Not impressed with MDR on Silhouette

[SororitySue]

We just returned from a 4-day cruise on Silhouette and the MDR food just wasn't that good! The first night I got ravioli and my husband got the sirloin steak and he was seriously underwhelmed. The second night we both got lobster, which wasn't too bad but the rice they served with it was just plain nasty. We tried to go elsewhere the third night but were unable to get reservations. I got rigatoni that was only so-so. My husband got salmon and he didn't care for it. I really can't speak to the desserts as I am diabetic and stuck with no-added-sugar ice cream. The fourth night we were able to get reservations at Qsine and the food was far and away better. 

 

We have no complaints about the Ocean View Cafe, however. They had a good variety and the food was fresh and plentiful. I loved the Indian choices and tried some things I'd never had before, like black pudding, British bacon and coddled eggs. Going forward, we'd probably skip the MDR altogether and go with specialty dining or OVC every night. 

[NutsAboutGolf]

Mention your disappointments on the survey

[sunandsnow]

Thanks for the info. We board the Silhouette in about a week. It will be interesting to experience the changes in dining for ourselves.

[TeeRick]

14 hours ago, SororitySue said:

We just returned from a 4-day cruise on Silhouette and the MDR food just wasn't that good! The first night I got ravioli and my husband got the sirloin steak and he was seriously underwhelmed. The second night we both got lobster, which wasn't too bad but the rice they served with it was just plain nasty. We tried to go elsewhere the third night but were unable to get reservations. I got rigatoni that was only so-so. My husband got salmon and he didn't care for it. I really can't speak to the desserts as I am diabetic and stuck with no-added-sugar ice cream. The fourth night we were able to get reservations at Qsine and the food was far and away better. 

 

We have no complaints about the Ocean View Cafe, however. They had a good variety and the food was fresh and plentiful. I loved the Indian choices and tried some things I'd never had before, like black pudding, British bacon and coddled eggs. Going forward, we'd probably skip the MDR altogether and go with specialty dining or OVC every night. 

There are many posts about the poor quality of food and choices in the MDR since Jan 1.  So what you report is typical in 2023 cruises.  You mention that you would go to the OVC every night for dinner instead of the MDR.  Did you try it for dinner on your cruise?  Or just breakfast and lunch?  The OVC for dinner has been cut back dramatically in 2023.

[the penguins]

18 hours ago, SororitySue said:

We just returned from a 4-day cruise on Silhouette and the MDR food just wasn't that good! The first night I got ravioli and my husband got the sirloin steak and he was seriously underwhelmed. The second night we both got lobster, which wasn't too bad but the rice they served with it was just plain nasty. We tried to go elsewhere the third night but were unable to get reservations. I got rigatoni that was only so-so. My husband got salmon and he didn't care for it. I really can't speak to the desserts as I am diabetic and stuck with no-added-sugar ice cream. The fourth night we were able to get reservations at Qsine and the food was far and away better. 

 

We have no complaints about the Ocean View Cafe, however. They had a good variety and the food was fresh and plentiful. I loved the Indian choices and tried some things I'd never had before, like black pudding, British bacon and coddled eggs. Going forward, we'd probably skip the MDR altogether and go with specialty dining or OVC every night. 

Did you raise any of your concerns with the Maitre De at the time? Also with desserts there is no need to stick with just ice cream as the Maitre De will be happy to organise something else . They will also show you the next days menu in advance which helps anyone with special dietary requirements.

Glad you liked the Black Pudding,  it's one of our favourites.

 

[SororitySue]

18 hours ago, NutsAboutGolf said:

Mention your disappointments on the survey

That I did, although I haven't heard anything back from them.

[SororitySue]

4 hours ago, TeeRick said:

There are many posts about the poor quality of food and choices in the MDR since Jan 1.  So what you report is typical in 2023 cruises.  You mention that you would go to the OVC every night for dinner instead of the MDR.  Did you try it for dinner on your cruise?  Or just breakfast and lunch?  The OVC for dinner has been cut back dramatically in 2023.

