Food

[Maureenxx]

What is your opinion of recent HAL food. On our last cruise in October the food was really lacking. I thought it was just me until my tablemates in the main dining room made some comments. Some items arrived as a real surprise because they were not as described on the menu. We got steaks that we couldn't cut. Strange combinations. One day they had a special chef's menu and it was the worst menu I have ever seen and others at our table agreed. We were really disappointed in the food on this cruise as always before we thought the food was really good. Anyone else think the food has really gone down.

[twodjs]

As has been mentioned many times, opinions on food are very personal. We were on the Oosterdam in January and thought the food in the MDR was delicious.

[kazu]

What is your opinion of recent HAL food. On our last cruise in October the food was really lacking. I thought it was just me until my tablemates in the main dining room made some comments. Some items arrived as a real surprise because they were not as described on the menu. We got steaks that we couldn't cut. Strange combinations. One day they had a special chef's menu and it was the worst menu I have ever seen and others at our table agreed. We were really disappointed in the food on this cruise as always before we thought the food was really good. Anyone else think the food has really gone down.

 

I think it really depends on the ship and how long the cruise is and if the cruise has to be discounted.

 

Our food has been quite good on most nights on our last few cruises - but they were longer, more expensive cruises where the price didn't go down even after final payment.

 

I have a suspicion (can't prove it) that cruises that are shorter where the price is dropped unreasonably low have not as good menu choices or meat cuts.

 

For example, on two collectors cruises where there was a repositioning 3 or 4 day cruise attached out of San Diego, there was a HUGE change in the MDR menu and attraction (to me) as to the menu itself. thankfully, I was warned on the roll call that there would be a dramatic change when we hit San Diego, so we had some PG's booked.

 

Our food has been good and even, improved in some aspects but we are not taking the $199 per night cruises ;). I know food is subjective, but I am pretty fussy and have been known to return a plate or two when I didn't care for it. ;)

[jhsocal]

October on Oosterdam, meat dishes a bit tough at times, all other items were quite tasty. Service was very good, servers friendly and accommodating. Suspect the answers will vary from cruise to cruise.

[CruiserBruce]

I think it really depends on the ship and how long the cruise is and if the cruise has to be discounted.

 

Our food has been quite good on most nights on our last few cruises - but they were longer, more expensive cruises where the price didn't go down even after final payment.

 

I have a suspicion (can't prove it) that cruises that are shorter where the price is dropped unreasonably low have not as good menu choices or meat cuts.

 

For example, on two collectors cruises where there was a repositioning 3 or 4 day cruise attached out of San Diego, there was a HUGE change in the MDR menu and attraction (to me) as to the menu itself. thankfully, I was warned on the roll call that there would be a dramatic change when we hit San Diego, so we had some PG's booked.

 

Our food has been good and even, improved in some aspects but we are not taking the $199 per night cruises ;). I know food is subjective, but I am pretty fussy and have been known to return a plate or two when I didn't care for it. ;)

 

This would be very hard to prove, as the planning cycle for provisioning the ships is weeks ahead. Plus, most cruise lines have a food budget $XXX per person, per day, built in.

 

Lastly discounting of cruise prices has little to do with where much of the profit for a cruise is- the alcohol, excursions and other add ons.

[jenp123]

I think it really depends on the ship. I was on the Rotterdam last February and the food in the main dining room was pretty terrible. I was on the Eurodam in September the food was amazing and the best I've had for years and I was on the koningsdam in November and the food was almost as good in the MDR.

 

On the Rotterdam I ended up eating in the Pinnacle Grill almost every night because the main dining room was so bad

[rkacruiser]

In my opinion, whomever is the Executive Chef in the Galley is the determining factor. I have learned from Behind the Scenes Tours that these men are able to "tweak" Seattle's standard recipes if they desire. I've concluded that some are better "tweakers" than others.

 

During the recently completed Zaandam's Christmas/New Year's Cruise, the cuisine in all dining venues that I tried-- MDR, Pinnacle Grill, Lido Restaurant, Dive-In, Room Service-- met my expectations, and even exceeded them at times, for most meals. Was there a "miss" once in awhile? Of course, but even the "miss" was edible.

[JT1962]

We were on the Rotterdam a few weeks ago, and were disappointed in the variety and quality of the food. This was our first HAL cruise and we had always heard good things about HAL’s food. Nothing was horrible (other than the New York pizza), but the food in the MDR was below the quality we experienced on Royal Caribbean and Carnival.

 

One thing I found especially odd was I asked for horseradish on the night they had prime rib and they seemed confused. The waiter acted like he had never heard of it and he checked with the kitchen and said they didn’t have it onboard. On other lines they have always offered horseradish without asking for it with prime rib. They also never offered sour cream when we had baked potatoes.

