New MDR Menus?

[MarkWiltonM]

I apologize in advance for this posting that may leave some of you rolling your eyes because this information is readily available. A few weeks ago I saw some very recent menus from HAL's main dining room (I don't remember which ship but I suppose they are fairly uniform). I have not been able to locate these again searching Cruise Critic or the internet at large. The new menus feature a more streamlined number of items and no longer have the "Classics" or "always available" section that HAL and other lines tend to have. Indeed, in other forums (Celebrity, for instance), HAL has been faulted for reducing the number of offerings and eliminating the "available every day" section, but having just returned from 9 days on the Equinox I can assure you that the quantity of offerings on a menu is much less important than the quality of the food.

 

Our next sailing is on Rotterdam. If anyone can point me to a source for these new menus I would appreciate it!

[RuthC]

I have read several reports from people on, or recently disembarked from, HAL cruises who have asked about the 'always available'. Those people have reported that, although the always available items are not listed on the menu, they are still available. 

The question I guess would be how would someone who doesn't know to ask about those items ever know to ask about them??? 

[tjcox9]

2 hours ago, MarkWiltonM said:

I apologize in advance for this posting that may leave some of you rolling your eyes because this information is readily available. A few weeks ago I saw some very recent menus from HAL's main dining room (I don't remember which ship but I suppose they are fairly uniform). I have not been able to locate these again searching Cruise Critic or the internet at large. The new menus feature a more streamlined number of items and no longer have the "Classics" or "always available" section that HAL and other lines tend to have. Indeed, in other forums (Celebrity, for instance), HAL has been faulted for reducing the number of offerings and eliminating the "available every day" section, but having just returned from 9 days on the Equinox I can assure you that the quantity of offerings on a menu is much less important than the quality of the food.

 

Our next sailing is on Rotterdam. If anyone can point me to a source for these new menus I would appreciate it!

If you have a cruise booked on a ship that is currently cruising with passengers aboard, you should be able to see the daily menu on the Navigator app. We are booked on the Rotterdam and I can go to dining, select that and see the daily dinner menu. The breakfast and lunch menus are also posted, but they don't appear to change day to day as the dinner menu does. The Pinnacle, Tamarind, Canaletto and Sushi restaurant menus are also available.

 

[NCTribeFan]

The salmon and chicken were available daily on Eurodam 11/16 sailing.  They weren't listed in a separate area of the menu, just at the bottom of that day's entrees.

 

I board NA on Saturday.  I imagine the menu will be much the same, expect this will be 12-nights rather than the shortened 8-nights on Eurodam.

 

I certainly had no trouble finding something tasty every evening.  I do have the dining package on this upcoming sailing, so I'll be at Canaletto twice (which I've never tried before) plus Pinnacle one night.

 

I did miss having a chilled fruit soup available as an appetizer.  Those have always been some of my favorites.  The cheese plate was also gone, but I read in some of the reviews since the restart that it was available.  I may ask this time, since I'm not much of a dessert person.

[Chickadee910]

If you have navigator app. You can look at a daily menu for today. There are some everyday options. Chicken,French onion soup, Caesar salad, hot fudge sundae. We just got off the Eurodam but from what I’ve seen of the menus they look the same on all the ships .

[Sharon in AZ]

In addition to the Navigator app @Crew Newsdoes great collecting menus for halfacts dot com.  He is onboard right now and has a live from thread and will answer any menu questions you might have. 

[canadarocks]

3 minutes ago, Sharon in AZ said:

In addition to the Navigator app @Crew Newsdoes great collecting menus for halfacts dot com.  He is onboard right now and has a live from thread and will answer any menu questions you might have. 

