Live from Explorer of the Seas 12/13/19-12/22/19

[kruzerci]

13 hours ago, TinkBellaMom said:

I know that many have been reporting that the food in MDR is terrible.  We appreciate good food and we are not picky eaters.  On all of our cruises we have always found the food to be good, sometimes excellent.

We are cruising on Explorer in Jan.  I am wondering if since food is subjective, is it really that bad.  Maybe someone could describe the reasons.

Also, we have been looking forward to the Chefs Table.  I am wondering if anyone has done that lately on the Explorer?

Deb

Sorry OP, I didn't mean to hijack your thread, I thought since you are on the ship now you could answer.

I am happy to elaborate. The MDR food is very similar quality to what you will find at a chain restaurant like Applebee’s on land with smaller portions and less flavor. You will find small portions of low end meat, small portions of steamed vegetables (a couple pieces of steamed broccoli and carrots), and some variation of gravy/cream based sauce that is quality of something that comes out of a jar with most entrees. I don’t eat chains like Applebee’s on land and I certainly don’t think it is acceptable quality on vacation. Desserts are very fluffy/jello type consistency or a boxed cake mix. Side note, you won’t find and boneless salmon pieces on this ship, so eat carefully if you do find it somewhere 😉. 
 

The Windjammer. Where to begin. Breakfast is probably their best offering because it is hard to mess up pancakes, eggs, bacon, and fruit. Lunch and dinner you will find primarily offerings to fit the palate of a child. They do have a fairly decent Indian section most days, the remainder is your standard hotdogs, mystery meat burgers, frozen quality pizza, some variations of pasta that are tossed in a jar of white sauce or watered down marinara, tilapia, and dried out chicken or pork. I would equate the Windjammer to Golden Corral. Again, I haven’t eaten there in 20 years and don’t think that’s acceptable for nine days on vacation. 
 

We have done Chops, Izumi, and Giovannis and we’re much happier with the quality. You can expect much higher quality beef and fish cooked to order, freshly prepared flavorful sides, dense rich deserts and attentive service. So essentially everything the MDR and Windjammer are not. There was one night that we made a lap through the Windjammer, left disgusted, and walked into Giovannis for dinner without reservations. They were glad to have us and it was the best meal we had all week. It’s just frustrating to have to pay $80 a night to eat similar to a restaurant I would dine at or what I would prepare at home. 

Edited December 21, 2019 by kruzerci

[CruiseLurker]

Reasonably good MDR dinner food choices on Explorer this past nine days

 

Lamb

Caesar salad

Ice cream

Most of the various white fish

Shrimp cocktail 

Escargot 

Beef tenderloin

French onion soup

Plates of steamed vegetables 

Baked potatoes 

breads 

 

breakfast in the MDR is reasonably good as you can have items custom made. 

[kruzerci]

21 minutes ago, CruiseLurker said:

Reasonably good MDR dinner food choices on Explorer this past nine days

 

Lamb

Caesar salad

Ice cream

Most of the various white fish

Shrimp cocktail 

Escargot 

Beef tenderloin

French onion soup

Plates of steamed vegetables 

Baked potatoes 

breads 

 

breakfast in the MDR is reasonably good as you can have items custom made. 

I will say the tenderloin in the dining room was good as is the escargot. The salads dressings are watery. 
 

Again, we have had a great cruise, but the food is poor. 

[retired dude]

thanks again for this great thread. I went to the roll call for our jan cruise on this ship and gave them info on where to find this candid review of the ex of the seas...Once again our sincere thanks and honesty..It is our opinion that the food in the mdr and wind has consistently gone down hill in the last few years. I am sure that it is an attempt to get folks to pay the extra $ to go to the premium restaurants on the various ships.....we are going to start looking at returning to celebrity for future sailings.  Food is much much better i guess you get what you pay for in today's cruise industry. Happy holidays to all

[sisocialworker]

You’re welcome, thanks for coming along

[sisocialworker]

Yesterday was good day. Dinner at chops was not great, the filet minion was chewy,  had a real night at schooner bar, piano player was entertaining  another fun sea day tomorrow.... doing a galley tour, ping pong, dinner at Giovanni and comedy show.... sadly packing too

[atush]

On 12/20/2019 at 1:33 PM, retired dude said:

we too would like to know if there is any live music onboard, i.e dance music in a lounge. We just got off of the brilliance and were blessed to have two great bands onboard, locomotion and the M band. They drew nice crowds whenever they played in the R bar and it was fun using our diamond drink cards to have a libation and watch all of the arthur murray grads go through their gyrations...great people watching  and the drinks were great....I have heard no mention of live music onboard this ship and since we sail on her in a couple of weeks, thus the question. thanks in advance for any info.

 

Star Lounge most nights

[sharonlacey]

Our last couple of cruises were on Anthem of the seas.    The food IMO on RC is just ok, we eat mostly in The Kitchen (Anthem) and do a dinning package.  Just spend so much for cruise and paying extra for food is disappointing.  We have always had fun and found something to eat.  I found that it is very hard to find anything to eat after 9.  

