How often does Princess change their MDR menu?

[Bethwte]

Just wondering if any of the more seasoned Princess cruises know approximately how many years it is between MDR menu changes, or if there has been any news of an upcoming menu change? We took a cruise two years in a row, skipped a year, and are planning on one for 2013. From what I can tell, it looks like the menu is still the same as our 2010 cruise, which is a little disappointing for me. Not a major complaint, but I'd love some other choices.

 

I tried to do a quick search and didn't come up with anything, but if I've missed the answer elsewhere, please direct me to the correct place :)

[lovevacadays]

I've been sailing Princess for several years and I rarely note a change to their MDR menu. However, it doesn't bother me at all since I only cruise once a year or so, so it's not like I've had the Princess food so many times that I'm bored with it. I tend to look forward to some of my favorite Princess foods each cruise. Plus, if I want to mix it up I try a specialty restaurant or the International Cafe.

[cherylandtk]

Just wondering if any of the more seasoned Princess cruises know approximately how many years it is between MDR menu changes, or if there has been any news of an upcoming menu change? We took a cruise two years in a row, skipped a year, and are planning on one for 2013. From what I can tell, it looks like the menu is still the same as our 2010 cruise, which is a little disappointing for me. Not a major complaint, but I'd love some other choices.

 

I tried to do a quick search and didn't come up with anything, but if I've missed the answer elsewhere, please direct me to the correct place :)

I asked this question at the Chef's Table. The answer was about four to five years; it takes many months to come up with the new menu, tweak it, set up the logistics and purchasing, and then one entire year to roll out the new menu onboard each ship individually. At the time I asked, they were only about 18 months into the current menu on that ship, so we've still got a year or two to go.

[Kamloops50]

Just wondering if any of the more seasoned Princess cruises know approximately how many years it is between MDR menu changes, or if there has been any news of an upcoming menu change? We took a cruise two years in a row, skipped a year, and are planning on one for 2013. From what I can tell, it looks like the menu is still the same as our 2010 cruise, which is a little disappointing for me. Not a major complaint, but I'd love some other choices.

 

I tried to do a quick search and didn't come up with anything, but if I've missed the answer elsewhere, please direct me to the correct place :)

 

I've sailed Princess annually or twice a year . The MDR menu doesn't seem to change . I look forward my favorites on the menu.

I've been sailing Princess for several years and I rarely note a change to their MDR menu. However, it doesn't bother me at all since I only cruise once a year or so, so it's not like I've had the Princess food so many times that I'm bored with it. I tend to look forward to some of my favorite Princess foods each cruise. Plus, if I want to mix it up I try a specialty restaurant or the International Cafe.

 

The specialty restaurants change there menu on a regular cycle.

[Bethwte]

Thank you for the answers so far :) They have changed the Sabatini's menu since we last went, so that will definitely be something to look forward to.

 

Also, if I may veer slightly off topic (I can derail my own threat I hope), Kamloops, that cruise profile banner in your signature is really neat. So thank you for your answer and for giving me a new online app/gadget to play with for a bit.

[PescadoAmarillo]

They do seem to tweak menus slightly when traveling in different parts of the world, i.e. a Caribbean menu in the Caribbean and an Alaska menu in Alaska.

[Pam in CA]

The last major revamp was the Spring of 2009. I remember that only because I was on the Sapphire Princess in April 2009, right after the change. I'm guessing that new menus might be released with the new Royal Princess.

 

The menus are modified sometimes, depending on where you're sailing but that's not fleet-wide.

[AAAAmerican]

Dear Bethwte,

 

 

As in any service industry with complimentary food already paid for in the cost basis. ( Yes nothing is ever FREE ..)

 

The costing on CCL/CUK :NYSE/LSE Cruise Lines is well done keeping a min. down too. Carnival has the most ships afloat. So they have a great hand dealt to deal for price/cost etc.. WMT :NYSE Wal-mart Stores does it in another arena.

