WHY Indian Food ?

[capncarp]

North Brunswick, NJ. Mostly Indian food.

 

Sounds like North Brunswick is a place to find some good home-style Indian cookin'!:)

[ducklite]

Sounds like North Brunswick is a place to find some good home-style Indian cookin'!:)

 

You'd be better off in Iselin, NJ. Around 70% of the population is Indian.

 

 

Autocorrect responsible for most typos...

[xboxwoman]

because its cheap and filling, and often is vegetarian with no expensive meat cuts.. :p

[Gunner22aa]

Just off a Princess cruise within the last week. Some form of curry was always offered on the buffet at both lunch and dinner. One dish out of 20. I sure didn't see it as the end of the world for someone that doesn't like it. I saw eggplant offered several times as well and I detest it. Didn't stop me from eating though.

[Hula Hips]

Please save the daggers.

 

What is it with the Indian food on the buffets? Our last cruise had it on the tables for lunch almost everyday. Sorry It's nasty ! We were on Carnival for 5 days. I can understand one day. But 4 out of 5 Come on! And it looks like NCL also has it on there buffet. I just can't take another cruise filled with Curry ...I hope they don't serve in morning noon and night.

 

Am I the only one who doesn't like it ??

Please tell me I will only see it 1 day on my next trip? (ncl-jewel)

Agree don't care for Indian food either! Chinese would be better than Indian and of course American is best when cruising out of U.S.A.

[hsaroya]

Trying really hard not to jump into the fray again, but what the hey. It's -28 in Edmonton with the windchill, been snowing for three days, and I need some entertainment, so why not?! ;)

 

As a first generation immigrant of Indian descent, who ate almost nothing but my mom's home cooking until I left home, the last thing I want when I cruise is Indian food - instead, bring on the pasta, Princess pizza, Mexican, etc. Having said that, though, the few times we have had Indian on cruises, it's been extremely well done, especially in the MDR on Princess where you can personally request specific dishes the night before. On our one and only, never to be repeated Carnival cruise (sad tale of woe), the lunch lines at the Dream's tandoor station were never ending. By the way, my mom said the Tandoor head chef, who sort of adopted my parents, was an incredible master chef. And she doesn't give cooking praise lightly. 90% of the clientele at the Tandoor were non-Indian. The other 10 was my family. Yup, after years with Princess, that's how bad I found the Carnival food - I had to resort to Indian, something I make/eat almost everyday at home. No flaming, Carnivalites; this is but one woman's opinion.

 

So, if Indian food as some have said is 'disgusting, revolting, inedible' - wow, there's sure a lot of non-Indians on cruise ships eating 'disgusting, revolting, inedible' food. Ducklite is right in that the % of Indian descent cruisers is quite low so it's not for the Indian clientele that the cruise lines are cooking this food. They've recognized that there's a huge market for it; it's all economics, nothing more. It wouldn't be available if people weren't eating it. There's a huge British client base for it as well, I'm guessing. Also, the ever increasing numbers of vegetarians and vegans will always find a healthy, well balanced, tasty, and filling meal with Indian and most of them know it. For the most part, North American fare does not do justice to vegetarian meals - too often it's just the veggie side dish being masked as a meal, simply an after thought.

 

Ducklite, I'd venture a guess that the overweight Indians you're seeing are eating a North American version of their traditional cooking. I don't EVER remember my mother making naan (Indians use only whole wheat in their homes for their flatbreads) butter chicken, or lentils with heavy creams. Didn't see any of that until I hit the restaurants of Edmonton in my university years, restaurants that even today, don't really cater to Indians. Even in India, those are items one gets at wedding receptions, not things people are eating in their homes. The last time I made butter chicken was at the request of non-Indian friends.

 

Given the plethora of food choices on cruise ships, I can't imagine anyone's going hungry because of a few curry dishes on the buffet table. Do what I do when I see <shudder> shrimp, squid, or calamari...walk quickly to the nearest Mexican food. I'm certainly not going to let the sight of slimy or crustaceous seafood keep me from finding something more to my liking.

