Star Princess Food Allergies

[dcdisney]

I just returned from our first cruise on the Star. Everything for the most part was wonderful with our cruise experience. The one issue which could have been huge was that they were not as able to accurately deal with food allergies as they had said they were. I'm allergic to beans and was served a stacked salad with bean sprouts at our first lunch. This is the biggest mistake I have ever had when dining out. Luckily I took a bite of the shrimp off the top and then saw the sprouts in a lower layer. I was frequently told things were safe when they really had no idea. Like one night at the Crab Shack I asked if a cake was nut allergy safe and the server said I ate that one and it didn't have nuts ;P Yes it didn't have nut pieces in it but a decent number of their cakes did have nut flours. It turned out that it was safe but she only went and asked because I wasn't eating it. I was fine with people saying I don't know but it's very dangerous to say yes it's safe when they don't know. There were mistakes or issues with allergies at essentially every meal I ate. I was fine but my nut allergy is far less severe than most. Would I suggest Princess to anyone with severe allergies--NO. Most of the staff would not check ingredients unless pushed and I'm very knowledgable and the things I thought were not safe often weren't--like shrimp cocktail sauce usually has soy beans. Was served it 2 nights when they wouldn't check and then once someone did it wasn't safe. I didn't eat it though because I didn't believe them. I will definitely cruise with Princess again just know that I can not let my guard down for an instant and carry my epi pen to every meal just in case. If you can not eat items processed in the same kitchen with nuts I would be hesitant to cruise Princess. They did seem to have labelled gluten free options every day but again if you can't do cross contam they were in a case right next to gluten. If you have multiple or unusual allergies it's going to be tough. They would not or could not pull ingredient lists. So for things like salad dressings or shrimp cocktail sauce that I knew were potential issues I was stuck. I ate salads with no dressing all week. Next time I will bring some packets. I'm lucky that my nut allergy is not severe and my other allergies are lessening so I was fine where others may not be so lucky. I would have to assume that since the vast majority of the staff dealt the same way that this is how Princess operates in terms of other ships. I did pre-order the next nights dinner one day and I felt like that made things worse that I had to do the whole song and dance twice anyway for the same meal and that was the one meal my food came out totally cold (and no faster that the other nights). Let me know if anyone has specific questions. I looked around so much for allergy info before our trip but didn't find much.

[SadieN]

I just returned from our first cruise on the Star. Everything for the most part was wonderful with our cruise experience. The one issue which could have been huge was that they were not as able to accurately deal with food allergies as they had said they were.

I'm allergic to beans and was served a stacked salad with bean sprouts at our first lunch. This is the biggest mistake I have ever had when dining out. Luckily I took a bite of the shrimp off the top and then saw the sprouts in a lower layer.

I was frequently told things were safe when they really had no idea. Like one night at the Crab Shack I asked if a cake was nut allergy safe and the server said I ate that one and it didn't have nuts ;P Yes it didn't have nut pieces in it but a decent number of their cakes did have nut flours. It turned out that it was safe but she only went and asked because I wasn't eating it.

I was fine with people saying I don't know but it's very dangerous to say yes it's safe when they don't know. There were mistakes or issues with allergies at essentially every meal I ate. I was fine but my nut allergy is far less severe than most. Would I suggest Princess to anyone with severe allergies--NO.

Most of the staff would not check ingredients unless pushed and I'm very knowledgable and the things I thought were not safe often weren't--like shrimp cocktail sauce usually has soy beans. Was served it 2 nights when they wouldn't check and then once someone did it wasn't safe. I didn't eat it though because I didn't believe them.

I will definitely cruise with Princess again just know that I can not let my guard down for an instant and carry my epi pen to every meal just in case. If you can not eat items processed in the same kitchen with nuts I would be hesitant to cruise Princess. They did seem to have labelled gluten free options every day but again if you can't do cross contam they were in a case right next to gluten.

If you have multiple or unusual allergies it's going to be tough. They would not or could not pull ingredient lists. So for things like salad dressings or shrimp cocktail sauce that I knew were potential issues I was stuck. I ate salads with no dressing all week. Next time I will bring some packets.

