:( Well Bye bye Carnival :(

[4THELOVEOFBOO]

Just Got off of the Dream on Saturday and even though we did have a great trip, the boat is beautiful, service is good (not GREAT) but all the things said about the food is true. When we cruised a few years ago every night we were so impressed with the dishes that we tried but, this cruise we actually sent some back, not one dish was very good and some of them were actually down right gross. I had the Prime Rib one night it was ALL fat a couple of nights later someone else in our party had it and experienced the same thing. Most of the meals just were not good at all. Even some of the staff were not friendly at all!! This makes as sad because our last cruise was FANTASTIC!! Next we are going to try NCL of Royal Caribbean. :(

[firefly333]

I think all the lines have cut back food wise so serving cheaper food...

 

PS I got off Triumph last Saturday and while it was not perfect, I thought the food was good. Liked everything but the new spinach dip, uchk. I liked the new frogs legs. Tried the fried chicken the last night, so I could say I tried all the new food .. well almost.

 

The food was fine to me last week. Maybe you just had bad luck.

 

I did order the lobster on Magic, and it was terrible. No meat on top of the shell, just two thin lines 1/4 inch wide of mush on both sides of the shell, not even a piece of solid meat.

 

I should maybe have complained at the time, but the waiter was too busy to talk to.

[Aplmac]

Bye! :D

.

[golfadj]

Sorry you were disappointed and you should definitely try other cruise lines and go where best for you.

[sparks1093]

Sorry you were disappointed and you should definitely try other cruise lines and go where best for you.

 

Agreed, but OP be aware that regular cruisers on RCI and NCL are also complaining about a decrease in food quality so you might be disappointed there, also.

[elcuchio24]

I think all the lines have cut back food wise so serving cheaper food...

 

PS I got off Triumph last Saturday and while it was not perfect, I thought the food was good. Liked everything but the new spinach dip, uchk. I liked the new frogs legs. Tried the fried chicken the last night, so I could say I tried all the new food .. well almost.

 

The food was fine to me last week. Maybe you just had bad luck.

 

I did order the lobster on Magic, and it was terrible. No meat on top of the shell, just two thin lines 1/4 inch wide of mush on both sides of the shell, not even a piece of solid meat.

 

I should maybe have complained at the time, but the waiter was too busy to talk to.

 

I'm suprised people are complaining about the food...I found it similar as it has been for the past decade. Prime rib has always been good on the ships I've been on. The lobster sucks, but nothing new there:). I do miss the shrimp everynight, and the Duck entree. Hope you had a good voyage Fire!

[firefly333]

I'm suprised people are complaining about the food...I found it similar as it has been for the past decade. Prime rib has always been good on the ships I've been on. The lobster sucks, but nothing new there:). I do miss the shrimp everynight, and the Duck entree. Hope you had a good voyage Fire!

 

I did have a good cruise and absolutely feel in love with Magic. Iv always thought to myself that Magic surpassed Dream from everything Id heard .. but Magic is just gorgeous.

 

I loved the duck too on lobster night and miss it. sighs .. Iv never had the prime rib as Im not a beef eater and things I prefer.

 

We had a vegetarian gal on Triumph at our table who ordered it and some other entree nightly and she LOVED that Indian is now on the menu nightly. 3 dishes that were different each night plus the rice and bread/cracker thingee.

 

None of us at my table had any complaints about the food. We must have been lucky .. but it was all good.

[Midwestgal]

It's been a long time since I cruised RC but we thought the food was plain old bad. It is a good idea to try new things so give it a shot and you never know you might be back on Carnival after trying other lines.

[big_duck]

Sorry OP but if you want a better food experience changing to another mass market line isn't going to cut it.

 

You are going to have to pay for a more upscale line or start using the pay venues on board.

 

Such are the realities of cruising in this economy.

[BeccaBecca1713]

I've cruised RC once and found the food pretty much comparable to Carnival. I've never cruised NCL but my brother has and he complained non-stop that all the "good" food options were fee-based and the included food was like Carnival.

 

I'm not a total stickler re: the food on the ship, but I too noticed some mediocre choices last month. The meatloaf is awful. Absolutely no taste. The mac-n-cheese was watery and lukewarm. But I just loved the beef brisket. YUM!! And, for the first time in several cruises, I actually enjoyed the pizza!

