Cunard to do away with Grills?

[Jim Avery]

What happened to March??:eek::D

[keithm]

My personal definition of "ordinary cruise ship" are those that lack the "formality" present on Cunard. I prefer a large ballroom and a proper dance band to floating amusement parks. Most of all, I like a ship that caters primarily to adults so I don't have to share my dinner and shows surrounded by hordes of screaming children in shorts and swimwear. I suppose these might be possible without the Grills, but I seriously doubt if it would be the same without them.

 

Just to clarify, we normally choose Britannia but would probably switch to the Grillls if we were to win the lottery :)

This is what we liked about the Eclipse. We saw only about 5 children from say 1-6 years old. This was out of 3000+ pax. The crowd was definately an older crowd, which we like. No announcements, except 10AM location info. that's about it. Same sidewalk sales as Cunard & most lines for that fact. I'll admit not much dance floor space. If you like ball room dancing then Cunard is DEFINATELY the way to go.

[keithm]

Gosh, this year is going fast, April 1st already ;) . Well played Keithm! :) Some nearly fell for your little jape, you rascal :) .

 

I'm sure that if major changes and rebuilds of QM2 are planned, the very first people to be informed would be the dining room staff :rolleyes: . It's not like they ever gossip with passengers, so they can be totally trusted to keep a corporate secret.

 

I first heard stories of extra cabins on deck 13, the stern being boxed off (ala QE) instead of terraced as now, several years ago. And again, it was an ex-member of the dining room staff (then working for a competing cruise line) who had the "inside story" of the huge changes to QM2's profile that were "guaranteed to take place in the winter of 2011"...

 

Doing away with the grills? Sorry, I can't concentrate on that at the moment, I think a pig just flew past my window.

I hope it's not true..but only time will tell.

[keithm]

Gosh, this year is going fast, April 1st already ;) . Well played Keithm! :) Some nearly fell for your little jape, you rascal :) .

 

I'm sure that if major changes and rebuilds of QM2 are planned, the very first people to be informed would be the dining room staff :rolleyes: . It's not like they ever gossip with passengers, so they can be totally trusted to keep a corporate secret.

 

I first heard stories of extra cabins on deck 13, the stern being boxed off (ala QE) instead of terraced as now, several years ago. And again, it was an ex-member of the dining room staff (then working for a competing cruise line) who had the "inside story" of the huge changes to QM2's profile that were "guaranteed to take place in the winter of 2011"...

 

Doing away with the grills? Sorry, I can't concentrate on that at the moment, I think a pig just flew past my window.

Please check the Celebrity site for "Jan.25 2014 Eclipse scans" thread. it will show menus from the Moonlight Sonata menus. Then compare them to your latest Cunard menu from your most recent voyage(not the Grills, but the standard Britannia menu)

[Cruachan]

Gosh, this year is going fast, April 1st already ;) . Well played Keithm! :) Some nearly fell for your little jape, you rascal :) .

 

I'm sure that if major changes and rebuilds of QM2 are planned, the very first people to be informed would be the dining room staff :rolleyes: . It's not like they ever gossip with passengers, so they can be totally trusted to keep a corporate secret.

 

I first heard stories of extra cabins on deck 13, the stern being boxed off (ala QE) instead of terraced as now, several years ago. And again, it was an ex-member of the dining room staff (then working for a competing cruise line) who had the "inside story" of the huge changes to QM2's profile that were "guaranteed to take place in the winter of 2011"...

 

Doing away with the grills? Sorry, I can't concentrate on that at the moment, I think a pig just flew past my window.

 

I thought I heard the beat of porcine wings too, Pepper! Mind you, if they do get rid of the grills that will mean a few extra rowers to take a turn on the oars! :D

 

J

[Salacia]

Hey, Keith, I was just thinking about how people unfamiliar with Cunard would view your question "Cunard to do away with Grills?" Of course, people familiar with Cunard exactly what you mean, but how does it strike those who don't know the booking categories on Cunard ships?