Just in case you're not aware of his amazing site.... @Crew News shares all his info here:

https://rogerjett-photography.com

[Sharon in AZ]

1 minute ago, canadarocks said:

Just in case you're not aware of his amazing site.... @Crew News shares all his info here:

https://rogerjett-photography.com

Thank you but, yes, I am aware. That’s the website I mentioned. I didn’t want to post the link. 😉

[canadarocks]

1 minute ago, Sharon in AZ said:

Thank you but, yes, I am aware. That’s the website I mentioned. I didn’t want to post the link. 😉

Sorry Sharon, I just saw the halfacts site mentioned. Glad you already knew about it. 🙂

 

[Crew News]

8 minutes ago, Sharon in AZ said:

In addition to the Navigator app @Crew Newsdoes great collecting menus for halfacts dot com.  He is onboard right now and has a live from thread and will answer any menu questions you might have. 

Just for clarification, the website mentioned above may have links to my website, www.rogerjett-photography,com, but I have never provided any menus, photos, or information to the subject website.

[Sharon in AZ]

1 minute ago, Crew News said:

Just for clarification, the website mentioned above may have links to my website, www.rogerjett-photography,com, but I have never provided any menus, photos, or information to the subject website.

Hmmm 🤔 I’m confused then. Maybe my phone just knows I want your website because when I put in halfacts your website comes up. Thank you for the clarification. 

[MarkWiltonM]

30 minutes ago, Sharon in AZ said:

In addition to the Navigator app @Crew Newsdoes great collecting menus for halfacts dot com.  He is onboard right now and has a live from thread and will answer any menu questions you might have. 

 

Thanks. I checked out that website before posting but I didn't see any very recent MDR dinner menus except for the forthcoming Christmas eve and New Year's even menus.

 

I will check out the Navigator app, which is installed on my phone. It never occurred to me I might be able to see current menus there. Thanks to all.

[Crew News]

16 minutes ago, MarkWiltonM said:

 

Thanks. I checked out that website before posting but I didn't see any very recent MDR dinner menus except for the forthcoming Christmas eve and New Year's even menus.

 

I will check out the Navigator app, which is installed on my phone. It never occurred to me I might be able to see current menus there. Thanks to all.

I am in the process of building the MDR pages for the current Caribbean 7-day menus but the internet is not not very cooperative while at sea.

[CruiserBruce]

The menus are in the "Live from" threads.

[FlaMariner]

4 hours ago, MarkWiltonM said:

The new menus feature a more streamlined number of items

 

Looking at a MDR menu now (NA cruise later this month)....on Navigator.....and was similar to the menu on our Rotterdam cruise in October....Not sure what would qualify as streamlined to others but looks like plenty to choose from for me.....21 "included" items.

 

7 starters

9 Main 

4 upsell items 

5 desserts

3 upsell coffees

4 hours ago, MarkWiltonM said:

no longer have the "Classics" or "always available" section

 

So I think Salmon was on there every night....as was a Caesar salad....I think there is always a basic red meat, chicken selection...and a basic salad....saw lasagne a lot (and her majesty ate it one night and loved it).  Maybe not a specific corner of the menus with "classics" but the menu seems to have classics on there every night......along with others.....

 

We ate in the MDR every night (14 nights) and never got bored or had a repeat (unless we wanted).  I did enjoy delicious prime rib two nights.....on purpose!

 

Enjoy the food...we love it.....and we looked forward to dinner....

 

Also, we learned to check navigator and our TV before heading to dinner and we would pick out our items ahead of time....no menu needed once we arrived in the MDR.

 

(and of course, the MDR waiters are the best)

 

Enjoy your cruise!

[Florida_gal_50]

2 hours ago, Sharon in AZ said:

Hmmm 🤔 I’m confused then. Maybe my phone just knows I want your website because when I put in halfacts your website comes up. Thank you for the clarification. 

You are.  I don't believe I've ever seen menus on halfacts, or if there is they are likely older.  It may be good for stateroom pictures if they are on there but Rogers website has much more relevant information for what I am looking for.  YMMV.

[Crew News]

3 hours ago, MarkWiltonM said:

 

Thanks. I checked out that website before posting but I didn't see any very recent MDR dinner menus except for the forthcoming Christmas eve and New Year's even menus.

