December 15 Crossing: Quick Comments

[vcdarty]

Our first Cunard experience. Previous crossings on the French Line (don't ask when!) and several recent crossings/repositionings on "luxury" lines.

 

Would we do Cunard again? Maybe. Our Q5 cabin and service fine if not exceptional. Bouncy crossing--four days of force 9 gales. Pitching plenty. Loved it. QM2 the largest ship we'd sailed. Around two hundred pax short of a full ship--Brit to Yank ratio roughly 3 to 1.

 

Liked the unflashy retro look. Liked the nearly 100% adherence to dress code. Liked the "feel" of the ship. Liked very much the Behind the Scenes tour. So much to like, which we did.

 

The ship at times felt crowded. At Trivia the Golden Lion was often packed, and extra chairs sometimes appeared. We took one dance lesson, slow waltz, and the Queens Room floor was jammed; despite the efforts of the fair-to-middling instructors, it felt like rush hour on the Underground with music. QLounge often full up for tea as were, toward end of voyage, Commodore's Club and Chart Room pre and post dinner. But pax invariably were happy to share tables when possible.

 

We took lunch and dinner in QG, 2-top, and found it generally pleasant. Fine service, excellent Dover sole, rack of lamb, venison, lobster newburg. Decent wine list, well priced. On special orders, a mixed bag. Very good sweetbreads starter, very average beef carpaccio, disastrous canard aux navets. Felt the maître d', Osman, slightly oleaginous.

 

Sorry our butler couldn't or wouldn't provide a single malt as part of the QG bottle offer. "I get in trouble with manager." When we asked about caviar for canapés, were told, "Oh, that's only for deluxe canapés. You have to ask.". We had them from then on. Very sparse and mediocre fish eggs. Likewise in Grill. You had to ask. Beg? Not on offer. Not a class act. Not what we'd experienced on other lines. Multi-tier in QG?

 

Minor points, perhaps. But it diminished our experience with Cunard. To repeat: would we sail with Cunard again? Maybe.

 

J

[Jim Avery]

I enjoyed your comments. I agree that the bottle and canapes issue is rather cheap actions for a QG suite given the tariff they charge. There are lots of options out there at that price point.

[keithm]

Our first Cunard experience. Previous crossings on the French Line (don't ask when!) and several recent crossings/repositionings on "luxury" lines.

 

Would we do Cunard again? Maybe. Our Q5 cabin and service fine if not exceptional. Bouncy crossing--four days of force 9 gales. Pitching plenty. Loved it. QM2 the largest ship we'd sailed. Around two hundred pax short of a full ship--Brit to Yank ratio roughly 3 to 1.

 

Liked the unflashy retro look. Liked the nearly 100% adherence to dress code. Liked the "feel" of the ship. Liked very much the Behind the Scenes tour. So much to like, which we did.

 

The ship at times felt crowded. At Trivia the Golden Lion was often packed, and extra chairs sometimes appeared. We took one dance lesson, slow waltz, and the Queens Room floor was jammed; despite the efforts of the fair-to-middling instructors, it felt like rush hour on the Underground with music. QLounge often full up for tea as were, toward end of voyage, Commodore's Club and Chart Room pre and post dinner. But pax invariably were happy to share tables when possible.

 

We took lunch and dinner in QG, 2-top, and found it generally pleasant. Fine service, excellent Dover sole, rack of lamb, venison, lobster newburg. Decent wine list, well priced. On special orders, a mixed bag. Very good sweetbreads starter, very average beef carpaccio, disastrous canard aux navets. Felt the maître d', Osman, slightly oleaginous.

 

Sorry our butler couldn't or wouldn't provide a single malt as part of the QG bottle offer. "I get in trouble with manager." When we asked about caviar for canapés, were told, "Oh, that's only for deluxe canapés. You have to ask.". We had them from then on. Very sparse and mediocre fish eggs. Likewise in Grill. You had to ask. Beg? Not on offer. Not a class act. Not what we'd experienced on other lines. Multi-tier in QG?

 

Minor points, perhaps. But it diminished our experience with Cunard. To repeat: would we sail with Cunard again? Maybe.

