I like my coffee black! I'm not a fan of Cafe al Bacio!

[luvs2fly]

Does any one know if they have a french press available at any venue. If not can I bring my own and have it prepared. Or can you order boiling hot bottled water from room service. I'm a little addicted to my Tully's coffee.

Yes, I travel with my beans and french press! I'm a sucker for a cup of perfectly brewed black coffee. If not, I will have to spend some free time looking for a friend's of Joe meeting.

[Lsimon]

I had coffee once at The Lawn Club Grill on Silhouette about a year ago and it was served in a French press. I was excited at first but was let down when the coffee tasted about the same as the other "regular" ship's coffee from other venues.

 

For a couple cruises, a few years back, we carried a French Press and coffee on board. It had a shatterproof body so it was packable. I'd get it prepped and take it to the buffet to fill it with hot water to bring back to our cabin. That worked our really well but we stopped doing that as it was a hassle to clean out the French Press - I always figured the grounds would be bad for the ship's plumbing so I'd spend a lot of time wiping it out with paper towels or tissue into the trash. We eventually switched to Starbucks Via instant coffee which isn't as nice but was better than the ship's coffee. More recently we've just gotten the Non-alcoholic package and got our morning coffees from Café al Bacio.

Edited December 14, 2013 by Lsimon

[luvs2fly]

I had coffee once at The Lawn Club Grill on Silhouette about a year ago and it was served in a French press. I was excited at first but was let down when the coffee tasted about the same as the other "regular" ship's coffee from other venues.

 

For a couple cruises, a few years back, we carried a French Press and coffee on board. It had a shatterproof body so it was packable. I'd get it prepped and take it to the buffet to fill it with hot water to bring back to our cabin. That worked our really well but we stopped doing that as it was a hassle to clean out the French Press - I always figured the grounds would be bad for the ship's plumbing so I'd spend a lot of time wiping it out with paper towels or tissue into the trash. We eventually switched to Starbucks Via instant coffee which isn't as nice but was better than the ship's coffee. More recently we've just gotten the Non-alcoholic package and got our morning coffees from Café al Bacio.

 

Thanks for the info! Awhile ago I bought one from sky mall and clean up is fairly easy. But might be a problem on the ship. My husband and I have a beverage package.

Every line I've sailed on has mediocre coffee and expresso at best. I'm not sure if it is their beans or water! Maybe I'll just have to suck it up!

[sharkwl]

Why not just order an Americano? Add more hot water if it is too strong! ;)

[surebeatssailing]

I enjoy the café americana decaf with frothed skim milk at Café al Bacio . The tiny biscotti that accompanies it is a nice treat too. My husband likes hot tea & is spoiled by the china tea pot.

[monicajay]

Does any one know if they have a french press available at any venue. If not can I bring my own and have it prepared. Or can you order boiling hot bottled water from room service. I'm a little addicted to my Tully's coffee.

Yes, I travel with my beans and french press! I'm a sucker for a cup of perfectly brewed black coffee. If not, I will have to spend some free time looking for a friend's of Joe meeting.

 

I'm a bit confused, I thought the idea of Cafe al Bacio was that they had way better coffee. Don't they use beans at the cafe?

 

I'd love to hear from others about he quality of the coffee here. I'm not into flavored, whipped, frothed, sprinkled but love a really good cup of Joe. It is one of the things that appealed to us about Celebrity (yes, we have a drink package).

[Cruise Raider]

I'm a bit confused, I thought the idea of Cafe al Bacio was that they had way better coffee. Don't they use beans at the cafe?

 

I'd love to hear from others about he quality of the coffee here. I'm not into flavored, whipped, frothed, sprinkled but love a really good cup of Joe. It is one of the things that appealed to us about Celebrity (yes, we have a drink package).

 

We had the beverage package on our cruise on the Equinox -- found out that Café al Bacio coffees were included. WOW! They make the absolute best coffee ever. They use beans for their coffee and there is a noticeable difference between their coffee and the coffee from the buffet area / room service. I also am not into the mochas or lattes, but the Café Americano is just to die for. You will not be disappointed...IMHO, that is.

