Food and dining on P&O ships

[Denarius]

48 minutes ago, jeanlyon said:

Here is one from yesterday.  Can't say any of the veggie options appeal to me at all.   The rest of it doesn't excite me either!!

The thing that strikes me is that dinner is now effectively portrayed as a 3 course meal, with soups being grouped together with starters and the cheese course being shown under desserts. It used to be portrayed as a 5 course meal - starters, soups, main course, desserts and cheese board - albeit that not everyone ordered every course. Fewer courses as well as smaller portions?

Edited June 3, 2023 by Denarius
spelling

[Son of Anarchy]

5 minutes ago, Denarius said:

The thing that strikes me is that dinner is now effectively portrayed as a 3 course meal, with soups being grouped together with starters and the cheese course being shown under desserts. It used to be portrayed as a 5 course meal - starters, soups, main course, desserts and cheese board - albeit that not everyone ordered every course. Fewer courses as well as smaller portions?

You can still ask for the soup in addition to the starter.  There's not many desserts that I go for, prefer cheese, though occasionally I'll have cheese after maybe a sorbet.

[zap99]

1 hour ago, jeanlyon said:

Here is one from yesterday.  Can't say any of the veggie options appeal to me at all.   The rest of it doesn't excite me either!!

Anything on the right hand page of any interest. Looks fine to me.

[zap99]

6 minutes ago, Son of Anarchy said:

You can still ask for the soup in addition to the starter.  There's not many desserts that I go for, prefer cheese, though occasionally I'll have cheese after maybe a sorbet.

In the old days steerage only got gruel, the toffs got 7 courses. I think most folk nowadays have 2 courses, or 3 if very, very hungry.

[FangedRose]

1 hour ago, jeanlyon said:

Here is one from yesterday.  Can't say any of the veggie options appeal to me at all.   The rest of it doesn't excite me either!!

My main problem would be which to order. I'd happily have any of the mains!

[Megabear2]

What is a breast of chicken wing bone? Sounds a bit odd although I'm sure it's very tasty.

[FangedRose]

59 minutes ago, Megabear2 said:

What is a breast of chicken wing bone? Sounds a bit odd although I'm sure it's very tasty.

It is a beast of chicken with the wing still attached. 

[alpha whiskey]

3 hours ago, Megabear2 said:

What is a breast of chicken wing bone? Sounds a bit odd although I'm sure it's very tasty.

First seen by us on Princess.

Obviously now evolving across Carnival! 

 

[Windsurfboy]

5 hours ago, Denarius said:

The thing that strikes me is that dinner is now effectively portrayed as a 3 course meal, with soups being grouped together with starters and the cheese course being shown under desserts. It used to be portrayed as a 5 course meal - starters, soups, main course, desserts and cheese board - albeit that not everyone ordered every course. Fewer courses as well as smaller portions?

 

Agree but does it matter,  practicality we very rarely have even 4 courses and who needs big portions when you have 3 meals a day plus afternoon tea and ice cream by pool . Just wait till they have to put calories on menu. 

 

 is there time for 5 courses if they want 2 sittings, even in freedom want to use table twice.

Edited June 3, 2023 by Windsurfboy

[SeaJane]

5 hours ago, Megabear2 said:

What is a breast of chicken wing bone? Sounds a bit odd although I'm sure it's very tasty.

Sadly on Ventura last week the chicken was very dry and overcooked - not at all tasty. Very disappointing as that always used to be my go-to when nothing else on the menu appealed.

[Britboys]

4 hours ago, FangedRose said:

It is a beast of chicken with the wing still attached. 

Can't that much of a beast as nothing is big on a P&O dinner plate these days (well, not if it's included in the fare anyway...) 😉😂

[terrierjohn]

8 hours ago, FangedRose said:

It is a beast of chicken with the wing still attached. 

You need to be very careful that it doesn't up and fly away before you can eat it!!😁

[FangedRose]

6 minutes ago, terrierjohn said:

You need to be very careful that it doesn't up and fly away before you can eat it!!😁

With only one wing it would probably do a circuit of the table before landing back on your plate. But, I would be sending it back for a few more minutes in the oven.

[WestonOne]

22 hours ago, Windsurfboy said:

 is there time for 5 courses if they want 2 sittings, even in freedom want to use table twice.

