Dining menu change frequency?

[dns65]

12 hours ago, Cairns Cruisers said:

Cruising Princess for the first time Saturday,I hope your food critique doesn’t come to fruition for us.

 

Everyone on here apparently is a Michelin food critic. Food is subjective, Take comments like that with a grain of salt 

[Senga]

7 hours ago, MyriamS said:

Just out of curiosity, what is weird about the Princess MDR food? I'm going in less than two weeks and I've avidly researched the menus (they vary very slightly depending on your destination so I looked for the ones specific to my UK cruise) and nothing seemed very strange.

My husband is a lover of seafood but on our two cruises out of Southampton he ordered beef which was always great.  We loved the food and menu choices.  The menu on Enchanted out of Athens didn’t appeal as much.  After reading the Caribbean choices from a recent @Itchy&Scratchy review I’m not expecting the same great experience.  Definitely NOT a fan of beans!  That being said I’m sure we won’t starve.  😂

[Itchy&Scratchy]

1 hour ago, dns65 said:

 

Everyone on here apparently is a Michelin food critic. Food is subjective, Take comments like that with a grain of salt 

I am 100% not a Michelin critic. I am a glutton who will out right reject only beans, onions and blue cheese. I am not picky and happy about the "hotel banquet" quality food. The only food we were 80% disappointed in was NCL Getaway MDR and buffet food in 2018.

[VibeGuy]

I will add that one solution to the menu ennui, at least on our most recent Discovery voyage, was the buffet theme nights.  
 

In 54 Princess sailings I could count on one hand the number of dinners we’d had in the buffet.  I’m just more into softer lighting and table service.  But I was *really* impressed by the World Fresh Marketplace - had a killer osso buco on Italian Night, really enjoyed German night (although I got a strange urge to invade Poland a half hour later), Indian Night was especially good.

 

What I enjoyed most was that there was more thought about matching items into a “through line” - the soups made sense with the salads which made sense with the entrees. The current set of MDR dinner menus does not always do that, with the exception of the Alaska variants where there’s usually a cogent set of seafood selections running through courses.  

[Boku]

2 hours ago, dns65 said:

 

Everyone on here apparently is a Michelin food critic. Food is subjective, Take comments like that with a grain of salt 

You don't need to be a food critic to know what food you don't like.

[marcushart]

On 9/13/2024 at 4:38 AM, Coral said:

Sometime's the ship's interpretation of the dish is unusual. I remember a dish that said sweet and sauce sauce on the side and they served ketchup.

It's almost as if whoever designed the menu didn't bother to stick around until the end of R&D to make sure the final result tastes like the original inspiration. I understand the line cooks may be from different areas of the world, so there will be unfamiliar dishes for everyone involved, BUT if the recipe and ingredients are streamlined then someone in an executive chef role is definitely responsible. Even the Thai servers shuddered at me contemplating if I should order pad thai on the dinner menu.

My most recent cruise was last summer on the Ruby. The amount of well-dressed people lining up in the buffet after a disappointing MDR experience was a nightly occurrence. This is not saying there aren't delicious dishes at all, there's just not many to rave about either. Taste is subjective, but for people living in metropolitan areas with access to diverse global cuisines, MDR food is just okay. It has the potential to be significantly better if Princess put in more effort; right now, they’re maintaining the status quo. What would happen to specialty restaurants and pay-to-eat venues if the MDR improves? Ha!

Edited September 15 by marcushart

[SCX22]

8 minutes ago, marcushart said:

Taste is subjective but I think people who live in metropolitan areas that have the privilege of eating foods from different parts of the world, MDR food is just okay.

 

I agree with this.  Not only where you lived, but what you have experienced in your travels.  Living in a metro area, we can get excellent authentic ethnic foods.  When Princess released the Teppanyaki and Hot Pot spots on the Sun Princess, I thought "yawn" and "probably won't be authentic."  The "Mexican" options on the on the ship are more Tex-Mex than they are Mexican.  The Asian options are very Asian American; sometimes spaghetti and linguine noodles are used instead of proper Asian noodles.  (The Noodle Bar on the Majestic tastes very close to legit but is still not quite there; the "wontons" are frozen dumplings, among other things.  Harmony, on the other hand, makes me want to hurl.)  It seems like the deboning of the flounder tableside at The Catch is very new to many people, but that is a very dated way of serving fish; this has been part of the French culinary repertoire for decades.  I experienced this when I on a trip to Paris as a kid; Julia Child and Jacques Pepin made shows showcasing this technique. 

 

But I get it...The culinary program on a ship has to follow a budget and has to appeal to all tastes, not just the exotic.