We didn't try OVC for dinner, but we did like it for breakfast and lunch. 

[NutsAboutGolf]

24 minutes ago, SororitySue said:

That I did, although I haven't heard anything back from them.

 

They most likely won't contact you but they do read the surveys.  If they were to contact you, at the end of the day, what do you want from them?  Because you can try calling the engagement center and perhaps they'll throw ya an OBC on your next sailing as that seems to be their standard fix

[blueboro]

On the Silhouette now.  IMO the food in the MDR is as good as it always has been for the past several years.  I don’t expect 5-star quality but food has been good, portions plentiful and service good.  After all of the sky is falling posts on CC I was expecting a real drop in quality and quantity but that has not been the case.  And the ship is completely full, most crowded we have ever seen OVC.

[RichYak]

30 minutes ago, blueboro said:

On the Silhouette now.  IMO the food in the MDR is as good as it always has been for the past several years... I was expecting a real drop in quality

Perhaps they're listening to us. Has there been any Prime Rib, Beef Wellington, or Grilled Snapper on the menu any night? How about any hot prepared (not soup) appetizers like spring rolls or crab cakes?

[DesertRat46]

We board the Silhouette in 2 months and hope we like it as much as blueboro. I gave up on fine dining in the MDR on any of the mainline cruises year ago. Now I just hope for acceptable.

Don't care about lobster or Prime Rib, etc. But will be satisfied with decent pasta dishes, tasty seafood and good salads.

We no longer cruise for the food experience (my wife cooks better that X on most days), not even in the upcharge venues; but for the cruise experience and the ports.

So, if blueboro right, we'll have a great cruise.

[wechy85]

I can’t speak to the quality, but I have been looking up other cruises on the Celebrity Eclipse as I’ve are starting a cruise in the next two weeks and the menu featured aged prime rib, spring rolls (for appetisers) and a vegetable Wellington.

I haven’t been on a celebrity cruise in some time (I was in fort Lauderdale about to board when cruising stopped) so just basing on menus

 

Edited February 16, 2023 by wechy85

[blueboro]

30 minutes ago, RichYak said:

Perhaps they're listening to us. Has there been any Prime Rib, Beef Wellington, or Grilled Snapper on the menu any night? How about any hot prepared (not soup) appetizers like spring rolls or crab cakes?

Had Filet (called Beef Tournedo sp?) very good.  No snapper but many other types of fish.  Don’t see Beef Wellington on future menus.  Some hot apps.  I am sure there are a few old favorites that may not be served but at least I am not cooking.

[slonich]

44 minutes ago, blueboro said:

On the Silhouette now.  IMO the food in the MDR is as good as it always has been for the past several years.  I don’t expect 5-star quality but food has been good, portions plentiful and service good.  After all of the sky is falling posts on CC I was expecting a real drop in quality and quantity but that has not been the case.  And the ship is completely full, most crowded we have ever seen OVC.

 

Glad to hear that. Is yours a 10-day cruise? The OP was on a 4-day cruise, most likely KW and Nassau. Not sure if that had been discussed before and I apologize if I missed it, but in a very random sample of recent posts talking about food disappointments most seem to be about shorter cruises. This could be due to the fact that there just are more 3-5 days cruises in the world, or maybe CC is prioritizing longer sailings. I mean, if they really need to, they should. Who would want to be on a ship for 10 days with not-so-great food. If it's only 3-4 days there are plenty of things compressed into that short time and food is less likely to be remembered unless it's an extreme either good or bad

[jelayne]

3 hours ago, SororitySue said:

That I did, although I haven't heard anything back from them.

They don’t normally reply to an individuals  survey.   

[the penguins]

13 hours ago, SororitySue said:

That I did, although I haven't heard anything back from them.