 

I will check out the Navigator app, which is installed on my phone. It never occurred to me I might be able to see current menus there. Thanks to all.

Updated 2021 MDR, Club Orange, and Late Buffet menus are now posted:

 

2021 Caribbean 7-Day Menus

[vicd1969]

Interesting that you can have a tenderloin or two on day 4 along with a whole lobster that by itself would cost $20. While the surf and turf is $30 and only comes with a lobster tail.

[MisterBill99]

7 hours ago, FlaMariner said:

 

Looking at a MDR menu now (NA cruise later this month)....on Navigator.....and was similar to the menu on our Rotterdam cruise in October....Not sure what would qualify as streamlined to others but looks like plenty to choose from for me.....21 "included" items.

 

7 starters

9 Main 

4 upsell items 

5 desserts

3 upsell coffees

 

So I think Salmon was on there every night....as was a Caesar salad....I think there is always a basic red meat, chicken selection...and a basic salad....saw lasagne a lot (and her majesty ate it one night and loved it).  Maybe not a specific corner of the menus with "classics" but the menu seems to have classics on there every night......along with others.....

 

I have to disagree with you here. Four different starters each night which includes appetizers, soups and salads is insufficient. I'm on Rotterdam right now and tomorrow's menu has five unique entrée choices and only one choice of the entire entrée section is vegetarian (some cruise lines have entire vegetarian menus).  Tonight's market seafood was shrimp, which means that someone who wanted fish but doesn't eat shellfish was relegated to the standard salmon. Lasagna is on the menu every night but has meat, so not a vegetarian choice. The choices are definitely substandard compared to any other cruise we've been on. Also, they are repeating some dishes. The tomato and mozzarella showed up for the second time in less than a week tonight. Fortunately, tonight two of three slices of tomato did not taste like cardboard, as they did the first time I had it.

 

BTW, I had the bean tacos "port to table" entrée tonight, and it was probably the worst entrée I've ever had on a cruise ship. I don't know whose idea it was to put deep-fried tofu nuggets on it, but I'm guessing that they were rightfully embarrassed enough about it that they chose not to mention it on the menu.

[RuthC]

24 minutes ago, MisterBill99 said:

I'm on Rotterdam right now and tomorrow's menu has five unique entrée choices and only one choice of the entire entrée section is vegetarian (some cruise lines have entire vegetarian menus). 

Pre-covid, HAL always had a separate vegetarian menu; you had to ask for it. I believe you also had to order from it the previous night. 
Don't they have it anymore? 

[MisterBill99]

4 minutes ago, RuthC said:

Pre-covid, HAL always had a separate vegetarian menu; you had to ask for it. I believe you also had to order from it the previous night. 
Don't they have it anymore? 

 

I asked one server and was told that the only choices were what's on the menu. Have not asked the hostess when we checked in

Edited December 7, 2021 by MisterBill99

[*Miss G*]

Here is the MDR Vegetarian Menu and the Indian Vegetarian Menu which @RuthC refers to.  @Crew News may be able to get the current menus as he is currently onboard the Nieuw Statendam.

[Crew News]

11 minutes ago, *Miss G* said:

Here is the MDR Vegetarian Menu and the Indian Vegetarian Menu which @RuthC refers to.  @Crew News may be able to get the current menus as he is currently onboard the Nieuw Statendam.

I have been working on these and not yet successful.

[MarkWiltonM]

13 hours ago, *Miss G* said:

Here is the MDR Vegetarian Menu and the Indian Vegetarian Menu which @RuthC refers to.  @Crew News may be able to get the current menus as he is currently onboard the Nieuw Statendam.

 

Can you always order from these menus in the main dining room? We are fond of Indian food and had no idea this existed. 

[Crew News]

1 minute ago, MarkWiltonM said:

 

Can you always order from these menus in the main dining room? We are fond of Indian food and had no idea this existed. 

Yes.  You just need to ask for the menu.  I also have a list of the vegan dishes available, and where to find them, that I will post soon.