Currently on spirit lucky the Internet is great cause the foods awful!

[Emilija]

Thats my whole point you only get what you pay for.

 

If you are used to fine dining where you pay $100's a night for food and wine then cruise ship food will not be to your liking.

 

For a cruise line that is mass market, advertises at reasonably low prices and is inclusive of food, entertainment, travel costs you are getting good value for money and the food standard is to be expected for what you pay for.

 

I am honestly at a loss as to what people expect on these cruise ships from the food department. You are not sailing on a grand hyatt, sheraton, hilton, st. regis, le meridian, ritz, four seasons etc. These ships are not high tea at raffles or fine dining you expect in New York and London. They are simple cruise ships. You are not going to find the best paid chefs in the world living and working on these ships. The staff would more than likely be much better than the beginners serving the food up and McDonalds, KFC or Pizza Hut, but by no means would I expect the food to be world greatest.

 

You get what you pay for. What is wrong with just being satisfied with that.

 

I suppose some people who complain about the standard of rooms in an Formule1 hotel expect the decor, bedding and service to be in keeping with Hiltion!!!

 

The temperature of the food that's served, be it McDonalds, the Ritz, or the Spirit should be hot. My meals were hot (in April), but the fish was dry one night. I would still give a 4+ out of 5 for my overall experience in the dining room on the Carnival Spirit.

 

I've had a McDonalds take-out but also eaten at the Ritz and at a Hyatt Hotel dining room...what does that say about me :) Am I a McDonalds person or a Ritz person or...horrors...a Spirit person? Heck I'm just a person lol

 

Emi

[Australian family]

One would at least expect the food to be warm. And as somebody has pointed out it is a food safety issue if the food is not the correct temperature.

 

Some people just need to keep their rude complaints to themselves.

 

We stayed in a hotel in Sydney that rates itself as 5 star - Pullman Hyde Park, and the breakfast was cold.

[sherri3802]

I don't know about anyone else here but I don't eat take away all that often. Even so, I have noticed huge differences at times in quality, even with what is supposed to be the same product. Sometimes you might get a batch of chips that are piping hot, crunchy and obviously fresh, another time you might get a batch of chicken pieces or hamburgers that are a bit dried out, have obviously been in the warmer a while.

 

It isn't rocket science to be able to tell if something is past its prime.

 

Surely on even a cheap cruise we should be able to expect food that is at least the equivalent of that from a well run maccas.:)

[CruisinGirl777]

Thats a real shame. How does it compare to the likes of McDonalds, KFC, Pizza Hut, Dominos, Subway, the local fish and chip shop and the local leagues club and bowling clubs. The fast food chains have food often prepared by teenagers so it would be good to hear comparissions. I mean Carnival is kind of in the budget of someone who would eat at all those places.

 

Also how is your home cooking these days, do you still sit down for a family meal, do you cook your own gourmet foods for breakfast or are you just satisfied with toast and cereal.

 

Also what hotel chains do you stay at to compare food to there. You have to pay for meals at hotels. If you stay at somewhere like Quay Grand you would be looking at $500 a night and paying about $50 for a steak meal. At a Holiday inn you are looking at around $150 a night and a $30 meal.

 

What price per night did you pay for Carnival and does the value for money match the quality of the food.

 

If you are prepared to go out and purchase breakfast, lunch and dinner at top restaurants from $20 to $50 per meal per person costing $1200 to $3150/week for a family of three then you might have grounds to complain about the food. So if your budget is that big I would suggest possibly trying a cruise line like Regent or Crystal where you will get your moneys worth. If your a McDonalds kind of budget person and eat three meals there a day you are probably looking at around $400 for the week for a family of three and that makes Carnival right in your market so if Carnivals food is better than McDonalds you really have no grounds to complain about the food.

 

At the end of the day you get what you pay for. You cant expect to go on a cruise ship like Carnival Spirit and expect the food to be as great as or greater than 5 star hotels and restaurants that you could not possibly afford to eat at when your at home.

