Disappointed with Regal food

[MTJSR]

I vote for more Canadian food then!

 

 

 

(C166774)

 

"Perhaps a Mississippi River cruise may have the perfect menu for you...., was quoted by KENDON, IN POST # 34.....not you!!

 

.

Edited April 20, 2015 by MTJSR

[pablo222]

T

My 2 cents...if someone is that unhappy with the choices nowadays ....DON"T CRUISE.

 

Considering how many negative opinions about many subjects

are posted on cruise critic -- do you think everyone who posts

those should 'not cruise'?

[shredie]

Why not? Cruises out of China cater to the Chinese tastes. Cruises out of Brazil cater to Brazilian tastes. Why would it be such a bad thing if cruises out of the US catered to US tastes? :confused:

My recent cruise out of Brazil did not have anything special, just the same old same old menu for two weeks. Lots of Asian food in the buffet, though, some of which was delicious.

I am gluten-free and with Princess acknowledging my restriction ahead of time and giving me pointers I thought that it was going to be great but I am afraid to say that Princess was not equipped to deal with my dietary restriction and their idea of gluten-free food means lacking in taste and presentation.

We have had others with the gluten-free diet report back that everything was wonderful, beyond expectations. There's that subjective thing again.

 

I just don’t understand why the foods are not simply identified by GF which is very standard these days.

Where would it stop? Labels for gluten-free, low cholesterol, salt-free, MSG free, etc. I'm sure you are more sensitive to the the problem than some of us, but the gluten-free diet is less wide-spread than you seem to think. I would suspect there are more people on low-cholesterol diets than GF on any given ship, and there are no labels for them.

In addition, the service was extremely slow and of course I had to find a hair in my food.

 

I hope it was gluten free! :D;)

Edited April 20, 2015 by shredie

[Husky61]

 

My 2 cents...if someone is that unhappy with the choices nowadays ....DON"T CRUISE.

 

I'm sure that no one will take your advice since it was so arrogant.;)

[abisha]

For millions of people, Indian, Chinese, and German is "plain basic food" . . .

 

True...but on our Regal sailing, in the buffet, I didn't even see much Chinese and German. Even the Italian night was odd...no much Italian. It seemed to be mostly Indian and Mexican with some fish mixed in. Lots of spicey things. If you like spicey things and foods with lots of other spices, you'd be ok. The meats were so rubbery and dried out in the buffet. The meats in the MDR were tough as well.

 

Don't get me wrong, I did find things to eat and the presentation was lovely, but I expected differently, and I based it off of the fabulous buffet meals I ate each day on the Ruby. For me, personally, the Regal didn't compare. Just my own opinion, but I agree with Boatingmom.

 

It appeared there was a strange, way out there, mix of a bunch of everything and everything and not a true "theme" like I saw on the Ruby.

 

Yes, food is very subjective. I love to cruise and love to try new dishes, but sometimes food prep can be different from one vessel to another and of course from one cruise line vs. another.

 

I am also sure that if I sailed on the Regal again, it would be a different dining experience.

[whatcruiseisnext]

Considering how many negative opinions about many subjects

are posted on cruise critic -- do you think everyone who posts

those should 'not cruise'?

 

I'm sure that no one will take your advice since it was so arrogant.;)

 

I certainly didn't mean to offend anyone. I just read many posts....and I am not referring to OP...that are constantly negative. Some posters never have anything good to say about any cruise on any cruise line but yet they continue to cruise. My question is WHY?

 

I certainly didn't mean to sound arrogant,. My apologies.

[pablo222]

How do you know what "Americans" enjoy? I'm an American and enjoy food from around the world.

 

Personally, I don't. But, I remember the executive chef on Coral

telling me that if there were the usual number of americans onboard,

he could estimate pretty closely how many of each dinner entre would

be ordered.

 

Additionally, if I was the sous chef running the lido, it would be pretty

easy to see what the usual passenger mix enjoyed. Just look at what

is being thrown away at the end of the day.

