I'm scared now. My first cruise I was with my sisters and mom so we all knew each other but DH and I are going alone now so maybe it will be a disaster and I should request a table for two. I usually love odd people so I was looking forward to meeting strangers but this sounds like a disaster in the making. :)

[cruisemom42]

My husband and I are going on our first cruise on the Princess in early March. We have chosen anytime dining. At first I thought it would be okay to have dinner with others at our table, now I've changed my mind...it will be just me and the husband!

 

I'm scared now. My first cruise I was with my sisters and mom so we all knew each other but DH and I are going alone now so maybe it will be a disaster and I should request a table for two. I usually love odd people so I was looking forward to meeting strangers but this sounds like a disaster in the making. :)

 

This is one reason why I hesitated to post on this thread. The 3 instances I listed were the exception amongst HUNDREDS of meals enjoyed onboard ship with other tablemates. I have had some truly great meals, conversations, and even a few friendships develop while dining with others aboard ships.

 

I would never voluntarily choose not to share a table with others at dinner unless there was a specific reason (e.g., if I wasn't feeling well or similar).

 

Besides, the VERY few oddball stories give us all something to talk about after the fact! ;)

[GlendaleCruiser]

I'm scared now. My first cruise I was with my sisters and mom so we all knew each other but DH and I are going alone now so maybe it will be a disaster and I should request a table for two. I usually love odd people so I was looking forward to meeting strangers but this sounds like a disaster in the making. :)

 

 

Remember that people post the exceptions on here. Thousands upon thousands upon thousands of people sit at tables together on dozens of cruise ships every day and have a great experience. I've never had a bad experience, but would simply ask the Maitre D' to move us if it was a bad match.

[KAWS]

I'm scared now. My first cruise I was with my sisters and mom so we all knew each other but DH and I are going alone now so maybe it will be a disaster and I should request a table for two. I usually love odd people so I was looking forward to meeting strangers but this sounds like a disaster in the making. :)

 

My husband and I were like that and because of it, on our last Princess cruise we wound up asking for a table for two. Then we saw everyone chatting and laughing and thought.........hmmmmm we're missing out! So what we did was ask to be seated at a table for 6. We didn't want a huge table and feel overwhelmed but we thought a table for 6 would be perfect. We were right. Now we always ask for that when we're dining and I'd say 98% of the time it's been fantastic.

 

Go to the anytime dining and just try it one night and I think you just might be pleasantly surprised. It's also nice later in the cruise when you recognize table mates and can give a cheery hello in passing.

[krydstogt]

Okay, this just happened to us last week on the Queen Mary 2:

 

We were the first to arrive at Todd English, the upscale alternative restaurant and were seated at nice table for two. Soon after, a couple arrived to celebrate their anniversary; the husband was in a motorized wheel chair, and we gathered from their conversation, that he had had a recent stroke. It looked like they had hired two assistants, and paid for their cruise, in order to provide service to this gentleman. They seated this couple next to us at a table for four in order to accommodate the special chair. The two assistants left soon after they were seated, but were "on call" from their special communication device--a walkie-talkie.

 

The maitre' d asked if we would like to move to another table, but we felt that would be rude, as this couple seemed brave to tackle a cruise so soon after this gentleman's misfortune. (huge mistake on our part!)

 

The man and woman (in their 70s--maybe) both had hearing issues, so we were exposed to every word in their conversation. From the start, the man requested special variations of food from the menu--no salt, no fat, fresh made chicken broth. The waiters and kitchen staff tried their best to provide something that would work, but everything was too fatty, or too salty, or too whatever. He complained of not feeling well several times during the meal. We tried our best to enjoy our meal, but their conversations were loud and tedious.

When our dessert arrived, the man said he was going to be sick...he retched loudly several times, tried to move his wheelchair and ran into their table, knocking dishes and glasses everywhere. After several moments of dry heaves, he released the contents of his stomach all over the table. At this point, my wife (who had a clear view of everything--my chair was off to the side, so I was able to keep them out of my field of vision) picked up her dessert (my empathetic wife was in tears at this point--feeling sorry for his inability to remove himself from the situation) and walked away.

The man was eventually removed, and yellow CAUTION tape was put up around their table. Soon after, they brought us the check, and they said they were sorry that the evening hadn't turned out as planned.(this interesting story cost us $100) Needless to say, we cancelled the second reservation that we had placed for Todd English. That restaurant is so dead to us! When the opportunity presents itself to move tables--DO IT!:eek:

 

How totally awful, Kel, for you and your wife. I think, I would have left the dessert behind.

 

Eva

[mr green]

I'm scared now. My first cruise I was with my sisters and mom so we all knew each other but DH and I are going alone now so maybe it will be a disaster and I should request a table for two. I usually love odd people so I was looking forward to meeting strangers but this sounds like a disaster in the making. :)

 

An answer to yourselves,and others who are worried about table mates.

 

My wife and I enjoy meeting people, to us it is one of the joys of cruising. We always request a large table, and only two persons, both ladies, gave any problems, in both cases they seemed to want service which was over and above what any normal person might expect. For example, one lady reported to the Metre'D, that her empty beer can was not removed as soon as it was empty. She left in a snit, with her husband, [who seemed very pleasant], on the very first night!

