Food quality Celebrity

[amandas friend]

I keep reading reports about the food quality going downhill. And, it seems that a lot of people feel that way. Could you elaborate on features that make it decrease in quality-offerings, temperature, service, etc? Thanks 

[ElmaLee]

Was on Edge in August.  Every meal in MDRs was enjoyable.

 

As there are 4 MDRs each with their own distinctive dishes, plus the daily specials and the usual regulars (salmon, steak, chicken), there is plenty choice.   There were additional daily specials not on the menus too. 

Probably about 16+ main dishes across all the MDRs.  Any dish can be ordered in any MDR.

 

We found the service to be excellent, as was food presentastion.

 

We are looking forward to Apex in February.

[1Virgo]

One issue is lack of consistency.  In January we were on Equinox in Aqua, and Summit April/May, both times dining in Blu.   On Equinox, Meatloaf, I dont care if it was Angus beef, not considered a healthy choice,  was on menu. think now removed.  on Equinox in January, in the OVC, getting cheese was like trying to find Waldo.  No baked potatoes at lunch either.   I even asked.   The choices in the buffet were noticeably less than we ve seen.  

Salmon was not available in Aqua on both cruises.  A bottom feeder fish, much cheaper, was offered.  I could eat fish every night, but not what was offered most nights  Portions are smaller (can always ask for more). .  The appetizer section of the menu was definitely shortened

For us, dining in  Blu on the Summit was excellent

 

We overheard more complaints re food from the MDR ie tough steaks, grizzly meats etc

 

 

 

[Jim_Iain]

It seems that the menus have been slimmed down and some of the favorites are no longer offered.   Food is of course subjective so some reviews may or may not meet your expectation.

 

For a sampler -   download the app and choose any ship in class ship you are interested in and a current sailing.   You should be able to pop up the menus and see how they meet your expectation.

 

While we don't sail in regular cabins our experience has been food is served hot and dining staff will work with you on selection and modification of items.   

 

Remember you also have the Children's Menu with a 4 ounce Filet (available every day). 

[RichYak]

53 minutes ago, amandas friend said:

Could you elaborate on features that make it decrease in quality-offerings, temperature, service, etc?

Mainly cheaper ingredients like lower quality beef and seafood. Also, fewer menu choices particularly for the appetizer course.

[CruiseDad-NYC]

I just spent 2 weeks on Edge (i.e., Barcelona to Rome for 7 days and 7 days back to Barcelona) this month.  This was my first Celebrity cruise since a 2019 cruise for 10 days from Venice to Croatia and Greece and back.  I have sometimes wondered whether the food is better on European cruises than US cruises just because Europeans wouldn't tolerate lower food quality that Americans seem to be OK with.  I will say the food on the Edge was just very excellent all around - from the Oceanview Cafe to all of the dining rooms and Spa Cafe.  Fruit and vegetables were particularly fresh.  Just as good if not better than 2019.  (Bar service and drinks, however, were another story - very poor this past trip).

 

I had been a little wary based on the attempts Celebrity had made in January of this year to lower standards (which seemed to have backfired).  But, we were very happy based on the 14 days on our 14 days this month on Edge.  I will say, however, that we were very unhappy on the 2 cruises we took last summer and fall on the RCCl Adventure of the Seas (i.e., Celebrity's sister brand).  It was so poor that we are now open to other cruise lines than after approximately 20 cruises over 20 years (we had previously only been on RCCL and Celebrity).

[BettyCruiser]

The number of choices has been reduced.

 

Our recent 15 nights on Silhouette were out of Southampton which provided us with an extra entree choice and 3 additional sides that I believe aren't normally available. We ate in the MDR 10 of those nights and I picked the wrong entree only once that was a pasta dish of rotini with BBQ sauce on it and a couple pieces of chicken. The following night I ordered the pasta choice for that night and it was very good with a white sauce. I think many of the entrees I enjoyed were the additional choices due to sailing from the UK including; calf liver, pork schnitzel, butter chicken and fish and chips. We also loved the cheesy cauliflower offered as a side and tried to remember to order it every night. 

 

Without those additional choices I would have struggled to find something to order. 