 

Good Luck with your next cruise!!

[Cruise Organizer]

I was surprised on my last cruise - 3 mos ago.

the entrees were not good, the fish was horrible. appetizers were good

even the lido was disappointing (processed corned beef).

hot food was few choices

I wouldn't say good-by, but I am booking other cruises over Carnival.

Dining is one of our reason for cruising and Carnival is now lacking. If I cruise CCL again, I probably would eat in the speciality dining restaurants.

service was spotty. Our waiter had a table (10) for anytime dining - when that was used, he was overworked.

I am platinum, but I find myself drifting away from CCL.

I want better food and service, that is my preference, and if other lines offer what I want, I will go there.

I hope CCL improves.

[swimmom32]

I've cruised RC once and found the food pretty much comparable to Carnival. I've never cruised NCL but my brother has and he complained non-stop that all the "good" food options were fee-based and the included food was like Carnival.

 

I'm not a total stickler re: the food on the ship, but I too noticed some mediocre choices last month. The meatloaf is awful. Absolutely no taste. The mac-n-cheese was watery and lukewarm. But I just loved the beef brisket. YUM!! And, for the first time in several cruises, I actually enjoyed the pizza!

 

Good Luck with your next cruise!!

 

Your Brother was right..We cruised on the Sky it was a 4 day cruise I know it was short but I have to tell you the MDR food was awful, and the Service well we decided we were going to pay for the Restaurants and enjoyed them..the Italian food was just Ok and the Service was just Ok....We cruised on the Destiny Last Year 1 extra day no biggie and the Food believe it or not was excellent as well as our Service...Our Friends went on the Oasis and although had a great time they went in October they said the food was just OK....as they thought it would be better than Carnival and well was a bit disappointed they did love the ship..lol

[halos]

I just got off the Freedom. Although there is a marked difference in quality, I can honestly say that I can't complain about things I ordered. Others I cruised with were disappointed in the food...to be honest, if I had selected the things they did I may have been too. I think I just knew what to order and what not to.

However, I missed the dining options that are avalable on NCL quite a lot. I don't mind paying a little extra for more variety and better quality.

Also NCL's buffet is better...and my DH missed the outdoor grilling that NCL has on sea days. NCL main dining room food is about equal to CCL's (now it is...it used to be CCL was far better)

For us RCI had the absolute worst dining room food.

I have heard that Princess is the winner in mdr food by many people who have sailed that line. I don't know myself...haven't tried Princess yet.

 

The meal at the Steak House on the Freedom was fabulous as usual. Paying extra to get something better is a good solution. The cruise fare itself was beyond reasonable, so I have NO issue with paying extra to upgrade my experience a little.

[elcuchio24]

I did have a good cruise and absolutely feel in love with Magic. Iv always thought to myself that Magic surpassed Dream from everything Id heard .. but Magic is just gorgeous.

 

I loved the duck too on lobster night and miss it. sighs .. Iv never had the prime rib as Im not a beef eater and things I prefer.

 

We had a vegetarian gal on Triumph at our table who ordered it and some other entree nightly and she LOVED that Indian is now on the menu nightly. 3 dishes that were different each night plus the rice and bread/cracker thingee.

 

None of us at my table had any complaints about the food. We must have been lucky .. but it was all good.

 

We did a B2B at the end of sept/oct and if I wasn't always on CC I would have barely noticed the menu change, other than the aforementioned duck and shrimp. I wish the MDR lunch menu wasn't static. Some of the new didja dishes are quite decent, I like the firecracker thing and the Rockafeller. I guess that quality differs from ship to ship, but I guess I just don't understand folks complaining about old faithfuls like Prime Rib. I know I could take the prime rib I had last month and put it next to prime rib from 3 years ago and from 8 years ago and they'd look all the same. I guess some is in the eye of the beholder, or maybe I'VE just been lucky too.

[swimmom32]

Great Comparisons and for some reason that Freedom ship seems that alot of people aren't happy with the food...I find that interesting why it would vary so much....but my friends will agree with you on the RCL...