 

I think if one wants something specific, they have to charter a yacht

with a private chef. Otherwise, they are going to simply get what

the majority has shown they want.

[magicnelly]

i'm sure that no one will take your advice since it was so arrogant.;)

like

 

Thank you, OP, for your honest opinion on the food on your cruise.

 

Venturing out and expressing yourself on these forums is scary, to say the least. But I appreciate the input, whether it agrees with MY opinions or not.

Edited April 20, 2015 by magicnelly

[kendon]

How do you know what "Americans" enjoy? I'm an American and enjoy food from around the world. And we're a melting pot country. I don't need to eat stereotypical "American" food everyday when I'm vacationing. Why not change it up a bit and give some variety?

 

Like

[Hlitner]

Whenever I see the term "home style" or "home cooked" I run far and fast :). But one might want to ask what that even means. DW is an excellent cook (I think of her as a skilled chef) and our real home cooked is going to be different then someone else. For example, tonight we are going simple and having penne pasta with arrabiata (truly homemade) sauce. Tomorrow I think we might have just steak with perhaps a Green Peppercorn sauce or Bernaise (DW will decide at the last minute). While some might consider a hamburger as "home cooked" others may never have a burger at home. DW also makes the most amazing Beef Bourguignon and the hard work in putting this together might feed us for 3 or 4 meals as it just improves when frozen.

 

Even a basic item like meatloaf can become gourmet if one uses a mixture of meats and tops it with a good homemade tomato-based sauce. So when I see a reference to "home style" my thought is I hope its that good :).

 

As to Mexican cuisine (the big fad in the US these days), most of what is sold as Mexican cuisine in the USA is "tex Mex" at best! We live in Mexico 2 months a year and our idea of great Mexican cuisine might be Chicken in a Mole sauce or perhaps fresh grilled snapper with garlic. I have never seen a "Burrito Bowl" (this is what Hillary had at Chipotle) in Mexico :). In fact, a "Burrito Bowl" is not even a burrito...but is merely an American invention.

 

Hank

Edited April 20, 2015 by Hlitner

[Colo Cruiser]

Whenever I see the term "home style" or "home cooked" I run far and fast :). But one might want to ask what that even means. Even a basic item like meatloaf can become gourmet if one uses a mixture of meats and tops it with a good homemade tomato-based sauce. So when I see a reference to "home style" my thought is I hope its that good :).

Hank

 

 

Haha, we do the same for the so called Princess BBQ at the Trident Grill. :eek:

[SailAway102]

Quote:

Originally Posted by fishywood View Post

Which means the bios in the Patter for the pair that were onboard last November were fiction. Admittedly I should have know better than repeat them.

 

 

 

 

 

"Generosa was in Asia for a couple of years on the Sun, I know he has not been on the Ruby since 2008.

We had Nicola Furlan for a few cruise on the Ruby as well."

 

We were on the Ruby for a Med cruise July of 2009 and Generoso was definitely on board!

[Colo Cruiser]

Quote:

Originally Posted by fishywood View Post

Which means the bios in the Patter for the pair that were onboard last November were fiction. Admittedly I should have know better than repeat them.

 

 

 

 

 

"Generosa was in Asia for a couple of years on the Sun, I know he has not been on the Ruby since 2008.

We had Nicola Furlan for a few cruise on the Ruby as well."

 

We were on the Ruby for a Med cruise July of 2009 and Generoso was definitely on board!

 

 

One cruise in 2009 hmmm now its 2015 hmmm......:cool:

 

That's great however Generoso has NOT been on the Ruby continuously since 2008 until now as Fishy Wood would have you think. :rolleyes:

 

And Generoso is a male not Generosa a female. :(

[SoCal Cruiser78]

I can't speak for the Indian or Chinese but my wife can speak to the German food since she lived in Germany for 20+years. Despite the labels, it's not really German food at all. It's a very Americanized version. I imagine the Indian and Chinese is similar.

 

Good point. I would prefer that, beyond the "always available" basics, the onboard chefs be allowed to cook primarily what they do best, and not try to cater to so many tastes and cultures with dishes not always prepared well.

