Coffee Bar

[NoniH]

Does the Eurodam have a coffee bar?

[Floridagirlysg]

I don't know, I will be on the Koningsdam on Dec. 22nd

[crystalspin]

I believe Explorations Cafe is on all the Dam ships -- its location may be different on some ships. The deck plan on the website shows that Eurodam has followed the trend of putting the Explorations Cafe in the Crows Nest (Observation Deck from the forward elevators), where it may have its own counter on starboard side -- or it may be as the Zuiderdam with the barista machine(s) behind the bar itself slightly to the port , and the additional counter converted to shore excursions.

 

It is actually an espresso bar, no brewed coffee -- get an Americano for the closest to that.

[Aquahound]

6 hours ago, NoniH said:

Does the Eurodam have a coffee bar?

 

Yes.  It's on the port side of the Crows Nest.  

[Crew News]

Here is the coffee menu:

 

http://www.rogerjett-photography.com/here/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Explorations-Cafe-Menu.pdf

[*Miss G*]

34 minutes ago, Aquahound said:

 

Yes.  It's on the port side of the Crows Nest.  

 

The port side?  Ugh.  That means they’ve combined it with the bar.  I dislike that setup.

[Cruising Is Bliss]

3 hours ago, *Miss G* said:

 

The port side?  Ugh.  That means they’ve combined it with the bar.  I dislike that setup.

It's even worse than that. Half of the Crows Nest was remodeled into dedicated SELL SELL SELL SHORE EXCURSIONs space.  The Explorations Cafe now consists solely of a coffee bar machine crammed into the existing already tight space behind the bar, and a combined seating area that's half what the Crow's Nest used to have. 

[Aquahound]

9 hours ago, *Miss G* said:

 

The port side?  Ugh.  That means they’ve combined it with the bar.  I dislike that setup.

 

6 hours ago, Cruising Is Bliss said:

It's even worse than that. Half of the Crows Nest was remodeled into dedicated SELL SELL SELL SHORE EXCURSIONs space.  The Explorations Cafe now consists solely of a coffee bar machine crammed into the existing already tight space behind the bar, and a combined seating area that's half what the Crow's Nest used to have. 

 

Yes, I totally agree.  And in another HAL cutback, they eliminated almost all the pastries.  All that's left is a self-serve plate of biscotti.  

[*Miss G*]

19 minutes ago, Aquahound said:

 

 

Yes, I totally agree.  And in another HAL cutback, they eliminated almost all the pastries.  All that's left is a self-serve plate of biscotti.  

 

One of the things I love about the setup on the ships which have not done the coffee-bar combo is the little sandwiches at lunchtime.  Can’t get those with the port-side setup.  ☹️

[TrolleyGirl]

13 hours ago, *Miss G* said:

 

The port side?  Ugh.  That means they’ve combined it with the bar.  I dislike that setup.

I agree completely!  That also means that the servers are not true baristas like they used be in the Explorations cafe.  Now they are bartenders assigned to the area.  I think the quality of the product suffers.  I'm not saying the servers don't care, just they don't have the coffee & tea experience the baristas did.

 

[*Miss G*]

I had to laugh on the Zuiderdam where they have the same setup.  If you don’t know its location it is difficult to find.  I would be standing right by it and people would come up to me and ask where I got my coffee.  One day a man walked up to the Barista and asked where they served coffee.  😂  Funny; but not funny.

[Crew News]

1 hour ago, TrolleyGirl said:

I agree completely!  That also means that the servers are not true baristas like they used be in the Explorations cafe.  Now they are bartenders assigned to the area.  I think the quality of the product suffers.  I'm not saying the servers don't care, just they don't have the coffee & tea experience the baristas did.

 

In the new Crows Nest combined configuration, bartenders only serve specialty coffee on those few occasions when the Baristas are on breaks.  Similar to Hotel Directors HAL has only a small number of Baristas to cover the entire fleet.  I make it a point to chat with them even though I do not drink coffee to share their stories with the other baristas I encounter on other HAL ships.  The baristas know each other quite well and are always happy to hear on what ships their comrades are serving.

[crystalspin]

Thanks Roger! I will try to do the same with the baristas and even the bartenders. I don't think we sail as often as you, though! so our updates may not be as current. We do have three HAL cruises booked!

 

dr'spin and I liked the All-In-One Crows Nest. Have a couple of Espresso drinks and then switch to pina coladas! Of course Crows Nest is our favorite venu on seadays. 

[sevenseasnomad]

Not a coffee drinker, but my son has complained about the new set-up.  This could be one of the reasons he enjoys the Pinnacle Class so much because you can get those specialty coffees at the Grand Dutch Café, one of his favorite places on the ship.  If I can't find him, I know to look there first.  LOL.

[crystalspin]

What would be the win-win set up would be espresso in the Crows Nest AND somewhere on a lower deck, midships.

 

Win-win except I suppose in the rent-per-square-footage for the button counters.

[Cruise4food]

On 12/6/2019 at 2:23 PM, Crew News said:

In the new Crows Nest combined configuration, bartenders only serve specialty coffee on those few occasions when the Baristas are on breaks.  Similar to Hotel Directors HAL has only a small number of Baristas to cover the entire fleet.  I make it a point to chat with them even though I do not drink coffee to share their stories with the other baristas I encounter on other HAL ships.  The baristas know each other quite well and are always happy to hear on what ships their comrades are serving.

A custom watchface helps to break the ice with the Barista when I board the ship. My WatchMaker face!  Gracie_Ivan . Photo is from the Maasdam. As you said, the baristas all know each other and love to keep tabs through the passenger stories.
http://dk2dv4ezy246u.cloudfront.net/share/HyXjQtY6H.watch
Works on Wear OS and Tizen watches. Developed on a Fossil.

Edited December 7, 2019 by Cruise4food
typo in path

[sevenseasnomad]

14 minutes ago, Cruise4food said:

A custom watchface helps to break the ice with the Barista when I board the ship. My WatchMaker face!  Gracie_Ivan . Photo is from the Maasdam. As you said, the baristas all know each other and love to keep tabs through the passenger stories.
http://dk2dv4ezy246u.cloudfront.net/share/HyXjQtY6H.watch
Works on Wear OS and Tizen watches. Developed on a Fossil.

Very cute.  I'm sure the baristas love it.

[Cruise4food]

On 12/7/2019 at 3:18 PM, sevenseasnomad said:

Very cute.  I'm sure the baristas love it.

Now on the Zuiderdam, the Barista recognized Grace and Ivan in my pic above. She actually replaced Grace at the end of her contract on the Maasdam (when I took the photo).