 

"Why Indian", OP? Because the Market Economy rules on the high seas, too. The market will provide what the consumer demands. :)

Edited December 13, 2013 by hsaroya

[waltd]

I for one am not Indian but I have to say I love Indian food. We just had an Indian restaurant open by us and I go at least once a week. Love curry and love the vegetarian dishes. Cruise food is so bland in my opinion and having some Indian dishes makes me very happy. Why Indian? Because there are some out there that enjoy trying new things.

[KiwiFunCruiser]

"Why Indian", OP? Because the Market Economy rules on the high seas, too. The market will provide what the consumer demands. :)

 

Love It! :D

[hsaroya]

Love It! :D

 

I keep telling my students that everything comes back to grade 9 Social Studies, but they just roll their eyes :rolleyes:

[whataboutport]

Trying really hard not to jump into the fray again, but what the hey. It's -28 in Edmonton with the windchill, been snowing for three days, and I need some entertainment, so why not?! ;)

 

As a first generation immigrant of Indian descent, who ate almost nothing but my mom's home cooking until I left home, the last thing I want when I cruise is Indian food - instead, bring on the pasta, Princess pizza, Mexican, etc. Having said that, though, the few times we have had Indian on cruises, it's been extremely well done, especially in the MDR on Princess where you can personally request specific dishes the night before. On our one and only, never to be repeated Carnival cruise (sad tale of woe), the lunch lines at the Dream's tandoor station were never ending. By the way, my mom said the Tandoor head chef, who sort of adopted my parents, was an incredible master chef. And she doesn't give cooking praise lightly. 90% of the clientele at the Tandoor were non-Indian. The other 10 was my family. Yup, after years with Princess, that's how bad I found the Carnival food - I had to resort to Indian, something I make/eat almost everyday at home. No flaming, Carnivalites; this is but one woman's opinion.

 

So, if Indian food as some have said is 'disgusting, revolting, inedible' - wow, there's sure a lot of non-Indians on cruise ships eating 'disgusting, revolting, inedible' food. Ducklite is right in that the % of Indian descent cruisers is quite low so it's not for the Indian clientele that the cruise lines are cooking this food. They've recognized that there's a huge market for it; it's all economics, nothing more. It wouldn't be available if people weren't eating it. There's a huge British client base for it as well, I'm guessing. Also, the ever increasing numbers of vegetarians and vegans will always find a healthy, well balanced, tasty, and filling meal with Indian and most of them know it. For the most part, North American fare does not do justice to vegetarian meals - too often it's just the veggie side dish being masked as a meal, simply an after thought.

 

Ducklite, I'd venture a guess that the overweight Indians you're seeing are eating a North American version of their traditional cooking. I don't EVER remember my mother making naan (Indians use only whole wheat in their homes for their flatbreads) butter chicken, or lentils with heavy creams. Didn't see any of that until I hit the restaurants of Edmonton in my university years, restaurants that even today, don't really cater to Indians. Even in India, those are items one gets at wedding receptions, not things people are eating in their homes. The last time I made butter chicken was at the request of non-Indian friends.

 

Given the plethora of food choices on cruise ships, I can't imagine anyone's going hungry because of a few curry dishes on the buffet table. Do what I do when I see <shudder> shrimp, squid, or calamari...walk quickly to the nearest Mexican food. I'm certainly not going to let the sight of slimy or crustaceous seafood keep me from finding something more to my liking.

 

"Why Indian", OP? Because the Market Economy rules on the high seas, too. The market will provide what the consumer demands. :)

 

Wonderfully said! Now I'm craving Indian food!!

 

Honestly, the reason why I think many people don't like Indian food is bc of how it looks. I'll bet these people who hate Indian food haven't even tasted many dishes. Just look at it and turn your nose up at it. I happen to love seafood, but seafood is some of the most disturbing looking food ever. Ever seen a monkfish? LOL I will try anything (except things that are still alive and bugs) and more than just once. I can't make a final decision if I think something is nasty by just one bite, prepared in just one way. Just like how you can't fairly claim you hate a whole entire country just bc you stepped foot on its port for less than 8 hours.

