For anyone going on the Emerald Princess

[lovetocruisee]

To anyone heading out soon on the Emerald Princess, I have a friend who is ON HER NOW.

He just sent me this email, which may be of interest to you.. it's kind of a "meal time" review and his planning..

 

Hi ,

I just thought I would drop you a quick line to update you on a few things that might help have a better cruise...

 

First of all, the breakfast buffets have been good, but nothing special. Just the regular stuff as usual... Anyways, how exciting can breakfast get???

 

Next... Lunch... We have been really disappointed in the lunch buffets so far. In general, nearly all the meats on the buffet have been REALLY over-cooked and dry. We have mentioned it to the head waiter, but to no avail. Not yet, at least... Last night, the over-cooking trend continued into the dining room. The lamb was so over-cooked, they could not even serve a piece medium, much less my desired medium rare... I have resorted to lots of salads and pizza for lunch.

 

Next... Pizza... ALWAYS ask if there is a pizza in the over, and to wait for it... Once out of the oven, they are putting the pies on a flat warmer where the condensation turns the nice crispy dough into a greasy mess in less than 5 minutes! I'm not kidding... If they want to cook pizza in advance, they should at least have warmers that allow air to flow between the heat source and the bread. Otherwise, the pizza has been fantastic... Just get it FRESH, or order a special pie if nothing is in the oven. It is well worth the wait...

 

If you enjoy playing in poker tournaments, be sure they sign up for the next day's tournament as soon as the current day's tournament is over. Otherwise, you won't get to play.

 

Now for the best part. My plan WORKED AGAIN... Anytime dining, MY WAY!!! ...

The worst thing happened the first night, and this is really why I don't like taking a risk on fixed dining... We had a terrible waiter and busboy!!! The water glasses went empty... No pepper was offered after a course was served, etc... We tried a different table on night #2 and hit the jackpot!!! We now have a 7:45 reservation each evening at a table of 4 (#261) in the Michelangelo dining room. Ricardo and his assistant are two of the BEST waiters we have ever had. Ricardo is from Chile, and his assistant is from Argentina. Ricardo's first job on a cruise ship was as a waiter on Renaissance back in 2000 and 2001 until the line went out of business. RENAISSANCE!!! He is the best... Guess what? He requests the anytime dining, because he feels "too rushed to provide excellent service" when serving in a traditional dining setting!!! I'm telling you, he has not missed a beat. Every night there is a cheese plate waiting for us at the table when we arrive. He presents the food properly, and it is always hot. I ordered 2 hot appetizers the other night, and both plates would not fit on the table at the same time. He presented one, and then disposed of the second, went back to the kitchen, and got another hot one for me!!! WOW!!! Even heating and mixing baby food for little Evelyn is a treat for these guys. He would not serve me the lamb last night, because he knew it was over-cooked. My #1 suggestion for anyone coming on this ship is the get Ricardo as a waiter. If they want a table for 8 so they can sit with other people, the maitre'd will seat different people with them every night. In any case, I certainly understand if they want to keep their early dining, but man... This guy is great... Just thought I would pass it along for anyone coming on this ship that wants a really great waiter. If he can make me this happy, he would rock most people's world!!!

 

We are having a blast, and yes, we are even getting some rest even though we are working about 2 hours every day from the ship. A small price to pay for a vacation, in my opinion.

 

Take care... I'll talk to you when I get home.;)

 

 

(Hope this may be helpful to some of us)

Kevin

[spider3455]

Great tip! Thanks!

[1 HappyCruiser]

It's hard to believe things have degraded that much since I was on the ship in May but things do change. Sometimes people are overly critical & expect more than than we do so we'll see how correct your friend is when we get on next Tues.

[spyro1952]

I am also going on the Emerald on Tuesday. I have some doubts about what the OP stated in the email. Pizza doesn't usually stand long enough to get "condensation" as it flies off the shelf. I find you are more rushed during anytime dining than traditional dining as they know when the seating is scheduled and work accordingly. Yes, you can get some waiters that are not top notch but like any other situation, talk to him/her about your needs and if that doesn't work, talk to the section captain etc, follow the chain of command until you get some satisfaction. :)

[Colo Cruiser]

Thanks for forwarding the comments.

I like breakfast/lunch in the DR. ;)

 

I also enjoyed the pizza on the Emerald in August. :)

[PescadoAmarillo]

Kevin, it will definitely be useful for us. Thanks for sharing it. (And we are also of the opinion that Anytime Dining is MUCH less rushed than Traditional).

[butternut1]

We were on the Emerald Princess just last month. The pizza is the BEST pizza I have ever had anywhere in my lifetime!! Pizza was constantly coming out of the oven because people were scarfing it up. Never saw pizza just sitting around for any amount of time. We thought the breakfast buffet was great each and every morning. Our party had no complaints about anything on the Emerald. I am so anxiously awaiting our next cruise which will once again be on the Emerald... Love it!!!

[jotabecu]

Great to see that review, I expect to be on board Nov. 8

Thanks.