Celebrity DINE AWARE Program for People with Allergies and Food Sensitivities

[eileenover]

Okay, we used to travel with Princess but a few years ago moved to Celebrity.

 

On Princess, I would approach the Maitre'D and let him/her know that I have a severe nut allergy ---epi-pen etc.

I would select my food the day before but still I had two allergic reactions: the ice cream!

 

Celebrity: I completed the paperwork before I cruised each time and I have also let the staff (including my concierge) know as soon as possible that I have this allergy.

On each cruise they have been wonderful. Sadly, I have not been able to indulge in certain desserts.... but it's better to be safe than sorry.

I use Luminae each cruise and I can say that I have no complaints regarding the service or proactive approach of the staff.

 

I shall never return to Princess.

[bjahil47]

Sailed on equinox November, 2016.I have non celiac gluten sensitivity and if I eat any gluten I get a bad IBS attack. I, too, sent in the special needs form and got a canned reply back. We ate in Luminae and very disappointed that the menu does not have the allergen marks like the MDR. I had to keep asking my waiter and then he had to ask the chef. Had to do this most every night unless I could tell from the food description that no gluten was in it. I was happy to see that there were some cream soups that had no gluten. ALL lamb was coated with gluten bread crumbs. I went to Murano the day before our reservation and asked for them to make the lamb gluten free which they did. In Luminae if the appetizer before the appetizer contained gluten the waiter brought me something else that was presented nicely. Desserts were mostly gluten...had creme brûlée a few times and several times had sorbet which was excellent. Never had the bread as from the last cruise it was horrible as was the pizza. In buffet I was surprised to find more gluten feee desserts that offered in Luminae including some cakes. But I was afraid to eat the cakes as I was not sure if they were labelled correctly. Happy to see that most items are now allergen labelled. I could always find something to eat in buffet, loaded baked potatoes were good and I ate salads. For breakfast we ate in our cabin most times. I brought GF bagels with me and put salmon on them. I once brought my bagel to Luminae. My favorite place on the ship is Cafe Al Bacio. I love my coffee and tea! Got so sick of the macaroons. One day there were chocolate macaroons. No other choices. I must have been very lucky on this cruise as I did not get sick at all.

 

Cruise on Equinox 4/2015 was our 10 year anniversary. We ate in Murano for our anniversary. At the end of dinner they brought us a cake to celebrate and then said it was not gluten free and took it away! They said the chef was going to make me one and bring it the next day. The next afternoon, they brought us this huge, beautiful, delicious cake that was gluten free. It was delicious!! I will never forget that!!

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[TravelKnitter]

It was a very dense chocolate cake which I absolutely loved the first night. The second night I had a poached pear which was not too appealing. When I requested no more fruit (which I have for breakfast and lunch) it was then back to the chocolate cake. Guess they baked one cake and I got to eat the whole thing over the span of the cruise. On the last day, they had an elegInant tea for Elite members -- there was the cake again and it was served one more time at dinner. Really uncalled for.

 

In Blu, there was a GF breakfast pastry - it was the same every day, and as each day went by, it became dryer and harder. One day, someone drizzled maple syrup on top, probably in an attempt to soften it. Note: It is not on the menu. You have to ask for a GF breakfast pastry when the tray comes around.

 

I, too, got tired of the same thing every day and stopped ordering it. However, as the pastry hardened, I started to think of it as a biscotti, and at the end, I enjoyed it with coffee. (Also know as resourcefulness!)

Edited December 12, 2016 by TravelKnitter

[SusieV]

My recent cruise on Summit had a serious service flaw with regards to food allergies. They did not follow their usual policies.

 

I did follow up with the cruiseline and they confirmed there has been no change in their policy for food allergies and that people should be able to order altered items with 24+ hours notice.

[TravelKnitter]

My recent cruise on Summit had a serious service flaw with regards to food allergies. They did not follow their usual policies.

