I know I'm gonna get flamed, but Windjammer is AWFUL

[At Sea 4Ever]

How's the WJ on the Explorer. Do they have a Park Cafe, and is it open for Embarkation Day Lunch?

 

No park cafe on explorer. : (

[Langley Cruisers]

Go to johnny rockets for a good hot free breakfast.

 

Only available on Oasis and Allure. OP was on Liberty.

[PattiG]

I found the hamburgers at WJ were like hockey pucks. The rest of the food was not much better. I went there on the first day of my cruise on Explorer because there was nowhere else to go by the time I boarded. Never went back again. Why doesn't RCI have the hot dog and burger place near the pool, like most other cruise lines have?

[kruzerci]

I think it varies from ship to ship. I think our best WJ food experiences have been on Oasis and Enchantment.

[dplusd]

I found the hamburgers at WJ were like hockey pucks.

 

Why doesn't RCI have the hot dog and burger place near the pool, like most other cruise lines have?

 

The poolside Trident Grill on Princess puts Royal's hamburgers and hotdogs to shame.

[sblair]

The few cruises I've been on I've found WJ to be pretty awful. I think the problem in general is that cruises seem to be about quantity over quality when it comes to food.

[ldubs]

I found the selection on Adventure to be absolutely terrible - food selection was mediocre and quality was lacking. They weren't even serving Hamburgers at lunch anymore (a misguided attempt to drive people to Johnny Rockets, i'm sure).

 

RCCL really needs to get their act together with the Windjammer.

 

 

Agree, it is very poor. What I noticed is that almost every pan on the hot line was at boiling temperature. Whatever food was brought out was quickly ruined. Even the plastic serving utensils had melted!

[macleay]

I've only been on one RCI cruise and it was on Vision of the Seas. I thought the WJ was good for what it is--a buffet. I've been on many Princess cruises and I think they were pretty comparable. The food was hot and there were tons of choices. I liked the fruit a lot--didn't do the omelets. Cheated on my diet with the biscuits and gravy more times than I want to admit and they were pretty darned awesome!

[campingman]

The Windjammer food is awful.

 

A tremendous amount of food is cold.They dont know how to cook soft boiled eggs at breakfast when you ask.The Hamburgers are a disaster and also followed by their Pizza.Pizza is a disaster.

 

The Salads are excellent.

 

The RCCL NEEDS TO FIX WINDJAMMER.I am sure that MIAMI,should move in that direction?

 

The service on board IN GENERAL is presented well,by the whole crew in other area

food areas.The dinning room is very very good. along with Chops, etc.

[JamesEM]

Last year we had a family get together onboard the Oasis and the group decided to have dinner in Windjammer each evening. Being on a low fat diet I bring along my own salad dressings, good decision, I agree with the OP 100%. As a side note, did not have any problem getting past security with the 2 bottles salad dressing.

[campingman]

The Windjammer food is awful.

 

A tremendous amount of food is cold.They dont know how to cook soft boiled eggs at breakfast when you ask.The Hamburgers are a disaster and also followed by their Pizza.Pizza is a disaster.The Salads are excellent

 

The RCCL NEEDS TO FIX WINDJAMMER.I am sure that MIAMI,should move in that direction?

 

The service on board IN GENERAL is presented well,by the whole crew in other area

food areas.The dinning room is very very good. along with Chops, etc.

 

Lunch every where else than Windjammer, is very good,minus, Pizza..

Edited January 10, 2014 by campingman

[BekkaW]

WJ can vary greatly from ship to ship, cruise to cruise. That being said I've never had a problem finding something I enjoy.

 

I agree it is quite variable. On Oasis I did not care for the Windjammer at all and made a beeline for Park Cafe at any opportunity. On our recent Voyager repositioning the Windjammer was quite nice - the hamburgers in particular were quite good and lots of fresh salads and sushi. We had lunch there most days and dinner once when I was feeling poorly with a cold, and wasn't up to MDR.

[Arizona Laura]

On the RCL ships we have no c/o of the Windjammer.

Never liked pizza or hamburgers on their ships.