Well of course in the dim and distant past the meals were always 4 or 5 courses, unless they were more!  In addition, the vegetables and so on were silver served, which takes much longer.  Yet they always managed to time the early sitting to finish early enough for those who wanted to see the 8:30pm show.

It is, of course, a trade off against price.   Relatively speaking, the prices were substantially higher then.  P+O customers have 'voted with their feet' for lower price, fewer wait staff and simpler meals.   We can choose that, or choose the ultra-luxury lines as we like.

[Selbourne]

30 minutes ago, WestonOne said:

Well of course in the dim and distant past the meals were always 4 or 5 courses, unless they were more!  In addition, the vegetables and so on were silver served, which takes much longer.  Yet they always managed to time the early sitting to finish early enough for those who wanted to see the 8:30pm show.

It is, of course, a trade off against price.   Relatively speaking, the prices were substantially higher then.  P+O customers have 'voted with their feet' for lower price, fewer wait staff and simpler meals.   We can choose that, or choose the ultra-luxury lines as we like.

I agree, apart from the last sentence. The choice isn’t just between P&O or ultra-luxury lines. There are plenty of cruise lines that sit somewhere in the middle. The cruise industry is very much an exemplar of ‘you get what you pay for’. 

[WestonOne]

15 minutes ago, Selbourne said:

I agree, apart from the last sentence. The choice isn’t just between P&O or ultra-luxury lines. There are plenty of cruise lines that sit somewhere in the middle. The cruise industry is very much an exemplar of ‘you get what you pay for’. 

Oh, I completely agree.  There is a very wide range.  For example, my last cruise was on Cunard in a Queen's Suite, so - at a cost! - we did get the dedicated waiters, every evening meal presented and carved at the table, or flambeed, or whatever.     You can, with enough research and money to hand, get pretty much whatever level of service suits you by choosing the right line.

[Selbourne]

4 minutes ago, WestonOne said:

Oh, I completely agree.  There is a very wide range.  For example, my last cruise was on Cunard in a Queen's Suite, so - at a cost! - we did get the dedicated waiters, every evening meal presented and carved at the table, or flambeed, or whatever.     You can, with enough research and money to hand, get pretty much whatever level of service suits you by choosing the right line.

Indeed. We recently enjoyed Princess Grill on QM2 and it was fabulous, albeit we secured it at a price that is the lower end of P&O prices, but that was a one-off and is unlikely to ever be repeated!

[Airbear232]

On 5/4/2023 at 3:21 AM, zap99 said:

Hope not.🤔

Why?

[RollingAround]

I’m confused!  Just precooked Epicurean for Iona next week and it’s taken money off our credit card rather than onboard spend?  When we were on Azura last year (our first cruise) we booked Epicurean on board and it came out of onboard spend?  Is this normal? Otherwise I’ll cancel and take my chances on board, we have plenty of on board spend to cover it. 

[purplesea]

Yes, on board spend is any items bought on board. Anything booked prior to being on the ship is paid for in advance.

Edited July 2, 2023 by purplesea

[Glad Bailey]

Afraid on board spend can only be used on board.

As you say can cancel and take chance to book once onboard

[RollingAround]

Thank you, we might take our chances.  We enjoyed Epicurean last time especially as it was “free” from our onboard spend 🤣

[Selbourne]

17 minutes ago, RollingAround said:

I’m confused!  Just precooked Epicurean for Iona next week and it’s taken money off our credit card rather than onboard spend?  When we were on Azura last year (our first cruise) we booked Epicurean on board and it came out of onboard spend?  Is this normal? Otherwise I’ll cancel and take my chances on board, we have plenty of on board spend to cover it. 

As others have correctly stated, anything booked pre-cruise has to be paid for. On board credit can only be used on board. However, keep in mind that bookings made pre-cruise are given a 10% discount (plus any loyalty discount that you might have), whereas if booked on board the full amount (with no pre-booking or loyalty discounts) will be deducted from your OBC. Basically, this means that if you are likely to have more OBC than you will spend during the entire cruise, it’s best to book on board at full price, as it effectively won’t cost you anything. However, if you are likely to spend more than your OBC, it’s better to book in advance and get the discount that you won’t get on board. Hope that all makes sense? 😂 

[RollingAround]

Thank you all x 🙏

[Roytonboy]

Hi can anyone advise where / when I find out on which nights are the formal dress nights on Britannia - 14 night cruise early Aug.