I'm lucky that my nut allergy is not severe and my other allergies are lessening so I was fine where others may not be so lucky. I would have to assume that since the vast majority of the staff dealt the same way that this is how Princess operates in terms of other ships. I did pre-order the next nights dinner one day and I felt like that made things worse that I had to do the whole song and dance twice anyway for the same meal and that was the one meal my food came out totally cold (and no faster that the other nights). Let me know if anyone has specific questions. I looked around so much for allergy info before our trip but didn't find much.

 

 

This is an important post so I took the liberty of breaking it up for easier reading.

 

We've discovered that cruise lines either go one extreme or another.

 

We have nut allergies and when we sail Carnival they won't even give us seeds.

Surprised Princess couldn't show you the ingredients for the salad.

 

Only advice I can give you is to state exactly what you're allergic to- as in 'All beans including soy and bean sprouts'. Soy might even need its own identifier.

Edited August 11, 2015 by SadieN

[junglejane]

I have been on 9 Princess cruises with my daughters who have multiple food allergies: peanuts, tree nuts, sesame, and clams. Our experience has been that the MDR staff are very careful and conscientious. Once you venture out of the MDR, however, it's true that the staff are less informed and not trained to deal with food allergies. Our younger daughter is the most sensitive and she just never eats in the buffet. Too much risk of cross contamination. If she can't go to the MDR for lunch, she sticks to pizza or something from the poolside grill.

 

The Princess system is not perfect, but frankly it's much better than the average land restaurant.

Edited August 11, 2015 by junglejane

[Kamloops50]

My DW is gluten free . She has learned not to ask the usual kitchen/serve staff but one of main chef's. They are pretty good in what goes into the food. They even made my DW a gluten free lunch from one of the dishes they where serving. In the MDR one of the head waiters always took my DW order for supper the next day. This way they made it without gluten for her specially.

[CRUISEWITHH]

I cruise with Princess exclusively and I have a serious food allergy to onions. I cannot eat anything that even has onion powder in it. That means no salad dressings, etc. (I bring my own salad dressing to the dining room each lunch and dinner)

 

It is necessary to speak to the Head Waiter of your section on the first night. After that he will bring you a menu each night at dinner from which you order your meals (lunch also if you go to the dining room).

 

All my meals are specially made for me and my waiter knows where to go to pick them up in the kitchen.

 

I love the fact that I know I am taken care of on my Princess cruise and don't have to rely on anybody else to know what I can and can't eat.

 

Oh yes, of course in the Buffet, you are on your own and I do not trust any of the service staff to tell me if the item is safe for me to eat.

 

Helen

[Working 2 Cruise]

I cruise with Princess exclusively and I have a serious food allergy to onions. I cannot eat anything that even has onion powder in it. That means no salad dressings, etc. (I bring my own salad dressing to the dining room each lunch and dinner)

 

It is necessary to speak to the Head Waiter of your section on the first night. After that he will bring you a menu each night at dinner from which you order your meals (lunch also if you go to the dining room).

 

All my meals are specially made for me and my waiter knows where to go to pick them up in the kitchen.

 

I love the fact that I know I am taken care of on my Princess cruise and don't have to rely on anybody else to know what I can and can't eat.

 

Oh yes, of course in the Buffet, you are on your own and I do not trust any of the service staff to tell me if the item is safe for me to eat.

 

Helen

 

Now, that makes sense!

 

OP, did you discuss this with anyone onboard?

 

Also, with any type of serious allergies, it would be tough to eat anywhere... including other cruise lines and restaurants on land. I'm lucky that I don't have any. However, we do have diet restrictions. I make it a point to talk to the Maitre d' on embarkation day.