[RichYak]

9 minutes ago, CruiseDad-NYC said:

I just spent 2 weeks on Edge...  I have sometimes wondered whether the food is better on European cruises than US cruises...

An alternative, I wonder if the MDR food is better on E-Class ships. My sense is that the majority of the MDR complaints are about M- and S-class.

[harrywpb]

30 minutes ago, Jim_Iain said:

It seems that the menus have been slimmed down and some of the favorites are no longer offered.   Food is of course subjective so some reviews may or may not meet your expectation.

 

For a sampler -   download the app and choose any ship in class ship you are interested in and a current sailing.   You should be able to pop up the menus and see how they meet your expectation.

 

While we don't sail in regular cabins our experience has been food is served hot and dining staff will work with you on selection and modification of items.   

 

Remember you also have the Children's Menu with a 4 ounce Filet (available every day). 

You’ve mentioned the 4 oz fillet on the children’s menu in this and another thread.  This item was removed quite some time ago and for the past few cruises this year it’s not available in the mdr and per the F&B mgr on many ships-it’s not coming back.  

[RichYak]

39 minutes ago, Jim_Iain said:

Remember you also have the Children's Menu with a 4 ounce Filet (available every day). 

You recently mentioned this in another thread. I don't believe it's available any longer.

 

EDIT: Seems I crossposted at the same time as @harrywpb

Edited September 25, 2023 by RichYak

[NBliving]

We haven’t cruises since January when we were on the Beyond eating in Luminae. So not the MDR, but we were disappointed in the “steaks” we ordered. Seemed more like a roast. We sail on Equinox in a month and will be eating in the MDR with two couples new to X. I’m hoping we are all pleased with food quality but may avoid ordering any steaks. 

[Purplsmurf]

We haven’t had any issues at all. We have sailed 5 times since Jan 2022 and every one has been wonderful. As far as removing the children’s filet, it must’ve just been done recently because I had it on a recent cruise.

[basenji56]

It is always hard to compare the past with the present without comparing the menus.  I wonder if some people have old and new menus to post?  This wouldn't address the quality but would address the quantity of choices.

 

[jelayne]

1 hour ago, Jim_Iain said:

It seems that the menus have been slimmed down and some of the favorites are no longer offered.   Food is of course subjective so some reviews may or may not meet your expectation.

 

For a sampler -   download the app and choose any ship in class ship you are interested in and a current sailing.   You should be able to pop up the menus and see how they meet your expectation.

 

While we don't sail in regular cabins our experience has been food is served hot and dining staff will work with you on selection and modification of items.   

 

Remember you also have the Children's Menu with a 4 ounce Filet (available every day). 

Here is the children’s menu.  The filet has been replaced its strip steak. 

[RichYak]

31 minutes ago, jelayne said:

Here is the children’s menu.  The filet has been replaced its strip steak. 

Honestly, the fish fingers and new york strip sounds like a pretty good surf and turf option. Also the strip and mac and cheese.

[mac_tlc]

58 minutes ago, basenji56 said:

It is always hard to compare the past with the present without comparing the menus.  I wonder if some people have old and new menus to post?  This wouldn't address the quality but would address the quantity of choices.

 

I'll try to help with the "old" ones for E class. These are dated 2018 but I believe they were still in effect immediately after the restart and into early 2022 at least.

 

I believe you will find the number of options in the 4 MDRs have been reduced recently. 

 

 

1543168116_Cosmopolitan-Restaurant-Dinner.pdf 1543168710_Cyprus-Dinner.pdf 1543169459_Le-Grand-Bistro-Dinner.pdf 1543173001_Le-Petit-Chef-at-Le-Grand-Bistro-Menu.pdf 1543174174_Luminae-Dinner.pdf 1543174322_Luminae-Lunch.pdf 1543175523_Normandie-Dinner.pdf 1543186898_Tuscan-Dinner.pdf

[Travel-and-See]

So I took an Alaska cruise on the Solstice last year and the Millenium this year.  My opinion was the MDR was slightly better than the previous year and the Buffet was considerably worse with way fewer options, and less quality options.

