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Windjammer variety

TahoeBob

By TahoeBob,
in Royal Caribbean International

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TahoeBob

TahoeBob

Posted
Posted

I just read a review from the Vision on this board, he had a few complaints but I would like to talk about the food.

 

This person said

So we went to the Windjammer cafe. The kids thought the Windjammer was great at first, but as the week wore on, they serve the exact same breakfast items each breakfast and the same goes for lunch and dinner. No real variety.

 

Now how do you put more variety into a breakfast in the windjammer. there are only so many foods that can be served in a buffet. He goes on and says the same thing for breakfast every morning.

 

I guess this question is for everyone who says the windjammer awalys servies the same thing. Just what would you like to see the WJ serve that it does not now, but remember that the food must be able to be served in a typical buffet setting!

 

This is my list of what you can get for breakfast in the WJ

eggs, bacon, sausage, cold cereal, Hot cereal, smoked samon, juice, coffee, tea, danish, toast, fruit.I know there is more, but how can someone say there is No real variety. I think I could go to the WJ every morning on a 7 night cruise and not eat the same thing twice!

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Gonzo70

Gonzo70

Posted
Posted

One thing I liked on HAL was they had some daily specials at the Lido (their version of the Windjammer) so they did manage some variety. There were typically three different specials each day. I can't recall a lot of them but a couple examples were bannana bread french toast as one and peach pancakes as another.

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marc62

marc62

Posted
Posted

Some people you will never please I am afraid, as you rightly say - what else can you serve for breakfast? I have just returned from the Splendour & can report the following

 

Breakfast

3 x Locations -

Windjammer

Very large choice & selection including an egg station

 

Dining Room

Set menu to choose from (they will also adjust)

 

Room Service

Once again a large choice

 

I would take it that the person ate the same food each day as they may not have liked other items available. That is not the ships fault but the persons taste buds.

 

As far as lunch is concerned I am gobsmacked!

You have a choice from cold meats & salads, cheeses, breads & rolls to hot meals including every type of meat cooked in various methods. A wide selection of vegetarian meals hot or cold. There is also a carvery station with a selection of meats etc. There is rice, potato, wedges etc. lets not forget all of the sweets available. Oh, I forgot to mention the burgers, hot dogs, chicken wings & ribs!

Lets not forget that on top of this you also have the main dining room & room service!

 

I found the range, quality & choice of foods excellent & I am sure you will be very happy & never go hungery.

 

However - you will always get those who complain for the sake of complaining & feel the world owes them. Why do they bother going? We heard a couple complain that the Splendour is showing her age - age is 10 years old! still a baby really. Does this mean they will never stay in a hotel unless it is only a couple of years old - doubt it.

 

Yes you pay your money but you are treated like a lord for a week

 

Marc

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cmason

cmason

Posted
Posted

Breakfast is kinda hard to change up...as others have said, every available breakfast item is there...

 

Now, for Lunch and Dinner, each lunch offers different hot foods for sure, and Dinner is different every nite. We often eat Dinner in the Windjammer, and I assure you it is a different meal each nite. Most of the entrees from the dining room are available in the Windjammer...not everything, but most things.

 

Of course, it is a buffet, and there are many items that are available very day/nite...there is always a salad bar, always sandwiches, always burgers etc

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isujim

isujim

Posted
Posted

I've never gone hungry:)

 

And besides, most people eat the same thing for breakfast anyway.......we are creatures of habit..........next cruise see how varied you really get at breakfast:)

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Sugar*Magnolia

Sugar*Magnolia

Posted
Posted
I've never gone hungry:)

 

And besides, most people eat the same thing for breakfast anyway.......we are creatures of habit..........next cruise see how varied you really get at breakfast:)

 

VERY TRUE!! Most people do eat the same thing (pretty much) every day. I wonder what the poster on the other thread suggested?? I have to say, on Explorer the breakfast buffet offerred a huge variety but we stuck to fresh made omelets, bagels, juice, miso. (dim sum....they'd NEVER!! :eek: I WISH THO & some 'good quality' Sushi would be nice too) But Im not greedy.

 

They do a fine job catering to the different palates. I have to be honest (dont shoot! lol) I would like to see a higher quality on the buffet. Our last experience (& review) stated the obvious; bacon did not even look like bacon- gave it a try but couldnt get it past our mouths...the same pax must have gotten to any type of breakfast potatoes every morning, before anyone and chopped them and made them look unappetizing, the sausage had some very weird taste and the turkey sausage wasnt palatable either, pancakes had the oddest consistency.

 

I hope this past July was an isolated sail re: the WJ buffet....BUT RCI Does cater to all and offer a huge variety if you're daring lol

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why2klisa

why2klisa

Posted
Posted

There is a ton of variety in the breakfast buffet. I can't image having a problem finding something different to eat everyday. Unless, of course, you feel the need to fill your place with one of everything the first day of the cruise. :) I like the little hash brown triangle thingys. lol

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misterbuds

misterbuds

Posted
Posted

We just got off the AOS on Sunday and I was not impressed with the selection or quality of the food in the Windjammer. For breakfast it was the same every day, the pastry selection was very poor (a couple types of donuts, one or two different sweet pastry and then some hard rolls). I agree that there aren't really many choices of breakfast items, but it never seemed like they mixed it up with a little variety. Maybe it was the ship??? I've been on other cruises where they at least had specialty stations like belgian waffles made to order, etc. The only station they had was for omlets. Lunch wasn't anything special either in the windjammer. We found the lunch in the dining room to be better quality and selection.