Edited August 11, 2015 by Working 2 Cruise

[dcdisney]

I did correspond with Princess pre-cruise and then onboard spoke to the maitre d and each head waiter. I did not want to eat only in the MDR but it appears that that is necessary to get the best level of care. Princess nor the staff on the ships never asked for that and said I could be accomodated at any dining location. The worst error though was made for me in the MDR. I did like being able to talk to the actual chef though which happened at the Horizon Court because I could tell as they walked through if they were sure of themselves or just guessing. The head waiters were a bit over confident about things that are consistently an issue--like with soy allergy it's very hard to find bread crumbs without soy. They would scoff at me and not even ask the chef thinking I was crazy but after so many years of this I know. If the MDR is the only safe location they should inform consumers when they list allergies in their personalizers. Having ingredient lists from the processed items would be really nice too because even though the headwaiter didn't want to read the 20 ingredients on the bread crumbs or salad dressing I would have gladly had that option been available. Yes, it can be tough to eat out but as long as there is a knowledgable staff member who is honest it is easy. My biggest issue was people saying safe when they really weren't sure. For a 7 day cruise eating in the MDR for all meals would have been rough. Most of my meals in the MDR I had the same safe things over and over--like the only dessert was creme brulee most nights though I did have a souffle at the meal where I was served bean sprouts but who knows if that was really OK.

[wine lover]

I have been on 9 Princess cruises with my daughters who have multiple food allergies: peanuts, tree nuts, sesame, and clams. Our experience has been that the MDR staff are very careful and conscientious. Once you venture out of the MDR, however, it's true that the staff are less informed and not trained to deal with food allergies. Our younger daughter is the most sensitive and she just never eats in the buffet. Too much risk of cross contamination. If she can't go to the MDR for lunch, she sticks to pizza or something from the poolside grill.

 

The Princess system is not perfect, but frankly it's much better than the average land restaurant.

 

Jungle Jane: Our experience is similar to yours but on other cruise lines. However we are about to go on our first Princess cruise. Do you eat in the specialty restaurants?

[caribill]

I just returned from our first cruise on the Star. Everything for the most part was wonderful with our cruise experience. The one issue which could have been huge was that they were not as able to accurately deal with food allergies as they had said they were. I'm allergic to beans and was served a stacked salad with bean sprouts at our first lunch. This is the biggest mistake I have ever had when dining out. Luckily I took a bite of the shrimp off the top and then saw the sprouts in a lower layer. I was frequently told things were safe when they really had no idea. Like one night at the Crab Shack I asked if a cake was nut allergy safe and the server said I ate that one and it didn't have nuts ;P Yes it didn't have nut pieces in it but a decent number of their cakes did have nut flours.

 

As it says at the bottom of Princess menus, if you have food allergies you must speak about them with the Maitre d' or your headwaiter, which is what you did.

 

Speaking with other waitstaff will not always get you accurate answers.

 

If you are in the buffet, speak with the headwaiter there. It you are going to a specialty restaurant, go there the day before and speak with the headwaiter there.

Edited September 12, 2015 by caribill

[CJCAMom]

I totally understand minor food allergies as I am lactose intolerant. I haven't been on a Princess ship since I developed this problem but I have been on Celebrity. They were amazing! You would be surprised what foods have lactose that you wouldn't think of (salami, hamburger buns). Celebrity made sure I knew what was in everything so I knew if I needed to take my pills or not.

I may be going back on Princess next year so I hope they get better.

[Kamloops50]

I totally understand minor food allergies as I am lactose intolerant. I haven't been on a Princess ship since I developed this problem but I have been on Celebrity. They were amazing! You would be surprised what foods have lactose that you wouldn't think of (salami, hamburger buns). Celebrity made sure I knew what was in everything so I knew if I needed to take my pills or not.

I may be going back on Princess next year so I hope they get better.

 

Princess is pretty good. My DW is gluten intolerant she has not problem with food on board . Just submit your medical form online so they will be aware. When you go to MDR mention your problem and Head Waiter will tell you what you can eat or be made specially for you. They will also allow you to order your supper for the next day with your dietary requirements.

[CJCAMom]

Princess is pretty good. My DW is gluten intolerant she has not problem with food on board . Just submit your medical form online so they will be aware. When you go to MDR mention your problem and Head Waiter will tell you what you can eat or be made specially for you. They will also allow you to order your supper for the next day with your dietary requirements.

 

Thank you Kamloops50, I will remember that.

Have you sailed on the Star before?

[Kamloops50]

Thank you Kamloops50, I will remember that.

Have you sailed on the Star before?