 

 

SUPPLY and DEMAND 101:

You know Corn Products now are going to go up. Etc..etc..etc..

 

Beef is corn/grain fed etc..

 

So yes variations on the Menu will and/or can result from this.

 

But I wonder why now with the State of Maine Lobster now at a Four Decades Low..why does not Carnival get this aboard more?

 

Having a lows Cost point of Transfer of NYC, NY which Carnival Corp. already uses too.

 

Many more Ships IMHO should use our THREE Major US Cruise Ports in NJ/NYC now. We have the passengers, the money, the low cost fuel , the products, the people for staffing...:cool:

 

 

 

 

Just wondering if any of the more seasoned Princess cruises know approximately how many years it is between MDR menu changes, or if there has been any news of an upcoming menu change? We took a cruise two years in a row, skipped a year, and are planning on one for 2013. From what I can tell, it looks like the menu is still the same as our 2010 cruise, which is a little disappointing for me. Not a major complaint, but I'd love some other choices.

 

I tried to do a quick search and didn't come up with anything, but if I've missed the answer elsewhere, please direct me to the correct place :)

[Pam in CA]

But I wonder why now with the State of Maine Lobster now at a Four Decades Low..why does not Carnival get this aboard more?

I'm not sure what Carnival Cruise Lines has to do with Princess but any food source/supplier/distributer must be able to guarantee quality and quantity... and have it ready to board on a specific date. Provisions are ordered months in advance. No cruise line looks at the cost of Maine (actually, Boston lobster is just as good or better) and decides, hey, we'll be in Gloucester on the 23rd. Let's order 7,500-lb for delivery at 7am. It doesn't work that way. Nor should it.

[AAAAmerican]

Dear Pam in CA ( Ca actually ),

 

Maam thanks, I am glad to educate as well inform you. If you want to learn a few things now. You do have some good questions.

 

 

 

The Great State of Maine was once part of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.We have had kin in both those now us states since a.d 1621 when the MAYFLOWER which was a Dutch Liquor Transport Ship, left Holland to pick up more passengers supplies in England and meet up with two other vessels to come to the Virginia at that time it was including but not limited to here in what is NYC/NJ.

 

The other sailing vessels chose then made sure they did not leave on this journey to the English Virginian Colony which built the Fort starting in a.d. 1607.

 

Lobstering was taught by the First Nation peoples living along the Northern Shores. The Cranberry, Oxycoccus microcarpus, also was learned to harvest that by the way is a totally N.American Fruit at that time too.

 

Lobsters , Homarus americanus, were eaten mostly by indentured servants.. about 80 % coming to the new colonies were.. and the lowered classes of society before they made this resource desired by the masses.. yes like diamonds now are.

 

Did you know Benjamin Franklin was an indentured servant who escaped Boston ?

 

 

 

 

Oh now about Profession. Maine has and had a small amount of Lobstering Licenses. Massachusetts most can pay a fee.

Mainers have passed down this small amount , which limits over harvesting Maam.Yes Quality Control of sorts.

 

In Maine it is a PROFESSION.

In Massachusetts it is only a job.

(Now you tell me the differences please )

 

 

Not like in California where they somehow, magically, spending Billions they do not have, nor just on the legal citizens and people that pay the taxes. :eek:

I have kin in all three aforementioned States.

 

Taste is a subjective matter of personal choice.

 

Now on to Carnival Corp. Trading Symbols on the NYSE and LSE are

CCL/CUK :NYSE/LSE

 

Carnival Corp., LLC is the Parent firm a holding .

 

Princess was purchased as was Holland America etc..etc..

 

Princess is lets compare it to the Borough of Brooklyn, NYC, NY now.

They try to think it is its own ..but Naught /Not!

 

Princess has it HQ with Cunard in Ca. and IMHO both are wonderful and one of the best parts of CCL/CUK too. Princess on its own would be the Third largest Cruise Company.

 

Carnival for all the Lines it has when in any Port of loading has certian requirements.. yes that a wonderful part of the Carnivalization in some ways.

