buffet bashers, how do you feel about the bev packages?

[happy cruzer]

So over the years I have seen many posts bashing the buffet -

 

food is wasted

folks eat too much

wasteful

quantity vs quality

 

 

So on bev packages, would not the same apply -

 

can order as much as you want

lots of plastic/glass bottles generated from so much bottled water

lost of glasses to wash

unfinished drinks that folks just wanted to try

lots of calories consumed.

 

Just a question to generate thought....

[Kamloops50]

So over the years I have seen many posts bashing the buffet -

 

food is wasted

folks eat too much

wasteful

quantity vs quality

 

 

So on bev packages, would not the same apply -

 

can order as much as you want

lots of plastic/glass bottles generated from so much bottled water

lost of glasses to wash

unfinished drinks that folks just wanted to try

lots of calories consumed.

 

Just a question to generate thought....

 

Totally agree with you . There was a stat published in Canada in early Feb that the average family wastes about 60% of the food it buys.

[fishycomics]

I think what you want from this is that you like to purchase a ticket. and see everyone be charged a fee to eat.

 

:eek:

 

no more free food on a cruise ever.

[JLSPOOL]

It appears the thread shows your opinions.

 

Re buffet and drink waste, call me Rhett Butler.

 

jls

[Denny01]

We are talking about vacationing, and enjoying ourselves....right? Just checking.

 

I dont' spend a lot of time on a cruise watching how much people put on their plates at the buffets, or overorder at the MDR and dont finish it all, or if they finish all their drinks to the last drop......just me I guess.

 

And by the way, if they aren't finishing their drinks, or not eating all their food on their plates like we were told to do as kids, I guess they aren't consuming extra calories and aren't gaining that extra weight by eating everything because someone will judge them for making a mistake taking too much.

 

Just a thought.

 

Den

[kasowell2]

I will respond to the waste part. Only one time in the previous two premium package purchases did I waste the drink. I wanted to try a Guiness beer. I purchased one and it was something I did not like. Was that wasteful? Probably but it was not intentional. Now if I had noticed anyone being deprived of a drink I would have gladly given it because I truly do not believe in abusing alcohol.

[We're The Groupnors]

Buffets on cruise ships are no different than buffets on land: of course there is waste and overeating. And if the argument is that it's done because it's free, I say not true as you're paying for the food in your cruise fare. Not to mention the fact that there is also overeating and waste in the dining room and specialty restaurants, but no one seems to take as much "offence" when it's occurring in those venues.

 

I'm sure there's also waste in beverage packages, but probably only in the not finished drinks, as people probably consume also must as much on an a la carte basis, thus causing the same amount of recycling, dirty glasses, etc.

[spookwife]

So over the years I have seen many posts bashing the buffet -

 

food is wasted

folks eat too much

wasteful

quantity vs quality

 

 

So on bev packages, would not the same apply -

 

can order as much as you want

lots of plastic/glass bottles generated from so much bottled water

lost of glasses to wash

unfinished drinks that folks just wanted to try

lots of calories consumed.

 

Just a question to generate thought....

 

 

i don't like Buffets for a variety of reasons. doesn't have anything to do with the fact that economically, most all inclusive beverage packages are not worth it to us based on our drinking habits. there is no way my spouse and I could drink the daily cost of a package to break even.

 

hell we even turned down the FREE one as part of the 123 promo and took OBC instead.

[spookwife]

I will respond to the waste part. Only one time in the previous two premium package purchases did I waste the drink. I wanted to try a Guiness beer. I purchased one and it was something I did not like. Was that wasteful? Probably but it was not intentional. Now if I had noticed anyone being deprived of a drink I would have gladly given it because I truly do not believe in abusing alcohol.

 

the horror.. not liking Guiness?! :eek: :D ;) ( actually I don't drink it either, but I do cook with it. next time just give it to my DH though he'll be more than happy to help you avid alcohol abuse.)