[halos]

We did a B2B at the end of sept/oct and if I wasn't always on CC I would have barely noticed the menu change, other than the aforementioned duck and shrimp. I wish the MDR lunch menu wasn't static. Some of the new didja dishes are quite decent, I like the firecracker thing and the Rockafeller. I guess that quality differs from ship to ship, but I guess I just don't understand folks complaining about old faithfuls like Prime Rib. I know I could take the prime rib I had last month and put it next to prime rib from 3 years ago and from 8 years ago and they'd look all the same. I guess some is in the eye of the beholder, or maybe I'VE just been lucky too.

It is about luck.

My prime rib was fine..my Dh's was one big hunk of fat.

I will say that any beef/lamb we ordered during the week was cooked PERFECTLY....just to our specifications.

[elcuchio24]

I just got off the Freedom. Although there is a marked difference in quality, I can honestly say that I can't complain about things I ordered. Others I cruised with were disappointed in the food...to be honest, if I had selected the things they did I may have been too. I think I just knew what to order and what not to.

However, I missed the dining options that are avalable on NCL quite a lot. I don't mind paying a little extra for more variety and better quality.

Also NCL's buffet is better...and my DH missed the outdoor grilling that NCL has on sea days. NCL main dining room food is about equal to CCL's (now it is...it used to be CCL was far better)

For us RCI had the absolute worst dining room food.

I have heard that Princess is the winner in mdr food by many people who have sailed that line. I don't know myself...haven't tried Princess yet.

 

The meal at the Steak House on the Freedom was fabulous as usual. Paying extra to get something better is a good solution. The cruise fare itself was beyond reasonable, so I have NO issue with paying extra to upgrade my experience a little.

 

One of my fav things about NCL is the 24 hour place, blue lagoon or whatever they call it. Ummmmm....I wish CCL would do something similar to that, other than just Roomservice and spotty Pizza service.

[firefly333]

We did a B2B at the end of sept/oct and if I wasn't always on CC I would have barely noticed the menu change, other than the aforementioned duck and shrimp. I wish the MDR lunch menu wasn't static.

 

I thought the rockerfella was balls and something I was afraid to try, so cant speak to that.

 

I loved the trout almondine for lunch .. the menu is now static?.. you mean they have this every day.. Im in heaven. I only made it one day.

[swimmom32]

I will have to try the Trout Almondine for lunch on Saturday we leave on the Liberty :)

[halos]

One of my fav things about NCL is the 24 hour place, blue lagoon or whatever they call it. Ummmmm....I wish CCL would do something similar to that, other than just Roomservice and spotty Pizza service.

Absolutely!!!! Blue Lagoon is our 'go to' place when we return to the ship from excursions :)

I don't get how people rave over CCL pizza...Good Lord, it's disgusting!

[S.S.Oceanlover]

Just Got off of the Dream on Saturday and even though we did have a great trip, the boat is beautiful, service is good (not GREAT) but all the things said about the food is true. When we cruised a few years ago every night we were so impressed with the dishes that we tried but, this cruise we actually sent some back, not one dish was very good and some of them were actually down right gross. I had the Prime Rib one night it was ALL fat a couple of nights later someone else in our party had it and experienced the same thing. Most of the meals just were not good at all. Even some of the staff were not friendly at all!! This makes as sad because our last cruise was FANTASTIC!! Next we are going to try NCL of Royal Caribbean. :(

 

the food is better on NCL but of course you have to pay extra for the good stuff.

 

Their main dining room free food os no better than the other lines.

 

Bill

[firefly333]

I also loved the new frogs legs, though they are small. They had some good flavoring, a little garlic I tasted.

 

I did order two of the chips and salsa and guacamole after hearing on here it was small but good.

 

As I said it was only the spinach dip I didnt like that I tried.

[choclitsnda]

BON VOYAGE!!! :):p;):rolleyes::cool:

[elcuchio24]

Absolutely!!!! Blue Lagoon is our 'go to' place when we return to the ship from excursions :)

I don't get how people rave over CCL pizza...Good Lord, it's disgusting!

 

I just love what they have to offer. Chili, fries, burgers, shepards pie, wings, wontons, potato skins, fish and chips......it's like a NFL sunday buffet 24/7:):)

[genegri]

^^ oh I so agree with both of you! The Blue Lagoon is awesome! And I love RCI's Cafe Promenade, too!

 

I wish Carnival would consider a 24 hr venue other than pizza. In the meantime I like Carnival's room service menu a lot.