 

I did follow up with the cruiseline and they confirmed there has been no change in their policy for food allergies and that people should be able to order altered items with 24+ hours notice.

 

Susie, might you be comfortable sharing what problems you had?

Edited December 19, 2016 by TravelKnitter

[lawgirl]

I have just returned from sailing on the Reflection a few weeks ago. Notified Celebrity 3 months in advance of a dairy allergy (not lactose intolerance) and, like many ships, was given a menu to order in advance. No special accommodations were made just order something that doesn't contain cheese, butter, milk or cream. They would not let me see the desert menu. It would be a surprise. I was especially disappointed that I was served the same dessert 5 out of the 7 nights. That was a surprise all right!! Since they don't have dairy free desserts in the cafe (except jello, which is not a dessert!!) I look forward to something special each evening at dinner. With very little effort any dessert can be made dairy free with soy products which are readily available on every ship. Was highly disappointed in lack of consideration when every one else at the table is eating cheesecake, souffles and chocolate lava cakes. I'm hoping our March 2017 sailing will be much better.

 

It became a running joke on our recent 15 night cruise that, being lactose intolerant, I would enjoy some berries for dessert...each and every night! I started calling them the &$@%ing berries. :p Seriously....how about ANYTHING but berries!

[goofysmom99]

It became a running joke on our recent 15 night cruise that, being lactose intolerant, I would enjoy some berries for dessert...each and every night! I started calling them the &$@%ing berries. :p Seriously....how about ANYTHING but berries!

 

How about some sliced bananas to go with some that tasty green jello? Mmmm..... :D:D:D

[SusieV]

Susie, might you be comfortable sharing what problems you had?

 

I will say up front that Celebrity corporate took full ownership of the issues and gave me assurances that we won't have these issues again.

 

In October I sailed with my family, and three family members had serious allergies, two of them life threatening. We notified special needs in advance, had the TA flag the booking, and discussed the allergies with our waiter once onboard (we took traditional dining to try and provide the safest possible environment).

 

Well, the waiter kept misattributing allergies to the wrong person even when we corrected him, and as a result one member of my party had a serious reaction and had to go to the medical centre. Even after that when the maitre d' finally became involved, when he allowed people to order for the following night all he did was point out items they could not have; he did not allow and in fact specifically denied a request to prepare an item without an allergen. As a result, some members of my party had only one item to choose from in a category some nights, which was frustrating.

 

Corporate tells me that we should have been allowed to modify items with 24 hours notice; that is the current policy and nothing has changed. The ship did not answer as to why this was not allowed on our sailing. Corporate apologized for the issue and has assured me that my next family booking is flagged and we will be taken care of.

 

I just worry (I am not one of the people with an allergy) because if you eat something that actually makes you sick, not just a preference, then it really does ruin your trip for potentially a significant amount of time. The one person in my group lost a day and a half of a six night cruisewhere they had to stay in the cabin and not eat because they were too sick to go out. You don't want to spend $xxxx to go on a cruise, do absolutely everything possible to ensure they understand your allergies, eat only in the dining room as recommended by corporate, and still get sick. Corporate even agreed that we had done literally everything possible to ensure a safe dining environment and didn't get it. They really need to be careful about issues like cross contamination (which I think a lot of staff simply don't understand) and providing an ingredient list.

 

I'm afraid I am much less sympathetic to dietary preferences. I can understand why people want to be accommodated but I think they really do need to provide more staff education to take care of people who will get very ill or even die if they eat allergens as opposed to those who just choose not to eat things. I feel like they take allergies less seriously if someone says, oh I am allergic to this (and I've seen it!) and then they eat said item if it happens to look good.

 

Hopefully my Equinox trip in May will go better than Summit did in the fall!

Edited December 22, 2016 by SusieV

[upwarduk]

It became a running joke on our recent 15 night cruise that, being lactose intolerant, I would enjoy some berries for dessert...each and every night! I started calling them the &$@%ing berries. :p Seriously....how about ANYTHING but berries!