 

Where I live, the word 'grills' conjures up images of a bar & grill, grilled food, or what is needed to keep people safe such as window grills. 'Grills' is not a word usually associated with luxury accommodations in this part of the world. Perhaps part of the marketing problem is the nomenclature?

Edited February 10, 2014 by Salacia

[pepperrn]

... Where I live, the word 'grills' conjures up images of a bar & grill, grilled food, or what is needed to keep people safe such as window grills. 'Grills' is not a word usually associated with luxury accommodations in this part of the world. Perhaps part of the marketing problem is the nomenclature?

Hi Salacia,

And that's exactly where the term started, well over 100 years ago in America, so I understand. To a late 19th century diner, a "Grill Room Restaurant" on land indicated that steaks, chops, etc were individually "cooked to order" (as opposed to being merely kept warm, as in lowly establishments, I presume). The service was also of a higher standard. Naturally this cost more. So the term "Grill Room" became synonymous, to our great-great-grandparents, with higher-class fare.

When the first extra-charge dining rooms were built on ships, the term "Grill Room", "Ritz-Carlton Grill" or "Verandah Grill" etc was used to indicate that this was dining at its very best (although interestingly, the Normandie didn't have an extra-charge, a la carte restaurant). Passengers who decided to dine exclusively in the "Grill Rooms" were often given a discount on the price of their ticket (as they would be paying extra for every meal). Others might dine only once or twice in a voyage, as with Todd English and Verandah Grill now.

Then, in 1972 on board QE2 I believe, Cunard changed all that by assigning passengers automatically to certain restaurants dependent on the grade of suite/cabin booked. The "Grill Rooms" were no longer open to all.

(But I fully realise you knew all this, sorry :o ).

It seems odd to modern taste-buds that grilling steaks, chops, burgers, sausages etc should once have been thought as exceptional, above the norm, high-class dining!

Edited February 10, 2014 by pepperrn

[pepperrn]

... (although interestingly, the Normandie didn't have an extra-charge, a la carte restaurant) ...

:o That should of course have been the France which didn't have an extra-charge restaurant :o , sorry!

[southwestie]

Yes, but we are running out of options.:eek: There does seem to be a great homogenization going on in the industry. If it is Tuesday, this must be Belgium.:eek::D

 

 

This is so sadly true, Cunard need to open up more ports and countries , other than the world cruise, we have to take other lines, however RCL and celebrity are also good lines with some great deals

[ToadOfToadHall]

It's so easy to start a rumour. For example, last year on the QV a lot of the public areas were boiling hot. One day I was in the Golden Lion and said "well, it's so hot because they are too tight to put the air conditioning on because it costs so much to run". A few people near me picked up on that immediately and started telling other people. I even said "no, I just made that up" but still they kept on !

 

People will believe whatever you tell them, and even, in my case, when you say you're made it up !

[Chunky2219]

There's a thread running over on the Celebrity part of the forum and it's getting longer and more polarised as the days go on. The subject is Celebrity adding separate dining for suite passengers!

 

They have surveyed passengers (always a good idea) and the scuttlebutt is that "Bistro on Five" will be converted to a suites restaurant. Note that Bo5 currently serves very nice pancakes, panninis and such like, but the $5 a head charge seems to ensure it is almost always empty, except on embarkation day when it it the only feeding station open. Celebrity also has "Blu", a restaurant supposedly for the gym bunnies that suite guests can use, but they ask you for a £5 tip. The food is much better than the MDR, but is never going to compare to the Grills.

 

The thread is alive with all the comments from people who deplore the Cunard "class" system, even though they've never been on one of the queens. They've all been watching too much Downton Abbey. To put this in perspective, our last two voyages have been in Celebrity Royal Suites - the size and service equivalent of a Q2. They cost more than our last two QG voyages (one of which was a Q3/Q1 upgrade). Everything was great, except the MDR food. Speciality dining is available, at up to $45 a head, but even the top of the line is just about comparable to QG. RS guests get two freebies but I had to book in advance to be certain of getting the restaurants, dates and times we wanted. In the end, six speciality visits racked up the bill and we ate in Blu and in-suite a fair bit.

