Jacques restaurant

[Flatbush Flyer]

1 hour ago, Mura said:

And for us, sacrificing Polo and Toscana for Red Ginger is NOT an enticement ... RG has always been our least favorite.  I know we are not alone in feeling that way, although I also know that RG is very popular with many passengers.

 

But we are Szechuan fans and Asian Fusion does NOT do it for us.  We haven't had the terrible meals that a few -- VERY few --  have reported here, but even the good meals in RG were not our favorites.

 

Mura

As is the case with any Oceania specialty restaurant, reasonable requests and time allowances for a desired custom dish can often be accommodated.

[Paulchili]

1 hour ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

As is the case with any Oceania specialty restaurant, reasonable requests and time allowances for a desired custom dish can often be accommodated.

True.

As I despite tomatoes in any shape or form, they fix the Aragosta Fra Diavolo for me with garlic butter sauce instead - very accommodating on their part 😊

Edited December 1, 2019 by Paulchili

[Mura]

To be fair, Clo, they will spice it up if you request them to do so.  Our first time there I had a prawn dish that did end up blazingly hot; other times it was spicier than usual but not spicy enough for my taste.  And of course the taste of the dish is not only the heat.

[Flatbush Flyer]

10 minutes ago, Mura said:

To be fair, Clo, they will spice it up if you request them to do so.  Our first time there I had a prawn dish that did end up blazingly hot; other times it was spicier than usual but not spicy enough for my taste.  And of course the taste of the dish is not only the heat.

While you can easily ask for dishes to be prepared "spicier," my point is that, in Red Ginger, you can make a reasonable special request for favorite regional Asian cuisine dishes.

That said, I'm the first to admit that Oceania comes up short when it involves the availability of spicy condiments table-side. Chili flakes, Sriracha and Tabasco seem to be the extent of DIY "spicy hot" condiments available in dining venues.

Sooo, on those itineraries where we expect to encounter plenty of Latino regional dishes onboard, we've started bringing our own supply of quarter oz. Tapatio travel packets (of course, double plastic bagged).

[clo]

17 minutes ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

Sooo, on those itineraries where we expect to encounter plenty of Latino regional dishes onboard, we've started bringing our own supply of quarter oz. Tapatio travel packets (of course, double plastic bagged).

We had Mexican-American friends who traveled with canned jalapenos. And we've carried things like you do.

[pinotlover]

There is a huge difference in flavors with actually cooking or preparing a dish with its natural flavors and spices versus being told “ here is a bottle of sriracha or tobasco, dump it on as you please “. Making dishes purposely bland, so to appeal to a larger audience, doesn’t work for me. Meat loaf can be quite bland. That’s fine, people know what to expect. But don’t make meat for our tacos taste like meatloaf and then hand me a bottle of tobasco! If you don’t like spicy food, that’s fine, just don’t demand the chef to fix traditional spicy dishes with no spices! Order something bland to match your tastes!

 

A cheeseburger with no cheese is a hamburger! It’s not a cheeseburger! Pad Thai without the tamarind ( or at least oyster sauce) and peanuts ( or peanut butter) is not Pad Thai! It becomes just some lethargic noodle dish with brown sugar added! Don’t call it Pad Thai! Rant over.

[Flatbush Flyer]

17 minutes ago, pinotlover said:

There is a huge difference in flavors with actually cooking or preparing a dish with its natural flavors and spices versus being told “ here is a bottle of sriracha or tobasco, dump it on as you please “. Making dishes purposely bland, so to appeal to a larger audience, doesn’t work for me. Meat loaf can be quite bland. That’s fine, people know what to expect. But don’t make meat for our tacos taste like meatloaf and then hand me a bottle of tobasco! If you don’t like spicy food, that’s fine, just don’t demand the chef to fix traditional spicy dishes with no spices! Order something bland to match your tastes!

 

A cheeseburger with no cheese is a hamburger! It’s not a cheeseburger! Pad Thai without the tamarind ( or at least oyster sauce) and peanuts ( or peanut butter) is not Pad Thai! It becomes just some lethargic noodle dish with brown sugar added! Don’t call it Pad Thai! Rant over.

In one sense, this is the beauty (and popularity) of Red Ginger which, according to two different exec chef discussions this past year has the largest per passenger budget of all Oceania restaurants, in part because of the complex and expensive ingredients (including authentic spices).

Again: with advance notice and reasonable desires, many regional specialties (true to their origins) can be requested at Red Ginger.

[clo]

28 minutes ago, pinotlover said:

Making dishes purposely bland, so to appeal to a larger audience, doesn’t work for me.

We did get the one RG res but I'm hoping to trade it or probably just give it away. I remember looking at the sample menu and practically nothing appealed to me whereas tons and tons of thing at the other three sang to me. The fact that we lived in SF for 20 years and now have a little apartment in SEA likely is the reason.

[pinotlover]

Clo;

 

the Chilean sea bass and the duck watermelon salad are both excellent. You can enjoy both at one meal. 