 

 

I am surprised that's all you were offered. Which ship was that on?

I have now had 3 cruises on Celebrity ( Eclipse,Infinity, Eclipse) where I have been made 'specials' every night. I think my favourite was a baked apple, stuffed with sultanas.

Edited December 22, 2016 by upwarduk

[TravelKnitter]

"I feel like they take allergies less seriously if someone says, oh I am allergic to this (and I've seen it!) and then they eat said item if it happens to look good."

 

I agree. A few years ago, there was a chef (NOT a cruise line chef) that bragged online about serving gluten to gluten-free folks and about how they never got sick. Therefore, he believed that the whole gluten-free thing was a hoax.

 

He got fired, thank goodness, but it spoke volumes about how people who fake an allergy (or give up some foods as a choice and not a necessity) can lead wait staff to not taking the request as seriously as they should.

 

I hope that Celebrity becoming involved in Dine Aware will help. I also hope that when the staff takes whatever training Dine Aware provides, they also have to pass a test, so Celebrity knows that staff learned what they needed to learn.

Edited December 22, 2016 by TravelKnitter

[levramosis]

We were on Reflection on the post-Thanksgiving 2016 cruise. I am allergic to whey protein in milk, not lactose intolerant at all. I wrote to the special needs department with an intensely detailed listing of what is OK, what is not OK, good substitutes for various dishes, etc. The appeal to the special needs department did NOTHING for us. I mean NOTHING. It appeared to us that it had not even been transmitted to the ship, which I find a bit ludicrous since we were planning to always eat in Luminae, partly to keep the situation clearer for everyone - and even that was made VERY clear in the letter.

 

With that said, once we made it clear to the staff, they were fantastic about reviewing the menu at earlier meals, having the kitchen make adjustments, and detailing what couldn't be adjusted. All that took some extra time but like Luminae dining in general, you'd best not be in a hurry. On the third day of the 7-day cruise the head chef came out to discuss. Once he understood (we pretty much watched the light go on in his head), things got much simpler. When I realized the pre-dessert amuse bouche was almost always sorbet that I could just get more of it opened the dessert window. During the last few days they served a chocolate cake made especially for me which was fantastic.

 

Despite all the efforts, there were still some hiccups. Having discovered they had almond milk at Cafe al Bacio (not sure if that was for us - if so thanks Celebrity because soy products SUCK, sorry you sipotters I see in this thread), we took to getting almond cappuccino. We decided to try it in Luminae with breakfast. The second day the runner must have not understood the importance of asking for precisely what we said. I woke from a morning nap having an asthma attack and after four hits on the inhaler ran to the bathroom and lost breakfast - really the worst of the symptoms I had warned Celebrity I might have. Boy was I hungry for lunch though.

 

We carried our own milk sub, which allowed me to eat cereal when we had breakfast in our stateroom. We already take our own creamer everywhere for normal coffee so we had that covered too.

 

Anyway. LESSON LEARNED: the FIRST time in your dining room, ask to see the chef ASAFP to discuss your allergy or intolerance. And don't depend on anything that requires a runner.

 

The stuff we did right: Always dine in the same place, and make it clear to the maitre'd/hostess that you need consistent waitstaff. We found a waiter or two in Luminae that we liked by the second day and had them consistently, and that made everything go much more smoothly. Bringing your own ingredients is a good idea if it's something you can use yourself, don't expect the kitchen to take anything you may bring.

 

It sounds like this program might help, but I lack confidence in it because it looks like there's a lot of turnover in staff even week-to-week and because of the large numbers of ESL staff which had to be one factor in my getting poisoned. Develop your own plan for managing your situation regardless of any program or claims of the cruise line.