 

NYC/NJ have one of the largest volumes of passengers and loading ships in the World. Low petrol price as NJ has LOW Taxes. Low costs of goods/services too as to compete here is like no other place on earth. We have the Population, we have the money. Look even in a 12 mile circle. Paramus , NJ does FIVE Billion in Retail in just Six Days, yearly. Of our 21 yes One County we have Blue Laws, which as any law should be, are enforced rigidly.

 

 

The purveyors approved by Carnival Corp. ( Yes all Carnival Lines ) here in the Greater NYC/NJ do great job of on time and in kind. Not much as per inspection is non-allowed and cast out. Would you e=if you supplied want any thrown out? That's why Quality Control is vital.

 

 

 

Oh orders on most things do NOT have to Be Done as you quote MONTHS in Advance Maam. here orders can be done in days. This is where the NY Minute and New Jersey NANO-Second ( that is the worlds fastest time measurement ) are from.

 

 

Money can buy anything. At any time if accepted.

 

Did you know NYC/NJ is where ships schedules started?

 

A gentleman from Norway came up with that idea and this became standard industry practice.

 

 

.

Gloucester, Ma was once a large whaling town.As many on the coast were.

 

It is one of if not still the most pictures taken. If you like sea shore near there in Ma. Go to Rockport, Ma too.

 

When you coming you may want to go where the Fried Clam was invented by an error in Ipswich, Ma. just up 1a.

 

Oh by the way there is quite a Difference between Me ans MA Lobsters. You must not have eaten enough to tell yet. I do eat them without any condiments. Maybe you use dairy butter.

 

 

 

Hope this helps you Maam.

 

May this cruise be well without many swells, the breeze at your back. GOD Speed!

 

Thanks for making more revenues/taxes for Ma.

 

:cool:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'm not sure what Carnival Cruise Lines has to do with Princess but any food source/supplier/distributer must be able to guarantee quality and quantity... and have it ready to board on a specific date. Provisions are ordered months in advance. No cruise line looks at the cost of Maine (actually, Boston lobster is just as good or better) and decides, hey, we'll be in Gloucester on the 23rd. Let's order 7,500-lb for delivery at 7am. It doesn't work that way. Nor should it.

[shepp]

Actually, I'm fine with having the same menus for a while, since I've learned what to order again (cod with chorizo) and what to avoid (pot roast). Doesn't everyone have favorite restaurants where they often order the same dishes?

[Donder1]

Lobster prices in Maine this summer have been at an all time low. So, Maine lobsters are, in fact, being sold to some ships when they dock in Portland this summer and fall. This has been widely reported all over the local news here. And, no, I am not sure of the specific ships.

And, no doubt about it, Mine lobster is the best in the world. Boston doesn't hold that distinction.;)

[FritzG]

The last major revamp was the Spring of 2009. I remember that only because I was on the Sapphire Princess in April 2009, right after the change. I'm guessing that new menus might be released with the new Royal Princess.

 

The menus are modified sometimes, depending on where you're sailing but that's not fleet-wide.

 

I thought it was the spring of 2009, too. We were on the Ruby TA, and each night our terrific waiter was anxious to know how we liked our dinners because many of them were new items. Each night he would give his recommendations, and sometimes he told us that the items were so new that he hadn't received much feedback on them yet.

 

DH and I always jokingly call the first night's dinner baramundi night. It seems like it's been on the menu forever.

[WeBeGone]

Not often enough ! :(:mad::(

[Loonbeam]

Quick answer? The cost of the lobster is low. The cost of getting it to a port in Florida or maybe Seattle while retaining quality to possibly be stored for a few days on ship? HIGH.

 

Food costs do not just include the cost of the food, they include the cost of sourcing, verifying and transporting the product as well as spoilage and preparation costs on board...

 

Dear Bethwte,

 

 

As in any service industry with complimentary food already paid for in the cost basis. ( Yes nothing is ever FREE ..)

