Giving food to room steward/waitstaff?

[Doc2410]

Well said debandbruce. I am constantly astounded by the rudeness and absolute viciousness of some of the people who write on these posts.

 

Here here!!!

[sheffield]

Here here!!!

 

Hey Victoria, Sheffield UK was my home town before I moved to the states 25 years ago!

 

Gail

[Doc2410]

Hey Victoria, Sheffield UK was my home town before I moved to the states 25 years ago!

 

Gail

 

Hi Gail, yes I did wonder about the name lol. What area are you from?

[cwayne]

You have not read the other posts, that is not what happened at all. We had a very large cake for 4 people. It was a beautiful Tiramisu and would not of kept to the next night. We were dining in Blu and it was night 11 of a 12 night cruise. We had become very friendly with the staff and wanted to share the cake with them. They could not stop working to eat cake but enjoyed it after their shift. They were very thankful for the treat as many of them thanked us the following morning. Our waiter said they didn't get Tiramisu very often. The cake DID NOT sit out, after my Aunt blew out the candles it was taken right back to the kitchen! Comments like this are hurtful and you were not there so stop judging what you think happened. You are wrong and if you read the other posts you would of seen I explained what really happened. We did something the staff was very thankful for. I would never pass on cake that had sat out!

 

debandbruce,

We are from the South and we would consider it an insult not to have offered the wait staff a piece of cake, assuming there was enough to share. By night 11 of a 12 night cruise you most certainly have bonded with the staff and if nothing else, it is simply polite to offer them a piece. Hell, if I had been sitting nearby, I would have loved to have been offered a piece of the Tiramasu cake. You keep right on doing it the way you're doing it. I'm sure the wait staff is happy to see you coming to dinner because you let them know that you appreciate what they do. You are the kind of person that we really enjoy being seated with! Happy Voyages!!:)

Monika

[sheffield]

Hi Gail, yes I did wonder about the name lol. What area are you from?

 

I grew up in wincobank, my parents still live there. I was actually back there 2 weeks ago. How about you?

[Doc2410]

I grew up in wincobank, my parents still live there. I was actually back there 2 weeks ago. How about you?

 

I'm in Handsworth so not a million miles away. Very jealous you liven the US. Would love to move there.

[sheffield]

I'm in Handsworth so not a million miles away. Very jealous you liven the US. Would love to move there.

 

My niece lives there, by the Asda and my sister near crystal peaks, small world!

[Doc2410]

My niece lives there, by the Asda and my sister near crystal peaks, small world!

 

I live just up from the asda & lived at waterthorpe until I left school. Wow lol.

[ellbon]

i have been on two Cmas cruises and had boxed candy for many crew members. i sent candy to the laundry room and Engine room, gift shops and msot of all in my room.. i get " thank you's" al lthe time..

you might think they do ont want candy but they do. .they are far from home and a small gift like that makes their day.

[ellbon]

If you are going to dish out chocolate, you could at least take some more expensive luxury brands. I think packets of biscuits (thats cookies) may be a suitable alternative to chocolate. Back in the 80s if you went to the USSR you would take huge amounts of exotic flavored gum and denim jeans to barter with.

 

candy for kids and Cigerates for adults.. i eat biscuits but prefer candy.

[debandbruce]

debandbruce,

We are from the South and we would consider it an insult not to have offered the wait staff a piece of cake, assuming there was enough to share. By night 11 of a 12 night cruise you most certainly have bonded with the staff and if nothing else, it is simply polite to offer them a piece. Hell, if I had been sitting nearby, I would have loved to have been offered a piece of the Tiramasu cake. You keep right on doing it the way you're doing it. I'm sure the wait staff is happy to see you coming to dinner because you let them know that you appreciate what they do. You are the kind of person that we really enjoy being seated with! Happy Voyages!!:)

Monika

 

Thank you Monika, would love to be seated with you too. Thanks to everyone else for the kind words as well it means more than you know.

[cwayne]

Thank you Monika, would love to be seated with you too. Thanks to everyone else for the kind words as well it means more than you know.