 

We sailed the Star to Alaska last summer . The only issues we had was poor air flow (inside cabin forward) and a mildew smell up in Skywalkers. Otherwise a nice look and well maintained ship.

If your looking for balcony cabin . I would personally stay away from deck 8 forward . Your balcony/cabin is open to people walking around the bow.

[Mommypig]

I have a son who is severely allergic to milk protein and tree nuts, so I understand the concerns. I have had some of the same issues with being diabetic. Just because something is sugar free doesn't mean it is low glycemic. White flour and rice are the same as eating sugar. And if I am going to eat carbs, I would rather have a few bites of a real dessert rather than some high glycemic fake dessert, potato, bread, or rice.

 

I would be happy with sugar free jello, but jello is all sugared.

 

So, I request my meats with no sauces, no potatoes, and having a standing order for steamed broccoli every night in the MDR. I eat salads in the buffet, but I have to ask at breakfast what the menu is for lunch (we normally cruise on the Pacific Princess which has a more limited buffet) because if there is no protein that I like I will snag a couple hard boiled eggs from the breakfast buffet. I prefer to do traditional dining in the MDR, because then I can form a good relationship with my waiters and my head waiter. And they get extra tip from me accordingly. In September when I was on the Star with pneumonia (which I had contracted during an Alaskan land tour) my waiters bent over backwards to work around the menus according to what I felt I could eat. Bringing me chicken broth and vegetables a few nights when I was still off my feed from the Levaquin.

 

There are no sugar free syrups available in the IC, or the Panorama coffee bar on the PP. So I have to bring my own and add it myself. The staff is not allowed to add it for me. I bring my own sweetener because I prefer a stevia blend. I have to carry a snack when I leave the ship, and the prepackaged things available on the ship are not appropriate. So I bring my own low glycemic bars. We are doing the 2016 World cruise so I will have a suitcase full of supplies to keep me going for the 4 months.

 

Probably the most important thing is to know where the allergen/gluten/sugar can hide, and to be proactive and persistent with the wait staff. If the wait staff are not being helpful, work your way up, all the way to the maitre d hotel if need be. A severe allergic reaction or diabetic shock or coma are not things that Princess wants to be responsible for, especially far out at sea.

[CJCAMom]

We sailed the Star to Alaska last summer . The only issues we had was poor air flow (inside cabin forward) and a mildew smell up in Skywalkers. Otherwise a nice look and well maintained ship.

If your looking for balcony cabin . I would personally stay away from deck 8 forward . Your balcony/cabin is open to people walking around the bow.

 

Actually I have another problem that maybe you can help me with.

I am in a wheelchair and an avid cruiser. A few years ago I took my son to Hawaii on the Golden Princess without doing my research first. Big mistake. I want my whole family to go to Hawaii next year but the date I want to go is on the Star (I thought it was the Ruby)

On the Golden there were huge bumps in every exterior doorway so big I could not go outside, even with my son's help.

Is the Star like that?

[Mommypig]

Actually I have another problem that maybe you can help me with.

 

I am in a wheelchair and an avid cruiser. A few years ago I took my son to Hawaii on the Golden Princess without doing my research first. Big mistake. I want my whole family to go to Hawaii next year but the date I want to go is on the Star (I thought it was the Ruby)

 

On the Golden there were huge bumps in every exterior doorway so big I could not go outside, even with my son's help.

 

Is the Star like that?

 

 

I am afraid that I don't remember. I believe you can contact Princess directly and request to speak to someone about special needs and handicapped accommodations.

[shredie]

Actually I have another problem that maybe you can help me with.

I am in a wheelchair and an avid cruiser. A few years ago I took my son to Hawaii on the Golden Princess without doing my research first. Big mistake. I want my whole family to go to Hawaii next year but the date I want to go is on the Star (I thought it was the Ruby)

On the Golden there were huge bumps in every exterior doorway so big I could not go outside, even with my son's help.

Is the Star like that?

 

Those "bumps" are ramps built up over the door lip. It is necessary for doors to the outside to have a barrier to water that might come over the deck and into the hallways inside. The Star is just like all the other ships in that regard.

[Kamloops50]

They actually have ramps on some of the outside doors.