 

Even though people are up in arms about this quote, I don't find it rude. It expresses some very valid points. Ignoring how someone "liked" the food which is so subjective, I get that the value for dollar in cruising is amazing and if people kept that in mind, there would be less complaints period.

[Sutho]

Surely on even a cheap cruise we should be able to expect food that is at least the equivalent of that from a well run maccas.:)

 

Thats exactly my point. My main questions was did this person have too high expectations.

 

If a pancake is cold no big deal its not the end of the world and should not be the pivotal point to judge the entire ships food as quote aweful.

[KiwiFunCruiser]

I have been on the Century and other Celebrity ships. i have been on P & O International and Australia as well as royal Caribbean All food is subjective. I have eaten in some of the best restaurants in Australia and paris and london. The meal i had in the speciality restaurant on the Century was one of the best meals I have ever had. some one said the pizza on VOS was inedible I found it Ok. If a meal on a ship is cold or not to your liking ask for another sometimes we make poor choices or something goes wrong in the kitchen or in the service. No matter if it is Mcdonalds or a 6 star restaurant if the food is undercooked or overcooked cold or whatever complain or the mistakes well never be rectified, at least on a Cruise ship one can just choose another meal if you dont like your choice, this does not happen on a land based restaurant

I will be on Carnival in a couple of weeks and I will let you know what i think

i really just like the thought of not cooking and if the odd meal is not up to scratch I can forgive

 

Cruise love

Well said, We all have our likes and dislikes and are entitled to an opinion and on a cruise you can get something else if you are not happy with it. When we sailed on the Pearl last year I read many blogs from passengers not happy with their food, so we went with an open mind and I did get one tough steak and a couple of dishes I wasn't keen on but others did like and overall it was very acceptable. I have also seen a couple of posts from passengers on the Solstice saying that they found the food in Blu in Aqua Class a bit bland and favored the MDR instead others have said vice versus. We will be on the Solstice in the new year and will try the MDR, buffet and the alternative restaurants as well. Happy cruising.

[MicCanberra]

Well said, We all have our likes and dislikes and are entitled to an opinion and on a cruise you can get something else if you are not happy with it. When we sailed on the Pearl last year I read many blogs from passengers not happy with their food, so we went with an open mind and I did get one tough steak and a couple of dishes I wasn't keen on but others did like and overall it was very acceptable. I have also seen a couple of posts from passengers on the Solstice saying that they found the food in Blu in Aqua Class a bit bland and favored the MDR instead others have said vice versus. We will be on the Solstice in the new year and will try the MDR, buffet and the alternative restaurants as well. Happy cruising.

I have never been dissappointed with the food on a cruise. I have sometimes been unhappy about one part of the meal but not enough to stop me from eating something else and ruining the whole meal.:D

[Cruise ship fan]

Carnival can be hit and miss with their food. The first two cruises I had with them were great, in terms of food. However my third which happens to of been on the Spirit was pretty sad. It was edible at the time, but the everything about the food and service was sub par.

[MicCanberra]

Sutho showing his class again. What is the weekly special at the Cessnock Truck Stop this week?

I suspect it may be Hot food served slightly warm.:D

[Oz_Steve]

I suspect it may be Hot food served slightly warm.:D

 

:lol:

[Sutho]

The Spirits food review

 

There are self help beverage stands, coffee that looks like rusty water, and tea provided in paper cups with a teabag (tea dust is a more accurate description), and packets of chemical milk........the actual food delivered is banquet-style......while meats are of decent quality, poultry, fish, seafood and desserts are all disappointing. Sauces and gravies are used well as disguises.......delivered with a friendly service that lacks polish but invites extra gratuities.

 

taken as a quote from those berlitz travel guide books.....

[Aussieflyer]

It is reasonable to assume due to the success of ships here and the sell out cruises that the food must be acceptable. If over 2000 passengers are getting on and off almost every two weeks and the food was that bad we would be sure to hear about it in the papers, media, and everywhere.