 

My cappuccino experience on Reflection has even led me to investigate whether there is a chemical way to detect if my food is safe. Boy I wish that already existed... it would come in handy for everybody with medically acute food issues.

[TravelKnitter]

Anyway. LESSON LEARNED: the FIRST time in your dining room, ask to see the chef ASAFP to discuss your allergy or intolerance. And don't depend on anything that requires a runner.

 

The stuff we did right: Always dine in the same place, and make it clear to the maitre'd/hostess that you need consistent waitstaff. We found a waiter or two in Luminae that we liked by the second day and had them consistently, and that made everything go much more smoothly. Bringing your own ingredients is a good idea if it's something you can use yourself, don't expect the kitchen to take anything you may bring.

 

That's excellent advice.

[TravelKnitter]

This may sound silly, but when I sail, I wish there were a way to have a meet-and-greet with fellow food-intolerant cruisers on board!

[Bo1953]

This may sound silly, but when I sail, I wish there were a way to have a meet-and-greet with fellow food-intolerant cruisers on board!

 

Not silly at all, I think you may be able to co-ordinate this through the Concierge to be placed on the daily meeting notice... as not a X co-ordinated or sanctioned meet n greet.

 

bon voyage

[singingflutelady]

I don't have food allergies but I do have Crohn's disease which causes a lot of food restrictions that are tricky like low residue/fiber which rules out most vegetables and fruits, whole grains, nuts, seeds, legumes, no spices or garlic, lactose free, etc. Would my Crohn's restrictions be taken seriously or would they be dismissed like Vegans are because they are not allergies (though they cause a lot of very unpleasant things)? Can you ask for ingredients to be removed when ordering? I really want to be able to cruise and not I've on white bread.

Edited December 23, 2016 by singingflutelady

[TravelKnitter]

Not silly at all, I think you may be able to co-ordinate this through the Concierge to be placed on the daily meeting notice... as not a X co-ordinated or sanctioned meet n greet.

 

bon voyage

 

That's a great idea. I'll definitely look into that. Maybe it will become a trend and more people will do it when they cruise.

 

Day job aside, I'm also an avid knitter and knitwear designer. It might be fun to post a meet-up for fellow knitters as well.

 

Thank you, Samuel!

[TravelKnitter]

I don't have food allergies but I do have Crohn's disease which causes a lot of food restrictions that are tricky like low residue/fiber which rules out most vegetables and fruits, whole grains, nuts, seeds, legumes, no spices or garlic, lactose free, etc. Would my Crohn's restrictions be taken seriously or would they be dismissed like Vegans are because they are not allergies (though they cause a lot of very unpleasant things)? Can you ask for ingredients to be removed when ordering? I really want to be able to cruise and not I've on white bread.

 

I'm no expert, but I would guess that, since you have a disease, it would qualify.

 

Yes, fill out a special needs form the next time you cruise and then follow all of the other suggestions given by the good folks here: remain diligent, speak to the chef, etc.

 

Crohn's is a serious disease.

Edited December 23, 2016 by TravelKnitter

[Bo1953]

I don't have food allergies but I do have Crohn's disease which causes a lot of food restrictions that are tricky like low residue/fiber which rules out most vegetables and fruits, whole grains, nuts, seeds, legumes, no spices or garlic, lactose free, etc. Would my Crohn's restrictions be taken seriously or would they be dismissed like Vegans are because they are not allergies (though they cause a lot of very unpleasant things)? Can you ask for ingredients to be removed when ordering? I really want to be able to cruise and not I've on white bread.

 

Of course it would be taken seriously...

 

I Am a low fat vegan, and on all five (5) of our X cruises, there were a few times when 'MY' standards were not met, but I understood and ate what I could and only once did I send the dish back with a visit shortly after from the Chef apologizing for the error...

 

On Silly I had to stop them on night three (3) in Specialty Dining from sending out another vegetable risotto, from that night forward the chef got real creative for each dinner meal and I was pleased.

