NCL Food Executive should cruise on Carnival

[DaisyL]

Just got off our third cruise on Carnival and the meals are far superior on the Miracle than any of the 5 NCL cruises we have been on. Every night in the dining room there were many choices that were excellent that it was hard to decide what to order. On NCL it's hard to pick one good meal in an evening. The only good meals on NCL are in Cagney's at $20 pp plus reservations are needed. Also, the buffet quality is much better on Carnival and you can't beat the 24 hrs ice cream, frozen yogurt and fresh pizza.

 

Don't flame me please ... it's just my opinion and several other couples that have cruised both. I really like NCL and we have another cruise booked for next year, but I think the quality, choices, and service were better in the CCL dining room.

 

I think NCL execs should take a cruise on the Carnival Miracle just to eat the meals, compare the menus, experience the service, and talk to the passengers. Very happy cruisers and not many complaints on board the ship or on CC reviews.

[hardel]

I completely agree with you! We were on the Carnival Pride last Nov. and thought the food was wonderful. In the restaurants, buffet, everywhere. We were a group of 16 and everyone thought the food was outstanding.

Just got off the NCL Star and we only ate in the dining room one night because they was never anything on the menu that sounded good. And they no longer offer salmon, chicken and steak every night if you don't want to order what's on the menu. If you want to order off the menu, you have to put your order in before lunch. And that meal we ate in the Aqua Room was so-so. Teppenyaki, Cagneys, and Le Bistro are wonderful, but pricey. Hopefully things will be better with the Freestyle 2.0. I'll be on the Pearl on June 1 and I'll report back about Freestyle 2.0 dining.

[terrymtex01]

I personally will not try to burn either of you because I think the food is better on other cruise lines than it is on NCL as far as the main dinning room. I think I am pretty much alone in the fact I liked NCL's buffet better than both RCCL and Carnivals.

 

However, that doesn't mean that I didn't find the food good in the main dinning room. I'm just saying I found it better on the other two cruise lines. I will tell you the WORST food I have ever had on ANY vacation was on Radisson Diamond and it was the most expensive cruise I have ever been on.

 

Since there are only the two of us, we usually plan on eating at least 1/2 of our meals in the speciality restaurants. It isn't quite as expensive if it is just two, as opposed to a family of four, etc. Still, the over all value of NCL is what has kept us coming back.

[antmilant]

We've been on Carnival twice. We have friends that love Carnival. BUT we all feel NCL has better food. Everyone has different taste. For ever 100 people that love Carnival's food there are another 100 that love NCL's food. I felt my mother's cooking was terrible my brother on the other hand thought she was the best cook. Taste vary from person to person.

 

NCL leave your food as it is We love it.

[electricron]

I've sailed on both Carnival and NCL. The food was about the same, imho.

 

If anything was different, the food at NCL's specialty restaurants were much better than Carnival's main restaurants.

 

Carnival uses the traditional, cruise ship, two seatings.

It's much easier to keep the food at the proper temeprature when everyone in the restaurant is getting served the same course. That's why they can do Baked Alaska parades while NCL can't. Yet, the food was served at the same temperatures on either cruise line.

 

Why, because all the food is pre-cooked hours in advance.

There's no way a galley aboard any cruise ship can cook 1,000 steaks in 30 minutes.

 

Try this experiment. Get a ream of paper from the package, then one page at a time, lay them out on your floor, side by side, without one sheet of the 200 sheets of paper laying ontop another. How long did it take, how much space do you have left in your room?

[rccoble]

I've been on RCCL, Carnival and NCL. Of the three, I would say that in the main dining rooms, RCCL was far superior. I would rate NCL second and Carnival a distant third. I will agree that there were many things on the Carnival menu that sounded great, but the execution was always poor to us. I thought RCCL food was great and that NCL was good, but the specialty restaurants were outstanding.

 

I also think that NCL had the best buffet.

[rccoble]

I've been on RCCL, Carnival and NCL. Of the three, I would say that in the main dining rooms, RCCL was far superior. I would rate NCL second and Carnival a distant third. I will agree that there were many things on the Carnival menu that sounded great, but the execution was always poor to us. I thought RCCL food was great and that NCL was good, but the specialty restaurants were outstanding.

 

I also think that NCL had the best buffet.

[NEWYORKER55]

I also love the food on Carnival!! They have better menu choices in their Main Dining Room and the wait staff are better too!!!

[ZoneHPH]

i think the idea of benchmarking and sharing best practices is something all businesses should be doing. not a bad suggestiong for NCL reps to visit CCL reps...etc..etc... who knows...this could be happening already. i am not close to the cruise industry other than just being a regular NCL cheerleader.

 

as for the food...i eat so many little meals throughout the day, that by the time dinner comes...going to the main dining room, my DW and i feel it's more just about hanging out with our favorite waitstaff. i can't ever say we're starving at dinner time.

 

i have never had complaints about food quality. as for buffet...you show me a buffet where EVERY morsel of food is cooked to perfection...i seriously doubt you'll find that.

