WORLD CRUISE- eat the same food for 2 months?

[rapister]

A world cruise sounds really appealing to me...

I am thinking of saving for one when I finally retire in the future...

 

But is it okay to eat the same food from the same kitchen for 2 months?

 

I know the menu changes, but the taste won't be very much different, and the menu would likely cycle itself?

 

Anybody been on a world cruise yet? Hope you can share how you managed this problem

[sparks1093]

 

1 hour ago, rapister said:

 

 

But is it okay to eat the same food from the same kitchen for 2 months?

 

 

Isn't that what you do at home? Most cruise ships offer quite a bit of variety in the way of specialty restaurants, etc. which helps break up any boredom that might set in.  

[Essiesmom]

They will not serve the same menus every week.  Items may reappear but in different combinations.  There is a board here for world cruises.  You might want to do some reading there.  EM

[CruiserBruce]

Curious how many different menus you think might be possible?

 

It seems that cruise lines usually operate with a pre-planned set of 15-20 menus.

[rapister]

44 minutes ago, sparks1093 said:

 

Isn't that what you do at home? Most cruise ships offer quite a bit of variety in the way of specialty restaurants, etc. which helps break up any boredom that might set in.  

 

35 minutes ago, Essiesmom said:

They will not serve the same menus every week.  Items may reappear but in different combinations.  There is a board here for world cruises.  You might want to do some reading there.  EM

 

well some people don't mind it

so its not a problem for you two i guess

 

but eating food from the same cafeteria, or even a restaurant, even if they change up the menu, mix and match the ingredients, isn't ideal, for someone with a more discerning palate.

 

just in case you aren't aware, 'specialty dining' food comes from the same kitchen, usually, just with more expensive ingredients and nicer presentation.

 

"Essie's Mom" so far there are no recent food-related threads on the world cruise section.

Plus, I'm sure you are aware, cruise food standards have been falling over the years.

Edited December 7, 2023 by rapister

[rapister]

8 minutes ago, CruiserBruce said:

Curious how many different menus you think might be possible?

 

It seems that cruise lines usually operate with a pre-planned set of 15-20 menus.

 

Exactly right, that's the problem

 

[sparks1093]

2 minutes ago, rapister said:

 

 

well some people don't mind it

so its not a problem for you two i guess

 

but eating food from the same cafeteria, or even a restaurant, even if they change up the menu, mix and match the ingredients, isn't ideal, for someone with a more discerning palate.

 

just in case you aren't aware, 'specialty dining' food comes from the same kitchen, usually, just with more expensive ingredients and nicer presentation.

 

"Essie's Mom" so far there are no recent food-related threads on the world cruise section.

Plus, I'm sure you are aware, cruise food standards have been falling over the years.

Yes, I am aware that much of what comes from a specialty restaurant is made in the same kitchens for the most part, but they do offer different items and your post is about having variety. Thank you for the attempt at a  passive aggressive insult but yes, I do have a simple palate and simple taste. Makes life, simpler😉. In any event it sounds like a world cruise would fail you in the food department and if it is really that important it might be best to just skip it. And since there are no food related threads on the world cruise section maybe you should start one (and you might have already, since this will probably get moved there).

[ontheweb]

We have never been on a cruise that long, but the last time we had fixed dining (2014 Ocean Princess) we did have tablemates who had. I did ask them about the menu and was told that it pretty much stayed the same. 

[CruiserBruce]

1 hour ago, rapister said:

 

Exactly right, that's the problem

 

But what is realistic? 100 different menus on a 100 day World Cruise?

[Essiesmom]

If you are seriously interested, there is usually a Live from thread on the HAL board by Bill and Mary Ann who do the world cruise every year, and sometimes long cruises between.  Here is a link to another thread about a long cruise:

Many cruisers on these long voyages...and all voyages take advantage of the opportunity to sample local food in ports.  

You need to visit the boards here for the cruise lines that do world cruises and ask your questions there.  I don't know all of them, But HAL, Cunard, Viking Ocean, Seabourn, Silversea, Regent, P&O-UK are a few that come to mind.  EM

[leaveitallbehind]

1 hour ago, rapister said:

just in case you aren't aware, 'specialty dining' food comes from the same kitchen, usually, just with more expensive ingredients and nicer presentation.

