HAL bread is not very interesting

[Iamthesea]

Yum! Looking forward to the raisin rolls...or is it bread? There is a difference. :D

 

It's your default "user title". To change it, click your nickname at the upper right, click Edit Your Details, then scroll down to Custom User Title in the right column. Good luck!

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I tried but could not change mine. :confused:

[Walfam]

Ah...raisin buns. Je t'amore mon petit! On my last HAL cruise I disciplined myself to only eat two the entire 7 days.

 

Roz

 

I bow to your self-discipline. I have so few vices left in life, I limited myself to two or three per day. ;)

[Wehwalt]

HAL breads IMHO aren't bad and are better than those on Princess or RCCI. But they pale by comparison with the breads ashore in most European ports.

[rafinmd]

Here is a really stupid question. Why do the words "cool cruiser" appear below the name of the person posting?

 

Think of it as Cruise Critic's version of the Mariner Society. You start out as "Cool Cruiser". Once you have (I think) 3,000 posts it changes to "Blue Ribbon Cruiser". After 5,000 posts it changes to :"5000+club", then increments by each 5000 posts. For a select few you may also see :"Charter Member" there. Unlike the Mariner Society there are no benefits, just "bragging rights"..

 

Roy

[Hlitner]

I am a confirmed bread addict and was never impressed by any HAL rolls until the recent changes with the salad bar in the Lido. They started having those special rolls (which have some herbs and appear to be coated with olive oil) which DW and I find to be amazing :). As to the rolls at dinner, they are just ordinary. What I would love to see is what New Yorkers call a "salt stick." Or perhaps still steaming thick slices from a French Baquette. We once happened to meet the pastry/bread chef on a HAL cruise and did chat with him about his output. He explained that nearly everything they do in the galley is dictated by company policy and recipes/ Even the most brilliant pasty/bread chef is constrained by company policy and the available ingredients.

 

Hank

[deepwater]

I love these posts about bread. To me, it is such a non-issue about the bread served, as it is not that important on a cruise. I like most of the HAL breads in the MDR and buffet and have no complaints whatsoever. I'll try the raisin buns in January though. :)

[SusieKay]

Seems like not long ago there were hundreds of posts about butter. Guess one about bread couldn't be too far behind.[emoji44]

 

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[kwb101]

We used to say some people are not happy unless they are miserable and sadly we meet a lot of them these days! If it makes them happy in some perverse way fine - but I hate to think some people avoid certain things or experiences after hearing all of these baseless complaints?

I was a retail manager for over 20 years, and my no. 2 had a sign behind the counter, where the customers couldn't see it: "Some people bring happiness by arriving, others by leaving".

[SetAnOpenCourse]

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...Due to his manner and appearance we named him "Winston Churchill" and whenever we saw him on the ship he had either his wife or another passenger captive with "his" complaints about everything. ...

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...

 

Based just on your post, I’d have to say you need to learn a little more about Churchill.

[SetAnOpenCourse]

Bread is a good indicator of the direction of a cruise line, or even of a society.

[feathersandnananose]

Just a FYI so one doesn't embarrass themselves in Italy: that's a big no in Italy. However as Olive Garden customers go to Italy, some places that serve the "Italian" food the tourists are used to will place the olive oil (and balsamic vinegar) or worse, butter, on the table.

 

Bread is only dipped in olive oil when tasting the new oil from the freshly pressed olive crop of the year.

 

 

QUESTION: So in Italy, if you are given bread, you just eat it dry? Or save it to sop up sauces, etc.? Just wondering.

[ellieanne]

We used to say some people are not happy unless they are miserable and sadly we meet a lot of them these days! If it makes them happy in some perverse way fine - but I hate to think some people avoid certain things or experiences after hearing all of these baseless complaints.

 

Rock on everyone! Life isn't always fair but a "boring breadbasket" is not life changing!!

 

When I see some people's complaints, it does make me want to reply to them "Get a real problem."

 

Though at the same time, I probably have what others consider petty, insignificant complaints as well.

 

I always think of it as travel. If one wants exactly the experience they have at home, why not just stay home and watch documentaries on all the places the cruise is visiting?

[Wehwalt]

Bread is a topic that has not been done to death, like say alcohol policy or extension cords. It was pleasant to read the comments. I wish it hadn't turned contentious.

[OlsSalt]

QUESTION: So in Italy, if you are given bread, you just eat it dry? Or save it to sop up sauces, etc.? Just wondering.

 

Lived in Italy in the late 1960's for several years and bread was served fresh and tender, so it did not taste "dry". It was a side to be used as you described, or just on its own as a ready appetizer while waiting for your courses. Italian soups are often filled with broken bread which lead to an Italian saying "Is it bread or soup" (C'e pane o zuppa?) when something is confusing as to identity. You could also request butter, but that was not immediately offered either. And they either counted the rolls you ate from the basket and charged you accordingly, or it was included in the automatic "pane e coperto" charge you got just sitting down at the table.

 

Back then, the bread basket was never served with a dish of olive oil or vinegar. That was an affectation that came from the US much later, mainly because the US tourists expected it. Where it started in the US, I don't know. Oil and vinegar in small carafes was set on the table for the later salad course, not for the bread basket. But we also never saw a red checkered table cloth, sawdust on the floor or a dripping candle in a straw wrapped wine bottle in Italy -which were virtually required in US "Italian" restuarants at that same time.