[buchhalm]

At least Celebrity does not seem to provide trays at the buffet. These are a real invitation to take too much food. I think people are more reluctant to pile up a plate than to over fill a tray. The people who tend to take too much food in the first place are usually too lazy to make repeated trips to the buffet and/or line up again.

Perhaps there should be signs, "Folks, this buffet is All you can EAT, and not all you can CARRY"

:)

:)

[newcruisergal]

Happy to report that we did not waste a drop of our premium packages :D

 

And the buffet on Summit was so icky that you weren't really tempted to take that much in the first place so not much waste there either. And they did have trays, everywhere, so you could really load up if you wanted to, but didn't really see too much of that happening. That was why we liked Aqua Spa Cafe, nicely pre-portioned options...they should really expand the hours of this.

[A Sixth?]

"I know that it's your sixth martini but drink it all or there'll be no desert!!!!" :rolleyes::rolleyes::D

 

Who cares? :D

 

[USVI-4-me]

I pack plastic bags for my leftovers.

I take fruit back to the cabin for washing.

I can't eat a whole filet mignon at the specialty restaurant so I bag that for lunch the next day.

 

Aboard ships, I don't call my leftovers "for the dog".

 

A leftover filet goes nicely on a pretzel roll.

Bacon and cream cheese from breakfast is great for a lunch ashore.

 

Just my style to take what I plan to eat, and sip a good drink until the glass is empty.

 

-Marisa

[orchestrapal]

i don't like Buffets for a variety of reasons. doesn't have anything to do with the fact that economically, most all inclusive beverage packages are not worth it to us based on our drinking habits. there is no way my spouse and I could drink the daily cost of a package to break even.

 

hell we even turned down the FREE one as part of the 123 promo and took OBC instead.

 

We also chose the OBC and we also have free gratuities so it's just another discount witch will pay for all the wine we will drink on board.

 

The thought that some will feel they have to get their money's worth with the drink package is not a pleasant one. :rolleyes:

[phoenix_dream]

I was raised in the 50's in a strict, religious family where 'wasting' was strongly discouraged. Now I ask the question - why does it matter so much if some of the food is 'wasted' - especially on a cruise ship?

 

Two downsides I can see - it might create a slight (and per passenger I think it would be very slight) upcharge in cruise cost due to needing to buy more and the corresponding preparation cost, and two, some also very minor environmental impact on washing more dishes (but aren't the ships using recycled water and I presume generating alot , albeit not all, of the electricity to do so, so is this impact not truly minor?).

 

But upsides as well - buying the additional food gives a bump to the economy of the area providing it - farmers, distributors, dockloaders, etc.; the ship may employ a few more workers to do the extra preparation and service so therefore providing employment to someone who sorely needs it; and the uneaten food does not go to waste - it gets ground up and dumped into the ocean and therefore feeds the ocean life to help support it.

 

So to me, the upsides seem to even out the downsides. In fact the 'wasting' side seems to have more humanitarian benefits, albeit at a slight cost to each cruiser. What am I missing here?:)

[foodle]

Speaking as a professional chef with 15 years of experience I can safely assure you that there is little wastage on buffets that are mainly cook to order or with a managed amount on display, it is a far more economical way of feed many differing cultures and diets then attempting an a la carte service of 3000+ guests. I would point out that anything that is within food safe standards is probably repurposed for the staff meals on board.

 

I also fail to see how a drink package encourages waste, people will want to consume drinks of some discription wether on package or not.

[fishycomics]

As Op did not know all those banana's thart laid around on the table, and In the back getting brown spots. were served the next day as Banana cake.

 

 

It ain't gonna be like airline food:D:D

[HopefulCruiser123]

People who opted for the beverage package under the current 123 promotion probably would have gotten the package anyway. It more likely was just enough of a push to maximize bookings in the specified time period. We were just on bard, and i believe it was the 2nd sailing for Celebrity to which this promotion was actually in place. We didn't see people drinking themselves silly, long lines to get a drink, or the bars "running out of liquor". Things were pretty much the way it always is.