Just having been on the Star Princess we loved their Trident Grill and Prego Pizza but thought less of the buffet.

 

I agree your food can get cold while you stand in line waiting to get to another food item in the buffets.

 

Laura

[dacruiser12]

Wish they would serve breakfast later than 11a.m.

[aussielozzie18]

I liked the Windjammer for breakfast. I thought the food quality was not great for lunch and dinner but I liked the location, the great service and the cleanliness.

 

The one thing I could not understand was the popularity of the substandard hamburgers. This was the most popular item by far. Every lunch there would be queues for the hamburgers. Why do people insist on eating hamburgers every day, even when on holidays, when there is so much choice on the buffets.

Edited January 10, 2014 by aussielozzie18

[VIRGINIA ARTIE]

My DH and I have cruised Oceania these past years , and only eat in their buffet.

Lobster tail, filet, etc. The price, however is 3 times that of RC, and the people and reviews here make me want to meet you all.

We're cruising the Grandeur in June. Can anyone tell me the best items on the buffet? [i already have a list of the worst]

Thanks in advance.

Edited January 10, 2014 by VIRGINIA ARTIE

[Clarea]

My DH and I have cruised Oceania these past years , and only eat in their buffet.

Lobster tail, filet, etc. The price, however is 3 times that of RC, and the people and reviews here make me want to meet you all.

We're cruising the Grandeur in June. Can anyone tell me the best items on the buffet? [i already have a list of the worst]

Thanks in advance.

I like the Seafood Paella on embarkation day.

[JosieCat-MN]

We eat all our meals in the WJ and have never had any issues. The one time we ordered room service it was cold. I say if people are unhappy with RCCL they should just leave and go elsewhere.

 

So, because the OP isn't impressed with the Windjammer and YOU'VE never had a problem - they should switch cruise lines. REALLY! Thanks for the chuckle.

 

I am the least fussy person out there, foodwise. Yes, the food at the Windjammer was not terribly impressive, but it filled the hole. I do really like the Park Cafe though. I have never though to put tuna and egg salad together - loved it.

Edited January 10, 2014 by JosieCat-MN

[sjb317]

My DH and I have cruised Oceania these past years , and only eat in their buffet.

Lobster tail, filet, etc. The price, however is 3 times that of RC, and the people and reviews here make me want to meet you all.

We're cruising the Grandeur in June. Can anyone tell me the best items on the buffet? [i already have a list of the worst]

Thanks in advance.

 

We prefer the WJ over the MDR for breakfast, the omelets & freshly made eggs from the egg stations are usually excellent. I also love the pastries and my husband is a fan of the bran muffins.

 

We rarely eat lunch & prefer the MDR over the WJ for dinner. My favorite foods in the WJ are any of the Indian or Asian dishes, especially a spicy lentil stew if they have it, the salads, french fries, and, for some reason, I love the mashed potatoes!:D My husband is a fan of the carving station.

 

Sherri:)

[shaggyofwv]

Okay, seriously fellow cruisers. I am a huge RCCL fan. I am a middle class american who hardly eats at 4 or 5 stars restaurants. I am just an "average Joe". I have taken many RCCL cruises, and by far this is the worst Windjammer experience.

 

In the morning, pancakes, french toast, toast, etc were all cold! So bad there were a few times I couldn't even swallow it.

 

The meat is ridiculous. The infamous CC honey stung chicken is as dry as a bone. The hamburgers are something that would be served in a school cafeteria. No quality meat at all.

 

It takes the entire cruise to figure out what to avoid.

 

I do give credit to the salad bar, it was nice. But even the dressing was so cheap. I had Blue Cheese dressing that squirted out of a bottle with a very small tip. So it was runny, not creamy or chunky like it should be.

 

At what point are we going to all agree, the Windjammer is like eating at a local grocery store food cafeteria line. After you finish eating, you are full, but there is never anything you have to get seconds. It just wasn't good.

 

Go ahead and flame me. But I wish they would use flames in the Windjammer to at least keep the food warm.

 

It is sad that you have to be worried about getting flamed, but there are a lot of bullies around here that will do just that if you dare speak up.