 

with all the mouths to feed on a cruise ship...i still find it crazy that they are building them bigger and bigger. something will have to give...food quality just might be one of them.

[Vyhanek]

I completely agree. However, I think the Specialty Dining on Carnival beats the heck out of Cagney's.

 

You don't hear people rave about NCL food. On the NCL boards you hear that food is "SUBJECTIVE". On Carnival you hear how great the food is period. Because it's true. NCL used to have better food. It used to compare to Carnival food (like 5 years ago) but there has obviously been major budget cuts that affect the quality of NCL food - IMO

 

I agree that the NCL decision makers need to take a Carnival cruise and experience the dining. There are lots of things NCL does better but food isn't it!

[Jana]

I've been on 10 NCL cruises and six Carnival cruises and while I really, really prefer Freestyle, I have to admit that Carnival's main dinner menus appeal to me more than NCLs. NCL's buffets and/or Action Stations are far superior to Carnival's, but Carnival's light-as-air fresh pizza and free nightly sushi is fantastic.

 

Carnival's dinner menus are more adventurous, I think, and always beautifully executed and presented. NCLs are ok, but blander and sometimes the presentation is lacking.

 

The steakhouse on Carnival is more expensive than but similar to Cagney's. I like Cagney's menu better and only ~they~ do those garlic fries in truffle oil :)

 

Royal Caribbean's food, to me, is not the greatest, but it's been awhile since I have been on a RCCL ship and I am prejudiced against "coffee whitener" served with coffee, the thought of which makes both Carnival and NCL's food executives go pale.

 

For the best combination of "cuisine" and anytime dining, nothing beats Oceania, with four no-charge restaurants from which to choose. Of course, it's a totally different cruise experience; with only 684 guests, generally longer and very port-intensive cruises, the energy is totally different than on RCCL, CCL or NCL.

 

 

Jana

[sjbdtz]

the meals are far superior on the Miracle than any of the 5 NCL cruises

 

My porridge was too hot.

 

 

We've been on Carnival twice. We have friends that love Carnival. BUT we all feel NCL has better food

 

My porridge was too cold.

 

I've sailed on both Carnival and NCL. The food was about the same, imho.

 

 

My porridge was JUST right.

 

 

 

:rolleyes:

[MrsLeo]

One of the best meals I ever had was on the Carnival Liberty's innaugural caribbean cruise at Harry's Supper Club. I have never had any meal on a ship come close to beating that one. I have never found the food to be terrible or bad on any of the three lines we've sailed, there are a few things I would never order again such as RCCL's ranch steak (marinated shoe leather) but I have never left a meal hungry while on a cruise ship. I think the one area that NCL excels is with the sheer variety of eating venues. I can have french, tapas, steakhouse, sushi, shabu hotpot, etc.. each on a different night. I have always felt that Carnival's food was superior when comparing what is served in the main dining room and when comparing their speciality restaurants to other lines. With regard to buffet food... I don't know, because I really try to avoid the buffets on ships as the sea of humanity at meal time, seems to make me loose my appetite. I refuse to fight the crowds.

 

People we know are on a Carnival Transatlantic right now and I was surprised at the moment they are not impressed with the food. I don't know what the issues are but they had been wowed previously by the food on Carnival and are very seasoned cruisers so I am sure they have legit complaints. I hope that is an isolated situation with that one ship and they are not implementing some new across the board.

[cod]

I have to chime in. The WORST food ever on a cruise was the Carnival Liberty TA in '06. YUCK! Otherwise, Carnival has pretty decent food. If the Liberty had been my first Carnival cruise it would have been my last. We've always been pleased with RCCL. In fact our favorite cruise of all was a spring '06 TA on Splendor of the Seas. Service, food, and entertainment were the best of any ship we've been on before or since.

 

Everything else has been somewhere in the middle or hit-and-miss. We've had some great meals on the rest of our cruises, including NCL and Celebrity, and some that have left something to be desired. In fact, I can look back on every cruise and select highlights and say that I'd happily repeat any in a heartbeat. Any but the Liberty that is!!!!!!

[Theresa522]

Although I just love to cruise, no matter what line....NCL food does leave something to be desired. However, that is why for dinner we choose to eat at the specialty restaurants

[d1960]

I like NCL food the best of all. It seems more freshly prepared with a wider variety of ingredients and more flavorful.

Carnival’s food seemed more bland with larger portions

but still was good. Princess personal choice is also good. The single cruises we took on RCL and Celebrity seemed to have the worst food.

Please don’t fix it, it isn’t broken, in my opinion.

[CruisnGram]

And they no longer offer salmon, chicken and steak every night if you don't want to order what's on the menu. If you want to order off the menu, you have to put your order in before lunch. .

 

This is completely opposite of what I have heard. When we were on the Sun in March, the always available items were not listed on the menu. I would not have known they existed if I hadn't read these boards and knew to ask for them. When we did ask for them, they were delivered with no problem, and no advance ordering.

