Thoughts on Food

[Rdclfamily]

I keep mulling over this whole specialty dining thing. It appears that the number of specialty dining restaurants has increased and packages have become more common. My thought was always that I would just do one if I felt inclined to in the moment, but the MDR and other free options have always been good enough (and even great) in the past. I'm wondering...what benefit does the cruise line have to keep the free options good, if they want to make money off the others? Do you find that the quality has suffered? Do we need to seriously consider eating at the specialty dining restaurants in order to have a decent meal? Just seems that the free stuff must be suffering these days, no?

[spookwife]

it really depends on your palate. for us, we do specialty mostly due to boredom with the MDR options, which haven't changed in a while. that being said with one menu exception, I can usually find SOMETHING I would want to eat that day.

 

but overall I too think that the MDR and buffet options have become.. pedantic. thing is, it may be perfectly acceptable to the kind of people they are trying to attract. the ones that think Olive Garden is fine Italian cuisine. costs have to be cut somewhere and I think food is the first thing that goes.

[Rdclfamily]

I think Olive Garden sucks. But I loved cruise food just a few years ago. Where does that leave me now? LOL

[bouhunter]

My thought is you're putting too much thought into this:p:)

[OCruisers]

Being able to eat in specialty restaurants on RCCL ships is a BIG PLUS for us. :D

[cb at sea]

They have NO incentive to keep the "included" food good...that's why it's been decreasing over the years. Pretty soon, the only "included" food will be the buffet...wait and see!

[canadarocks]

Being able to eat in specialty restaurants on RCCL ships is a BIG PLUS for us. :D

 

Hi you! We switched our Princess 14 night Circle Caribbean to a 5 night RC and a 10 night HAL cruise this coming January. It will be our 1st time on RC (Independence of the Seas).

 

Does your above statement mean we should be concerned about the MDR? Or does it mean that the specialty restaurant are really really good? :)

[geomancer]

They have NO incentive to keep the "included" food good...that's why it's been decreasing over the years. Pretty soon, the only "included" food will be the buffet...wait and see!

 

I can see this happening. There use to be half a dozen options for food all over the place on ships, now it's down to 2.5 (if you count Cafe Promenade snacks).

 

As you can see in this thread alone, there is absolutely no shortage of people out there more than willing to pay for specialty restaurants. Because of that, and it's already been seen, the prices for them will continue to rise.

[OCruisers]

I keep mulling over this whole specialty dining thing. It appears that the number of specialty dining restaurants has increased and packages have become more common. My thought was always that I would just do one if I felt inclined to in the moment, but the MDR and other free options have always been good enough (and even great) in the past. I'm wondering...what benefit does the cruise line have to keep the free options good, if they want to make money off the others? Do you find that the quality has suffered? Do we need to seriously consider eating at the specialty dining restaurants in order to have a decent meal? Just seems that the free stuff must be suffering these days, no?

 

Since you are happy with the MDR and other free dining options, there's no real reason for you to pay extra to eat elsewhere. (y)

Continue to enjoy! :)

[Smyles]

We don't do the specialty dining. For no reason other than we already get free meals served to us (no cooking or clean up for me). If I take those 'free' served meals then I can enjoy more served meals at restaurants back home. I find I better enjoy the fancy, more costly meals out when they are spread throughout the year versus all in a row.

[rukkian]

We don't do the specialty dining. For no reason other than we already get free meals served to us (no cooking or clean up for me). If I take those 'free' served meals then I can enjoy more served meals at restaurants back home. I find I better enjoy the fancy, more costly meals out when they are spread throughout the year versus all in a row.

We were actually perfectly fine with the mdr and even the buffet, and I don't like og.

 

While plenty of people do go to specialty, I am sure the number is much less than the amount that don't.

 

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[OCruisers]

Hi you! We switched our Princess 14 night Circle Caribbean to a 5 night RC and a 10 night HAL cruise this coming January. It will be our 1st time on RC (Independence of the Seas).

 

Does your above statement mean we should be concerned about the MDR? Or does it mean that the specialty restaurant are really really good? :)

 

Gosh, Cindy ... not sure how to answer. The MDR on RCCL food isn't horrid ... just we love the option of the specialty restaurants which we always enjoy.