 

J

Never had any issues with off menu orders. Just always gave a day notice for the Sweetbreads & Foi Gras & other orders. As to the Caviar, again no problems. We did find that some butlers did go above & beyond. Lily, our Q-6 butler asked what could she do to make our trip more memorable. I mentioned how I loved Caviar(sorry,no Russian just USA Hackleback,which is ok.)Each day a 10" plate arrived along with the other Canapes. The plate was "ringed" with Caviar on blinis. I always give the impression(without saying)"You take care of my wishes & I'll remember you at the final formal night" If they think extra tip is coming they usually give the extra effort(and yes, they DO get that extra tip)We knew some further down the hall who didn't get Caviar. I told them be polite & if doesn't work, then a polite chat with the purser works wonders. As to Osman..Well he couldn't have been more professional to us. He strongly urged us to frequently venture off menu, again to please give a day notice for some items.

[Whitemarsh]

I don't think "beg" is the right word. Certainly no one says no when you ask for caviar and/or foie gras (well no one said no to me).

 

Possibly the issue is that no one explains how & when to make the requests. Some first timers would know in advance that they can make requests but are unsure of when and whom to make the request from.

 

I discovered that there is a particular time to make off menu request for caviar et al, and that is when the maitre d' comes around in the evening to see how everything is. At that point you make known that you would like caviar (or whatever) the following night. I presume this happens at lunch as well, but I didn't do lunch often enough to determine this.

 

And the above scenario may only be applicable to Osman. Different QG maitre d's may run things differently. I should add that Osman proactively offered us caviar towards the end of my last voyage.

 

My recollection is that it's only caviar and foie gras that need to be requested via the maitre d', your standard off menu requests (such as a particular pasta dish) can be given to your waiter.

[DDBINK1]

On my last trip, my butler Jackie, she had information from my previous cruises. Requests I had made. King size feather pillows were placed on my bed before I arrived. I had Doritos delivered to my cabin at bed turn down. It was my favorite snack on a previous QM2 trip and this trip was on QV. Also, some how I was seated right next to a scotch drinker. Made for great dinner conversation about the best brand etc. (not sure that was in my profile). But my point is that somewhere they keep notes on you. So if you choose a new trip on a Cunard Ship you may find more things anticipated. Also, unlike some lines, the staff seem more stable and long term on Cunard.

[vcdarty]

Hello Whitemarsh (so much enjoy your comments . . .). Yes, I retract "beg," much too strong a word. Sorry. We did indeed make our off-menu requests the night before. In the unhappy case of the cardboard duck that had never seen a turnip, two nights. The caviar provided with our canapés was so substandard that we didn't bother asking in the Grill where, it would appear, a higher quality was available had we known. None was ever offered. Likewise with foie gras. But smallish matters, I guess.

 

Hello keithm. Yes, we do tip above and beyond, with pleasure--not as a pre-condition, perceived or implied--for service. (Even to Osman, ever as you state, the professional, although after we expressed sad disappointment with an off-menu presentation, his professionalism became glacial.) And although we are infallibly, even obsequiously, polite to our servers, should this really be a condition for correct service?

 

Like that sundial, I always count the sunny hours. Plenty of them on this crossing.

 

J

[keithm]

Hello Whitemarsh (so much enjoy your comments . . .). Yes, I retract "beg," much too strong a word. Sorry. We did indeed make our off-menu requests the night before. In the unhappy case of the cardboard duck that had never seen a turnip, two nights. The caviar provided with our canapés was so substandard that we didn't bother asking in the Grill where, it would appear, a higher quality was available had we known. None was ever offered. Likewise with foie gras. But smallish matters, I guess.

 

Hello keithm. Yes, we do tip above and beyond, with pleasure--not as a pre-condition, perceived or implied--for service. (Even to Osman, ever as you state, the professional, although after we expressed sad disappointment with an off-menu presentation, his professionalism became glacial.) And although we are infallibly, even obsequiously, polite to our servers, should this really be a condition for correct service?

 

Like that sundial, I always count the sunny hours. Plenty of them on this crossing.

