Changes to main dining room menu

[PATRLR]

1 minute ago, RTHall said:

Had I known how bad the food was I wouldn’t have booked. Knowing now how bad the food is I won’t be booking again. I was clearly misled by the slogan “nobody does dining like Norwegian”. I took that to mean they did it well….my mistake lol

I think you'll find it's pretty much the same quality on all the mass market lines. 

[clskinsfan]

On 10/12/2022 at 9:13 AM, newbe dave said:

And if you are not a fan of NCL, why spend your valuable time trolling an NCL blog to spread your hate for NCL

This thread has nothing to do with not being a fan of NCL or trolling. The thread is about a change to MDR dining that A LOT of us find ridiculous. And this site is designed to discuss those changes amongst the members. The NCL apologists here are almost as bad as the RCL board. They seemingly can do nothing wrong for some of you. Enjoy your future NCL cruises. 

[newbe dave]

19 hours ago, clskinsfan said:

This thread has nothing to do with not being a fan of NCL or trolling. The thread is about a change to MDR dining that A LOT of us find ridiculous. And this site is designed to discuss those changes amongst the members. The NCL apologists here are almost as bad as the RCL board. They seemingly can do nothing wrong for some of you. Enjoy your future NCL cruises. 

I assume you are referring to me as an NCL apologist. If so, you would be wrong. Nothing I shared was intended to be good or bad for NCL.  

 

You already stated in page 2 of this thread that you would never sail NCL again. Why do you continue to care about MDR changes on NCL? Especially enough to read 6 more pages of responses? 

 

Personally, I am not a fan of this change either. That is why I am reading this thread.  I don't like some of the UDP changes on NCL also. But I keep my responses in the logical arena versus hyperbolic emotion, threats and name calling. Honestly, NCL (as are all leisure industry companies) is trying to return to black after a couple years of really bad financial times beyond their control. I would expect any company to make changes to help their bottom line with the hopes that the customer experience is not degraded too much. I assume having their kitchens make the same dishes every night is a way to save cost, time and efficiency. I assume NCL hopes this change does not upset too many customers. Jury is out for me since I have not experienced this change yet. 

 

My reason for posting was having to go through 7 pages of responses to basically get 3-4 pages of value and 3-4 pages of threats and trolling. Honestly, I do not care is chskinsfan (or whomever) ever cruises NCL again. Likewise, you do not care if I ever cruise NCL again. I hope we can agree on that. 

[AstoriaPreppy]

This is going to stink for anyone on sailings longer than 7 nights who expects any sort of variety that isn't an additional expense.

 

Getting served .25 cents worth of "make your own" pasta as an acceptable MDR dinner on a mass market cruise line is almost laughable... I'm half expecting them to roll out a cart with Top Ramen in different flavors as a "customizable soup bar" as their next innovation.

[nferr]

6 hours ago, AstoriaPreppy said:

This is going to stink for anyone on sailings longer than 7 nights who expects any sort of variety that isn't an additional expense.

 

Getting served .25 cents worth of "make your own" pasta as an acceptable MDR dinner on a mass market cruise line is almost laughable... I'm half expecting them to roll out a cart with Top Ramen in different flavors as a "customizable soup bar" as their next innovation.

  Yeah right. Go to your local restaurant and order linguine with bolognese sauce and shrimp for 25 cents and maybe I'll take your comments seriously.

[BirdTravels]

On 10/13/2022 at 7:32 PM, clskinsfan said:

This thread has nothing to do with not being a fan of NCL or trolling. The thread is about a change to MDR dining that A LOT of us find ridiculous. And this site is designed to discuss those changes amongst the members. The NCL apologists here are almost as bad as the RCL board. They seemingly can do nothing wrong for some of you. Enjoy your future NCL cruises. 

Have you tried it?

 

We just had several lovely dinners in the Hudson and Commodore Room and found the big menu a breath of fresh air with high quality food and service. Thumbs up 👍 on the new menu and approach to MDR dining. 

[clskinsfan]

On 10/14/2022 at 3:31 PM, newbe dave said:

Why do you continue to care about MDR changes on NCL? Especially enough to read 6 more pages of responses? 