[marcushart]

1 hour ago, SCX22 said:

 

I agree with this.  Not only where you lived, but what you have experienced in your travels.  Living in a metro area, we can get excellent authentic ethnic foods.  When Princess released the Teppanyaki and Hot Pot spots on the Sun Princess, I thought "yawn" and "probably won't be authentic."  The "Mexican" options on the on the ship are more Tex-Mex than they are Mexican.  The Asian options are very Asian American; sometimes spaghetti and linguine noodles are used instead of proper Asian noodles.  (The Noodle Bar on the Majestic tastes very close to legit but is still not quite there; the "wontons" are frozen dumplings, among other things.  Harmony, on the other hand, makes me want to hurl.)  It seems like the deboning of the flounder tableside at The Catch is very new to many people, but that is a very dated way of serving fish; this has been part of the French culinary repertoire for decades.  I experienced this when I on a trip to Paris as a kid; Julia Child and Jacques Pepin made shows showcasing this technique. 

 

But I get it...The culinary program on a ship has to follow a budget and has to appeal to all tastes, not just the exotic.

It means a lot to me that you concur! I felt snobby writing that passage but hey we're blessed, no shame in that. You put it into great perspective (and detail) in your reply.

Edited September 15 by marcushart

[MyriamS]

4 hours ago, SCX22 said:

 

I agree with this.  Not only where you lived, but what you have experienced in your travels.  Living in a metro area, we can get excellent authentic ethnic foods.  When Princess released the Teppanyaki and Hot Pot spots on the Sun Princess, I thought "yawn" and "probably won't be authentic."  The "Mexican" options on the on the ship are more Tex-Mex than they are Mexican.  The Asian options are very Asian American; sometimes spaghetti and linguine noodles are used instead of proper Asian noodles.  (The Noodle Bar on the Majestic tastes very close to legit but is still not quite there; the "wontons" are frozen dumplings, among other things.  Harmony, on the other hand, makes me want to hurl.)  It seems like the deboning of the flounder tableside at The Catch is very new to many people, but that is a very dated way of serving fish; this has been part of the French culinary repertoire for decades.  I experienced this when I on a trip to Paris as a kid; Julia Child and Jacques Pepin made shows showcasing this technique. 

 

But I get it...The culinary program on a ship has to follow a budget and has to appeal to all tastes, not just the exotic.

French person here. Never had anyone debone my fish tableside, it is something that only happens at very fancy places as far as I know. It's not because a technique is old or well-known in culinary circles that many people get to experience it. 

[Boku]

4 hours ago, marcushart said:

It means a lot to me that you concur! I felt snobby writing that passage but hey we're blessed, no shame in that. You put it into great perspective (and detail) in your reply.

The food on board is ok, but its not the great experience so many on CC state it is, not even in any of the speciality dining venues. In fact we have decided that we will not bother with SD now that the cost has increased so much. I think the catering staff have a massively difficult job so we now just accept that the food is what it is. I guess like in all things your perception of great depends on what you are used too.

[SCX22]

37 minutes ago, MyriamS said:

French person here. Never had anyone debone my fish tableside, it is something that only happens at very fancy places as far as I know. It's not because a technique is old or well-known in culinary circles that many people get to experience it. 

That was the point.  Some cruisers might “ooh” and “ahh” at the food and food presentation on board, but if one has experienced more and/or tasted an authentic preparation then, the reaction just turns into “meh.”

 

As far as deboning the fish table side, I don’t think that it was only practiced in Haute Cuisine.  I remember eating at cafes and bistros in Paris and the waiters doing this in the 2000s when we ordered fish.  Maybe they were putting on a show for us Americans?  I can say that this type of service has gone by the wayside in the present time.  Recently, I’ve only seen it at The Catch.  That’s why in my mind it comes off as dated.  Nouvelle Cuisine, which is all the rage now, prefers the fish be filleted off the bone even before it’s cooked.  All I know is that is presentation is not new.

Edited September 15 by SCX22

[MyriamS]

13 minutes ago, SCX22 said:

That was the point.  Some cruisers might “ooh” and “ahh” at the food and food presentation on board, but if one has experienced more and/or tasted an authentic preparation then, the reaction just turns into “meh.”

 

As far as deboning the fish table side, I don’t think that it was only practiced in Haute Cuisine.  I remember eating at cafes and bistros in Paris and the waiters doing this in the 2000s when we ordered fish.  Maybe they were putting on a show for us Americans?  I can say that this type of service has gone by the wayside in the present time.  Recently, I’ve only seen it at The Catch.  That’s why in my mind it comes off as dated.  Nouvelle Cuisine, which is all the rage now, prefers the fish be filleted off the bone even before it’s cooked.  All I know is that is presentation is not new.