That would be cruise line dependent and in some cases may be true.  And it is also true that the ingredients are of a higher quality.  But in our experience, most of the specialty restaurants have their own kitchen (or maybe one shared by two) as they are frequently on different decks and locations away from the MDR. The preparations are unique and different as a result.

 

But nonetheless, if there are multiple specialty restaurants on board a given ship (Italian, steakhouse, sushi, French, etc.) that in of itself offers a fairly wide variety of menus and food type options that would, along with the MDR, provide more selection options on a long voyage.  

 

There are also world cruises that will tailor certain menus based on the regions and ingredient offerings that they encounter during the voyage that will also provide additional variety. 

 

But certainly - just was with your own in home preparations and normal dining out options - there would be on board limitations and if this would be an issue, then perhaps that type of voyage would not be the right choice for you.  Especially as most true world cruises are considerably longer than the two months you suggest - that would be more likely just one segment of the cruise.

Edited December 7, 2023 by leaveitallbehind

[cruisemom42]

You can always dine ashore for lunch or dinner ( if port times allow) for variety.

 

What could be more varied than sampling cuisines around the world?

[JDincalif]

3 hours ago, sparks1093 said:

Thank you for the attempt at a  passive aggressive insult but yes, I do have a simple palate and simple taste. Makes life, simpler😉.

Simple tastes and palates are just as 'discerning' as more critical ones. Enjoy!

 

Anthony Bourdain has been credited with the quote "Good food is very often, even most often, simple food."

[Heidi13]

6 hours ago, rapister said:

A world cruise sounds really appealing to me...

I am thinking of saving for one when I finally retire in the future...

 

But is it okay to eat the same food from the same kitchen for 2 months?

 

I know the menu changes, but the taste won't be very much different, and the menu would likely cycle itself?

 

Anybody been on a world cruise yet? Hope you can share how you managed this problem

 

We have completed 2 World Cruises, the first on Princess and the 2nd on Viking.

 

With Princess, the exact same menu did repeat on each of the 4 segments and on the longest segment some menus were again repeated. Quality of the meals coming from the galley was poor, both the quality of the ingredients and the temperature of the meal, as it arrived at the table. Specialty restaurants were no better.

 

On Viking, the menu never repeated once. Yes, some popular dishes were repeated, but always on a different menu, with the other items being different. On most nights, they include a destination sub-menu, with an appy, main course and dessert from the country the ship is visiting, or sailing through the waters.

 

The quality of meals on Viking was excellent, with the taste/flavour of each dish being appropriate to that dish.

[LHT28]

maybe  check this thread

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2957772-menus-on-board-a-world-cruise/#comment-65960156

 

[Heidi13]

4 hours ago, rapister said:

just in case you aren't aware, 'specialty dining' food comes from the same kitchen, usually, just with more expensive ingredients and nicer presentation.

 

 

Onboard ships, there is no such place as a "Kitchen", however they do have multiple galleys.

 

Having worked for Princess and spent 3 weeks on a Viking ship with only 8 pax and a full crew, I have seen most of the working spaces. On Viking ships the main galley is huge, but is sub-divided into separate areas. Each of the 2 alternative restaurants has a separate galley, with their own crew, as does room service and the buffet.

 

On Princess, the older ships also had separate galleys for the specialty restaurants, room service and the buffet. On the Sun Class they used part of the buffet for the steakhouse, with meals prepared in the buffet galley.

 

Although I haven't sailed with Cunard, I believe they also have separate galleys, as does P&O (UK & Aus). Can't speak to other cruise lines.

[Heidi13]

3 hours ago, CruiserBruce said:

But what is realistic? 100 different menus on a 100 day World Cruise?

 

That was our experience with Viking, every menu was different.

[navybankerteacher]

On almost any ship, on any itinerary, one is likely to experience a far wider variety of meals than he/she would at home.

 

 

[Toofarfromthesea]

8 minutes ago, navybankerteacher said:

On almost any ship, on any itinerary, one is likely to experience a far wider variety of meals than he/she would at home.

 

 

 

You make a good point.  I think if someone tracked their actual meals for 2 months at home they would be hard pressed to find a cruise ship or cruise line that wasn't significantly more diverse in their offerings.

[Keksie]

8 hours ago, rapister said:

A world cruise sounds really appealing to me...

