twinkletoes4445 Posted July 16, 2008 #201 Share Posted July 16, 2008 If yoy come on down, you can make the next festival on September 13, 2008!:D http://www.burlesoncountytx.com/Kolache%20Pages/Kolache%20Festival.html Thanks! We may just do this. :) We love the Dallas/Ft. Worth area. Lots to do there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boytjie Posted July 16, 2008 #202 Share Posted July 16, 2008 Anyway, what was your point? Are you trying to establish if I know what gourmet food should taste like? I think I do. And I would be upset if I was served food like we had on the Westerdam in any restaurant I frequented. We usually go out to a restaurant 7 nights a week for dinner and 3 times per week for lunch. The Westerdam had very poor quality food in both the restaurant and the buffet. I would expect much more from Holland America! Well, I have never heard anyone complain about all the meals on a HAL cruise the way you did, and after 2 (I know, not a lot) HAL cruises I thought the food was pretty good. Not gourmet, per se, but they have to feed a lot of people: there is a difference between feeding 100 and 2,000. Did you at any time complain about the quality of the food while you were on the ship? If I was that unhappy with the food and I had to endure it for a week I would have said something. It may not have accomplished much, but better to say something that to just complain afterwards. I was being a bit sarcastic that the Sizzlers you have gone to must have been really good to be better that HAL food. ;) You eat out every night? Just on vacation or pretty much all the time? That's amazing. You know, on formal night on the Amsterdam there was someone at our table that complained about the food, about how many cruises he has been on and that that was absolutely the worst surf and turf he had ever eaten! He was so obnoxious about it and basically implied that the rest of us - who were quite happy with our meals - had to be stupid and not used to better food because we did not agree with is superior judgment. Then he comes onto Cruise Critic after the cruise and posts that the food was actually pretty good on that cruise. Things that make you go 'huh?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MightyQuinn Posted July 16, 2008 #203 Share Posted July 16, 2008 TomXXX - HAL offers a premium mass market product & will come up short when compared to the more upscale offerings of luxury lines. They will always trump HAL on food, accommodation, enrichment programs and service. That's not to excuse HAL or to say that they never miss the mark. Given what you've reported, they may well have fallen short on your particular cruise. Hopefully you made such observations when aboard, so things could be fairly accessed. HAL is neither Sizzler nor Silverseas - but they're trying to do a decent job in the premium mass market. And they deliver not so badly IMHO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kryos Posted July 16, 2008 #204 Share Posted July 16, 2008 Well, I have never heard anyone complain about all the meals on a HAL cruise the way you did, and after 2 (I know, not a lot) HAL cruises I thought the food was pretty good. Not gourmet, per se, but they have to feed a lot of people: there is a difference between feeding 100 and 2,000. I liken eating in a HAL dining room as maybe Outback or Ruby Tuesday or TGIF quality food. Mass market, good food, but certainly not gourmet food. Now if you're talking the Pinnacle, there I would kick it up ... far higher than an Outback, maybe up to Ruth Chris quality? (I don't know because I don't normally eat at those "expensive" restaurants at home. But anyone who goes on a mass market cruise line (and, yes, while HAL may list itself as "premium," it is still mass market ... just at the higher end) thinking they are going to be dining on gourmet food every night is just kidding themselves and setting themselves up for disappointment. Maybe that's what the OP did? I go on a HAL ship not just for the food, but for the total package. As long as that total package continues to satisfy me, I'll make an effort to continue sailing HAL (please HAL, reconsider your decision to leave New York?!?!?!). When the overall HAL experience no longer satisfies me, that's when I will leave and move along to the cruise line that does. Blue skies ... --rita Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kryos Posted July 16, 2008 #205 Share Posted July 16, 2008 You know, on formal night on the Amsterdam there was someone at our table that complained about the food, about how many cruises he has been on and that that was absolutely the worst surf and turf he had ever eaten! He was so obnoxious about it and basically implied that the rest of us - who were quite happy with our meals - had to be stupid and not used to better food because we did not agree with is superior judgment. Then he comes onto Cruise Critic after the cruise and posts that the food was actually pretty good on that cruise. Things that make you go 'huh?" Don't feel bad. I ate with a woman for 30 days on one cruise ... and every single night she had complaints about the food. She was always sending stuff back saying she didn't like it and getting something else. The dining room staff, bless their hearts, always accommodated her. I wouldn't last in that job, because I would have eventually cursed her out. One night she actually ordered Mac and Cheese off the children's menu because she claimed she couldn't find a thing on the menu that appealed to her. Shame, I told her, as I cut off another piece of my delicious prime rib and popped it into my mouth. Blue skies ... --rita Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