[capncarp]

Why Indian food?

Look at the numbers: this thread has over 230 responses and 58,616 views.

That makes it the 4th most viewed thread in Cruise Foodies. Many people are are passionate; THOUSANDS are interested!

 

I get the impression from some who are afraid of exotic foods because the dishes may contain "chilled monkey brains" and "sheep's eyeballs", or some hidden ingredient that will prove to be abhorrent to the "victim"s sensibilities. While certain of these types of ingredients may be prevalent in in-country fare in places in the Far East (Scorpions on a stick, anyone?), Indian food has virtually no chance for that in everyday restaurant fare. Most ingredients are fairly common and known to most Western consumers--chickpeas, lentils, limes, mangoes, coriander, etc. What may be encountered are spices and combinations of flavors that are not normal to Western palates. Here's where a little online research will help the jittery, unsure first-timer. Also, one can always ask the server or the preparer to give a little info about any or all prospective dishes--they should be glad to help you to choose something you would likely enjoy. That's IMHO why a first excursion into a new cuisine is usually best at a buffet to get a broad idea of the flavor ranges and styles.

 

And to counter those whose objection is that many of the dishes look "disgusting" I might put forth that refried beans, chili, sloppy joes, scrambled eggs, and many other forms of Western-cuisine food may not be intrinsically beautiful, and may even appear repulsive if not presented with care, but they have their fans. People who turn their nose up at dal will chow down on a plateful of baked beans or chili beans with wild tex-mex spice.

 

Me? I'm more interested in how it tastes and if it's good enough, I'll just close my eyes.:cool:

Edited January 6, 2014 by capncarp

[Chitown12562]

Add my voice to those that love Indian food offered in the cruise ship buffets. Honestly they could drop the Chinese specialty resturant send add Indian resturant I'd be even happier. Not that I don't like Chinese. Love that too. But a hot sizzling plate of tandoori chicken would be too have to pass up.

 

Sure there are some Indian dishes I don't care for, but that goes for all types of ethnic and other cuisines.

[capncarp]

It's been nearly a month since the last new post--do any recently-returned cruisers have any updates on the Indian cuisine, or _any_ "exotic" cuisines as offered on your recent cruises? Has this conversation inspired anyone to try something different? If so, how was it? Was it an inspiration to go venturing down a new gustatorial path, or did it make you decide to swear off any such thing for the rest of your life? Inquiring minds want to know!

Edited January 31, 2014 by capncarp

[DinaS]

Add my voice to those that love Indian food offered in the cruise ship buffets. Honestly they could drop the Chinese specialty resturant send add Indian resturant I'd be even happier. Not that I don't like Chinese. Love that too. But a hot sizzling plate of tandoori chicken would be too have to pass up.

 

Sure there are some Indian dishes I don't care for, but that goes for all types of ethnic and other cuisines.

 

I love that there is a variety of all kinds of food on cruise ship buffets. For people who don't love Indian food, there are so many other choices that you never even have to TOUCH anything you don't enjoy.

 

I am sure there are as many people saying "What's with all the hot dogs and hamburgers on this ship - I can eat that every day during the summer!"

 

Embrace the variety, and eat what you like :)

[ducklite]

The problem with Indian food is that it smells and those smells permeate and cling to anything and everything around it like no other type of food will.

 

 

Autocorrect responsible for most typos...

[DinaS]

The problem with Indian food is that it smells and those smells permeate and cling to anything and everything around it like no other type of food will.

 

 

Autocorrect responsible for most typos...

 

The smell of Indian food doesn't permeate everything around it any more than a charcoal grilled hamburger or hot dog does.

 

If you don't like what is offered in the buffet, there are other restaurants to enjoy.

 

The one thing about cruising is there are so many food choices. If you don't like one, you can certainly find another :)

[ducklite]

The smell of Indian food doesn't permeate everything around it any more than a charcoal grilled hamburger or hot dog does.

 

 

 

If you don't like what is offered in the buffet, there are other restaurants to enjoy.