On your HAL cruise .... If you & Bob liked the MDR food on Princess, you'll probably also enjoy the MDR food on HAL.

We never feel the need to have dinner in a specialty restaruant almost every night on Princess & HAL cruises. :)

LuLu

[tennislvr8]

While at home I choose the restaurants I eat it, mainly local and upper echelon chains. Having said that I find the free food on cruises to be perfectly acceptable, including the windjammer. Since I find the free choices acceptable I don't see the need to spend money on other options..

 

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[Cruisegirl6]

We don't like the quality of the food or the service in the MDR, its like eating at a large banquet factory. We dine every night at the specialty restaurants, with 150 Central Parc being our favorite. We would never go to the MDR.

[canadarocks]

Gosh, Cindy ... not sure how to answer. The MDR on RCCL food isn't horrid ... just we love the option of the specialty restaurants which we always enjoy.

On your HAL cruise .... If you & Bob liked the MDR food on Princess, you'll probably also enjoy the MDR food on HAL.

We never feel the need to have dinner in a specialty restaruant almost every night on Princess & HAL cruises. :)

LuLu

 

Thanks Lulu. We've done lots of HAL cruises, but this will be our first on RC. Should be interesting to see the difference. :)

[papaflamingo]

I can see this happening. There use to be half a dozen options for food all over the place on ships, now it's down to 2.5 (if you count Cafe Promenade snacks).

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I respectfully disagree. Our first cruise was in 1998 on Grandeur. At the time there was only the MDR or the Windjammer available (as I remember). Then when Voyager came out the started adding options. Now, even on Vision Class you have the MDR, Windjammer, Park Cafe, and Cafe Latte-tudes, plus the specialty restaurants. On larger ships (depending on class) you can add Johnny Rockets free for breakfast, Solarium Bistro, Sorrentos, the Dog House, Wipe Out Cafe, Cafe Promenade.

[sloch24]

I respectfully disagree. Our first cruise was in 1998 on Grandeur. At the time there was only the MDR or the Windjammer available (as I remember).

 

Don't forget about the limited Solarium offerings (Pizza, Burgers, etc...). We were on the Grandeur in 1997 and I believe they had a little food area set up in the corner. We were on it again in 2005, and I remember the same.

[cruzeluver]

We were on the Oasis last month and only had one dinner in the main dining room. We thought the food was actually fine, better than expected. What is keeping us away is how poor the service has become. No fault of the waiters, but they have far too many tables to juggle, and with flexible dining options they cannot get any kind of rhythm going with folks constantly coming and going. Our's did his best and was very friendly but he really was set up to fail. It was incredibly loud as well. We had to speak at a high volume just to hear one another. Tables were set so close to one another I could have helped myself to the escargots served to the woman at the next table. Not at all pleasant.

 

Conversely, meals at all of the specialty restaurants were excellent. Higher quality meats, more variety, everything cooked to specifications. Warm, attentive service. Quiet ambiance allowing for easy conversation. No complaints with any of them. We dined at Giovanni's twice and Chops, 150 Central Park, Izumi and Solarium Bistro once each.

[dpostman]

I always find the discussion around food interesting. Some will find the MDR food to be all the way from excellent to Yuk "We wound never go to the MDR". Personally, I found MDR food to be at the very least edible (Meaning: fine and better that lots of other places I've eaten) and on par with what I was expecting, and even sometimes, very good and surprisingly well presented considering the quantity they have to produce.

 

Now as for ambiance... it is true that it does feel sort of "Banquetish" and cramped. If cruising with a large family or group, the MDR seems the perfect fit. When cruising as a couple, perhaps celebrating an anniversary or something, I find the calmness and more intimate setting of most specialty restaurants more appealing. We also like the specialties for the experience, such as Wonderland.