usha Posted July 16, 2008 #206 Share Posted July 16, 2008 ...but HAL's mac & cheese is awesome!!!:D (okay, I get what you were saying:o ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MightyQuinn Posted July 16, 2008 #207 Share Posted July 16, 2008 ...but HAL's mac & cheese is awesome!!!:D (okay, I get what you were saying:o ) Apparently one of the new menu items on the Eurodam is......wait for it.....lobster mac & cheese. Now that's how you "luxe up" a mass market line!! Yum-yum ;);) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twinkletoes4445 Posted July 16, 2008 #208 Share Posted July 16, 2008 Food can be so subjective, but we had no problems with any of the food (quite the opposite, unfortunately!). You have to look at what you get for the money (and we were in an SA, so we spent what I consider a fair amount of money)...it's not just food. You get entertainment, your room...and you get to visit different ports. I wouldn't be surprised if the cruise lines are cutting back a bit on things, and maybe even quality of certain cuts of meats. I hate to see this happen, but the costs of these goods are rising so quickly, that something has to give. Just look at what's going on with the airlines. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CocoKai Posted July 16, 2008 #209 Share Posted July 16, 2008 I just off NCL, after 2 recent HAL cruises. I would have loved a nice Sizzler Steak. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Roz Posted July 16, 2008 #210 Share Posted July 16, 2008 Rita, I think I had that same woman at my table back in March! Complained every night, and ate mac 'n' cheese and chicken fingers off the children's menu. She cruises a lot, so it's not like she was unaware of what's on the menu. One night she made the comment, after observing the rest of us eating our "exotic" soups, salads, and entrees, "I don't eat like that at home". As though the rest of us do??? That's one of the reasons some of us cruise, to try different things, whether it's food or a shore excursion. Roz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twinkletoes4445 Posted July 16, 2008 #211 Share Posted July 16, 2008 One night she made the comment, after observing the rest of us eating our "exotic" soups, salads, and entrees, "I don't eat like that at home". As though the rest of us do??? That's one of the reasons some of us cruise, to try different things, whether it's food or a shore excursion. Roz I am really bad about ordering the same item over and over at a restaurant, however, when I am on a cruise, I love to try new things. I may like it, I may not, and like you say, that's the fun of cruising. And if by chance you don't like something, you can always order another item, or head to the Lido, or there's room service. It's not like I'll go hungry! :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lettienets Posted July 16, 2008 #212 Share Posted July 16, 2008 I just wish the Lido was a real buffet at dinner. Ordering off the menu is almost the same as the dining room. The buffets on RCCL are great at dinner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kakalina Posted July 16, 2008 #213 Share Posted July 16, 2008 Don't feel bad. I ate with a woman for 30 days on one cruise ... and every single night she had complaints about the food. She was always sending stuff back saying she didn't like it and getting something else. The dining room staff, bless their hearts, always accommodated her. I wouldn't last in that job, because I would have eventually cursed her out. One night she actually ordered Mac and Cheese off the children's menu because she claimed she couldn't find a thing on the menu that appealed to her. Shame, I told her, as I cut off another piece of my delicious prime rib and popped it into my mouth. Blue skies ... --rita I know who that is, na na na na na na, it wasn't me! :D :p Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikjr Posted July 16, 2008 #214 Share Posted July 16, 2008 TomXXX - HAL offers a premium mass market product & will come up short when compared to the more upscale offerings of luxury lines. They will always trump HAL on food, accommodation, enrichment programs and service. That's not to excuse HAL or to say that they never miss the mark. Given what you've reported, they may well have fallen short on your particular cruise. Hopefully you made such observations when aboard, so things could be fairly accessed. HAL is neither Sizzler nor Silverseas - but they're trying to do a decent job in the premium mass market. And they deliver not so badly IMHO. Mighty... I think you hit the nail on the head... you can't compare HAL, Princess, or Celebrity with Silverseas or Crystal. I don't expect Ruths Chris quality when I eat at Sizzler anymore than I would expect Crystal service on Celebrity or HAL. But, I do expect good tasting, good quality food and a quality experience overall. somethings are a hit... somethings are a miss, but there should be an overall balance to the cruise experience. Since our first HAL cruise is coming up in September, I will report back as to my personal comparison to Princess and Celebrity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kryos Posted July 16, 2008 #215 Share Posted July 16, 2008 I know who that is, na na na na na na, it wasn't me! :D :pNo, my friend ... it most definitely wasn't you. You were the breath of fresh air I ran to when I had had enough of her. :) Seriously, she wasn't a bad person ... and could actually be kind of fun ... but man, I never saw an eater as picky as her ... not in my entire life! Blue skies ... --rita Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kryos Posted July 16, 2008 #216 Share Posted July 16, 2008 I just off NCL, after 2 recent HAL cruises. I would have loved a nice Sizzler Steak.LOL ... now that's not saying much for the NCL food. :) Blue skies ... --rita Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kryos Posted July 16, 2008 #217 Share Posted July 16, 2008 Rita, I think I had that same woman at my table back in March! Complained every night, and ate mac 'n' cheese and chicken fingers off the children's menu. She cruises a lot, so it's not like she was unaware of what's on the menu. Yep! I forgot ... this woman did order chicken fingers one night too. Who knows? Maybe it was the same one. Mine cruises a lot too ... I think she's a TA now. But she's not nuts about HAL ... told me during the cruise that she really never liked HAL and only booked the cruise because HAL was the only cruise line doing that particular itinerary, which she really wanted to do. This girl was more a Carnival or RCL kinda gal. Maybe their food is better? Blue skies ... --rita Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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