New Lunch Option?

[Josy1953]

We got back from Ventura today and I wondered if anyone else has experienced a carvery lunch in the MDR on P&O or is this a new thing that is being trialled. On the first 2 and the last 2 days of the cruise the Cinnamon restaurant was open at lunch time for a carvery lunch in addition to the regular lunch in the Saffron restaurant. We tried it on the 2nd day and the last day but we're not overly impressed, the food was not as warm as I would have liked and there were no hot drinks available. It was not very well attended. I hope that this is not going to become the standard instead of the regular lunch in an attempt to save money by reducing the number of staff needed to serve lunch.

[Ataraxia]

It was offered on the Oriana for the first 2 days of the three cruises we went on back in 2014 - we really enjoyed it.

[tartanexile81]

Not recently but in the past on a Transatlantic on Oceana and we loved the choice it gave us on sea days

[Hasthagotnowtmoist]

Is it, in the same format as say a Toby Carvery? As in you just help yourself to the regular types of meat & veg etc then grab a seat? Or is it more formal?

[Florry]

That sounds quite good, is there pork crackling? That has to be a deciding factor [emoji6]

[Ataraxia]

We had pork and crackling, ham and turkey. No roast potatos though, Unlike a Toby, meat was limitless. It was only lunchtime.

[Florry]

Would definitely give it a whirl - hope it's on Arcadia next year

[jeanlyon]

I definitely wouldn't! There is no way I could eat that and then do justice to dinner in the evening.

[Florry]

I definitely wouldn't! There is no way I could eat that and then do justice to dinner in the evening.

 

 

Ah good point I never thought of that! I may have to curb my enthusiasm...

[Josy1953]

Is it, in the same format as say a Toby Carvery? As in you just help yourself to the regular types of meat & veg etc then grab a seat? Or is it more formal?

 

Very similar. There is a soup station if you want a starter. At the main course station the meat is carved and put onto your plate, you help yourself to veg and gravy. When you have either your soup or main you go to the area being used for seating where you are directed to a table. When you want your next course you simply get up and fetch it then come back to your table. There is a dessert station with a hot sweet and a selection of cakes and cheeses and biscuits, there was also a lovely selection of fresh fruits. On our first visit the meats were pork and chicken, on our second visit they were lamb and pork, you could have either or both.

 

My only criticisms were that the food was not as warm as the MDR and I often find that the MDR food is not as warm as I would like it to be, there is also no tea or coffee at the end of the meal but we simply went to Costa on the way out.

 

Overall I think that it is a good idea as the time in the restaurant is less than the time taken in the regular lunch as you are not waiting for a waiter to take your order, fetch it from the galley and deliver it to you.

 

I would go again if there was something that I wanted to do or somewhere I wanted to go that meant that I would not have enough time for a regular lunch but I would hate to see this take over from the regular lunch service as I didn't find it as good as the served lunches.

Edited December 15, 2015 by Josy1953

[Mr Piano]

I definitely wouldn't! There is no way I could eat that and then do justice to dinner in the evening.

 

Same here, we have never had lunch aboard ship and its unlikely we ever will. A very light afternoon tea on sea days at the most

[daiB]

Err does anyone agree with me that this sounds a little like a buffet? Not sure why they are doing this, nicer surroundings? To me, the reason one goes to the MDR is to get served.

 

But like others of little interest as I only do the occasional lunch.

[Josy1953]

Err does anyone agree with me that this sounds a little like a buffet? Not sure why they are doing this, nicer surroundings? To me, the reason one goes to the MDR is to get served.

 

But like others of little interest as I only do the occasional lunch.

 

It is like a buffet. We never go to the buffet because it is too crowded and having seen people pick food up with their hands in the past and the put it down I am convinced that it is the source of a lot of the norovirus outbreaks. We often do not get to breakfast on sea days as the MDR closes before we are up. We thought that the carvery might be another option for lunch but having tried it twice it is unlikely that we will go there again as we can get a better light lunch in the MDR, hence my concern that P&O may be considering the carvery as a replacement for the MDR lunch.

[bee-ess]

Err does anyone agree with me that this sounds a little like a buffet? Not sure why they are doing this, nicer surroundings? To me, the reason one goes to the MDR is to get served.

 

But like others of little interest as I only do the occasional lunch.

 

Yes,it does -why don't they just serve it in the buffet - the US lines usually serve a roast meat in their buffets every day.

[Heartlands1]

I would just add thst after my recent experience of buffet lunch on Britannia the American lines I have been on were far superior. Always at least one cold meat like roast beef being served carvery style togrther with a variety of salsds and bread. On Carnival there was a deli station serving a wide variety of sandwiches made to order far better than the limited range of rolls on Britannia.