 

 

With Cunard's closest competitor in many aspects actively looking at providing better dining for the people paying top dollar, I can't imagine the Grills being pensioned off and replaced with more mid-market chow down haunts. The inevitable consequence is that suite guests would just eat in cabin and they'd need to hire a lot more butlers. If it did happen, then sadly it would be the end of my Cunard addiction and we'd be off to Seabourne or Oceania. Or Celebrity.

 

Don't panic. It won't happen.

 

 

.

[ABoatNerd]

Good morning Cunarders!

 

I will be taking my first Cunard crossing on QM2 June 5 - truly can not wait to sil on a classy ship.

 

I have exclusively patronized Celebrity since 1992 and have experienced the changing product offering from that line. Three (14) day cruises with Celebrity in past year and half have crystalized their corporate direction in my mind.

 

Like cunard, Celebrity is puttiing in place a class system of dining venue per room category per cunard. This is reinforced more than Cunard it would appear in that suite guests got to walk a red carpet to board the Eclipse. On Eclipse I was ordered to leavethe sky lounge (top and forward viewing area) so that the room could be used for an "exclusive" elite event. I told Celebrity that I would not leave and that they were denying me access to a pubic room. They were shocked that I was not docile - I stayed and enjoyed a pod of whales playing while their elite party happened around me.

 

Opposite to Cunard - Celebrity is working hard to get rid of the 70+crowd (to Holland America). Celebrity is courting the 35+ urban crowd with their "free" beverage packages - linked to the 40 per cent fare hike. This strategy includes "free" children fares for ahorter voyages and no enforcement of any dress code.

 

Cut back in offerings and quality are everywhere on Celebrity.

 

Make no mistake the "cruise" industry is working towards a class segmentation based on money

 

ABoatNerd

[goose30]

If they do away with the Grills maybe someone will find the stash of clotted cream which seems to have gone missing!

[Austcruiser84]

I really doubt that this is true.

 

At a recent Travel Agent's briefing, the information given was that Cunard's

bottom line has been improving in the last couple of years and that the

fastest growing sector has been the Grills.

In that case it would seem to be counter productive to do away with them.

 

With Cunard, as with most cruise lines, the cabins that sell out first are the

most expensive and the least expensive.

 

Rob

 

Indeed. The GFC hit Cunard as it did to other premium landslide hotels and the pointy end of airlines.

 

That is coming to an end as the global economy recovers.

 

Cunard prides itself on its Grills experience. It won't be disappearing.

 

But hey, nothing like a little rumour spreading, right? After all, wait staff always know the dealings and discussions of the men and women making decisions in boardrooms away back on dry land.

[Salacia]

Hi Salacia,

And that's exactly where the term started, well over 100 years ago in America, so I understand. To a late 19th century diner, a "Grill Room Restaurant" on land indicated that steaks, chops, etc were individually "cooked to order" (as opposed to being merely kept warm, as in lowly establishments, I presume). The service was also of a higher standard. Naturally this cost more. So the term "Grill Room" became synonymous, to our great-great-grandparents, with higher-class fare.

When the first extra-charge dining rooms were built on ships, the term "Grill Room", "Ritz-Carlton Grill" or "Verandah Grill" etc was used to indicate that this was dining at its very best (although interestingly, the Normandie didn't have an extra-charge, a la carte restaurant). Passengers who decided to dine exclusively in the "Grill Rooms" were often given a discount on the price of their ticket (as they would be paying extra for every meal). Others might dine only once or twice in a voyage, as with Todd English and Verandah Grill now.

Then, in 1972 on board QE2 I believe, Cunard changed all that by assigning passengers automatically to certain restaurants dependent on the grade of suite/cabin booked. The "Grill Rooms" were no longer open to all.