Thanks for bringing us along.

[sisocialworker]

Glad you could join me on this cruise, albeit vicariously 

[Andy C]

Barry, hope you had a nice time.  I would not sail on this ship for free. 

 

Our cruise was nice.  Crew was cold and nowhere near as nice, warm and friendly as Harmony.  
Genie was nice.  We are home now.  

[LadyLion_AP]

1 hour ago, sisocialworker said:

Glad you could join me on this cruise, albeit vicariously 

Thanks again for sharing! Wishing you safe travels home!

[sisocialworker]

5 hours ago, Andy C said:

Barry, hope you had a nice time.  I would not sail on this ship for free. 

 

Our cruise was nice.  Crew was cold and nowhere near as nice, warm and friendly as Harmony.  
Genie was nice.  We are home now.  

[sisocialworker]

Last day of this cruise... loved nine nights....breakfast at Giovanni, went to do our galley tour.... very interesting. 
 

we went pick up our free8x10 diamond pictures. And then off to ping pong.... after a quick and small lunch at Azumi.  The manager came over and asked if everything was ok.... it was, as the last time we ate their it wasn’t and I. Told  him,

 

we then went back to the room to start our packing and relax on the veranda. Watch the wake and read our books. 
 

went out about 5 to listen to some music at the schooner bar before dinner.  Saw our room attendant in the hall, and thanked him for great service and gave him an additional tip.... 

 

Dinner at Giovanni did not disappoint, they had our calamari and the filet minion was perfect.... everyone there knows our name and always has a smile, gave our servers and manager an additional tip.... they made our trip 

 

after went to the final show and comedian... funny show.... had the drink of day for $8.00.... 

 

we walked the ship to take our last looks and enjoy till our next cruise

 

ended up in the concierge lounge for a cappuccino and back to the room to finish packing, sadist night of the cruise

 

tomorrow early breakfast and the concierge will escort us off the ship at 8am. Our car service pick up is at 9am

 

for my last post I will do an overview of what I thought were the good and not so good experiences, IMO

 

thanks for coming along on my trip.... I look forward to going with you next time 

[sisocialworker]

22 minutes ago, sisocialworker said:

5 hours ago, Andy C said:

Barry, hope you had a nice time.  I would not sail on this ship for free. 

 

Our cruise was nice.  Crew was cold and nowhere near as nice, warm and friendly as Harmony.  
Genie was nice.  We are home now.  

Sorry to hear symphony was so bad, our harmony cruise was exceptional.. the staff treated me (and you guys) the best of any cruise ... even when went back on harmony a few months later, they remembered us and had great service from  the SL and CK staff and Henry the chef, as well as, all other staff on that ship

[sharonlacey]

Thanks again, really enjoyed your unbiased opinion.   Hopefully after they refurbish things will pick up.  I will keep an eye on it as our cruise is way off.  Thanks again and safe home.  

 

[berbician]

Appreciate all the information you provided to us so we know what to expect .

Could  you let me know if the ship got back to Miami this morning at 7am? Just want to make it was on time as I will be trying to catch a 11:30am flight from ft Lauderdale upon my return . Thank you 

[atush]

On 12/21/2019 at 12:31 AM, TinkBellaMom said:

I know that many have been reporting that the food in MDR is terrible.  We appreciate good food and we are not picky eaters.  On all of our cruises we have always found the food to be good, sometimes excellent.

We are cruising on Explorer in Jan.  I am wondering if since food is subjective, is it really that bad.  Maybe someone could describe the reasons.

Also, we have been looking forward to the Chefs Table.  I am wondering if anyone has done that lately on the Explorer?

Deb

Sorry OP, I didn't mean to hijack your thread, I thought since you are on the ship now you could answer.

 

 

i was on her in Nov.  Fro the most part the MDR meals were fine.  Not fine dining in the main but fine.  But the one time i ate in Windjammer it was poor.

 

I ate all breakfasts and most lunches in the MDR as well. 

 

And before you think i am a person who will eat anything, think again.  I am an avid home cook and foodie.

 

My chops lunch in the MDR on embarcation was poor, and my one paid dining in Giovannis was good.

[atush]

 

"I am happy to elaborate. The MDR food is very similar quality to what you will find at a chain restaurant like Applebee’s on land with smaller portions and less flavor. You will find small portions of low end meat, small portions of steamed vegetables (a couple pieces of steamed broccoli and carrots), and some variation of gravy/cream based sauce that is quality of something that comes out of a jar with most entrees. I don’t eat chains like Applebee’s on land"

 

i disagree.  You dont eat at Applebees so you dont know how poor the food is.  In general the MDR is superior.  Yes, prtions are small.  Which i like as i am eating 3 courses.  

