The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly

[Bridge Maven]

Good: What did a waiter do on a cruise that made you decide to give him more than the recommended amount?

 

Bad: What did a waiter do on a cruise that made you decide to give slightly less than the recommended amount?

 

Ugly: What did a waiter do on a cruise that made you feel he didn't deserve any tip at all, even though you probably gave him one?

[Project_gal]

Ugly: What did a waiter do on a cruise that made you feel he didn't deserve any tip at all, even though you probably gave him one?

 

Ugly: First time in the MDR on Azamara Quest, I specfically requested that my meal came with no brussel sprouts. [i will eat them at home but I do not like them and I am not eating them on a cruise!] The waiter grudgingly took the plate away and scrapped them off the plate [he did not replate] but took 15 minutes to do it. My husband then asked for his coffee before desert. No only did the desert arrive first but his coffee never appeared. We never returned to the MDR again.

 

Sue

[islandgirlejfan]

Good: What did a waiter do on a cruise that made you decide to give him more than the recommended amount?

 

Bad: What did a waiter do on a cruise that made you decide to give slightly less than the recommended amount?

 

Ugly: What did a waiter do on a cruise that made you feel he didn't deserve any tip at all, even though you probably gave him one?

 

We had the most amazing serving staff on the Pearl....there are so many instances that come to mind. When we left for our shore excursion the morning we were in the BVI, a few staff members asked if we were going to come back for lunch. I replied that we would if we got back in time. When we returned and it was 1:50 and they closed at 2. As we were cruising in a suite, we wanted to go to Cagneys *presentable* and we didn't feel we could make ourselves that way in 10 minutes, so we just grabbed a burger. The next morning as we headed to breakfast, both our hostess and server inquired to *missing us*. We explained and they told us we should have just come down to lunch the way we were....they had remained open past the normal closing time, waiting for us.

 

They learned very quickly that we love our morning coffee, ESPECIALLY my hubby. The small French Press pot of coffee usually ended up being two large ones. On the last morning of the cruise we wanted to tip all the young ladies that had served us so faithfully over the week only to walk in and see most of the staff that had been in Cagneys not in the restaurant. Only one was serving and she was in another area, so we got this other young woman, very unfamiliar to us and I have to say I am so glad she was not our server for the week, because that probably would have been the bad or ugly....given our first impressions, it wouldn't have been good. We ordered our coffee and she brought this teeny tiny press pot over. The other server who knew us saw this from across the room almost flew over, grabbed the pot of coffee and scolded her saying *this won't do, Mr. Michael needs the LARGER pot*.

 

We were very impressed with everyone in Cagneys for the week with exception of the last morning....I cannot understand why they would have changed the staff the morning of debarkation. Had we known it was going to happen, we would have tipped the day before because service was like this all of the time and we wanted to thank our staff personally before leaving.

[bellybutton530]

GOOD: One of my gal pals casually mentioned that the sweet potato whip was delicious during Thanksgiving dinner, and that she loved sweet potatoes. From that point on, a sweet potato, sliced into 6 pieces, arrived with dinner.

 

GOOD: We asked for either raspberries or strawberries as an accompaniment for our nightly bottle of champagne; done deal, for the rest of the cruise.

 

GOOD: Upon seeing that I am left-handed, my water glass and coffee cup was always placed on the left, so that I didn't have to drag my cuffs through my food.

 

Sorry, no BAD or UGLY....

[Project_gal]

Good: After deciding Elite breakfast in Reflections was just to noisy for us, we sat down for breakfast at the Aqua Spa cafe the next morning and was asked if we wanted coffee. My husband asked for a cuppacino and the waiter said they did not serve that. The maitre d' of Ocean Liners was passing and immediately dashed up to Reflections and brought my husband his cuppacino.

 

Sue

[cookiejarvis]

On Galaxy several years ago for an 11 niter, had a wonderful waiter named Bogden. First night we asked him for his recommendations on dinner. He was spot on. For teh remainder of the cruise, he would come to take our order and we just inured to his recommendations. Everynight, our courses were served as a surprise. There were five at our table, each with different tastes. He got us all right. He received a very, very generous tip from each of us at the conclusion of our vacation.