The advice from Senior Officers, especially the Hotel Director, is to always raise issues whilst onboard that way they have the opportunity to help or at least to explain why they can't.

[JFO23]

Agree with Blueboro, we are on Silhouette as well. No complaints here!

[TeeRick]

18 hours ago, blueboro said:

On the Silhouette now.  IMO the food in the MDR is as good as it always has been for the past several years.  I don’t expect 5-star quality but food has been good, portions plentiful and service good.  After all of the sky is falling posts on CC I was expecting a real drop in quality and quantity but that has not been the case.  And the ship is completely full, most crowded we have ever seen OVC.

Thanks for reporting your observations here.  Have a great cruise!

[retird]

Currently on Silhouette as well.  No complaints at all.    Great food in Mdr and lots of people in ovc even for dinner.   Last night they had more selections in ovc as well.   Afternoon tea and snacks, they put out great assorted small sandwiches and an assortment of sweets.     Regarding the crew,  my stateroom attendant said they normally have 103 attendants , but since covid and the gradual increase of guests, they have 86.   He said they are not over worked and sees the attendant numbers increasing as the guest numbers increase and level off to pre covid levels.  He has been a stateroom attendant for 20 years and was very complimentary on how Celebrity treats them.  

[Jimmyford51]

On 2/16/2023 at 4:00 PM, slonich said:

 

Glad to hear that. Is yours a 10-day cruise? The OP was on a 4-day cruise, most likely KW and Nassau. Not sure if that had been discussed before and I apologize if I missed it, but in a very random sample of recent posts talking about food disappointments most seem to be about shorter cruises. This could be due to the fact that there just are more 3-5 days cruises in the world, or maybe CC is prioritizing longer sailings. I mean, if they really need to, they should. Who would want to be on a ship for 10 days with not-so-great food. If it's only 3-4 days there are plenty of things compressed into that short time and food is less likely to be remembered unless it's an extreme either good or bad

We have a group of 6 that will be doing the 4 night, KW and Nassau trip. Four of us have cruised previously with Seabourn, Crystal (b4 bkcy) and Azamara. One couple has never cruised due to wifes mobility issues. This is a quick test to see if she's comfortable with cruising. Since we have 4 nights, is it reasonable to expect to be able to eat at the 4 specialty restaurants? I know we'll have a great time regardless of where we eat. 

[sanjay]

1 hour ago, Jimmyford51 said:

Since we have 4 nights, is it reasonable to expect to be able to eat at the 4 specialty restaurants? 

 

If it's important to you why not pre-book online?

[Jimmyford51]

I was going to call to do just that since I read on their web page the first night could be booked. I may have misinterpreted. 

 

[Mark_T]

42 minutes ago, Jimmyford51 said:

I was going to call to do just that since I read on their web page the first night could be booked. I may have misinterpreted. 

 

If you have booked the 4 night package then no, you cannot make specific reservations until you board, the 'courtesy reservation' they mention is that there will be a placeholder set for 3pm on the day your board which will be replaced with an actual reservation on the day you board. There will be a note in your room telling you where and when you have been booked, but you can go and get that changed once onboard. 

 

If you want to be sure of getting the times and restaurants you want then you need to make individual reservations and not book the 4 day package...

Edited February 20, 2023 by Mark_T

[Jimmyford51]

6 minutes ago, Mark_T said:

If you have booked the 4 night package then no, you cannot make specific reservations until you board, the 'courtesy reservation' they mention is that there will be a placeholder set for 3pm on the day your board which will be replaced with an actual reservation on the day you board. There will be a note in your room telling you where and when you have been booked, but you can go and get that changed once onboard. 

 

If you want to be sure of getting the times and restaurants you want then you need to make individual reservations and not book the 4 day package...

Found that out when speaking to the reservation lady. All 6 booked together each night. Very pleased. 

[slonich]

Good to know about the placeholder for the 3-day specialty dining package, I was wondering about first day only and 3pm.

Edited February 20, 2023 by slonich