 

I've read several reviews since 2.0 went into effect and all have said that the always available items are now listed on the menu. So your post really surprised me as this is the exact opposite of what I've read here recently.

[CruisnGram]

I really think it all comes down to the "type" of eater that you are. I believe that the other cruise lines offer more gourmet type of meals. I read somewhere about a goat cheese soufle which my first reaction to was "yuck". Admittedly, I'm a real basic food person. I enjoy a great steak, or seafood, but I'm not into unusual, gourmet dishes. I don't care for different sauces, etc. If the ships menu only consists of steak, chicken, pork chops, ham, and turkey with some seafood options, I'm thrilled. Guess that's why food is not a big deal to me. It needs to be tasty & hot and real basic and I'm a happy camper. That's why I really enjoyed NCL's food.

 

I can understand tho that those who like to try unique and unusual dishes, prefer other cruise lines food.

[BeachBumMama]

I don't know, maybe I'm in the minority, but I just don't cruise for food. I read reviews where people say...

The pasta or steak or (whatever) on our Carnival cruise

When I went on RCI in 2000 the food was great.

The this or that (insert any meal here) was wonderful on (insert cruise line here)

 

I don't remember food. I can't remember the meals I had last week, much less on a cruise 3 months ago or a year ago. I guess I just don't place that much importance on it. A decent meal is all I ask for. Hot if it's supposed to be and cold if it's supposed to be.

 

I'll cruise on any line and unfortunately they all feed you well. Too well.:p I don't pick my cruises for memorable food. I know they'll feed me something and as long as it's not slop 24/7 I think I'll survive.:D

[resurgam]

My porridge was too hot.

 

 

 

 

My porridge was too cold.

 

 

 

 

My porridge was JUST right.

 

 

 

:rolleyes:

Brilliant sums it up perfectly:)

[halos]

Like someone else stated, I don't cruise for food. BUT there is no denying that CCL has the best (IMO) of the lines I"ve sailed so far which include NCL and also Celebrity.

[CruisnGram]

Like someone else stated, I don't cruise for food. BUT there is no denying that CCL has the best (IMO) of the lines I"ve sailed so far which include NCL and also Celebrity.

 

Ewww, don't go over to the Celebrity board and say that. Them's fightin words! :D

[DaisyL]

Like someone else stated, I don't cruise for food. BUT there is no denying that CCL has the best (IMO) of the lines I"ve sailed so far which include NCL and also Celebrity.

I agree with your statement too, CCL meals first, NCL second and Celebrity last, for us.

 

I didn't add 'X' in my OP because they have since decided not to cruise from the NY area, my 'homeport'. And I can't get over the fact they sold Horizon and Zenith with no more cruises to Bermuda!

 

We do not often get the chance for fine dining at home and we look forward to this while cruising. Also, I don't think we should have to dine in specialty restaurants to get better meals and the 'micro-managing' with reservations while on vacation actually defeats the whole purpose of relaxation.

 

On our last NCL cruise (9/07), we dined in the main dining rooms only 4 nights and specialty restaurants 7 nights because of quality, service and choices ... Really shouldn't be a necessity.

 

Oh, and don't get me wrong, I absolutely love NCL and Freestyle and will continue to cruise with them but I think they could be even better. Three couples we cruise with often, will not even consider NCL again because of the dining experience. Just our opinions....

[coffeebean]

I completely agree. However, I think the Specialty Dining on Carnival beats the heck out of Cagney's.

 

You don't hear people rave about NCL food. On the NCL boards you hear that food is "SUBJECTIVE". On Carnival you hear how great the food is period. Because it's true. NCL used to have better food. It used to compare to Carnival food (like 5 years ago) but there has obviously been major budget cuts that affect the quality of NCL food - IMO

 

I agree that the NCL decision makers need to take a Carnival cruise and experience the dining. There are lots of things NCL does better but food isn't it!

 

That may be true but Freestyle 2.0 upgrades will be implemented on all ships no later than June 15 of this year. One of the upgrades, according to a press release, is the increase of the food budget of 20% per person per day. Let's wait and see what that brings,THEN we can compare NCL food with the other cruise lines.

[DaisyL]

That may be true but Freestyle 2.0 upgrades will be implemented on all ships no later than June 15 of this year. One of the upgrades, according to a press release, is the increase of the food budget of 20% per person per day. Let's wait and see what that brings,THEN we can compare NCL food with the other cruise lines.

Thanks, I will be looking forward to this next year ... but unfortunately the cruise rates already have been higher for NCL than CCL, for comparable cruises and cabins, out of NY.

 

Major reason that our group of 3 couples decided on CCL for our cruise this year. CCL was $1035 pp for a 8 nt. Car. cruise balc. cabin and NCL was $1400 pp for 7 nt. Bermuda out of NY, booked last July, (both balcony cabins, same week). No brainer for us!! The difference paid for a lot of drinks and some jewelry ....:rolleyes: and no need to dine in a specialty restaurant for extra $$.