[cruzeluver]

Good: Our waiter two years ago on Constellation was outstanding. For 11 days we received top notch service that resulted in us deciding we would be giving him an extra gratuity on the last night. What sealed the deal was something he actually did for a table mate. Every night Lance had been giving our waiter a hard time because creme brulee was not on the menu. He wasn't really upset about it, just teasing. Well on the final night, our waiter comes out with a tray covered with a dome. With a flourish he removes the dome to reveal creme brulee for everyone!

 

Thank heavens I cannot come up with a bad or ugly.

[MEcruzr]

"GOOD: Upon seeing that I am left-handed, my water glass and coffee cup was always placed on the left, so that I didn't have to drag my cuffs through my food."

 

Now THAT I would tip extra for!!! It seems no matter how many times I move a glass/cup to my left, they refill it and place it on my right. I know that's where it's "supposed" to go... but come on! LOL

[GHarkness]

Good: Last week's Voyager OTS...table 348...very warm and personable waiter. He told us stories about his experiences, all the while making sure we got what we wanted. I inquired about the cheese plate, which had been removed from the menu since our cruise in November....he made sure I had one.

 

Bad, but we didn't reduce our tip: Please just call it "duck" or "dessert." The last time I used "quack-quack" or "yummy-yummy" I was in kindergarten. Also, do not give me a hard time for passing up dessert. Frankly I would rather eat it, but don't need anyone telling me I have "disappointed" him in not getting any. Honestly, the idea of this waiter staying up half the night crying because I didn't eat the dessert is a bit silly.

[MEcruzr]

"Also, do not give me a hard time for passing up dessert. "

 

Your "bad" reminded me of one of my "good" waiters. Every night when it was time to order dessert I would say, "Nothing for me, thank you." Everyone else would have dessert though... so one night he brought me dessert anyway. It was an empty plate. On it, written in fancy chocolate lettering was the word "Nothing" surrounded by curly-cues and swirls. I took it back to my cabin to take a picture of it! Be careful what you ask for on a Celebrity cruise because you will probably get it!!!

[GHarkness]

"Also, do not give me a hard time for passing up dessert. "

 

Your "bad" reminded me of one of my "good" waiters. Every night when it was time to order dessert I would say, "Nothing for me, thank you." Everyone else would have dessert though... so one night he brought me dessert anyway. It was an empty plate. On it, written in fancy chocolate lettering was the word "Nothing" surrounded by curly-cues and swirls. I took it back to my cabin to take a picture of it! Be careful what you ask for on a Celebrity cruise because you will probably get it!!!

 

Well, that's a cute story, and thanks for sharing it. Shows your waiter has a great sense of humor. Wish I had him! I hope you rewarded him well! :)

[sarahc78]

Great not Good: Our Sommelier (sp?) saw that we are not wine drinkers and that we had the beer package. So every night when we got to our table there was an ice bucket normally reserved for wine/champagne that was filled with Dos Equis & Grolsch. He received a big tip from us :D

[howard6933]

Last year we sailed on MSC Poesia and had a terrific waiter. The first night dinner had

prosciuto and melon on the appetizer list. My wife being of Italian descent loved it and we asked the waiter if we could have it every night. No problem. It was waiting for us every night. Also, my wife is in a wheelchair and when I wheeled her into the MDR, the waiter was there to help her out of the wheelchair and into a place at the dinner table. He then took the wheelchair and parked it someplace. When we were ready to leave, he retrieved the wheelchair and after helping my wife to go aboard, wheeled her out of the MDR into the corridor. Now that was special service all the way and he got a nice reward for that. :rolleyes:

[808lady]

I sailed on Infinity a few years ago. One of my table mates asked our waiter, Tarik, which night souffle would be served. He said it was no longer on the menu. However, on the last night there was a chocolate souffle for all of us.

 

No bad or ugly.

[Breezey]

Good: We were on open seating on Princess and after the first night with a fantastic waiter, we asked to be seated in his area every night. He was warm and charming; when we couldnt decide which menu item to choose, he brought us both so we could try it; he knew that our friends enjoyed double espressos and we enjoyed cappucinos with our desserts and had them prepared each night without even asking.