The second case was quite similar, with a twist, the head waiter was called each night to go over the menu with her, each session lasted about ten minutes. She lasted thee days before taking off with her pleasant, if long suffering husband, once again never to return.

Unfortunately, we met up with he for most of the next fifteen days, playing bridge.

However to us, dinner, with pleasant people, overall has been a highlight of each of our cruises. Enjoy.:)

 

john

[grand isle joe]

....yes when someone "lets one go"......a S.B.D......and the napkins appear under the nose.......some excuse themselves for the restroom.....usually the guilty person.....:D:D:D

[JandBR_PHX]

You should have also filed a customer comment card about the waiter.

 

We did, and named names.

[beaming90]

We had looked forward to meeting new people at dinner on our first cruise and no one ever came to dinner with us. So the second we were really looking forward to meeting our tablemates. We got on the Glory and went to Muster and there were a bunch of really REALLY drunk people there causing some problems..anyways, a little later my mom wasn't feeling well, so I went to dinner alone. They had us at a table for two. I was kind of embarassed to sit there alone and I think our waiter didn't really know what to do with me. Imagine my surprise when the people at the next table took pity on me and invited me to join them since their husbands were'nt at dinner that night. And they were the drunken ladies from muster drill! But they were a little more sober by then, and we enjoyed ourselves and spoke the rest of the cruise and because of them I found out I could see the space shuttle launch if it happened that night, and it did, so it was a great night!! But a little awkward for a minute or two!

[kelmac]

How totally awful, Kel, for you and your wife. I think, I would have left the dessert behind.

 

Eva

 

Hi Eva!

 

Yep, as soon as I heard the man in distress I pushed away my dessert and that was the end of any kind of appetite. Lauren on the other hand, picked up her dish and headed to the waiter station to hide out. :p :)

 

Enjoy!

Kel:)

[kelmac]

Oops, double post!

[PartyAllDaTyme]

We're Select (freestyle/anytime) diners, and ask for a table for two if one's available, but say we'll sit with a group if not. This way, we allow fate to decide the course of the evening. Sometimes, it's a romantic dinner for two, other times, we get to meet and dine with a group. We've usually met some fun and fascinating fellow cruisers.

 

How-EV-er...

 

One night (formal night, yet), we were the last to join a table for eight. DW was seated to the left of a nice couple from a neighboring state. I was seated to the right of a fifty- or sixty-something woman, obviously inebriated. We were introduced to the thirty-something man to her left, who was introduced as her boyfriend, and the couple to the left of him, his parents. These other three were as sober and as somber as judges. BF looked uncomfortable and barely said a word all evening. Through very slurry speech, GF proudly told us about how they were traveling in the PH-- BF's parents had booked a suite for them all but were told when they boarded that they were being moved up. GF said she was sure it was because BF's parents were rich, and they had connections. No one could start a conversation without her loudly bringing attention back to herself.

 

BF's parents were gently chiding her through the meal for not using her napkin, using the wrong fork, and so on. She expressed exasperation with the silverware, so, helpful soul that I am, I asked if she'd seen the movie Titanic. She had, so I told her to recall the scene where Jack joins the first-class diners and is overwhelmed by the array of silverware, and Molly Brown tells him to just start at the outside and work his way in. This resulted in great consternation on the part of the GF, as she was now worried about the possibility that we'd strike an iceberg and have to abandon ship. I assured her that there are very few icebergs in the Caribbean, but she went on about this for several minutes.

 

In discussing professions, she declared that she was "just a housewife," though she did not make clear the identity of her husband, if any, and/or if different than BF. She did have a side business of fashioning dolls made of felt cloth and selling them online. She said she could turn a dime's worth of felt into a doll that she could sell for $10-- "a ten percent markup!" After several attempts, she wrote her email address (actually her website URL) on a paper napkin and made me promise I'd contact her after the cruise. As soon as we left, DW took the napkin from my shirt pocket and made sure it went in the trash. I asked if she was jealous:rolleyes::p, but she just said she wanted to make sure there was no way we were ever going to hear from her again. The next day, as my wife was relaxing in a hot tub, guess who joined her, still as soused as she had been. DW excused herself and said she had had enough, though she was not specific as to what it was that she had had enough of.

 

We never did decipher what the story was there. For all we knew, BF's parents were scheming to learn the secret of how to manufacture felt cloth dolls and sell them for the "ten percent" markup, enlisted sonny boy to woo the refined young:eek: maiden and ply her with spirits. For us and the other couple at the table, it was one of the most awkward meals we've ever had, anywhere.

[Rob&Bonnie]

As soon as we checked in, we decided to check out our first balcony cabin, only to find the older couple next door getting a little frisky on their side of the partition. Just a tad awkward.

 

Even more awkward was getting to the dining room and finding out the same couple were our table companions for the next 7 days.

 

They were a wonderful couple, both in their 80's, but I could not get the vision of 80 year old naked butt out of my mind. :eek:

[johneeo]

For us and the other couple at the table, it was one of the most awkward meals we've ever had, anywhere.