[luvs2fly]

I'm a bit confused, I thought the idea of Cafe al Bacio was that they had way better coffee. Don't they use beans at the cafe?

 

I'd love to hear from others about he quality of the coffee here. I'm not into flavored, whipped, frothed, sprinkled but love a really good cup of Joe. It is one of the things that appealed to us about Celebrity (yes, we have a drink package).

 

The coffee is off in every way! I love a good quality French, Kona, Italian, you name it. The coffee on Celebrity reminds of the nasty stuff I drank in college! The kind that was left in the pot for two days, but you drink it because your to tired and lazy to make new!

They use beans at the cafe. But I'm not sure what the deal is with the coffee. I'm thinking its a mix of the ships water and poor quality beans. My husband likes the flavor shots and other sweet things in his coffee. He thinks the coffee is fine. However I usually just have a double espresso shot or cappuccino. The regular coffee is not palatable. The stuff at the cafe is just tolerable.

Edited December 15, 2013 by luvs2fly

[scanditaly]

yes, we have traveled with our FP coffee maker; on land vacations and on various cruise lines. It is not an easy task because of the clean up. I recommend bringing small plastic garbage bags which can serve as a glove and coffee grounds receptacle.

 

Part of our reasoning is in the AM, we do not wish to step out of our cabin until ready for our day. The other is that both of us have very strong preferences for a certain coffee taste and definitely want to enjoy it while on any type of vacation. OP, don't let anyone dissuade you if this feels right for you. Please consider the ship's plumbing and do not place coffee grounds in the toilet. Having our own insulated mugs was such a nice thing so we could wander at whatever port we were in.

[luvs2fly]

yes, we have traveled with our FP coffee maker; on land vacations and on various cruise lines. It is not an easy task because of the clean up. I recommend bringing small plastic garbage bags which can serve as a glove and coffee grounds receptacle.

 

Part of our reasoning is in the AM, we do not wish to step out of our cabin until ready for our day. The other is that both of us have very strong preferences for a certain coffee taste and definitely want to enjoy it while on any type of vacation. OP, don't let anyone dissuade you if this feels right for you. Please consider the ship's plumbing and do not place coffee grounds in the toilet. Having our own insulated mugs was such a nice thing so we could wander at whatever port we were in.

 

I would never put the grounds down the drain! But the idea of bringing the trash bags makes a lot sense and is a really good idea! I was thinking about just leaving the fp out in the sun to dry all day and scraping it out in the evening. As dry grounds are always easier to deal with.

I'm a chronic over packer and Weight and space will determine if I bring my fp. If I just brought the beans do you think they would brew them? I'm not above bribery.

[Lsimon]

...if I bring my fp. If I just brought the beans do you think they would brew them? I'm not above bribery.

 

I don't think you could get them brewed. I've never seen a coffee maker on board capable of making a small pot of drip brewed coffee nor a regular style bean grinder. The bean grinder at Café al Bacio is one of these commercial units with a large hopper that both grinds and packs the espresso portafilter (part of the espresso machine that holds the ground beans). So I don't think it would be practical for them to use beans you brought for espresso either.

 

While I really don't like the regular coffee on board I've always thought the espresso based coffees were pretty decent. This is actually the first thread I can ever recall seeing where someone said they didn't like the Café al Bacio coffee other comments from than people who don't like any espresso based coffee.

 

Café al Bacio uses, or claims to use, Lavassa coffee.

 

The other coffee makers on board are huge commercial units which either brew the coffee continuously on demand or which make gallons at a time.

Edited December 15, 2013 by Lsimon

[luvs2fly]

I don't think you could get them brewed. I've never seen a coffee maker on board capable of making a small pot of drip brewed coffee nor a regular style bean grinder. The bean grinder at Café al Bacio is one of these commercial units with a large hopper that both grinds and packs the espresso portafilter (part of the espresso machine that holds the ground beans). So I don't think it would be practical for them to use beans you brought for espresso either.