 

The costing on CCL/CUK :NYSE/LSE Cruise Lines is well done keeping a min. down too. Carnival has the most ships afloat. So they have a great hand dealt to deal for price/cost etc.. WMT :NYSE Wal-mart Stores does it in another arena.

 

 

SUPPLY and DEMAND 101:

You know Corn Products now are going to go up. Etc..etc..etc..

 

Beef is corn/grain fed etc..

 

So yes variations on the Menu will and/or can result from this.

 

But I wonder why now with the State of Maine Lobster now at a Four Decades Low..why does not Carnival get this aboard more?

 

Having a lows Cost point of Transfer of NYC, NY which Carnival Corp. already uses too.

 

Many more Ships IMHO should use our THREE Major US Cruise Ports in NJ/NYC now. We have the passengers, the money, the low cost fuel , the products, the people for staffing...:cool:

 

[PunkiC]

Does it ever change? Quite honestly, I find cruise food very boring compared to what we have at home, but I don't care. By the grace of God, I am not a big foodie--if I were, I suspect I would weigh 300 pounds. :eek:

 

I do like the pizza (my one cruise indulgence) and the salad bar in the Horizon Court. To me, the best thing about dinner is the company and the wine. :) When I can get them to cook it right, I love salmon and halibut, which often appear on the menu, but it usually takes two or three go-backs to get it right, and by that time everyone else is done eating. At home, I love grilled chicken breasts, but the ones they serve on the ship taste like they have been nuked in the microwave and end up pretty dry and tasteless, but this is true on every cruise ship on which I have sailed, not just Princess.

 

When they have the Mexican buffet, I can usually work up a meal that is very tasty and relatively healthy, but other than that, there really isn't much to get excited about.

 

I have never understood why people get excited over cruise food.

[Infi]

Not often enough! :rolleyes: The last major change was 2007 or 2008. For those of us who cruise Princess often, the menus are pretty tired and dull by now.

 

Please, Princess - change the menus a little! It's bad when one can predict what will be served each night even before getting the menu.

[SoBaycruiser]

So do MDR menus cycle every 14 days, or with the length of the cruise? For example, does a 7 day cruise repeat it's menu for each cruise, while a 14 day cruise repeats very two weeks?

 

We will be doing our first B2B next June... 16 days Midnight Sun followed by 14 day Baltic. Should I expect to see everything repeated once or more?

[geoherb]

The length of the cruise determines which menus that ship will be using. On a back-to-back cruise, you'll see the same menus on the second cruise that you saw on the first. We haven't been fortunate enough to sail any extremely long cruises, but my understanding is that three weeks is the limit before they start repeating menus.

[Pam in CA]

So do MDR menus cycle every 14 days, or with the length of the cruise? For example, does a 7 day cruise repeat it's menu for each cruise, while a 14 day cruise repeats very two weeks?

 

We will be doing our first B2B next June... 16 days Midnight Sun followed by 14 day Baltic. Should I expect to see everything repeated once or more?

In your case, the menus will repeat. I believe there are at least 32 different menus. You'll have sixteen different ones on the first cruise, fourteen of which will repeat on the second since they are two separate cruises. If the cruise is longer without disembarking/embarking passengers, the menus will not repeat. Some items will but not the menus.

 

As for getting bored, yup. When I get bored, I make a special request for the next night. At times, I've requested a coconut shrimp appetizer and a chef's salad as my entree plus a light dessert. Or, I'll ask for an appetizer in an entree size. Sometimes I'll ask for a large Caesar salad with shrimp or chicken strips for my entree. (I love salad, obviously.) Or, if I had something I really liked that night, I ask if I can have it the next night or another night.

[AAAAmerican]

Dear Donder,

 

Yes I concur. Maine Lobsters are the Worlds Best and finest.

 

I consume Lobsters without any condiments.

 

Having a decades low price per pound is astounding.

 

The Profession of Lobstering is vital to Maine and all the citizens.