I dont. I get a notification when my posts are quoted and it gets me drawn back in. Again. Enjoy your NCL cruises. I wont be back. 

[BirdTravels]

On 10/6/2022 at 10:22 PM, styxfire said:

7 days is TOO MANY FOR THE SAME MENU.  It's honestly insulting to guests.  Yes I understand that there are NCL advocates posting here that tell us the solution is to do more specialty dining;  i.e. getting bored with the same choices is YOUR problem, and you can fix YOUR problem by paying extra for food.

NCL has proven this to be an effective approach to dining on the much, much smaller Haven menu that never changes. There is no need to fix any problem. There are a lot more than 7 main courses on the MDR menu and you can eat something different every night,,, unless you eat two entrees every night in which case you may run out. 

[PATRLR]

20 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

We just had several lovely dinners in the Hudson and Commodore Room and found the big menu a breath of fresh air with high quality food and service.

Better quality than other NCL MDRs?

[AstoriaPreppy]

On 10/14/2022 at 11:03 PM, nferr said:

  Yeah right. Go to your local restaurant and order linguine with bolognese sauce and shrimp for 25 cents and maybe I'll take your comments seriously.

 

If you're ordering bolognese with shrimp in any context, you might be part of the problem? 🤣

 

[nferr]

2 hours ago, AstoriaPreppy said:

 

If you're ordering bolognese with shrimp in any context, you might be part of the problem? 🤣

 

 Well I'm Italian so it would be FraDiavlo but was just trying to make a point lol.

[BirdTravels]

9 hours ago, PATRLR said:

Better quality than other NCL MDRs?

Post #348

‘

[Cruising Lynne]

On 10/15/2022 at 7:42 AM, BirdTravels said:

Have you tried it?

 

We just had several lovely dinners in the Hudson and Commodore Room and found the big menu a breath of fresh air with high quality food and service. Thumbs up 👍 on the new menu and approach to MDR dining. 

Hi Bird. We were on the same cruise, and I found Hudson's to be an enjoyable experience, except for the dessert choices. I think they need more choices or a rotation there. The only dessert that I wanted was the lava cake, which was excellent. I also tried the apple pie, but that was not very good. We ended up going to the buffet later so I could get a better dessert. Also, my husband said the carrot cake is a lot better at the Local.

[BirdTravels]

6 hours ago, Cruising Lynne said:

Hi Bird. We were on the same cruise, and I found Hudson's to be an enjoyable experience, except for the dessert choices. I think they need more choices or a rotation there. The only dessert that I wanted was the lava cake, which was excellent. I also tried the apple pie, but that was not very good. We ended up going to the buffet later so I could get a better dessert. Also, my husband said the carrot cake is a lot better at the Local.

We found the Prima's late night buffet was a bit disappointing. I guess it was less consistent than other ships. While the buffet seemed to be more "fancy" (in some cases lunch and dinner left overs), if we are looking for a late night snack after a show, we just want a piece of pizza or some good desserts. 

[onionsband]

NCL is NOT McDonald's.  In most MDRs, there are about 8 entree choices, 3 permanent and 5 different ones each night.  Now, NCL wants to expand their volume to 15 choices, including the bogus "custom pasta" dish.  Same choices every night.

 

NCL argues they will be able to improve the entree quality by having a permanent, set menu.  By doubling the number of entrees choices?  That seems a bit overwhelming for a chef to deal with every night.

 

Sure, this system works great for McDonald's.  Lots of permanent choices for burgers, fish and chicken sandwiches, etc.  But, this isn't why you go on a cruise, especially one longer than seven days?  Do YOU eat at McDonald's every night?  Or, at ANY restaurant, for that matter?

 

Just another way of trying to nickel and dime you to death when you go on a cruise.  If you don't go to a specialty restaurant on a two-week cruise, you'd have to order EVERY entree to avoid repeating yourself!

[like2cruise]

On 10/10/2022 at 9:05 AM, RTHall said:

We just disembarked from the NCL Breakaway yesterday.  Our experience with the food was awful.  I lost 5 lbs over the course of the week because I struggled to find anything that was worth finishing.  We ate in the main dining rooms and the buffet along with a couple specialty dinners.  I talked to other passengers who agreed with my assessment.  Poor quality steaks in Cagneys, sushi was bulked up with too much rice, etc.  