 

On our last 7 day Anthem cruise, we had 2 specialty Dinners (Wonderland, Jaimie's) and one lunch at Izumi's. We greatly enjoyed every one. But we also had very good MDR dinners, but maybe it had something to do with the fact that we were cruising with a large group of friends and were having a great time:D

 

I miss Portofino's :loudcry:

dp

[Flatbush Flyer]

I keep mulling over this whole specialty dining thing. It appears that the number of specialty dining restaurants has increased and packages have become more common. My thought was always that I would just do one if I felt inclined to in the moment, but the MDR and other free options have always been good enough (and even great) in the past. I'm wondering...what benefit does the cruise line have to keep the free options good, if they want to make money off the others? Do you find that the quality has suffered? Do we need to seriously consider eating at the specialty dining restaurants in order to have a decent meal? Just seems that the free stuff must be suffering these days, no?

 

 

 

Given the never ending quest by mass market lines to offer a seemingly "bargain" price for a cruise while maximizing profits, it should surprise no one that the quality of the food is so bad. At the same time, those lines' trying to be "everything to everybody" need to offer a "better" product for folks who want it (and are willing to contribute more to the ship's "bottom line" by paying extra for specialty dining.

Cruising is a great example of the old adage: "You get what you pay for."

Recognize as well that some cruise lines (primarily premium and luxury lines) do focus considerable attention on one ore more aspects of the onboard experience, from food to service to accommodations.

If food quality, consistency, variety and overall excellence are important to you, consider Oceania- with its widespread acclaim for "the best food at sea."

 

 

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[geomancer]

I respectfully disagree. Our first cruise was in 1998 on Grandeur. At the time there was only the MDR or the Windjammer available (as I remember). Then when Voyager came out the started adding options. Now, even on Vision Class you have the MDR, Windjammer, Park Cafe, and Cafe Latte-tudes, plus the specialty restaurants. On larger ships (depending on class) you can add Johnny Rockets free for breakfast, Solarium Bistro, Sorrentos, the Dog House, Wipe Out Cafe, Cafe Promenade.

 

Guess I'm use to other lines that had (and some still have) numerous included food options like pizza, grills, and made to order sandwiches.

[Kmkub]

We just got off the Indy on Monday. It was our first cruise on RC. It was the worst food we've ever had on a cruise. Some of it was inedible. Some of the food was fine, but there were now "WOW, that's AMAZING!" moments in food. Quite a lot of it was just plain gross; especially the pizza at Sorrento's.

[tiger belle]

my thoughts: I think that the best thing is having options; i.e., the more options the better...MDR, specialty, buffet, snacks, room service...that is one thing I like about cruising...that having been said, on the lines I've cruised, I have enjoyed the MDR experience as well as specialty dining, and I typically exercise both options during the cruise...I dislike buffets and I rarely do room service...I am kind of old school, but one of the things I still enjoy is doing the MDR at same assigned table with same assigned waiter during the cruise, and I dislike that a lot of lines are going away from this--that was my main dislike about dining on my most recent cruise with NCL (the pro was that the specialty restaurants and also the MDR have great food)

[katiel53]

We enjoy going to the specialty restaurants mostly to be away from the din of the MDR. As far as the food in the MDR, it is ok, not great, not horrible.

 

The food on the menu sounds great, but the taste leaves a lot to be desired. Additionally, I don't think the service is as good as it has been in previous years.

 

My thoughts on service are based on my last 2 cruises on Allure. We had Anytime dining and we only had dinner in the MDR two nights on each cruise. Our last cruise in July probably had the worst server we have ever had on Royal Caribbean. The waiter could not have cared less about his service. Ordering drinks was a joke as they never arrived until almost dessert. Orders were wrong and when someone asked for 2 lobster tails, he rolled his eyes. Really?

 

The last night in the MDR was totally different in that the woman who was our waiter was wonderful. She could not have done any more for our group of 6. I forget her name now, but did mention her on the survey.

 

When we sail again on Allure, we have a 5 night package again and one night from our TA, so it will be quiet, relaxing dinners with great service. I don't mind paying the extra because the food and service are definitely worth it.

[MichaelCMTX]

Gosh, Cindy ... not sure how to answer. The MDR on RCCL food isn't horrid ... just we love the option of the specialty restaurants which we always enjoy.

 

I'm with you, too many comments from people who act as though the MDR offerings would be rejected by galley slaves.