[searoses]

I have never eaten a burger,hot dog or pizza on a ship....so many other things to try....I thought the regal hc was amazing with even many of the desserts being delicious...takes the same amount of work to cook with quality as it does to get the cheapest ....some of the dishes were great....l had short ribs for lunch,dinner and dessert!....they were so good.....if something did not look up to par I just moved on...the mdr was an expected disappointment.....they are all pretty similar now but the service for the 2 nights we ate there was friendly and efficient....more like the old days despite doing the anytime dining....I really appreciated that.....during other recent cruises the servers were head down and practically breathless with the number of tables they had....would definitely return to princess for that old school atmosphere...

[AmberTeka]

For millions of people, Indian, Chinese, and German is "plain basic food" . . .

 

But NOT for American, Canadian, European people who make up the vast majority of crusiers and whose money make cruises keep cruising.

 

No insult meant to anyone, but I am so sick of this multi multicultural thing. It is like we just discovered that Asian people exist and we must all eat Chow Mein in order to show how broadminded we are..............

 

No other culture does that. That is why French food is so good. They cook French Food, not German Food. And why Mexican food in Mexico is so good.

 

Not meaning to offend......but shaming people for wanting something that is homey and delicous to them.....................getting way old.

 

The New Caribbean menu....heavy on Pork. Rice. Red Beans. Black Beans. One night spiced Goat curry. Many people do not eat pork or goats for religious reasons. Some just because....eating a goat is sort of like eating a dog. Which is done in some nations.

We were on last month. The food in the MDR was awful. We had ATD and there was never a line. always empty tables. Food was over spiced. Dry. Not good.

 

Buffet.....very nice. Very varied. IC...always great. Alfredos..loved it. Prego Pizza at pool...loved it. Had a burger. very good. MDR food was not good. It did not taste good.

 

And food is so subjective. What is good to me..is bad to others. But honestly....NEVER a line at ATD. LOts of empty tables in MDR. That tells a story there.

[AmberTeka]

Should add that we are Platinum on Princess. Loved the food on The Star. On the Crown a few times. On Caribbean Princess. The bad food in the MDR on the Regal was shocking to us.

 

One of the reason we had booked that cruise was the food on Princess. I think that when that Caribbean Immersion menu has been tweaked. Stopped. Revised. Whatever]\

 

The food on the Regal will again be as good as we all expect Princess food to be............

[CELTICGIRLCRUISER]

Of course food tastes of individuals are subjective, but to read that eating goat is kind of like eating dog, sorry that is one of the most ridiculous things I have read in a while.

Edited April 21, 2015 by CELTICGIRLCRUISER

[shredie]

But NOT for American, Canadian, European people who make up the vast majority of crusiers and whose money make cruises keep cruising.

Germans who eat German food are not European?

 

Not meaning to offend......but shaming people for wanting something that is homey and delicous to them.....................getting way old.

Homey and delicious is in the eye of the beholder, so to speak. I, for one, am very fond of Chow Mein and I'm not even Asian! I am also very fond of the Mexican food served here in California which is just as tasty as the stuff over the border. French food is wildly varied, which you would know if you spent any time eating in France. I'll be doing that again next month.

 

Many people do not eat pork or goats for religious reasons. Some just because....eating a goat is sort of like eating a dog. Which is done in some nations.

 

So when you travel, do you ever get off the ship and visit other counties? How many dogs were you served? Do you avoid dog meat for religious reasons?

 

It's certainly good to know that you don't mean to insult anyone, but it just happens. :rolleyes:

Edited April 21, 2015 by shredie

[4cats4me]

Of course food tastes of individuals are subjective, but to read that eating goat is kind of like eating dog, sorry that is one of the most ridiculous things I have read in a while.[/quote

 

Agreed.