 

I think my wife said it best…when you combine the demographics of the guests with the quality of the food, it felt like we were on a floating nursing home.  Chocolate silk pie with the texture of jello, icy ice cream, mushy shrimp, rubbery fried chicken, every bread product was dry and stale.  I could go on all day.  We found the quality of the main dining room to be only slightly better than the buffet.  

 

I know its difficult to cook 15,000 meals a day, but if I were the head chef, I’d be ashamed to sign off on any of the food I ate.  Before this trip I didn’t think I was a food snob, but maybe I am.

 

The plus side was that the poor quality food pushed us to eat on shore as much as possible and we had some great meals on shore, my favorite being in Bar Harbor.

 

This was our first cruise on NCL and needless to say we won’t be cruising on NCL again.

Where in Bar Harbor did you eat? 

[New2cruise2022]

NCL is a business that is delivering a value proposition to its customers. The community here at CC are among NCL’s customers and come to this forum to discuss and evaluate that value proposition. People do it all the time. The evaluations and decisions are based on tastes, opinions, and budget. There are cruisers that are content — even happy — to get the lowest fare and pay for nothing extra. People that get value from an inside cabin and the buffet, while sipping tap water and lemonade. On the other spectrum, there are people that only travel in the Haven and eat exclusively from the Haven offerings. Then there is everything in between as well as people that will not choose NCL at all. It’s no different away from cruises. Some people go to Wendy’s and order whatever they want. Other people are only at Wendy’s for a 4 for $4 deal. Weigh the options, see what works for your likes and preferences. 🤷🏿‍♂️ 

[IronRobi]

I have to say, I'm a little excited for this change. But mainly because I'm a meat and potatoes kind of guy. I order the steak. Every single time. And we all know the steak in the MDR is decent, it's a striploin, but it's not a Cagney's level steak. My wife on the other hand likes the variety.

 

On Carnival, their MDR steak is a flat iron steak which really isn't that great. But what I have always loved about Carnival's MDR is that I can order a nice 14oz NY Strip from their steakhouse selection for $20! A trip to their steakhouse costs us around $100 and we may go once per cruise. But I order that $20 upcharge steak in the MDR every night without hesitation.

 

If NCL is going to start offering some specialty restaurant selections in their MDR menu and I can order that better quality steak while my wife can still have her variety every night, this is a huge improvement for us!

[BirdTravels]

23 hours ago, onionsband said:

NCL is NOT McDonald's.  In most MDRs, there are about 8 entree choices, 3 permanent and 5 different ones each night.  Now, NCL wants to expand their volume to 15 choices, including the bogus "custom pasta" dish.  Same choices every night.

 

NCL argues they will be able to improve the entree quality by having a permanent, set menu.  By doubling the number of entrees choices?  That seems a bit overwhelming for a chef to deal with every night.

 

Sure, this system works great for McDonald's.  Lots of permanent choices for burgers, fish and chicken sandwiches, etc.  But, this isn't why you go on a cruise, especially one longer than seven days?  Do YOU eat at McDonald's every night?  Or, at ANY restaurant, for that matter?

 

Just another way of trying to nickel and dime you to death when you go on a cruise.  If you don't go to a specialty restaurant on a two-week cruise, you'd have to order EVERY entree to avoid repeating yourself!

The basis of a nickel and dime claim is unsubstantiated.  You have the option of the MDR. You have the option of the buffet with the theme of the night and a wide variety of standard food. You have the option of The Local with the special of the night with a wide variety of standard food. You have the option of the Food Hall with a wide variety international food. We didn't spend a nickel or dime on our Prima cruise for dining. I could probably cruise for several months without repeating an complimentary entrée. 

 

The basis of a nickel and dime claim is that the only restaurant that exists in the world is McD (a.k.a. the MDR). When, in fact, there is an Arby's, KFC, Chick-fil-a, BKing, Wendy's, Panda Express, and Taco Bell.