My point was that, for this precise example, it is not a matter of being well-travelled or an adventurous eater. It is a matter of being wealthy. 🙂

[SCX22]

8 minutes ago, MyriamS said:

My point was that, for this precise example, it is not a matter of being well-travelled or an adventurous eater. It is a matter of being wealthy. 🙂

 

I don’t think cafes and bistros are for just the wealthy.  Those establishments aren’t The Ritz or The Four Seasons George V.  I only know those hotels because I’ve used the sidewalk in front of them. 🙃

[MyriamS]

9 minutes ago, SCX22 said:

I don’t think cafes and bistros are for just the wealthy.  Those establishments aren’t The Ritz or The Four Seasons George V.  I only know those hotels because I’ve used the sidewalk in front of them. 🙃

Depends on which cafes and bistro you go to, obviously. Americans tourists tend to have more disposable income than Europeans and spend more on their holidays (per day), so what is an affordable restaurant to you might be quite fancy for the locals. 

 

I lived in France (around Paris, then in Lyon) for about twenty years and few restaurants I've been to offer flat fishes. For those that did offer them, it was one of the most expensive dishes in the menu. None ever deboned it at the table. 

 

So, in these circumstances, I would say it is fair to say that your wealth enabled you to experience things other people did not. It's not a personal attack against you, it's great that you got to do this. But it does seem unfair to imply that the other cruisers that are a little bit awed at having fish deboned at their table are simply ignorant or uninterested in "authentic food preparation". They might simply not have the same budget as you.

[Coral]

8 hours ago, marcushart said:

Taste is subjective, but for people living in metropolitan areas with access to diverse global cuisines, MDR food is just okay. It has the potential to be significantly better if Princess put in more effort; right now, they’re maintaining the status quo. What would happen to specialty restaurants and pay-to-eat venues if the MDR improves? Ha!

I live in a city of 300,000 in a rural state. I know I won't go hungry on a Princess cruise but dining is my least favorite time on Princess as the menus and food are uninspiring. I will also add that I am not impressed with the speciality dining restaurants any more and will probably no longer pay the higher price. The food and quality has been dumbed down so much in quality and what they offer, it is no longer special. I have a cruise coming up and I know I will not go hungry but not looking forward to dining at all as part of my trip.

[SCX22]

1 hour ago, MyriamS said:

So, in these circumstances, I would say it is fair to say that your wealth enabled you to experience things other people did not. It's not a personal attack against you, it's great that you got to do this. But it does seem unfair to imply that the other cruisers that are a little bit awed at having fish deboned at their table are simply ignorant or uninterested in "authentic food preparation". They might simply not have the same budget as you.

Same principle can be applied for those of us that live in metro areas and states with diverse ethnic populations like California or New York where the cost of living is higher and as a result wages are higher.  As has been expressed by another poster, we’re not being snobbish, we’ve just have the ability to experience more because the ethnic restaurants are at our disposal and we have more immigration to the states we live in.  It is what it is; we live where we live because our careers took us there, can’t help it.  

 

Don’t think it’s snobbish to snub Harmony on the Majestic of Umai on the Sun because I know that I can have a more authentic Asian meal without having to go to Asia when I’m at home and probably spend less than the cover.

 

Also, The Catch isn’t French in theme.  It’s supposed to be a seafood restaurant.  Sodiman is a classically trained French chef like Pepin which is probably the reason why he added the deboning a fish table side, aside from the wow factor.  Bistro Sur La Mer was scrapped because passengers weren’t interested in Princess’ rendition of French food.

[paddingtonbear]

On 9/15/2024 at 8:41 PM, MyriamS said:

French person here. Never had anyone debone my fish tableside, it is something that only happens at very fancy places as far as I know. It's not because a technique is old or well-known in culinary circles that many people get to experience it. 

They do it in the Greek Island 2023 - Milos and Paros - at not fancy, outdoor restaurants but those owned by locals. 
 

Edited September 16 by paddingtonbear

[paddingtonbear]

On 9/15/2024 at 8:51 PM, Boku said:

The food on board is ok, but its not the great experience so many on CC state it is, not even in any of the speciality dining venues. In fact we have decided that we will not bother with SD now that the cost has increased so much. I think the catering staff have a massively difficult job so we now just accept that the food is what it is. I guess like in all things your perception of great depends on what you are used too.

I agree with you. 

i can’t believe the stampede to get into SD venues and pay so much (even if it’s via the Premier package) especially considering you’ve already paid for your MDR food. I’m just happy to be served good food on holiday, as long as I don’t have to cook it I’m pretty easy to please! 
 

Edited September 16 by paddingtonbear