 

Taste is very subjective, but we thought the desserts were very bland with little taste. Nothing stood out and made us want to order it again. The one bright spot for food were the fries at Dive In. Crispy on the outside and a great taste.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Edited February 3, 2018 by JT1962

[Flatbush Flyer]

This would be very hard to prove, as the planning cycle for provisioning the ships is weeks ahead. Plus, most cruise lines have a food budget $XXX per person, per day, built in.

 

 

 

Lastly discounting of cruise prices has little to do with where much of the profit for a cruise is- the alcohol, excursions and other add ons.

 

 

 

And while HAL's per person daily budget exceeds lines like Carnival, it falls far short of premium and luxury lines.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[rkacruiser]

We were on the Rotterdam a few weeks ago, and were disappointed in the variety and quality of the food. This was our first HAL cruise and we had always heard good things about HAL’s food. Nothing was horrible (other than the New York pizza), but the food in the MDR was below the quality we experienced on Royal Caribbean and Carnival.

 

One thing I found especially odd was I asked for horseradish on the night they had prime rib and they seemed confused. The waiter acted like he had never heard of it and he checked with the kitchen and said they didn’t have it onboard. On other lines they have always offered horseradish without asking for it with prime rib. They also never offered sour cream when we had baked potatoes.

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

No sour cream for Baked Potatoes? No horseradish---or at least horseradish sauce---for Prime Rib? Your Dining Room Steward did not know what he was talking about. Makes me wonder if he really did make an attempt to obtain this for you. Sometimes, given the experience of your Steward, one needs to make the request for whatever one wants that is not provided.

 

I hope you expressed this experience on your End-Of-Cruise Survey that you should have received.

 

What you experienced is not acceptable HAL MDR service.

[JT1962]

No sour cream for Baked Potatoes? No horseradish---or at least horseradish sauce---for Prime Rib? Your Dining Room Steward did not know what he was talking about. Makes me wonder if he really did make an attempt to obtain this for you. Sometimes, given the experience of your Steward, one needs to make the request for whatever one wants that is not provided.

 

 

 

I hope you expressed this experience on your End-Of-Cruise Survey that you should have received.

 

 

 

What you experienced is not acceptable HAL MDR service.

 

 

 

We were very surprised at the service (or lack of it) in the MDR. They weren’t rude, but rarely followed up after bringing the food and there were long waits between courses at times. They never offered more bread, check back often, etc. as we have had on other cruises. We had to wave them over and ask if we wanted anything else. From our observation it appeared that they had more tables assigned to take care of than I have seen on past cruises.

 

We did note this on the survey at the end of the cruise. We did not bring it to anyone’s attention during the cruise since it wasn’t horrific service, just not great service. We had never been on HAL before and thought it must have been normal for them.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[kazu]

This would be very hard to prove, as the planning cycle for provisioning the ships is weeks ahead. Plus, most cruise lines have a food budget $XXX per person, per day, built in.

 

Lastly discounting of cruise prices has little to do with where much of the profit for a cruise is- the alcohol, excursions and other add ons.

 

I am just relaying my experience. I see posts now on ships I have been on where they were not happy and we had very good food.

 

Provisioning might be weeks ahead, but I suspect they can amend orders if they want. I've definitely seen a differences in food offerings depending on the length of the cruise as posted.

 

While the bulk of the profit of a cruise line may be in on board purchases, I am quite sure that if they have to discount cabins and sell at a loss it does affect profits. And that, IMO will affect the provisioning.

 

In any case, just my experience and opinion. We can agree to disagree ;)

[cb at sea]

When a waiter says something "isn't available", it usually means they won't bother looking for it. There are good and bad waiters on ALL lines....some are more accommodating than others, I've found.

[ellieanne]

Food is very subjective. On my recent cruise, I found the food good. The last couple of nights in the Main Dining Room, I thought the menus were not as good or as varied as they had been earlier in the cruise, but that was my person opinion and my dislike of some of the main ingredients in the meals.

 

Hot food was served hot, cold food was served cold. It all tasted good to me. I have found that the cooking of steaks was hit-or-miss, in that some in our party asked for rare and good medium, and some asked for medium-well and got rare. It took several tries for one steak to get cooked to the diner's preference, and in fact at the end, we had to ask for the steak to be butterflied. The steak cooking issues were across the board, from the Main Dining Room to the Pinnacle Grill so it appeared to be a kitchen issue rather than an individual chef/cook issue.

 

But I will say the waiters in the main dining room and in the Lido went out of their ways to make sure everyone had something they liked for meals, even to the point of cobbling together a meal from parts of all the items on the menu. Also, when one of the party got fewer vegetables than described in the menu, the waiters brought a couple of plates of vegetables which were shared not only by the one diner, but the whole table. The service we had this cruise was some of the most attentive and personal I have ever had.

