Italian Food

[kendon]

OMG YUM I could also eat those every meal

 

I'd starve for a week to eat that goat cheese appetizer!

[sherryf]

Cugino, they call it eggplant parmigiana (;)) and I love it too. :)

 

Within the past couple of years, they made all the names on the Italian night menu unpronounceable (for Americans) by translating them into Italian. The eggplant parmigiana is now "Melanzane alla Parmigiana".

[Astro Flyer]

Cugino, they call it eggplant parmigiana (;)) and I love it too. :)

Cugina, on our recent cruises it has been called Melanzane alla Parmigiana.

Within the past couple of years, they made all the names on the Italian night menu unpronounceable (for Americans) by translating them into Italian. The eggplant parmigiana is now "Melanzane alla Parmigiana".

Grazie! In late 2012 on the Crown they did not offer it saying that it was too labor-intensive to make. Our table requested it and they made it for us on another day. They must have received many complaints from others also & brought it back under another name. Maybe they thought by changing the name to Melanzane alla Parmigiana we wouldn't think it was eggplant parmigiana and less likely to order it? ;)

 

Even the penne al'arrabiata is no longer prepared in the dining room by a headwaiter & is prepared in the galley...I miss the aroma in the dining room when it was prepared there.

Edited July 18, 2014 by Astro Flyer

[Astro Flyer]

The eggplant parm is my favorite appetizer and I would always order it the next night as an entree. Two years ago on the Grand, I had it as an appetizer and it was awful. The head waiter said they changed the mozzarella. I was so disappointed.:(

I wonder if they've also changed the mozzarella on the pizza? Recently sometimes the Lido deck's pizza cheese had a consistency closer to cottage cheese than to stringy gooey mozzarella. :(

[Astro Flyer]

I love it when I meet former Sitmar staff members! They are now few and far between due to retirements so it's a treat when I recognize one of them.

My first cruise was on Sitmar, and it created my lifelong love of cruising.

Me too & it got me hooked on cruising. I don't know if Princess had a pasta course before merging with Sitmar but either way I'm happy that they have continued this tradition.

No, not many left. We saw a waiter we recognized from Sitmar. He started calling us "his Sitmar people" and would come over and speak even when we weren't at his table. Told us he was retiring so it would be his last contract.

LuLu

Many of those Italian and Portuguese waiters continued their careers with Princess & are now enjoying their well-deserved retirement. :)

[baggal]

Cugina, on our recent cruises it has been called Melanzane alla Parmigiana.

 

Grazie! In late 2012 on the Crown they did not offer it saying that it was too labor-intensive to make. Our table requested it and they made it for us on another day. They must have received many complaints from others also & brought it back under another name. Maybe they thought by changing the name to Melanzane alla Parmigiana we wouldn't think it was eggplant parmigiana and less likely to order it? ;)

 

Even the penne al'arrabiata is no longer prepared in the dining room by a headwaiter & is prepared in the galley...I miss the aroma in the dining room when it was prepared there.

 

Just two weeks ago on the Ruby, they were preparing the penne al'arrabiata in the dining room. You could smell the garlic all the way up to deck 8!

[Astro Flyer]

Just two weeks ago on the Ruby, they were preparing the penne al'arrabiata in the dining room. You could smell the garlic all the way up to deck 8!

 

Lucky you...apparently it's another example of how things on Princess ships can vary depending on the staff. :(

[Pia1913]

Call it eggplant, call it melanzane. Don't care what they call it, as long as it stays the same. This is usually my main course along with a salad, so I am very much enamored of my parm.

 

OOPS....almost forgot my other love; pasta fagioli

Edited July 18, 2014 by Pia1913

[IECalCruiser]

Princess still honors the Sitmar heritage. There used to be many named dinners with themes from different parts of the world but when they revised the menus about two years ago they all became Princess Dinners except for the Italian Dinner. I will often get a small portion of the pasta of the day as a starter. They do sauces very well.

 

 

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[beach spring]

Just off the CB and must echo earlier posters who pointed out that the fettucini alfredo was delicious, and the ravioli on embarkation day (in the DR) also.

[OCruisers]

All of us who LOVED Sitmar do so appreciate having at least some things on Princess that still remain and have even gone fleet wide. Thank goodness the pasta sauces are for the most part still with us. :)

LuLu

[Colo Cruiser]

The eggplant parm is my favorite appetizer and I would always order it the next night as an entree. Two years ago on the Grand, I had it as an appetizer and it was awful. The head waiter said they changed the mozzarella. I was so disappointed.:(

 

It ts very good but I agree it can be hit and miss. :(

Edited July 18, 2014 by Colo Cruiser

[Treven]

[font

... I used to look forward to having it on vacation as eating it all the time at home isn't the best for my cholesterol problem. Their substitute for a sauce isn't what it used to be. Maybe their looking out for my health.

We can look after our health, cholesterol, diabetes, etc, before and after our cruise. At least I eat what I want while on my cruise; things I certainly wouldn't eat at home.

Edited July 19, 2014 by Treven

[lovevacadays]

Oh, I do love that dish!!!! I could eat that, the Goat Cheese Souffle, and the Eggplant Parmigiana at every meal.

 

Cugina, on our recent cruises it has been called Melanzane alla Parmigiana.

 

Grazie! In late 2012 on the Crown they did not offer it saying that it was too labor-intensive to make. Our table requested it and they made it for us on another day. They must have received many complaints from others also & brought it back under another name. Maybe they thought by changing the name to Melanzane alla Parmigiana we wouldn't think it was eggplant parmigiana and less likely to order it? ;)

 

Even the penne al'arrabiata is no longer prepared in the dining room by a headwaiter & is prepared in the galley...I miss the aroma in the dining room when it was prepared there.

 

It all sounds so good and now I want to get Italian food. My next cruise is a short 3 day cruise. It will be interesting to see what is on the menu. I've never done a short cruise on Princess.

[Astro Flyer]

It all sounds so good and now I want to get Italian food. My next cruise is a short 3 day cruise. It will be interesting to see what is on the menu. I've never done a short cruise on Princess.

 

We did 4 day B2B's in January (100% FCC) & as I recall it was the regular menus including the embarkation day lunch.

[IECalCruiser]

We did 4 day B2B's in January (100% FCC) & as I recall it was the regular menus including the embarkation day lunch.

Frank, We were on one of the same cruises but didn't have a chance to meet you. They had a new for 2014 set of menus for the 3/4 day CA Coastals. The standard Embarkation Day lunch menu was not offered and the four dinner menus were not the same as the standard menus. Everything was back to normal for our 10 day cruise from San Francisco in March :)

 

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Edited July 19, 2014 by IECalCruiser

[Astro Flyer]

Frank, We were on one of the same cruises but didn't have a chance to meet you. They had a new for 2014 set of menus for the 3/4 day CA Coastals. The standard Embarkation Day lunch menu was not offered and the four dinner menus were not the same as the standard menus. Everything was back to normal for our 10 day cruise from San Francisco in March :)

 

Thanks Brian & glad that your memory was better than mine. ;) Hopefully we'll have the opportunity to meet during a future cruise.

Edited July 19, 2014 by Astro Flyer