 

 

Who would know Lt. Col. Paul Revere was put on Court Martial Trial as per the loss of the majority of the new Country (US) naval fleet on that wonderful river, in what is Maine now, if not read and/or shown. :cool:

 

 

 

 

 

Lobster prices in Maine this summer have been at an all time low. So, Maine lobsters are, in fact, being sold to some ships when they dock in Portland this summer and fall. This has been widely reported all over the local news here. And, no, I am not sure of the specific ships.

And, no doubt about it, Mine lobster is the best in the world. Boston doesn't hold that distinction.;)

[Loonbeam]

Side note - it costs up to about $1 to $2 million, yes million to roll out a single new entree item across a restaurant chain. Now Princess may have some better controls, and the cost drops when on a similar to existing item replacement, but even so its a significant undertaking when you add in sourcing, training, testing, menu reprints, etc. Some even require equipment changes.

 

 

 

(I'm not talking about something simple, like changing a steak type).

 

Not often enough! :rolleyes: The last major change was 2007 or 2008. For those of us who cruise Princess often, the menus are pretty tired and dull by now.

 

Please, Princess - change the menus a little! It's bad when one can predict what will be served each night even before getting the menu.

[PescadoAmarillo]

I have never understood why people get excited over cruise food.

 

I would put the twice baked goat cheese souffle up against any appetizer ever served in any restaurant on land. It's that good. So is the yogurt and tamarind soup. And the ciappino.

 

Infi, I had to laugh. The first and last nights of the cruise are a given; it's the order of the nights in between that can change. The order...not the menus. Still, we always find something we like, and I can eat salmon and broccoli nearly every night and be happy.

 

DH has been happier with the beef the past couple of years. He seldom, if ever, sent one back, but I noticed he ordered double a couple of nights on our recent cruise. And the specially made, off menu pastas are to die for...although they seem to always be arrabiata or putanesca.

 

I just need to branch out more, and eat non-seafood things. That would give me 4 more items to try on each menu.

[AAAAmerican]

Dear Loonbeam,

 

Your very correct. The cost of Lobsters are low. A record decades low.

 

Yet, only the best, Maine Lobsters Fly to Seattle , LALa Land etc.. oh I hope they do not have Luggage Fees too ..:eek:;)

 

To Florida as well I think they also are flown. Not like the OJ where you know was the basis of the Shipping to NYC/NJ from what is the Port of Canaveral now.

 

Ever try getting Butter in Florida? The old excuse is .."oh they did not deliver it today" ... like that Alka Seltzer commercial.. Any Day now..Any Day...

 

 

Yes a total Costing, is the COST BASIS.

 

If you come to NYC, NY go see the Fulton Fish Market. :cool:

 

 

 

 

Quick answer? The cost of the lobster is low. The cost of getting it to a port in Florida or maybe Seattle while retaining quality to possibly be stored for a few days on ship? HIGH.

 

Food costs do not just include the cost of the food, they include the cost of sourcing, verifying and transporting the product as well as spoilage and preparation costs on board...

[sherryf]

The last major revamp was the Spring of 2009. I remember that only because I was on the Sapphire Princess in April 2009, right after the change. I'm guessing that new menus might be released with the new Royal Princess.

 

The menus are modified sometimes, depending on where you're sailing but that's not fleet-wide.

 

I agree that the last change was in 2009. Our first cruise with Princess was July 2009 and everyone here was talking about the "new" menus as I was planning that trip. Now we have had the same menus 4 summers in a row. There have only been minor changes, such as getting rid of King Crab Legs. I figure we are probably going to see those menus again next summer, and then maybe a complete change the next year.

 

I sure hope they keep some of my favorites: Twice Baked Goat Cheese Souffle, French Onion Soup, Eggplant Parmesan, Fettuccine Alfredo. (Do you see a cheesy theme here?!) I assume they will keep some of the basics, like Prime Rib, but change the sides that come with it. I hope they quit giving us little corn on the cob pieces with the prime rib. I love corn on the cob, but it seems awkward to eat at a nice dinner.