I am thinking of saving for one when I finally retire in the future...

 

But is it okay to eat the same food from the same kitchen for 2 months?

 

I know the menu changes, but the taste won't be very much different, and the menu would likely cycle itself?

 

Anybody been on a world cruise yet? Hope you can share how you managed this problem

It would be okay for me.  Just happy to not have to clean the kitchen.  My family has been eating from the same kitchen for over 50 years.  Sure we go out to eat some, have gone on vacation and eaten out every day, the kitchen has moved a few times.  However, most of the time we eat my cooking with not too many complaints.  I guess we are just not the kind of people who worry we won't be able to find food.

[ldubs]

6 hours ago, rapister said:

 

 

well some people don't mind it

so its not a problem for you two i guess

 

but eating food from the same cafeteria, or even a restaurant, even if they change up the menu, mix and match the ingredients, isn't ideal, for someone with a more discerning palate.

 

 

 

Scratching my head.   If you know the answer, why did you ask if it would be a problem?  

 

I'm also among those who feel the menu options, even if repeated every couple of weeks, would provide enough variety.   

[Mary229]

You will have many days in port to try the local cuisine.  Much of cruising is sameness, day in and day out interrupted by the flurry of activity and exotic delights one experiences in port.   If you have never sailed a longer cruise perhaps you should try out some longer cruises first to see if it works for you.  

[At7Seas]

On 12/7/2023 at 11:09 AM, rapister said:

But is it okay to eat the same food from the same kitchen for 2 months?

 

My concern would be another: that the cruise line wouldn’t prepare food well. The most expensive ingredients can be ruined by wrong treatment and from cheap ones you can prepare a very tasty meal. Expensive scallops need seconds from perfect to spoiled, but there are dozens of ways to prepare deliciously a quite simple thing as cod. Craftsmanship is the most critical factor.
 
About variation I wouldn’t be concerned. Ask yourself how much you really vary in daily life and how often you prepare something comparable to the destination dishes some cruise lines offer. I for example will be 61 days in ports of 34 different countries on all continents except Antarctica from January to May. Besides the possibilities having lunch ashore six overnights extend chances. And still there are favourite dishes I am happy to see back on the menu.

 

And of course a world cruise of two months simply can't happen, even those rushing around the globe as fast as possible need a bit more than three months.

[whogo]

This blog has almost all the main dining room menus for the Holland America 2023 world cruise: https://www.theinsidecabin.com/2023-world-cruise-itinerary/

With the caveat that it is prepared in large quantities and basically banquet quality, study each menu and decide, rapister, if you could enjoy or even just survive for four months, what with your discerning palate and all.

[rapister]

On 12/7/2023 at 10:20 PM, leaveitallbehind said:

That would be cruise line dependent and in some cases may be true.  And it is also true that the ingredients are of a higher quality.  But in our experience, most of the specialty restaurants have their own kitchen (or maybe one shared by two) as they are frequently on different decks and locations away from the MDR. The preparations are unique and different as a result.

 

But nonetheless, if there are multiple specialty restaurants on board a given ship (Italian, steakhouse, sushi, French, etc.) that in of itself offers a fairly wide variety of menus and food type options that would, along with the MDR, provide more selection options on a long voyage.  

 

There are also world cruises that will tailor certain menus based on the regions and ingredient offerings that they encounter during the voyage that will also provide additional variety. 

 

But certainly - just was with your own in home preparations and normal dining out options - there would be on board limitations and if this would be an issue, then perhaps that type of voyage would not be the right choice for you.  Especially as most true world cruises are considerably longer than the two months you suggest - that would be more likely just one segment of the cruise.

 

On 12/8/2023 at 1:53 AM, navybankerteacher said:

On almost any ship, on any itinerary, one is likely to experience a far wider variety of meals than he/she would at home.

 

 

 

 

not true.  the comparison with 'home' is silly. 

at home you can certain swap up different ingredients , brands, supplies etc

and have you forgotten, you can eat out? 

 

on a cruise ship, you are rotating between a few kitchens, maximum.

 

 

and to those people saying you won't get sick of it because of the ability to try food from different parts of the world, 

i think you dont understand what a world cruise entails. 

MOST are sea days.

thus that isn't really answering the query.

 

 

Edited December 9, 2023 by rapister