 

While I really don't like the regular coffee on board I've always thought the espresso based coffees were pretty decent. This is actually the first thread I can ever recall seeing where someone said they didn't like the Café al Bacio coffee other comments from than people who don't like any espresso based coffee.

 

Café al Bacio uses, or claims to use, Lavassa coffee.

 

The other coffee makers on board are huge commercial units which either brew the coffee continuously on demand or which make gallons at a time.

 

I'm not exactly a seasoned cruiser. Out of my handful of cruises I've only cruised x one other time. While X's espresso's weren't great they weren't terrible either they were just mediocre.

I really enjoy the flavor of coffee and the drinks were just a little off for me. At home I use a Saeco Xelsis machine. I have programmed it to brew my perfect expresso. I know my machine has a great water filter and the quality does go down when the filter needs to be changed.

It is reassuring to hear that people enjoy the coffee drinks at the cafe! Maybe it was just anomaly and I too will love the drinks on my up coming cruise. It could have been anything from a inexperienced barista to a filtration problem.

[DavidYYC]

Maybe if you can't live without carting an entire coffee shop with you, then you should re-think your plans?

 

We drink tea every morning - Yorkshire Gold, made with fresh boiled, distilled water and drunk with 2% milk and organic cane sugar. Seriously. It's important to us.

 

...but on vacation, I have coffee which can range from instant in the UK, to the ghastly stuff that comes with breakfast on Celebrity. Its OK. Life goes on.

[Cruising89143]

I'm a bit confused, I thought the idea of Cafe al Bacio was that they had way better coffee. Don't they use beans at the cafe?

 

I'd love to hear from others about he quality of the coffee here. I'm not into flavored, whipped, frothed, sprinkled but love a really good cup of Joe. It is one of the things that appealed to us about Celebrity (yes, we have a drink package).

 

IMO they have very good coffee and specialty coffees at al Bacio. Love this place.

 

[luvs2fly]

Maybe if you can't live without carting an entire coffee shop with you, then you should re-think your plans?

 

We drink tea every morning - Yorkshire Gold, made with fresh boiled, distilled water and drunk with 2% milk and organic cane sugar. Seriously. It's important to us.

 

...but on vacation, I have coffee which can range from instant in the UK, to the ghastly stuff that comes with breakfast on Celebrity. Its OK. Life goes on.

 

My travel sized French Press that I purchased from sky mall only makes 20 oz of coffee. It is hardly a coffee shop. As I stated previously I'm unsure about taking it with.

I've also stated in my previous posts that I was not a seasoned cruiser with X. I've sailed twice on Disney's Dream and I wish that I would have utilized cruise critic before my sailings. My other cruises have been on Oceania. Traveling with family who are very seasoned cruisers.

Not being overly familiar with X I was wondering if there was a venue that did French Press coffee. Lismon a very seasoned X cruiser, offered some very helpful advice.

On my one sailing with X I wasn't blown away with the coffee in the cafe. From quite a few reassuring posts I'm feeling that my experience isn't the norm. If for some reason I'm not feeling the coffee then I'm going to suck it up and deal with it. My husband and I had a great time on our cruise and the coffee was just a minor hiccup. Of all the cruises that I have been on X has been my favorite. We had the best room stew ever and 95% of the service was phenomenal.

I'm not going to cancel a vacation over something as trivial as coffee! I was just wondering if I was missing something. Or if there were any special coffee spots I was not aware of. Just trying to gather up as much information as I can.

[Waihekean]

My first cups of the day are always black coffee. I got in the habit of drinking these at the Aqua Spa cafe and was quite happy with it. My DH however who drinks coffee with milk, did not like the coffee there.

But who knows you might like it too.

[luvs2fly]

My first cups of the day are always black coffee. I got in the habit of drinking these at the Aqua Spa cafe and was quite happy with it. My DH however who drinks coffee with milk, did not like the coffee there.

But who knows you might like it too.

 

Thank you, I'm going to give it a try! Sometimes it takes a black coffee drinker to get a black coffee drinker.