 

J

You must be members of the Empire..We Yanks aren't so versed in the finesse of the English language. We've been at it for over two centuries and haven't mastered it yet!

[Whitemarsh]

Hello Whitemarsh (so much enjoy your comments . . .). Yes, I retract "beg," much too strong a word. Sorry. We did indeed make our off-menu requests the night before. In the unhappy case of the cardboard duck that had never seen a turnip, two nights. The caviar provided with our canapés was so substandard that we didn't bother asking in the Grill where, it would appear, a higher quality was available had we known. None was ever offered. Likewise with foie gras. But smallish matters, I guess.

 

Thank you, and may I say how refreshing it is to read an unbiased review (as yours obviously is), so I appreciate that you took the time to write about your experiences (the good and the not so good).

 

I didn't ask for caviar with my canapés so I have no idea what the canapé caviar is like. I'm not surprised that it wasn't fantastic as whilst the canapés were okay, they were nothing to write home about. Should you decide to voyage with QM2 again, I can assure you that the caviar served in the QG restaurant is perfectly fine and delicious.

 

(And should some informative person come along to alert us all to the fact that the caviar is in fact the same - canapé & restaurant - then that's fine too as I do not pretend to be a caviar connoisseur.)

 

I agree that they should be proactive regarding the whole off-menu thing. Once guests find out they can go off menu they will, so I don't understand the reasoning behind not advising new guests about it on their first night. You'd think they be happy to highlight the perks of Queens Grill.

 

Glad that, on the whole, you enjoyed your voyage.

[vcdarty]

Hello again Spike, aka keithm. Nothing Imperial here. Plain old stars & stripes. Just between us city slickers, the English language has been my bread and butter for years. (Block that metaphor!). Best wishes from

 

Beetle Bomb.

[Rileyspike]

I dont understand why you have to pre order caviar or foi gras as it used to be on the menu. That being said they have always been available on request.

 

Do Silversea, Sebourn and crystal have caviar listed on their menus?

[Whitemarsh]

I dont understand why you have to pre order caviar or foi gras as it used to be on the menu. That being said they have always been available on request.

 

They're not on the a la carte menu anymore, which makes them an "off-menu" request.

[Blueacre]

Our first Cunard experience. Previous crossings on the French Line (don't ask when!) and several recent crossings/repositionings on "luxury" lines.

 

Would we do Cunard again? Maybe. Our Q5 cabin and service fine if not exceptional. Bouncy crossing--four days of force 9 gales. Pitching plenty. Loved it. QM2 the largest ship we'd sailed. Around two hundred pax short of a full ship--Brit to Yank ratio roughly 3 to 1.

 

Liked the unflashy retro look. Liked the nearly 100% adherence to dress code. Liked the "feel" of the ship. Liked very much the Behind the Scenes tour. So much to like, which we did.

 

The ship at times felt crowded. At Trivia the Golden Lion was often packed, and extra chairs sometimes appeared. We took one dance lesson, slow waltz, and the Queens Room floor was jammed; despite the efforts of the fair-to-middling instructors, it felt like rush hour on the Underground with music. QLounge often full up for tea as were, toward end of voyage, Commodore's Club and Chart Room pre and post dinner. But pax invariably were happy to share tables when possible.

 

We took lunch and dinner in QG, 2-top, and found it generally pleasant. Fine service, excellent Dover sole, rack of lamb, venison, lobster newburg. Decent wine list, well priced. On special orders, a mixed bag. Very good sweetbreads starter, very average beef carpaccio, disastrous canard aux navets. Felt the maître d', Osman, slightly oleaginous.

 

Sorry our butler couldn't or wouldn't provide a single malt as part of the QG bottle offer. "I get in trouble with manager." When we asked about caviar for canapés, were told, "Oh, that's only for deluxe canapés. You have to ask.". We had them from then on. Very sparse and mediocre fish eggs. Likewise in Grill. You had to ask. Beg? Not on offer. Not a class act. Not what we'd experienced on other lines. Multi-tier in QG?

 

Minor points, perhaps. But it diminished our experience with Cunard. To repeat: would we sail with Cunard again? Maybe.

 

J

Thank you for posting your review.