[sisocialworker]

getting off the ship was a mess......the concierge took us to the front of the line where they check out your sea pass card and then you are on your own....last year on harmony (ft lauderdale) we were taken all the way through to a special customs line..maybe this just how it's done in miami .

 

IMO, here are my highlights of the good and not so good. 

 

GOOD:

service at giovanni's, the most friendly servers and good food

being on cruise is always (usually)  better than work

the 2 bedroom GS is really nice....lots of space to stretch out, nice veranda

diamond lounge...lots of light and indoor/outdoor space

guitarist and piano player in schooner bar

comedy shows

the fish in Izumi is very fresh, nice choices

private journey excursion in curacao

#6 over water cabana on Labadee

lunch on Labadee-lobster tails and lamb chops...among other choices

the meet and mingle and seeing people you know throughout the cruise

 

NOT SO GOOD:

the staff was not friendly....no consistent initiated greetings from staff ....one needed to greet them first 

food and service at Chops was poor

service at Izumi was poor

MDR and Windjammer had really poor food and was always over crowded

not many activities to do during the day

concierge seemed disinterested

small inside room for concierge lounge

"production shows" were boring 

 

of course all these things are subjective opinions, my views and your view may vary greatly....seemed like the main things to do on this ship were drink alcohol, gamble and lay in the sun....JMO

 

 

[kruzerci]

5 hours ago, atush said:

 

"I am happy to elaborate. The MDR food is very similar quality to what you will find at a chain restaurant like Applebee’s on land with smaller portions and less flavor. You will find small portions of low end meat, small portions of steamed vegetables (a couple pieces of steamed broccoli and carrots), and some variation of gravy/cream based sauce that is quality of something that comes out of a jar with most entrees. I don’t eat chains like Applebee’s on land"

 

i disagree.  You dont eat at Applebees so you dont know how poor the food is.  In general the MDR is superior.  Yes, prtions are small.  Which i like as i am eating 3 courses.  

I’m not arguing this with you. I don’t know what skin it is off your back that the food is terrible. Everybody on this thread has agreed about that. 
 

I have eaten at those chain restaurants when necessary in the past year. I don’t eat there when there is an option. What I’m saying is that the MDR was that quality and I don’t find that acceptable. If you do, more power to you, but if you find that quality acceptable, you are not “a foodie”. 

[LadyLion_AP]

Thanks again to everyone who shared. Also feel the need to say that food preferences/opinion of tastes are uniquely different. In fact, some preferences are actually linked to genetics. I know friends & family whose tastes generally agree with mine & those that don’t. That being said...no need to argue about food opinions or who is a foodie vs not a foodie. Many people LOVE food but not all love the same food. Let’s respect that there are differences in opinion and taste preferences. It is, however, good to hear experiences & great for anyone in the food business to know when MOST customers are/are not satisfied.

 

Happy Holidays & Blessings to all!

Edited December 23, 2019 by LadyLion_AP
Edit to correct glaring typo...May be others 😁

[scorpluvsdolphins]

21 hours ago, sisocialworker said:

Sorry to hear symphony was so bad, our harmony cruise was exceptional.. the staff treated me (and you guys) the best of any cruise ... even when went back on harmony a few months later, they remembered us and had great service from  the SL and CK staff and Henry the chef, as well as, all other staff on that ship

John and Dane are my favorite servers in CK on the Harmony. 

[eastender]

1 hour ago, sisocialworker said:

getting off the ship was a mess......the concierge took us to the front of the line where they check out your sea pass card and then you are on your own....last year on harmony (ft lauderdale) we were taken all the way through to a special customs line..maybe this just how it's done in miami .

 

Getting off the ship certainly was a mess. There was a line of about 100 people I would guess, that formed a nice line that went back inside the casino. Then people started exiting the elevators and just stood around with their cases blocking everything up. Getting in line wasn't for them obviously. No-one was there to organize anything and it became a bit of a mob scene with all those people gate crashing the front of the line joined by more and more people exiting the elevators. Really not fair on those people who's been in line for 45 mins. It would have been so easy to put a couple of ropes out to prevent what happened. One staff member did arrive at the scene after a while and seriously couldn't be bothered. 

 

[ladysail2]

On 12/15/2019 at 2:06 PM, sisocialworker said:

Labadee is great...barefoot beach was half empty... guess suites and pins stayed on the ship. OW cabana 6 is great. The lunch included baby lamb chops and lobster tails

Not entirely true. I watched all the zip liners come down the pipe. I’ve never seen the laying down version. It was fun to watch the ones who were first timers.  I’m not a beach person. I then watched two crabs walking along . One had a shell that looked like a rock...I thought..good camouflage.  

[ladysail2]

On 12/20/2019 at 8:29 AM, berbician said:

Thanks for the honest reviews .Was the drink card offered so far?  

I saw signs on the bar counters selling the 10-drink card. I dont go to bars, but saw it in passing near the back elevators. I started seeing the signs in the last 3 days. They could have been there longer, I just didn’t notice them.