 

Consider the Celebrity Eclipse for the Jan 12, 2013 cruise.....I would recognize you if you had a "tiramasu" cake....;)

Monika

[debandbruce]

LOL wish I could Monika We love that ship. Was going to do the 2 week itinerary on the Eclipse in April but booked the med on the Silhouette for Sept 2013. It's going to be a big trip so will only do 1 week in the spring. Looking at the Reflection but my DH's brother wants us to cruise with them and my in- laws to celebrate their parents 50 th anniversary. Now we are at the mercy of 2 other couples. One good thing is we took my in-laws on the eclipse and they loved her, dear MIL does not wish to go on a ship with a lot of kids.

 

I would most definatly offer you a piece of cake if we on the same cruise! I love the south and it's southern hospitality. Love when we drive to Florida and stop on the way down in the southern states. We love Savannah Georgia, always feel like we are at home there. I have often told Bruce I am sure in a previous life I lived in the south because I love it so much. We will have to get to Alabama someday. We actually cruised with a great guy on our 2010 Emerald Princess cruise, he was also from Huntsville. Super guy, was traveling solo, we invited him to dine with us at dinner as his table mates stopped coming to dinner leaving him alone. We had great table mates and they were happy we had invited him, it was a fun table to sit at.

[cruise12004]

I did not say the waitstaff should stand and eat when they should be working.

If you are going to share then why not do so at the same time. The staff could put the cake aside to consume later.

[Greyt2dogs]

I love those hotel bars of soap and bottles of shampoo. I collect them and use them for guests staying at our home in Florida.

 

I know I'm jumping into the 'game' late but we collect the hotel bars of soap, bottles of shampoo/conditioner, cotton swabs, etc. and save them up until we have a good amount. Then, we take them to the local homeless shelter.

 

We've never given chocolates to the staff but always write a handwritten note. I try to get an email for them so that I can send them a copy of the photo we have taken with them. If they want to keep it or trash it, their choice.

[Debathome]

I think it was a lovely gesture. Whether or not they ate it, everyone responded positively, but I am sure they enjoyed it.

 

When we go to port we ask our room stewart if there is anything that we can bring back for them if they can't get to shore. Most decline but some have asked for coffee, or treats and one even asked for hair dye! lol

 

Years ago my husband had a good chat with workers on board a ship. They said that at the time they were not to eat the food that they were giving out to pax but had their own kitchen with mainly rice and breads. They supplied their own snacks and other foods. If they were caught eating the food that they were serving and seeing wasted by passengers they were in big trouble. I am sure, and hope, that things have relaxed since then.

 

It was a very nice gesture meant in the spirit of giving. I wish that everyone would treat these people as the hard working human beings that they are.

[boogs]

I wish that everyone would treat these people as the hard working human beings that they are.

 

I agree. Which is why I give them an extra tip amount if the service was better than I expected and write a positive comment card instead of giving them my leftover food. ;)

[Taxguy77]

How nice of them! :rolleyes: They leave chocolate bars when the crew has access to whatever ethnic foods they prefer, or worse, leftover birthday cake, as if a partially eaten hand-me-down dessert will show how grateful they are. Truly absurd! Any staff who would indicate they aren't thrilled with whatever the dumb passengers give them would instantly be reprimanded by their supervisors. They are specifically instructed to never show anything other than a smile, no matter what they encounter.

 

The two best ways to show appreciation or to reward for superior service is with an additional tip, and a positive review on the comment cards available at the customer service desk. The money they can instantly use for whatever purpose they may have, and the positive review will help them next time their supervisor is assessing their work.

 

With a waiter and assistant whom we had talked to off ship on occaision, I told the assisitant we had recommended him for a full waiter job, and given him the same tip as the waiter (The waiter had recommended it, so he wasn't offended). He seemed to smile much wider at the rocommendation than at the money.

If I owned a restaurant, I would have tried to hire one of them.

[Sinppu]

First: Why are people always branded stupid and ignorant when they are trying to do a nice thing???

 

Second: Why do people here assume that the crew (who obviously always prefer money to EVERYTHING) doesn't know how to dispose of unwanted things be it chocolate, trinkets or whatever???

 

I work on a ship. I've gotten loads of useless stuff as a tip and do believe me, I do not feel a need to take them to my cabin unless I know I will use them. Call me ungrateful (because I am, obviously) but I'm positive that the crew on cruise ships do not feel the need to keep stuff in their cabins just because a passenger gave it to them.