 

My guess is that there is nothing wrong with the food at all and I know where I would rather be right now.

 

The Spirits food review

 

 

There are self help beverage stands, coffee that looks like rusty water, and tea provided in paper cups with a teabag (tea dust is a more accurate description), and packets of chemical milk........the actual food delivered is banquet-style......while meats are of decent quality, poultry, fish, seafood and desserts are all disappointing. Sauces and gravies are used well as disguises.......delivered with a friendly service that lacks polish but invites extra gratuities.

 

taken as a quote from those berlitz travel guide books.....

 

Have you changed your mind Sutho? In the first post you seem to be saying that there is nothing wrong with the food and in the latest one, you are quoting a review that points out major deficiencies in the food area.

[Sutho]

Have you changed your mind Sutho? In the first post you seem to be saying that there is nothing wrong with the food and in the latest one, you are quoting a review that points out major deficiencies in the food area.

 

No I have not changed my mind. I dont think anyone should expect anything more than average. The cruise review book I quoted reaffirms that it is not outstanding but average. To some average is considered inferior, poor, deficiant, terrible etc.

[Aussieflyer]

No I have not changed my mind. I dont think anyone should expect anything more than average. The cruise review book I quoted reaffirms that it is not outstanding but average. To some average is considered inferior, poor, deficiant, terrible etc.

Fair enough - just checking because if I read that cruise review I would conclude that the food was considered much less than average, in fact poor. It is only the meats that seem to be OK; the rest is quoted as disappointing. Sauces disguise poor food and the beverages are substandard. This is a mile away from average quality food IMO but you may be less choosy than me.:D The service seemed to be the only decent thing (friendly but not polished)

[CruiseyLife]

I agree the food is average but the steakhouse is exceptional! The decor is horrible but the food and service were great. If you're still onboard, I highly recommend paying the surcharge.

[MicCanberra]

Fair enough - just checking because if I read that cruise review I would conclude that the food was considered much less than average, in fact poor. It is only the meats that seem to be OK; the rest is quoted as disappointing. Sauces disguise poor food and the beverages are substandard. This is a mile away from average quality food IMO but you may be less choosy than me.:D The service seemed to be the only decent thing (friendly but not polished)

It certainly doesn't have me straining to eat the food:D.

[Tara Jane]

Interesting as I was on the same cruise and I actually thought the food was better than the RCI. cruises I have been on. I have been on celebrity, RCI, Princess, P&O and Carnival. I ate in the buffet for breakfast, lunch was either buffet or dining room and each night in the diningroom. Only one meal I wasnt impressed with was the fish in the dining room one lunch time. The steak was the most tender. The selection was far greater than other cruises. The everyday choice was about 6 or so mains, and 8 on the individual day menue. In effect that gives 14 mains to choose from.

[Tara Jane]

P.S. I agree the internet was great, slow but reasonable price. $50 for the duration of the cruise, there were other packages but I was more than happy with it. I used my tablet in the room and their computer in the computer/library.

A couple of negatives I would comment on - not enough of the hand sanitisers around, have to go looking for them in the buffet areas, not available on entry to the theatre, other rooms. On all other cruises staff have been at the entrance and physically put on the sanitizer. I dont want to start a war of benefits or not of the stuff here though.

Other thing - unruly children running around the ship, and lack of security to do something about it. I checked out the kids program for future info as I have 2 small grandaughters. Either the older kids 9 + plus was boring or those kids just werent interested. I place a lot of the blame on the parents who didnt know or didnt want to know what their kids were up to. 9 + are able to sign themselves in and out of the kids program. Running around the Lido buffet in barefeet playing chase is not safe and no one put a stop to it, other than cranky old me telling them to stop, most likely I got the finger from them as they ran by!!!

[sydgal]

I can tell you Carnival Spirit is not cheap in Australia. Have booked on Spirit for August sailing. Hope the food improves before then.