(But I fully realise you knew all this, sorry :o ).

It seems odd to modern taste-buds that grilling steaks, chops, burgers, sausages etc should once have been thought as exceptional, above the norm, high-class dining!

 

Hi Pepper. I didn't realize the connection between Grill restaurants and Grill suites. Thanks very much for that interesting bit of history! Now that I understand the evolution of Grills, the Cunard model of 'The Grills' makes sense to me, even though it might be somewhat anachronistic. Thanks again, -S.

[Q-step]

My wife & I talked about moving up to the Grills as we would prefer to eat around 7-7:30 (vs 6 or 8:30.) One drawback (other than price) is that we like the in-hull balcony rooms for crossings. The rooms are more stable and you get a close-up view of the ocean. We've seen whales, dolphins and a host of sealife right outside our room.

 

We joked about booking a B-5 and just eating in TE most nights. We figured that would be a cheaper option than the grills.

[keithm]

Good morning Cunarders!

 

I will be taking my first Cunard crossing on QM2 June 5 - truly can not wait to sil on a classy ship.

 

I have exclusively patronized Celebrity since 1992 and have experienced the changing product offering from that line. Three (14) day cruises with Celebrity in past year and half have crystalized their corporate direction in my mind.

 

Like cunard, Celebrity is puttiing in place a class system of dining venue per room category per cunard. This is reinforced more than Cunard it would appear in that suite guests got to walk a red carpet to board the Eclipse. On Eclipse I was ordered to leavethe sky lounge (top and forward viewing area) so that the room could be used for an "exclusive" elite event. I told Celebrity that I would not leave and that they were denying me access to a pubic room. They were shocked that I was not docile - I stayed and enjoyed a pod of whales playing while their elite party happened around me.

 

Opposite to Cunard - Celebrity is working hard to get rid of the 70+crowd (to Holland America). Celebrity is courting the 35+ urban crowd with their "free" beverage packages - linked to the 40 per cent fare hike. This strategy includes "free" children fares for ahorter voyages and no enforcement of any dress code.

 

Cut back in offerings and quality are everywhere on Celebrity.

 

Make no mistake the "cruise" industry is working towards a class segmentation based on money

 

ABoatNerd

We just did a 14 day trip on the Eclipse. The food in the mdr was far superior to any of the Britannia food we've had on Cunard. We've done the Grills twice & yes it's the best I've ever seen. Unfortunately, we can't afford to do them every trip. That & the fact Cunard has pretty much abandoned the Caribbean, gave us no choice but to try another line. Having a large catering company means I can't travel during the mid spring through mid fall(early April-mid October)So I'm quite limited to Late Oct.-mid March(can't do Dec. because of holiday parties)I checked out the Eclipse as it had a nice itinerary of 14 day trips. The age demographic was much like Cunard & HAL. I prefer quiet voyages without kids running around. The food was outstanding in the mdr. Much better variety & selection over Britannia. There was more staff per pax, so no sense of feeling rushed. Do please read my review on this trip on member reviews. I've heard that Celebrity is indeed trying to change their demographic, but feel they are leaving the Eclipse to the more seasoned pax(the reason for 14 day trips)If Cunard would start doing more B2B from New York, which they used to do, then I'd book one in late fall. I feel they are not able to financially compete with the larger cruiselines out there when it comes to the Caribbean(hard to do with just 3 ships)I think they are going to position themselves as a more elite line for more British pax.

[BlueRiband]

I could be wrong but from my memory when Carnival sued Rolls Royce for the issues with QM2 Azipods they stated she required frequent dry docking for review and repairs of the pods compared to typical dry-docking schedule...

Your are right in that there were sufficient problems with the pods early on that Carnival won a lawsuit from Mermaid/Rolls-Royce due to the break downs. It's my understanding that modifications and rebuilds have fixed the early problems. QM2 wouldn't be on a 4-5 year dry dock schedule if pod maintenance was still a problem.