 

 

 

The one thing about cruising is there are so many food choices. If you don't like one, you can certainly find another :)

 

 

I disagree. Have you ever been in the home of an Indian family after they move out? The entire house still reeks of curries, and the only way to remove the odor is to rip out all the carpet, throw away all the drapes, and paint every inch of wall and ceiling. Same thing as with smokers. I have a friend who is a real estate agent, and her number one problem is getting potential buyers past the curry smell in homes owned by Indians--unless they are Indian buyers.

 

 

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[DinaS]

I disagree. Have you ever been in the home of an Indian family after they move out? The entire house still reeks of curries, and the only way to remove the odor is to rip out all the carpet, throw away all the drapes, and paint every inch of wall and ceiling. Same thing as with smokers. I have a friend who is a real estate agent, and her number one problem is getting potential buyers past the curry smell in homes owned by Indians--unless they are Indian buyers.

 

 

Autocorrect responsible for most typos...

 

Sweetie, we are talking about food in a buffet - NOT someone's walls and carpets in their homes. If someone constantly used a grill pan indoors for typical American food (steaks, burgers, etc), their house would also smell.

 

The food isn't COOKED at the buffet, it is simply sitting in trays that were CLEANED just before being filled.

 

Now you are comparing apples to oranges - and the analogy no longer makes sense.

 

If you don't like it, then don't eat it, or don't cruise if it's really that much of an issue for you.

 

It really is that simple :)

 

I won't be visiting this thread again - no reason to bring any negativity to my life or our upcoming cruise. We really do enjoy diversity in all things!

 

Enjoy!

 

Dina

[ducklite]

Sweetie, we are talking about food in a buffet - NOT someone's walls and carpets in their homes. If someone constantly used a grill pan indoors for typical American food (steaks, burgers, etc), their house would also smell.

 

 

 

The food isn't COOKED at the buffet, it is simply sitting in trays that were CLEANED just before being filled.

 

 

 

Now you are comparing apples to oranges - and the analogy no longer makes sense.

 

 

 

If you don't like it, then don't eat it, or don't cruise if it's really that much of an issue for you.

 

 

 

It really is that simple :)

 

 

 

I won't be visiting this thread again - no reason to bring any negativity to my life or our upcoming cruise. We really do enjoy diversity in all things!

 

 

 

Enjoy!

 

 

 

Dina

 

 

Maybe you don't understand.

 

First, I am not your sweetie. Gag.

 

Next, the pungent odors in curries don't need to be cooked in an area, just being in a steam table releases them. They then permeate the carpet, drapes, seat cushios, everything in that room begins to stick of curry. It's the same as cigarette smoke.

 

 

Autocorrect responsible for most typos...

[whataboutport]

Yeah it smells. It smells delicious!

 

As far as clinging? Apparently you have never had Korean BBQ.

[Swath]

Somone Has In issue With the Indians it Seems :p:p

[TBone2K]

The problem with Indian food is that it smells and those smells permeate and cling to anything and everything around it like no other type of food will.

 

Then you haven't visited anyone's Italian nonna at her house.:)

 

Then again, a *traditional* Italian family has a separate kitchen in the basement where they actually do the day to day cooking.

[ducklite]

Then you haven't visited anyone's Italian nonna at her house.:)

 

Then again, a *traditional* Italian family has a separate kitchen in the basement where they actually do the day to day cooking.

 

 

The only Italians I know who keep the gravy on the stove all day have a separate kitchen either in the basement or even as a separate structure on the property. I know a few in Florida and California who have summer kitchens outdoors on the lanai and do much of their cooking there. I do, and things like fish and bacon are never cooked in the house, always outdoors. My summer kitchen is under a covered part of the lanai, and the whole lanai is screened. Best upgrade we chose when we built our house. :)

 

 

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[bonniboo1]

I know people of Indian decent who are vegetarians for religious reasons. They say causing is wonderful for their extended families because they don't have to stress about dining. They have told me that they are very appreciative that the cruise lines do this.

[whataboutport]

Somone Has In issue With the Indians it Seems :p:p

 

Yes it does.

 

Autocorrect responsible for most bitchiness.

Edited February 19, 2014 by whataboutport