Sydgal

[Aussieflyer]

Running around the Lido buffet in barefeet playing chase is not safe and no one put a stop to it, other than cranky old me telling them to stop, most likely I got the finger from them as they ran by!!!

That is disappointing (or just plain annoying). We were on the Radiance and they were very strict about shoes in food areas. Evan toddlers had to have something on their feet. This was good to see.

[Tara Jane]

Sydgal - depends what you call cheap. I paid $600 for 9 nights oceanview, I wouldnt consider that expensive. Maybe if you have one of the super dooper rooms you would pay a lot more, but as long as I am on a cruise.......................................................

[kate59]

I was also on the same cruise. We ate in both the MDR and buffet at times. Some foods were good - the Deli but had to ask for extra toppings and the toasted sandwiches and wraps were ok, the Pizza where also good but again had to ask for extra pineapple - it was cut so thin. Chopsticks always had a long line but waiting was only about 10 mins. I only found the sushi on the last day 5 -8 pm down near Cool Club and only a taster.

 

I think some of it was unlucky what you got if it was cold - thankfully I didn't have many issues, sometimes the waiters got the orders mixed up a little in MDR. The steakhouse was worth the $35 - the lobster and prawns were great - I don't normally bother paying extra for things.

 

My biggest complaint with the food was that the selection of various foods wasn't as good as Princess but I did find enough to eat that I enjoyed, and at least they now serve Aussie bacon in MDR for breakfast.;)

[fishtaco]

My tone was not condesending to anyone. It was clever and witty. Kind of like something you would hear in a fawlty towers episode.

 

Though as food is so subjective any criticism of it needs to be justified by stating where they are used to eating and what budget food chains they go for. Going on a ship that serves average run of the mill food, you have no right complaining about if it is not 5 star standard.

 

If you criticise the food - name the cruise line and its demographic, make sure it fits in the demographic you eat at when you are home, compare it to similar budget places. Its no use coming on and saying the food is garbage and not justifying it.

 

To me unedible food is maggot infested, rat eaten, stinking, off, foul slops. You are not going to get food poisoning if your pancake is a 0.1 degrees cooler than you are used to at home.

 

I agree with you and I said "sounds Condescending" which in my mind it does a bit but I looked beyond that as it may have been un intentional and I am one of CC,s worst for that, proven much by my huge "Ignore" list:D

 

I believe no cruise food is actually "bad" but it may not live up to the expectations of people who are always reading threads about how "fantastic" the food is when some of the thread composers might actually call McDonald's a "Restaurant" on land, Just look how many people rave about Johnny Rockets on RCI and they actually pay extra for it when the best choices are free, and there are many choices lol

 

Its all about "The emperors new cloths" It should actually be a "syndrome" lol

[Wyuna1]

I think that we are all entitled have an opinion on what we feel is good , what is bad and what is expected. However, we should compare apples with apples.

To say the food is not as good as Princess and not mention the difference in fares between the two lines is not a fair comparison.

I found the food on Princess "in my opinion" was better than both Pacific Jewel and Pearl but the fare was significantly higher.

I am cruising on Carnival Spirit in July so will be able to judge for myself, but I will remind myself of the old adage you only get out what you put in.

[Sutho]

I personally have never had a bad meal on a cruise ship. Princess has always impressed as does P&O UK. I personally had no problems with Celebrity this year either. Their Tuscan Grille and Murano were outstanding to me and they were pay to use, I also like their Bistro on five.

 

To me Carnival would rate as cheap as does P&O and Princess. For a standard cabin you are looking around the $100 mark per person per night. If for argument sake you were to stay at the Quay Grand Suites you would be looking upwards of $450/night. Go to a Hyatt and you are looking over $500 a night. A balcony cabin or suite on a cruise ship may be expensive but it does not compare in anyway to a land based hotel.

 

It is still a get what you pay for situation. By the sounds of it from other people the food was satisfying to them.

 

If anyone wants to pay my fare for Carnival Spirit I will be happy to offer a review and even bring back photos.