 

Also, whats the deal with no trays in the windjammer? Was this always the case??? :confused: This was our first RCL cruise and it was one of the first things we noticed. It was quite annoying to try to juggle your silverware and put food on your plate at the same time. Forget about carrying a drink until you found a table and have to go back while someone watches your table. I imagine it's a cost saving thing ( save money by using less water to wash the trays and people will probably take less food because of it, etc.), but really, it makes everything quite cumbersome.

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digital_curator

digital_curator

Posted
Posted

I'm sorry you had a bad experience on the Adventure. I have sailed on both Navigator and the Explorer and have always loved the breakfast in the WJ (had breakfast once in the DR and didn't have such a great experience but will try it again on the next trip just to see if it was a fluke).

 

Thinking back to the food stations, it's hard for me to come up with something that was lacking in the breakfast department:

 

Fruit- 2 or 3 types of melon, oranges, bananas, apples, pineapple, grapes, kiwi, etc.

 

Drinks: juices- orange, grapefruit tropical; milk- regular, skim, chocolate; coffee, selection of teas, hot chocolate

 

Yogurts- plain, several flavors (including low fat)

 

Cereals- several types of cold cereals, granola oatmeal (with a selection of toppings)

 

Cold Meats and Cheeses

 

Breads- bread for toast, bagels, donuts, danish, muffins, Vienna bread (my fav:D ), rolls, biscuits (with gravy if one choses)

 

Eggs- scrambled, scrambled with something added (cheese, peppers, tomatoes, etc.- changed everyday) as well as made to order omlets and eggs at the station

 

Meat- bacon, peameal bacon, sausage links and patties, ham, corned beef hash

 

Fish- lox (and I saw kippers or some small fish on one cruise)

 

Potatoes- hashbrowns and homefries

 

Grits (don't know what category to put those in!)

 

Pancakes, french toast, waffles (yes, I would love a waffle station too but at least they are available) with whipped cream, syrup, fruit toppings

 

The Jade section always had a soup at breakfast as well (though I wouldn't say no to dim sum either!) which seemed to shock a lot of people when they peaked into the container.

 

I'm sure there are things here that I have missed. Seriously, almost anything I would EVER consider eating for breakfast (with the exception of cold pizza/leftover Chinese food) is on this list!

 

I have never had a problem finding not only something I like to eat each day but something DIFFERENT for each breakfast on a 7 day cruise (but of course, the joy is that I can eat the things I love EVERY day).

 

Yes, things like eggs benedict aren't there but they are available in the DR and other things, like french toast aren't as good after they sit in a steam table (but again, available in the DR) but I must admit, the WJ offers one of the most extensive and tasty breakfast buffets I have tried ANYWHERE.

 

I'm a little pickier about their lunch selections but I check out what they are offering and if there isn't anything that suits me, I go to the DR (I really like their lunch menu) and head to JR once per cruise.

 

One underused WJ meal is the afternoon snack. DH and I really like the selection of snacks, ranging from nachos to scones with jam. We didn't go on our first cruise (port-intensive) but enjoyed it on our second (6 sea days) for a pool-side snack when we were too lazy to hike down to the PR cafe for those yummy sandwiches....

 

I can't ever see myself going hungry on an RCI cruise:D

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KarinaGW

KarinaGW

Posted
Posted

....which doesn't mean we didn't have a variety. From Explorer - Sept '06:

 

Breakfast in Windjammer. Thus began the rice, sausage gravy, scrambled eggs w/shrimp in a bowl breakfast that Dean would eat for the rest of the week. I stuck with the more traditional, oatmeal, bacon and a roll.

 

DSCN0300.jpg

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marc62

marc62

Posted
Posted
We just got off the AOS on Sunday and I was not impressed with the selection or quality of the food in the Windjammer. For breakfast it was the same every day, the pastry selection was very poor (a couple types of donuts, one or two different sweet pastry and then some hard rolls). I agree that there aren't really many choices of breakfast items, but it never seemed like they mixed it up with a little variety. Maybe it was the ship??? I've been on other cruises where they at least had specialty stations like belgian waffles made to order, etc. The only station they had was for omlets. Lunch wasn't anything special either in the windjammer. We found the lunch in the dining room to be better quality and selection.

 

Also, whats the deal with no trays in the windjammer? Was this always the case??? :confused: This was our first RCL cruise and it was one of the first things we noticed. It was quite annoying to try to juggle your silverware and put food on your plate at the same time. Forget about carrying a drink until you found a table and have to go back while someone watches your table. I imagine it's a cost saving thing ( save money by using less water to wash the trays and people will probably take less food because of it, etc.), but really, it makes everything quite cumbersome.

 

 

Sorry to read your experiance which is in the minority. However, we all have a right to an opinion & we all have a right to disagree. I suppose that if tray's were supplied there would then be a complaint that there is not an area to place them whilst getting the drink from the machine. Did you not have the waiters constantly going around the tables asking if you required a drink or for your drink to be re-filled?

 

Marc

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PamUK

PamUK

Posted
Posted

We had our first ever cruise on the Navigator in June and we were astounded at the amount of choice we had available in the Windjammer. Some days it was so difficult to choose what to have so we had little bits of a few things. This made some interesting but not necessarily successful combinations! It was even harder the second week as we knew what our favourites were but then there were new things to try as well. No wonder our clothes had 'shrunk' by the end of the cruise;) There is definitely no complaints here about the choice or standard of food available, yes there were items that we didn't like but that was personal preference.

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