 

Either in this thread or another, there were complaints about the nightly desserts which were the same. I get ready for the fruit bowl, which in the long run, fine by me, unless there are quite a few of low-fat vegans aboard and of course there could be, I do not expect a special dessert.

 

bon voyage

[TravelKnitter]

 

 

Either in this thread or another, there were complaints about the nightly desserts which were the same. I get ready for the fruit bowl, which in the long run, fine by me, unless there are quite a few of low-fat vegans aboard and of course there could be, I do not expect a special dessert.

 

bon voyage

 

Bo1953, you bring up a good point about how a ship might adjust the desserts depending on how many similar, special needs are on the same cruise.

 

Everyone: This is a little off the subject, but is there anyone else out there like me? When I cruise, I always start out believing that I'm going to be good on the cruise when it comes to food.

 

I'll think, "If all they have is fruit, that will be fine. I don't need all of the sugar-filled, high-calorie stuff anyway, and it probably won't taste all that good." (Rather like The Fox and the Grapes.)

 

Ha! It's amazing how my attitude changes once I'm on board. The "You're-On-Vacation Devil" takes over, and I want it all!

 

A lot of it has to do with feeling deprived in areas other than dessert, such as not being able to make a salad at the buffet due to cross-contamination risk. I get very creative at buffets with healthy choices, and I enjoy being able to pick and chose what I want without having to ask someone to bring me something from the back.

 

My wishing for a dedicated gluten-free station at the buffet gets stronger by the day. I think I've mentioned it at least three times here.

 

Please, Celebrity? Please?

 

One thing I've yet to do is write Celebrity to request a dedicated station. I'm going to write to them this week.

 

Is there a best address for requests such as mine?

Edited January 4, 2017 by TravelKnitter

[goofysmom99]

On Silly now. Last night I asked if soy sauce at stir fry station was GF. Was told "yes" twice. I looked for chef anyway and asked. "No." He went down to MDR kitchen and got some. Obviously, you have to be on your guard.

 

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[TravelKnitter]

On Silly now. Last night I asked if soy sauce at stir fry station was GF. Was told "yes" twice. I looked for chef anyway and asked. "No." He went down to MDR kitchen and got some. Obviously, you have to be on your guard.

 

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On my blog, I just posted a review of my cruise, and it was soy sauce that caused a problem for me, too. It's amazing how many people don't realize that, unless soy sauce is specifically listed as gluten free, it is not.

Edited January 10, 2017 by TravelKnitter

[Morgsmom]

On the Equinox this past week there was a separate toaster and special GF breads (SEVERAL varieties) at the breakfast buffet. It was away from the regular breakfast breads so you'd have to hunt it down a bit, but it was there.

 

I am NOT GF, but have a bad pineapple allergy. As a result I can't trust the tongs at the "cut fruit" stations so I stick with whole fruit. My DD is highly shellfish allergic; she would not have been able to even walk into the MDR on lobster night without having an attack.

[goofysmom99]

The Silhouette doesn't have the decent Canyon Bakehouse bread. I was unpleasantly surprised to find the horrible, long-shelf-life, square stuff from years ago. I have a meeting with F&B Mgr tomorrow to find out why, when all the other ships have Canyon. And Ft Lauderdale Publix has it.....if I'd known, would have picked up some. Fortunately, brought hamburger buns and I'm glad I did!

 

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[darylsgirlfriend]

I just did a Celebrity cruise and didn't hear anything about it when telling staff about my daughters peanut allergy.

I found the our waitress in the main dining room was excellent - every night she would tell my daughter what was safe for her to eat on the menu. Having the same staff every night was so helpful because we only explained once. At the buffet it was a lot harder, but I found staff erred on the side of caution.

 

 

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[goofysmom99]

Met with FBM and they DO have the better bread. The bread I was sent is for folks with gluten and nut allergy combined. I'll annotate the hang menu tonight.

 

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