[BirdTravels]

16 hours ago, New2cruise2022 said:

NCL is a business that is delivering a value proposition to its customers. The community here at CC are among NCL’s customers and come to this forum to discuss and evaluate that value proposition. People do it all the time. The evaluations and decisions are based on tastes, opinions, and budget. There are cruisers that are content — even happy — to get the lowest fare and pay for nothing extra. People that get value from an inside cabin and the buffet, while sipping tap water and lemonade. On the other spectrum, there are people that only travel in the Haven and eat exclusively from the Haven offerings. Then there is everything in between as well as people that will not choose NCL at all. It’s no different away from cruises. Some people go to Wendy’s and order whatever they want. Other people are only at Wendy’s for a 4 for $4 deal. Weigh the options, see what works for your likes and preferences. 🤷🏿‍♂️ 

We have been cruising for decades. And even our earliest memories of being on a cruise included a for-fee specialty restaurant (only one on the ship). We never went to it, so memories and specifics are vague. It did not present any value to us. And the MDR with a pureed soup and beef roast every night was fine with us. 

[PATRLR]

4 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

The basis of a nickel and dime claim is unsubstantiated.  You have the option of the MDR. You have the option of the buffet with the theme of the night and a wide variety of standard food. You have the option of The Local with the special of the night with a wide variety of standard food. You have the option of the Food Hall with a wide variety international food. We didn't spend a nickel or dime on our Prima cruise for dining. I could probably cruise for several months without repeating an complimentary entrée. 

 

The basis of a nickel and dime claim is that the only restaurant that exists in the world is McD (a.k.a. the MDR). When, in fact, there is an Arby's, KFC, Chick-fil-a, BKing, Wendy's, Panda Express, and Taco Bell.

So you are equating the MDR, which is supposed to be high quality sit down fine dining, with the buffet and Local?  Really?

I agree, one can find variety in their sustenance on board without spending extra money.  But I don't go on a cruise just to survive.  I suspect I am not alone in that thinking.
 

[PATRLR]

4 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

We have been cruising for decades. And even our earliest memories of being on a cruise included a for-fee specialty restaurant (only one on the ship). We never went to it, so memories and specifics are vague. It did not present any value to us. And the MDR with a pureed soup and beef roast every night was fine with us. 

Interesting.  Carnival, HAL, RCCL, Dolphin, in the 70s and early 80s didn't have any specialty dining options that I was aware of.  What line are you referring to?  (you frequently refer to wooden deck chairs, so, I assume you are speaking of that same time frame or earlier)

[Oxo]

HAL allowed guests one free visit to the Pinnacle Grill when it first came out. It was totally 5 star setting, service and food. Don't remember when. Maybe late 80s or early 90s.

 

[DCGuy64]

On our upcoming Epic sailing next month, we have 9 nights aboard. We got 2 included dinners with the FAS, I opted to get an additional 2 due to a 30% off deal, and then we're going to shell out for one more, for a total of 5 dinners at the various specialty restaurants. Somehow, I think we won't starve to death on the other 4 nights. Personally, I like the changes to the MDR for 2 reasons: 1. The kitchens won't have to keep switching what they make every day and 2. If I see 2 or 3 really good entree options, I won't have to think I have to choose, because whatever I don't have one night, I can try the next. Seems fine to me! EDIT: the article that prompted this thread was about the Pr1ma, so it may not apply to our ship. I was assuming they'd roll this out across the whole fleet, but maybe not.

Edited November 9, 2022 by DCGuy64

[New2cruise2022]

Another thing to remember is how strikingly different are the experiences of the contributors on CC. You have contributors like @BirdTravelsthat have volume in number of cruises, historical experiences in cruising in different decades, and level of experiences including stays in the Haven. Compare that to contributors like me who are preparing for the first cruise in an inside cabin. 
 

The different perspectives and the distance travelled between opinions on CC is substantial. Haven v Inside cabin will not be comparable from the perspective of luxury and comfort — and it shouldn’t be. As it is, the inside cabin guy is benefitting from a fare that is probably cheaper than staying at home and eating out every meal. The Haven group is paying a much higher rate and the expectations should be incomparably higher than anyone outside of the The Haven. 
 

It certainly makes for a great conversation to see how people derive value from the wide range of offerings.