 

I tend to agree with you about Windjammer. I have never been a fan of buffet-style eating. My wife seems to enjoy it, however.

As far as the honey stung chicken, it sucks. The only thing that I have found that I "like" in the windjammer is the pizza.

[ryano]

The windjammer is what it is. A buffet barely even the quality of Golden Corral. I seem to never have trouble finding plenty to eat there that satisfies me though.

 

I use the WJ mostly for breakfast. its hard to mess up cooked to order over medium eggs, bacon, hashbrowns and a trainman sandwich :)

 

Yes, those "burgers" floating in that vat of grease are nasty. The burger in the MDR or from room service is much better. Not sure why they cant serve those in the WJ

Edited January 10, 2014 by ryano

[slyster]

I'm not a flamer...never have and never will be. I agree with you to a certain degree. Two cruises ago we were on Serenade and i remember being a little disappointed. I figured maybe it was smaller than oasis (freedom prior to that) so that's why I wasn't as impressed.

 

I was on Grandeur last cruise and yes, it's a smaller ship too but what i noticed is a lot of the same stuff was served day in and day out. There was a little variety but not with what I'm used to. I could be wrong but that's what sticks out for me.

 

The food is ok and I can usually find something I love, but I can also find something that just didn't taste well either.

[nbsjcruiser]

We tend to eat breakfast more in the MDR now. I remember when we first started cruising on RCI they use to have a guy on a toast station in the WJ. You'd select what you wanted (white, whole wheat, bagel etc) and they'd toast it there for you. So you always got fresh made toast. Now it sits under those lamps for God knows how long and its cold. To me breakfast toast has to be hot. If we do eat in the Windjammer I normally go around get my eggs and bacon and then grab the toast and tell them to run it through the toaster again. Sometimes they'll say that it already toasted but I just say yeah, humour me and do it again. The scrambled eggs they serve can be a hit or miss so if I'm in the WJ then I'll go to the egg station and get eggs to order. But as I mentioned earlier, more and more its the MDR for breakfast for us. You get served (always nice) and you get your order hot and ordered just for you.

[DreamingBig1]

We've enjoyed Jewel's WJ more than any other ship we've sailed on. In 2007 ruling a galley tour, the then-Executive Chef said that it was the one place where they could stray from the corporate menu, and he had some great options, which his successors have kept. In addition to the pasta station, they offer a stirfry and cooked to order steaks, chicken and fish. We have pretty much given up on the chaos of the MDR at dinner in favor of better food, even if we have to fetch it ourselves. I'd rather do that than have it brought to me by a server who is stretched over so many tables that he's sweating profusely while bringing the food.:eek: I don't blame the server but it's not exactly appetizing.

 

 

 

I hate the MDR buffet setup. If I'm going to eat there, which I rarely do, it's because I want somebody else to do the fetching for me. At breakfast and lunch they aren't sweating so much. I will make an exception for the salad bar, since the ingredients are awesome.:)

 

OP, I'm sorry that your experience on Liberty wasn't acceptable. Try Jewel next time.:)

 

"In 2007 ruling a galley tour, the then-Executive Chef said that it was the one place where they could stray from the corporate menu, and he had some great options, which his successors have kept."

 

This may be the problem, even if it works on certain ships, it may be a problem for others. The WJ from what you have been told is not streamlined, and the chefs have a little leeway with the menu and preparation.

 

If the Chef and staff are good, then it can lead to a great experience. They are polishing up the food so to speak. However, if the Chef and staff take it as an opportunity to cut a corner, then its a recipe for disaster.

 

I for one think that the Chef's should be allowed to alter things, however there should be some sort of overall standard to be followed, and maybe some sort of approval process for the sake of quality assurance.

 

With that being said, Disney often the standard bearer for catering to the masses, does not always meet the mark with their offerings at their theme parks. I have found more often than not, the food falls below. I have come across many a complaint over the years. If they have a hard time getting it done, then that says quite a lot.

 

The WJ is the Golden Corral of the Seas. The experience is just that.

[Jtd724]

Since when did salad dressing get deemed dangerous that you would be stopped by security for having it?