Frog legs and snails are more exotic than goat meat :rolleyes::D

[Jetswdo]

We were on the Royal April 2014- I was prepared to starve. I found the food quite good in general, wherever we ate- almost on par with Celebrity--

 

Explanation re "being prepared to starve"---Years ago, we were on the Saphire, Alaska crossing. Loved the ship, the crew. The food was unedible. Many others complained as well. I lost 5 pounds (not complaining there)-- breads dried out, ridicuous amount of salt in everything, wilted salad, you get the picture. Right before that, we were on the Island (Hawaii)-- food was ok. not particularly good, but edible--

 

Dh and I decided to give Princess one more chance with the Royal. I thought the buffet was quite good- We ate 2 meals in MDR- food was pretty good. Very pleasantly surprised. We are planning on being on the Regal for New England cruise as most people have reported that the food was similar to Royal.

 

I will admit, I am nervous as we will be on the Coral this Dec. Just hope that the food is at least ok.

[GUT2407]

For millions of people, Indian, Chinese, and German is "plain basic food" . . .

My thought exactly.

[GUT2407]

Food is so subjective, one person will like rich sauces another will hate them, one will like spicy another hate it. How on earth can anyone expect that everyone will like all the food on a ship, where they have to turn out thousands of diners in a couple of hours with very limited space and when every item has had to be carried on the ship.

 

Personally there have been nights when my options were very limited because of the menu, and I would say those nights the food wasn't good, but others will say it was great.

[GUT2407]

Where where to start.

 

But NOT for American, Canadian, European people who make up the vast majority of crusiers and whose money make cruises keep cruising.

 

 

German's aren't European now.

But even aside from that issue, one of the joys of travel is enjoying different foods.

 

No insult meant to anyone, but I am so sick of this multi multicultural thing. It is like we just discovered that Asian people exist and we must all eat Chow Mein in order to show how broadminded we are..............

 

Not even mildly insulting. :(

 

I'm not Chinese ut love the food that the Western world dishes up as Chinese, not so keen on real Chinese food.

 

No other culture does that. That is why French food is so good. They cook French Food, not German Food. And why Mexican food in Mexico is so good.

 

Some of the worst food I have ever eaten was in France. So was some of the best, but to be honest not a fan of french food.

 

Not meaning to offend......but shaming people for wanting something that is homey and delicous to them.....................getting way old.

 

And what is homely and delicious to you? May I be so bold as to ask, because I bet you if we ask ten different people we'll get at least 5 different answers, probably closer to 10.

 

The New Caribbean menu....heavy on Pork. Rice. Red Beans. Black Beans. One night spiced Goat curry. Many people do not eat pork or goats for religious reasons. Some just because....eating a goat is sort of like eating a dog. Which is done in some nations.

We were on last month. The food in the MDR was awful. We had ATD and there was never a line. always empty tables. Food was over spiced. Dry. Not good.

 

As I've said before some like spiced, some like beans I love Pork and BTW some don't eat seafood for religious purposes some don't eat beef for religious purposes I'm not sure there is a meat that one group or another won't eat, but I have NEVER EVER EVER been on a ship and the MDR only offered PORK or SEAFOOD or even BEEF, so there is always an alternative..

 

 

Buffet.....very nice. Very varied. IC...always great. Alfredos..loved it. Prego Pizza at pool...loved it. Had a burger. very good. MDR food was not good. It did not taste good.

 

Well easy eat at the Buffet or Alfredo's or Prego's or somewhere the food is to your taste, that is a great thing about cruising, options.

 

 

And food is so subjective. What is good to me..is bad to others. But honestly....NEVER a line at ATD. LOts of empty tables in MDR. That tells a story there.

 

Yep and the story is that some people prefer the specialty restaurants, or the buffet or Room service or even traditional dining.

[pablo222]

How do you know what "Americans" enjoy? I'm an American and enjoy food from around the world. And we're a melting pot country. I don't need to eat stereotypical "American" food everyday when I'm vacationing. Why not change it up a bit and give some variety?

 

A few months ago, there was a poster here who wanted to bring

a cookbook onboard, and give it to the chef, so that they chef

would be able to prepare things that she liked.

 

Perhaps you could do the same?