 

Bad: We were on the NCLA to Hawaii. We chose the itinerary not the ship. Too bad! Service in the MDR, specialty restaurants and buffet were awful all the time every day, every meal. Essentially it was staffed by all American young adults. They were there for the fun not the money.

 

Ugly: We took a family cruise on Carnival years ago. It was actually a fantastic trip except for our dinner experience. There were 9 of us (2 sets of parents and very well behaved tweens and teens). For the entire week our waiter didnt smile, was impatient waiting for orders and just didnt seem to want to establish any relationship with us while the table behind was charmed each night. Well...on the last night of the cruise, he all of a sudden realized mmm, perhaps I risk a tip and he went to the other extreme, being fake friendly, trying to be cute and going as low as feeding dessert to one of the kids. A little too little, too late. We gave him a very small tip (those were the days you handed evelopes to staff) so he knew we didnt forget the tip but he got what he deserved.

[cruizinEllen]

Good: We were a group of 10 on Radiance of the Seas. We asked our server which night had the least desireable menu for a trip to Portofinos. She made her recommendation and said that she would take care of it. During the meal she called and made reservations for the 10 of us. While we were eating at the specialty restaurant, she arrived with the small savory bites (bread) that our table just loved.

 

Good: I am very short and my feet dangle in the dining room chairs. Our server noticed this and brought a box for me to rest my feet on during the meal. It was at my chair every night.

[tally10]

For the most part we have had good waiters and assistant waiters (who sometimes make up for the waiter's shortcomings) but here goes:

 

Good: We had a waiter on the Constellation in 2007, Menino, who not only catered to our adult daughter's picky preferences, but also tried to get her to eat when she was seasick for the most part. He brought the Celebrity interpretation of her favorite comfort foods. He also endured some really haughty and downright rude tablemates that we wish we could have thrown overboard! Flash forward to May of 2010 on the Eclipse in the Baltic when a waiter comes running up to us in the buffet and appeared so happy to see us. It was Menino!!! He remembered everything and all of our daughter's preferences. If this had been the beginning of the cruise, we would have asked to be reseated in his section. He came to see us every time we were in the buffet or MDR when he was able to. It made our daughter's cruise that he was still fussing over her.

 

Ugly: our waiter and assistant waiter on the Brilliance of the Seas. His name was Mr. Eze, and he had a bad attitude. We were stuck in an annex behind a column at a table for two. The service was just AWFUL and the assistant was just as incompetent as Mr. Eze. The food was just as bad and almost made us cancel the next cruise which was on the Jewel three months later. Thank goodness we didn't as the food and service were incredibly better on the Jewel. We spent most of our dinners in either Chops or in the Windjammer on the Brilliance needless to say.

[terp4life]

Good: I have a few severe food allergies. On both Millenium in 2003 and Solstice in 2011 (but not Millenium in 2005 - so I do not think it is standard policy) every night at the conclusion of dinner the Assistant Maitre D would bring me the following night's menu to make my selections from. They would then double check the ingredients and be aware of cross contamination when preparing the meals. Also, when I went to specialty dining they alerted the staff there so that when I arrived they informed me of any restrictions I might have.

 

Luckily no bad or ugly.

[red knight]

The Ugly Regal Princess to Alaska many years ago. Bar Staff did not know the did not know nor did they care that Dubbonet was not Vermouth. Our waiter (Table of 10 and he appeared to have a few table of 10 so in theory he was experienced!) was so bad that by the 3rd night we all joked about how many things he would get wrong that night! I ordered Escargots and got Pate de Fois! He got an empty envelope, I didn't know that one could ask for a change of waiters!

The good: I had a waiter on the Mercury who also did the "Nothing plate" as described above for a couple of ladies at my table. On the Summit A bar keeper at the Mast Bar noticing I liked Rum and Coke (Dark Rum of course!) always floated a bit of overproof on top. Another on teh Constellation recognised me from a previous cruise and right away got me a Rum and Coke. Bar Waiter on the Galaxy looked after a bunch of us from the roll call every night in the Martini Bar. He trusted us and would bring our bills to individual Dining room tables if we had to leave for dinner and he was busy. Far too many positives on X to list, which is why I keep going back!:)