 

....Make no mistake the "cruise" industry is working towards a class segmentation based on money...

About two years ago the Wall Street Journal wrote of the "Return of the Class System". A few years ago RCI found that suite passengers gave their staterooms high marks but lower overall rating for the rest of the voyage compared to passengers in "standard" cabins. They didn't feel "special" once they left their suite. What they wanted were exclusivity and skipping lines. Since these passengers tend to spend more on board they are being given what they want.

 

I've often wondered how the crew knows who "belongs" in areas reserved for Grills passengers. (Unless of course one buys a drink and has to produce a stateroom card.) Maybe those in the service industry have a sense of reading confidence or hesitation in body language.

[brigittetom]

On Eclipse I was ordered to leavethe sky lounge (top and forward viewing area) so that the room could be used for an "exclusive" elite event. I told Celebrity that I would not leave and that they were denying me access to a pubic room. They were shocked that I was not docile - I stayed and enjoyed a pod of whales playing while their elite party happened around me.

 

 

 

ABoatNerd

 

Were you dressed for the event? :)

[Jim Avery]

Your are right in that there were sufficient problems with the pods early on that Carnival won a lawsuit from Mermaid/Rolls-Royce due to the break downs. It's my understanding that modifications and rebuilds have fixed the early problems. QM2 wouldn't be on a 4-5 year dry dock schedule if pod maintenance was still a problem.

 

 

About two years ago the Wall Street Journal wrote of the "Return of the Class System". A few years ago RCI found that suite passengers gave their staterooms high marks but lower overall rating for the rest of the voyage compared to passengers in "standard" cabins. They didn't feel "special" once they left their suite. What they wanted were exclusivity and skipping lines. Since these passengers tend to spend more on board they are being given what they want.

 

I've often wondered how the crew knows who "belongs" in areas reserved for Grills passengers. (Unless of course one buys a drink and has to produce a stateroom card.) Maybe those in the service industry have a sense of reading confidence or hesitation in body language.

 

Also, they are not pushing her as hard as they did at first. She rarely exceeds 24 knots any more. Lots less wear and tear on the pods.

[bananavan]

Like cunard, Celebrity is puttiing in place a class system of dining venue per room category per cunard. This is reinforced more than Cunard it would appear in that suite guests got to walk a red carpet to board the Eclipse. On Eclipse I was ordered to leavethe sky lounge (top and forward viewing area) so that the room could be used for an "exclusive" elite event. I told Celebrity that I would not leave and that they were denying me access to a pubic room. They were shocked that I was not docile - I stayed and enjoyed a pod of whales playing while their elite party happened around me.

 

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I do not understand. If you have cruised almost exclusively with Celebrity, you should have already been an Elite passenger.. We are Elite and have never been thrown out of any event.

Cunard give Priority boarding to Grills passengers as does booking with an American Express Platinum card.

Edited February 10, 2014 by bananavan

[scifisteve]

We've seen whales, dolphins and a host of sealife right outside our room.

 

and all served in the Grills restaurant, don't get that in the Britannia :D

[Q-step]

and all served in the Grills restaurant, don't get that in the Britannia :D

 

You're right. Next time I'll bring some bait & tackle and a portable grill for my room. I could set it up on my in-hull balcony. Which would easier to get by security? Charcoal & lighter fluid or a little propane tank? And do you think this would run afoul of the smoking rules? :D

[Jim Avery]

You're right. Next time I'll bring some bait & tackle and a portable grill for my room. I could set it up on my in-hull balcony. Which would easier to get by security? Charcoal & lighter fluid or a little propane tank? And do you think this would run afoul of the smoking rules? :D

 

OMG! Don't bring up smoking again. What's next? The pre-tied bow tie debate?:eek::D

[pmb1]

OMG! Don't bring up smoking again. What's next? The pre-tied bow tie debate?:eek::D

I doubt that burning pre-tied bow ties would violate the smoking rules. As long as they weren't being worn at the time, that is.