 

I would have enjoyed it and found it very entertaining.:D

[Breezey]

We cruised to Alaska with friends we had never travelled with before. We specifically asked for a table for 4 near the back window of the Infinity. As we approached our table, we knew we were in for trouble. It was a table for 8. We were the first ones there and had already decided that we were going to ask for a different table after that meal. We introduced ourselves to the two other couples that joined us, were polite and made small talk (thats why I personally am not a big fan of sitting with strangers) but never mentioned to them that we had asked for a table of 4 and would trying to switch to our original request.

 

Well we were easily able to change our table to the 2nd floor of the dining room but amazingly enough in a ship of over 2000 people, we ran into these two couples on a daily basis. In the theatre, the specialty restaurant, on a funicular in Alaska, in the lounge for disembarkation and finally a day after the cruise was over at an outdoor restaurant in Vancouver. We were snubbed each time even though we tried to smile and be polite. I didnt think we needed to tell them we were moving or provide rationale. Perhaps in hindsight we should have to avoid.

[98Charlie]

For those who are concerned about problem tablemates I have to agree that the stories here are the exceptions, not the rule.

 

In 30 cruises we've only had one uncomfortable situation. Not so much for us but for the tablemate.

 

We were on an NCL cruise but always let the hostess know that we are willing to share a table. For what ever reason we ended up often being seated with a lady who had just won an election to a (very) minor post in a township or village. Every conversation returned to politics when she was at the table. There was no room for compromise in her opinion.

 

This was in 2004 and many of her comments were derogatory remarks about the men and women serving in the armed forces. We were seated at an 8 top and somehow the converstaion moved from politics to families.

 

When it came to us I announced that our son was an artilleryman with the 1st Cavalry in Sadr City Iraq. I mentioned also that he had been on the DMZ in Korea on 9/11.

 

Never heard any more about the servicemen and women.:rolleyes: Conversation resumed and the meal was enjoyed by all (or most all).

 

Charlie

[ILoveScotland]

Am still relatively inexperienced compared to others, but even so most dining experiences have been good and have enjoyed meeting people from other parts of the country and the world. With one exception....

 

On 2 week Eastern Med cruise one couple constantly complained and complained and complained some more about everything from quality and presentation of food to waiter to other things about the ship. But, it was the night that the husband sent his entree back five (yes, 5) times that got to me the most.

 

But, guess who got to eat at the captain's table? The rest of us at our table had our most enjoyable meal that night with our complainers away.

[CruizAddct]

Well, kind of long (and not for the weak stomached to read), but here goes...

 

I had been taking care of my mom with Alzheimer's for years. She knew I loved to cruise and had lived each one with me vicariously. One day she said she wanted her and I to go on a cruise. I thought about the fact that she would go on this cruise and forget she has immediately (as she was that progressed in her dementia), but I asked her "is this something you want to do before you die?" and she said "with all my heart". How could I say "no"??? I knew that this cruise would not be like the others. I knew that I would be spending a lot of time in our cabin as she was quite feeble and would tire easily and it would be like taking an adult toddler on a cruise - not being able to let her out of my sight, but we were going to go on a cruise because I knew I wouldn't have her with me much longer!!

 

Yes, I'm getting to the awkward part, just wait...

On our last day of the cruise (you know, after you've put all of the luggage you're not going to carry off outside your cabin and its through customs and you're not), Mom and I made our way to the Windjammer to eat breakfast. We had to walk an eternity to find a table as everyone was eating to leave. I thought to myself how I should have gotten her a wheelchair but thought, we'll just take our time and eat and make our way off the ship. We had already left our room and at that time of cruising - you didn't go back as the cabin steward's started to clean them for the next cruisers. I got mom's meal and started her eating as I went back to get mine. When I got back she had a weird look on her face. She told me she needed to use the restroom. I got her up and asked someone at an adjoining table if they would watch my carryon bag and tell the busboys to not take our meals. We hurried (best she could) to the restroom. Partway there she announced that she wasn't going to make it (and she didn't). I had quite a mess (number 2) to deal with. I started crying as I knew I didn't have a change of clothes for her in my carryon. I left her in the restroom, went back to our table and told the people that they could let the meals go and took my bags with me. The really awkward part was in the restroom. The stalls weren't big enough for mom and I to be in them, so I had to clean her with the door open. Ladies were coming in to use the restroom as I washed out her clothing the best I could and as I kept apologizing for the stench and what they were witnessing. I went and got a wheelchair and asked for assistance getting through disembarking and customs to get to clean dry clothes on the other side, of which the cruise staff helped immensely in getting us through very quickly without delay. I just felt so bad for anyone witnessing this horrible experience. I thank God that Mom didn't remember THAT part of her cruise, but I'm afraid I'll NEVER forget it as it was quite embarrassing to say the least.

 

I hope I've not grossed you all out by telling this story. But it definitely tops for being the most awkward dining experience for me. Mom has since passed away and I have wonderful memories of our cruise together and try not to think of this one too often - but the question definitely reminded me.