[Rob the Cruiser]

32 minutes ago, pinotlover said:

There is a huge difference in flavors with actually cooking or preparing a dish with its natural flavors and spices versus being told “ here is a bottle of sriracha or tobasco, dump it on as you please “. Making dishes purposely bland, so to appeal to a larger audience, doesn’t work for me. Meat loaf can be quite bland. That’s fine, people know what to expect. But don’t make meat for our tacos taste like meatloaf and then hand me a bottle of tobasco! If you don’t like spicy food, that’s fine, just don’t demand the chef to fix traditional spicy dishes with no spices! Order something bland to match your tastes!

 

A cheeseburger with no cheese is a hamburger! It’s not a cheeseburger! Pad Thai without the tamarind ( or at least oyster sauce) and peanuts ( or peanut butter) is not Pad Thai! It becomes just some lethargic noodle dish with brown sugar added! Don’t call it Pad Thai! Rant over.

 

I've given up on Pad Thai at RG. The "here is a bottle of sriracha or tabasco, dump it on as you please" doesn't work for us either.

[Flatbush Flyer]

5 minutes ago, pinotlover said:

Clo;

 

the Chilean sea bass and the duck watermelon salad are both excellent. You can enjoy both at one meal. 

You "beat me to the punch."

The duck/watermelon salad and miso glazed seabass are exquisite and anyone who suggests that they lived in SF for two decades would agree. Of course, that means they'd actually have to try the dishes.

in any case, should someone dump their pre-reservation, at least it will be available to others.

Edited December 1, 2019 by Flatbush Flyer

[RJB]

13 minutes ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

You "beat me to the punch."

The duck/watermelon salad and miso glazed seabass are exquisite and anyone who suggests that they lived in SF for two decades would agree. Of course, that means they'd actually have to try the dishes.

in any case, should someone dump their pre-reservation, at least it will be available to others.

We will take their reservation any time.  The sea bass and duck are both wonderful.  As good as anyplace on shore. 

[clo]

19 minutes ago, pinotlover said:

Clo;

 

the Chilean sea bass and the duck watermelon salad are both excellent. You can enjoy both at one meal. 

Yeah, the fish sounded good. But we both dislike watermelon. Go figure. Just looked again. The prawns listed as spicy and calamari as crisp 🙂 So maybe we will.  Thanks.

[clo]

20 minutes ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

and anyone who suggests that they lived in SF for two decades would agree.

We eat chicken feet. Do you?

 

And here's the house 🙂

 

[Paulchili]

8 minutes ago, clo said:

The prawns listed as spicy and calamari as crisp

Those are my 2 favorite apps in RG.

[clo]

8 minutes ago, Paulchili said:

Those are my 2 favorite apps in RG.

We frequently make a meal of apps. We no longer have big appetites so that way we can try more things.

[TrulyBlonde]

27 minutes ago, clo said:

We eat chicken feet. Do you?

 

And here's the house 🙂

 

 

 

Nope, I don't eat feet of any kind. I would put those chicken feet in a green doggie bag and dispose of immediately. But, to each his own. Enjoy

[RJB]

1 minute ago, TrulyBlonde said:

 

 

Nope, I don't eat feet of any kind. I would put those chicken feet in a green doggie bag and dispose of immediately. But, to each his own. Enjoy

+ 100

[clo]

11 minutes ago, TrulyBlonde said:

 

 

Nope, I don't eat feet of any kind. I would put those chicken feet in a green doggie bag and dispose of immediately. But, to each his own. Enjoy

That's why the little Chinese ladies get such a kick out of our wanting all the dishes that usually only Chinese people eat.  Here's wonderful soup we had in Vietnam. The blood cake was the best we've ever had. Unfortunately the rat we had in Thailand was overcooked.

Edited December 1, 2019 by clo

[roger b]

On 11/25/2019 at 11:05 PM, roger b said:

Further to my rant the afternoon tea something that was always special on Oceania now the cake offering is just a few dry type cakes no more eclairs ,fruit tarts or millefeut. 

  I spoke to the F and B manager and he told me that  they were trying to cut the waste so all the cakes were of a dry type that last longer.

Well since this post the cakes have taken a turn for the better ,not sure if is my remarks to the F and B manager that  did the trick.

We  Now have fruit tarts and coffee eclairs  that I asked about ,so all things are back to the old Oceania we love. 

[LHT28]

maybe the  new cooks  did not know how to make the desserts

Seems odd  that  things changed so quickly after your comments

 

[Paulchili]

Have seen the Victoria sponge or Paris-Brest on this cruise?

If so, then they are indeed back to the old Oceania in my book 😊

[clo]

1 hour ago, Paulchili said:

Have seen the Victoria sponge or Paris-Brest on this cruise?

If so, then they are indeed back to the old Oceania in my book 😊

I seem to be having some issues with coffee (one a day) so am looking forward to trying different teas. Do they have bags or loose tea or what please?

[Paulchili]

I have only seen tea bags but I am not picky about tea (or coffee).

[clo]

11 minutes ago, Paulchili said:

I have only seen tea bags but I am not picky about tea (or coffee).

I'm not picky either. Just asked out of curiosity.