 

Speaking from personal experience, having had the premium drink package for this past week, 5 of the 7 days, we enjoyed the specialty coffee Cafe Americano (the other 2 days I took 2 sips of the regular house coffee and then "wasted" it down the drain). I enjoyed several glasses of fresh squeezed orange juice, a big bottle of water every day we stepped off the ship at the various ports, 3 or 4 virgin frozen strawberry dacquiri's on a couple of afternoons, and then wine by the glass in the evenings. I had one mixed drink at the molecular bar that I might not have tried if I'd had to shell out a separate $12 on an unknown (i might have, but this just made the decision easier). I still purchased 3 additional bottles of wine for our sateroom. I don't feel like I was a glutton for alcohol because I had the premium beverage package. I think most people were pretty much the same as we were.

[happy cruzer]

From the responses, to me it looks like the debate will continue. That all you want to eat or drink venues will cause waste/abuse. I do agree that many of us do police our consumation but also agree that many don't.

 

Is it a problem? I don't know but I do know it bothers many....

[gelo7]

We are talking about vacationing, and enjoying ourselves....right? Just checking.

 

I dont' spend a lot of time on a cruise watching how much people put on their plates at the buffets, or overorder at the MDR and dont finish it all, or if they finish all their drinks to the last drop......just me I guess.

 

And by the way, if they aren't finishing their drinks, or not eating all their food on their plates like we were told to do as kids, I guess they aren't consuming extra calories and aren't gaining that extra weight by eating everything because someone will judge them for making a mistake taking too much.

 

Just a thought.

 

Den

I like that thought...

[fishycomics]

It's funny. We all paid for a cruise, and we all enjoyed our buffet....

 

The cruise is over, and now we all have to learn to control our appetites....

 

I miss the Buffet, going to a local store, or supermarket cannot compare to X's buffet. so yes those days will be missed....

[MicCanberra]

We are talking about vacationing, and enjoying ourselves....right? Just checking.

 

I dont' spend a lot of time on a cruise watching how much people put on their plates at the buffets, or overorder at the MDR and dont finish it all, or if they finish all their drinks to the last drop......just me I guess.

 

And by the way, if they aren't finishing their drinks, or not eating all their food on their plates like we were told to do as kids, I guess they aren't consuming extra calories and aren't gaining that extra weight by eating everything because someone will judge them for making a mistake taking too much.

 

Just a thought.

 

Den

I agree.

By the OPs question, all consumption and non consumption is a waste depending on how you look at it.

Consumption as a waste, i.e. People eat and drink, it gets processed (the good and the bad nutrients but not all of it) and then discarded through bodily functions. Wasted.

On the otherhand, if there was no consumption then leaving it there to be not consumed is also a waste. Wasted.

:D

[fishycomics]

burning calories. the yummie part of it goes to the sea

[dwhe]

At least Celebrity does not seem to provide trays at the buffet. These are a real invitation to take too much food. I think people are more reluctant to pile up a plate than to over fill a tray. The people who tend to take too much food in the first place are usually too lazy to make repeated trips to the buffet and/or line up again.

Perhaps there should be signs, "Folks, this buffet is All you can EAT, and not all you can CARRY"

:)

:)

 

I get over the no tray problem by slipping someone a few quid to hold all my plates for me.

 

When they have their arms full I take the cash back out of their pockets then put my plates on the table, if they complain I just call for a crew member at the top of my voice saying I'm being mugged.... simples

[Beachdude]

Sally and I aren't big fans of buffets because we aren't big eaters. However, when we do eat at a buffet (usually on a cruise), we will typically leave some of the food (usually dessert) because it is better to leave some waste on the plate than in our waist on our body. Wasted food on cruise ships is not near the problem in our cultural as over eating. I wish more folks would leave a little more waste.

 

Burt