 

I think if you go expecting pub-style or mid-range chain restaurant style food, you will not be disappointed, and in some case very pleasantly surprised.

[airboss1998]

We were on Konigsdam, after spending ten days on Royal Car this fall, and found the food to be up to our expectations. No complaints (although I don't think I had a potato the whole ten nights).

[OlsSalt]

HAL provides good banquet quality food, with good banquet level service. Good enough for us for the price, and more often than not HAL exceeds those basic expectations. It never has fallen below these basic expectations. We do not go in expecting personal service. Just nicely served food chosen from the menu. However, I found as-you-wish dining on my last cruise to be a far more frenetic dining experience, than late fixed dining. I personally would never choose that option again. YMMV.

[JT1962]

When a waiter says something "isn't available", it usually means they won't bother looking for it. There are good and bad waiters on ALL lines....some are more accommodating than others, I've found.

 

 

 

That is possible. We had the “As You Wish” dining and were seated in the same section 5 nights and a different section the other 2 nights. The service was similar from both waitstaffs. It could be that there are more new employees on that ship and they are still learning.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[rkacruiser]

When a waiter says something "isn't available", it usually means they won't bother looking for it. There are good and bad waiters on ALL lines....some are more accommodating than others, I've found.

 

I 100% agree with this posting!

 

When one encounters such a Steward that type of service needs to be made aware by the MDR management. The guest's request is not out of ordinary and surely should be fulfilled.

 

On my cruise, when our delicious dinner on Christmas Eve of Prime Rib was served, a very small container of horseradish was served with each serving. All of us who ordered Prime Rib asked Koman, our Steward, for more. Galen, his Assistant, provided us more horseradish than any of us could use!

[CruiserBruce]

We were on Konigsdam, after spending ten days on Royal Car this fall, and found the food to be up to our expectations. No complaints (although I don't think I had a potato the whole ten nights).

 

You can request a potato any night, and they commonly serve baked potato with Prime Rib. 21 days on KDam in March, had baked potato a couple of nights, with the fixings. Same on Eurodam in Oct/Nov.

[cbr663]

I think the itinerary plays a major part in the menu items. We experienced the very best food and meals on our Norway cruise on the K this past summer. It was like sailing on a different line than previous HAL Caribbean sailings.

[Tiggipaws]

Sailed on Eurodam for 2 weeks in the Caribbean in December and I found the food was very good to excellent and I am a very fussy eater. The staff were excelent in the MDR as they were in the other restaurants we ate in

[sammiedawg]

Dining perceptions vary widely and are heavily influenced on previous restaurant experiences.

Case in point-

Our families are scattered but we try to see everyone every couple of years. We really enjoy taking relatives to dinner. A couple years ago we were with two much loved ones in their East Coast hometown. They love Applebee’s and I always tuck an Applebee’s gift card in our Christmas greeting. We have them choose a restaurant and it is generally a comfort style eatery. On this particular visit we were thrilled to take them to the best restaurant in their town, on the waterfront, casual dress with a real chef. We were sure they would love it. However, they did not like the food.

[JR42]

We were very surprised at the service (or lack of it) in the MDR. They weren’t rude, but rarely followed up after bringing the food and there were long waits between courses at times. They never offered more bread, check back often, etc. as we have had on other cruises. We had to wave them over and ask if we wanted anything else. From our observation it appeared that they had more tables assigned to take care of than I have seen on past cruises.

 

We did note this on the survey at the end of the cruise. We did not bring it to anyone’s attention during the cruise since it wasn’t horrific service, just not great service. We had never been on HAL before and thought it must have been normal for them.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

We also just returned from 2 weeks on the Rotterdam.

You must have had the same waiters as we had. In all my cruises on Holland they were the worst. Not the normal service. This was the first time ever I did not give extra to our waiters

 

Janet

[airboss1998]

Dining perceptions vary widely and are heavily influenced on previous restaurant experiences.

Case in point-

Our families are scattered but we try to see everyone every couple of years. We really enjoy taking relatives to dinner. A couple years ago we were with two much loved ones in their East Coast hometown. They love Applebee’s and I always tuck an Applebee’s gift card in our Christmas greeting. We have them choose a restaurant and it is generally a comfort style eatery. On this particular visit we were thrilled to take them to the best restaurant in their town, on the waterfront, casual dress with a real chef. We were sure they would love it. However, they did not like the food.

 

 

 

This is true. We have traveled on two different cruises with my parents and they opted out of the MDR after a few nights, feeing the food was too rich, and not wanting the formality. My wife and I, on the other hand, enjoying sitting and being pampered.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[chong67]

I was on Eurodam and the lunch buffet is great! Food from different asian countries everyday. They bring you drinks too. Pizza you got 10 meats to customized. The burgers are great too! I love HAL. Value for the money when it comes to food!