[NutsAboutGolf]

 

5 hours ago, RichYak said:

Mainly cheaper ingredients like lower quality beef and seafood. Also, fewer menu choices particularly for the appetizer course.

 

Pretty much what I was going to say and I'll add smaller portion sizes, fewer side options with many entrees served with a scoop of mashed potatoes

[Basketball wife]

As many have reported, lower quality cuts, more “chopped/chunky piece” meats (they used to have big pork chop first night and veal chop second night— no longer🥺). Yes, most meals are served with mashed potatoes. In August on the Summit I asked for a baked potato instead  early on. I got it but we had to wait about a half hour for our mains and it was so cold, butter did not melt. Later in the cruise I asked again and after the waiter going back and forth to maître d’, was told it wasn’t available that evening. Chicken saltimbocca used to be made with some kind of large cutlet/breast but on that cruise the chicken was chopped into tiny, tiny pieces. Finally, in the past I used to order an extra plate of steamed veggies for the table. It was served on a dinner plate with a rainbow of vegetables. The last few times I have done this (except for in the Luminae) a smaller side plate was delivered with a load of giant sliced carrots and maybe one small flower of cauliflower. Rarely, any green vegetable…although once I did get three green beans to accompany the carrots🤷🏻‍♀️

[tserface]

I think many of us are lamenting changes to things we've always enjoyed.  It doesn't mean we won't enjoy future cruises, we just miss some things we used to take for granted.  For example, we always looked forward to lobster night and now they only give you a very small lobster tail and make you pay for extras.  Also, we used to enjoy prime rib on the first night of the cruise and now they only way to get that on many sailings is to go to a specialty restaurant.  The offerings in the buffet were scaled back, especially at dinner, as well.

 

All that said, there's still food to eat and I usually don't have any trouble finding something to enjoy, I just miss some of the special cuisine we used to have and the attention to details they used to make, etc.  If you were coming on your first cruise you wouldn't find much to complain about.

[Maya_C]

23 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

For a sampler -   download the app and choose any ship in class ship you are interested in and a current sailing.   You should be able to pop up the menus and see how they meet your expectation.

 

I have downloaded the app, but I don't see the option to choose any ship. My only options pertain to our upcoming cruise in two weeks on the Infinitiy, and menus are not there, just the option to reserve. How do I get to the menus for ships in the same class? Thanks for your help. 

[Maya_C]

1 minute ago, Maya_C said:

 

I have downloaded the app, but I don't see the option to choose any ship. My only options pertain to our upcoming cruise in two weeks on the Infinitiy, and menus are not there, just the option to reserve. How do I get to the menus for ships in the same class? Thanks for your help. 

 When I follow the menu option for the main dining room on our upcoming cruise, I see only the desserts for each night.

[Jim_Iain]

10 minutes ago, Maya_C said:

 

I have downloaded the app, but I don't see the option to choose any ship. My only options pertain to our upcoming cruise in two weeks on the Infinitiy, and menus are not there, just the option to reserve. How do I get to the menus for ships in the same class? Thanks for your help. 

Go to the very bottom under your cruises and choose -  Browse our Ships -   Choose a ship and choose a current sailing.

[Jim_Iain]

9 minutes ago, Maya_C said:

 When I follow the menu option for the main dining room on our upcoming cruise, I see only the desserts for each night.

Menus are not loaded until 0-10 days prior to the cruise.   On repeat sailings same itinerary and days they may be loaded earlier.

[tigervixxxen]

8 minutes ago, Maya_C said:

 When I follow the menu option for the main dining room on our upcoming cruise, I see only the desserts for each night.

That means the old menu was deleted and the new menu hasn’t been added to your sailing yet. In the app swipe all the way to the right and click on “select a different cruise” then go to “browse ships” select infinity and the current sailing to give you an idea. 
 

My problem with the new menus is the lack of variety. I always am suspect of quality of food mass produced in a galley. We’ll see here shortly about the overall quality of the current menu. 
 

I frankly don’t care about the E class menu until I’m sailing on one, it’s not relevant. Also, the Silhouette still has more additional options for some reason. Maybe their head chef likes food, who knows. But don’t count on their increased offerings elsewhere. Best strategy is to look up the current sailing of your ship to get the best idea.