[*Miss G*]

After reading all the positive comments on HAL bread I have to say one more thing. Seriously people - is your little world where you live so perfect that you feel the need to complain about the rolls?

 

We sat beside a couple one night two weeks ago on our cruise - the husband complained about literally every single thing - from the steak knives being given too late (umm the waiter would not know you needed one until you placed your order) to the napkins, to the salads, the rolls, and on and on and on. He he literally droned on the entire meal about all of HAL's mis-steps with what he assumed was his great authority. Due to his manner and appearance we named him "Winston Churchill" and whenever we saw him on the ship he had either his wife or another passenger captive with "his" complaints about everything. It was amusing after a while but I wonder if people like him just throw out complaints to feel superior. I would hate for someone who was thinking about a HAL cruise to not go because of the "rolls" - honestly do you cruise for the rolls/breadbasket or the "total experience?

 

As with other things in life maybe we should concentrate and promote the "good" things rather than the "bad" - unless the bad is so bad that it is a health or safety issue. My mother who is Sicilian was an amazing cook and baker - she made just about everything from scratch - except when she was in a bind and then would use frozen dough and her pizza, loaves of bread etc were still amazing. Don't knock frozen bread or anything that you think is "cost cutting" or trying to fool us.

 

Many people in this world would be so happy with your "repeat" bread basket. It was a vacation - not a prison sentence !

 

PS - I did see the focaccia bread in the Lido at lunch but resisted the temptation because I knew my morning raisin bread was enough of a calorie splurge until dinner. Now that I know how good it is I may have to give in on another HAL cruise !!!

I just took this thread to be click-bait and tongue-in-cheek.

[RJ2002]

...What I would love to see is what New Yorkers call a "salt stick." ...

 

Hank

 

We discovered these on a different cruise line last year. Boy, are they good!

[OlsSalt]

Crystal has "salt sticks". Never figured out the fuss over them but the rest of their breads were not that good so they were the best they had. That is why we were so taken with HAL's breads after starting out with Crystal.

 

And the fresh baked breads are always one of our most cherished treats when coming back on HAL ships. To the poster who claimed HAL breads can't possibly compare to anything on land, yes, that is a given. So best compare them in context; not to an absolute. The raisin buns to me are like really good English hot cross buns, but without the cross and without the hot. Just pillowy and delicious.

[Wehwalt]

To the poster who claimed HAL breads can't possibly compare to anything on land, yes, that is a given. So best compare them in context; not to an absolute.

 

HAL breads IMHO aren't bad and are better than those on Princess or RCCI. But they pale by comparison with the breads ashore in most European ports.

 

Just reproducing my post as it seems you overlooked some portion of it, i.e. the "context".

[alexadeparis]

I say thanks to the thread starter for this post, because when I am on a cruise (or any vacation) the food is a very important component of OUR trips. I could see how to some this might not matter at ALL, and to people like myself and OP, it can be a deal breaker. Want to know why I would never sail Princess again, even though I liked the ship? Their “specialty” coffee (and regular) was absolutely intolerable to my husband, who is a coffee fiend. It’s a total dealbreaker for him. I love him and don’t want him to suffer.

 

Now as for me, I LOVE bread, to me it is often the best part of the meal. Horrible bread is the reason why many, many restaurants are off “my list” and the same will go for a cruise too. My husband knows about this and has learned to live with excluding some otherwise good restaurants because of the bread issue.

 

My worst nightmare would be to be trapped for a week or more on a ship with ****ty food, I KNOW I would not enjoy myself. Some people may think this is nitpicking, but always remember that the little things ARE the big things! Messed up bread (or food) will mess up my vacation. Period. Thank you OP for bringing this to light. I will be dubiously eyeing the bread basket when I sail in a few weeks to Alaska.

[Walfam]

The raisin buns to me are like really good English hot cross buns, but without the cross and without the hot. Just pillowy and delicious.

 

I agree, and often wished they had the icing Xs. LOL

[Walfam]

alexadeparis - I did not try the coffee on our HAL cruise but .... (topic hijack alert!) ... discovered Harney & Sons' English Breakfast Tea along with their Earl Gray (hubby's new fav) in the Neptune Lounge and Pinnacle and now have a new favorite. I think of our cruise every time I make tea, which is really a lovely thing. We found loose tea versions locally when we returned home, and our other teas are now abandoned in the pantry.

[j9inmaui]

I love the great little baskets of bread at dinner especially, perfect variety.

[Boytjie]

What I would love to see is what New Yorkers call a "salt stick."

 

Thirty two years in New York and I have never heard of a salt stick" before. Maybe that it what tourist expect to see in New York (a la olive oil and bread in Italy). ;)

[Roz]

Thirty two years in New York and I have never heard of a salt stick" before. Maybe that it what tourist expect to see in New York (a la olive oil and bread in Italy). ;)

 

I'd forgotten all about salt sticks until this thread. I grew up in Pittsburgh, and remember my father bringing them home from work in the late 1950s/early to mid-60s. He bought them at a German bakery, and they were an acquired taste. ;)

 

Roz

[AncientWanderer]

I really like the bread HAL is serving these days -- especially the seeded rolls.

On every cruise, I size things up and just avoid the things that aren't being done well onboard. If the desserts are not all that great, I don't eat the sweets. If the bread is mediocre, I skip the bread. Just for health purposes and calorie control.

 

What can I say...lately I've been devouring the nightly bread basket.