My Experience Eating Lunch in the Dining Room at Embarkation Aboard the Sapphire

[Sandytoes]

Last year I wrote a letter to Princess asking if the dining room is open on embarkment day since it was a major issue here on the boards.
Plain and simple the answer was YES!!!

Sad OP needed to state they were "in transit" just to be seated.

~
What baffles my mind is how some people make it a BIG issue, come on how, you have the entire cruise to dine in the main dining room.
Is it so difficult to eat in the Horizion Court or grab a slice or two ;):p of their delicious pizza?
Is it the "need" to be served? :rolleyes:

[Northender]

Heck, I am just so excited to be on a Cruise, a quick lunch anywhere would suffice.:D The first place we head for is the bar for a glass of wine.
We make a toast and hope that the days go by very [I]sloooooow[/I].:cool:

For those who would like the Dining Room tho, it should not be this hard to be seated.:)

[Cruisin Oma]

[quote name='spingal']

Someday!! :D This year we expanded to New Mexico and Colorado. Indy and Kansas City are on the list for next year!
[/QUOTE]
Sorry to horn in spingal, but just curious

Is that expanded [B]BACK[/b] into Colorado? I worked at the "Jack" on the SDSU campus when I was in college (that's over 20 years ago, so it may not be there) but I used to go to Jack In the Box all the time when I was growing up in CO. (It was our closest Fast food and we could walk to it in Jr High.) It was my first kind of "independence". I am too old and too overweight that I should not be eating there any longer, but it is still my "guilty" pleasure. I think it goes back to those jr high memories!

[spingal]

[quote name='Cruisin Oma']Sorry to horn in spingal, but just curious

Is that expanded [B]BACK[/b] into Colorado? I worked at the "Jack" on the SDSU campus when I was in college (that's over 20 years ago, so it may not be there) but I used to go to Jack In the Box all the time when I was growing up in CO. (It was our closest Fast food and we could walk to it in Jr High.) It was my first kind of "independence". I am too old and too overweight that I should not be eating there any longer, but it is still my "guilty" pleasure. I think it goes back to those jr high memories![/QUOTE]

You are correct.....it is back to Colorado. I joined the company 7 years ago -- after we had closed the restaurants in Colorado. So I always forget that some of these "new" markets aren't really "new".

I think that Jack in the Box by SDSU is still there!!! And yes our food is a guilty pleasure -- one I try to stay away from. I tend to eat our salads and the Chicken Fajita Pita. And the tacos aren't too bad -- which was very surprising to me. Tacos - YUM!!! :D

[spingal]

[quote name='Sandytoes']Is it the "need" to be served? :rolleyes:[/QUOTE]

No - it is the need not to be part of the mad crush of Horizon Court. Everytime I have gone to Horizon Court on boarding day, the lines are long, there is no place to sit and multiple crew staff come to the table to sell soda cards, etc. Compare this to the peace and quiet of a wonderful meal in the MDR. :D

This is the one day (if not the only day) I eat lunch in the MDR. I respect your decision to eat elsewhere. I hope you can respect my decision to eat in the MDR since it is a service Princess has communicated is available. The traditions we each use to start our fabulous cruises are different for everyone. That is why the old saying.........different strokes for different folks. :)

[FritzG]

[quote name='spingal']No - it is the need not to be part of the mad crush of Horizon Court. Everytime I have gone to Horizon Court on boarding day, the lines are long, there is no place to sit and multiple crew staff come to the table to sell soda cards, etc. Compare this to the peace and quiet of a wonderful meal in the MDR. :D

This is the one day (if not the only day) I eat lunch in the MDR. I respect your decision to eat elsewhere. I hope you can respect my decision to eat in the MDR since it is a service Princess has communicated is available. The traditions we each use to start our fabulous cruises are different for everyone. That is why the old saying.........different strokes for different folks. :)[/QUOTE]

Well said!

[Cruisin Oma]

[quote name='spingal']Tacos - YUM!!! :D[/QUOTE]

That is exactly what I am talking about!!!! And not the healthier Monster taco either. No I love those 2 for a buck greasy things. I would never eat anything that greasy normally!!! But there is something about those tacos that makes them so much better then Taco Bell tacos!

When I was in college I lived on the taco salads. Much healthier - which is wierd, because back then I could have afforded the calories. OKay lets face it - that kind of grease is never good for you! Back then my biggest sin was to add ranch dressing to the salsa in the salad! Who would figure 15 years later Hidden Valley would come out with a dessing that does the same thing!

Funny to hear that the Jack is still on Campus. My DH worked at Mc D when he was a kid. Funny how we both have fond memories. I know one thing - that place was clean as a whistle. Do I remember it was a corp store???

[Sandytoes]

[quote name='spingal']This is the one day (if not the only day) I eat lunch in the MDR. I respect your decision to eat elsewhere. I hope you can respect my decision to eat in the MDR since it is a service Princess has communicated is available. The traditions we each use to start our fabulous cruises are different for everyone. That is why the old saying.........different strokes for different folks. :)[/quote]It doesn't matter whether I agreed or disagreed with you.
You can eat anywhere you please. It has nothing to do with respect.
I really don't care where or what I eat as soon as I board.
I'm just excited to set foot on the ship. I am one happy cruizer :p
Sad that those who get turned down in the MDR for lunch, start their cruise on a sour note.
I could go on and on, but I think you get the drift.

[AAAAmerican]

[B][COLOR="Navy"]
Maam,

Selection is choice. An ability of most and to voice.

Going up (( IMHO )) to the passenger PinBall Bumper Buffet ..now without A Que nor even a tray.. then not being able to find a seat nor a table un-filled to even share makes it a very well known care.


I wonder when the two bit, 25 c, Comedians will talk about that one and not the Soap in the Shower Spin...:eek:


Having served meals is best now, before and I do hope later more...




[/COLOR][/B]




[quote name='Sandytoes']It doesn't matter whether I agreed or disagreed with you.
You can eat anywhere you please. It has nothing to do with respect.
I really don't care where or what I eat as soon as I board.
I'm just excited to set foot on the ship. I am one happy cruizer :p
Sad that those who get turned down in the MDR for lunch, start their cruise on a sour note.
I could go on and on, but I think you get the drift.[/QUOTE]

[Murphey]

We like lunch in the dining room on embarkation day, because that's usually the only day we are properly dressed to enjoy the dining room at lunch time!!!! :)

[aaerobear]

A few pages back someone mentioned that they saw a large group in the DR and were told they were Travel Agents. This is always a major problem for turnaround days.

 

Some Princess sales-rep sends out a letter to a whole bunch of local travel agents and asks them to take a tour of the ship and enjoy lunch. BINGO!! The word "lunch" hooks them, they are not interested in the tour, rarely even go to the cabins being shown, but head right to the DR for a free meal.

 

Now you know why on some days they do not encourage REAL passengers to go to the DR.

[rcacace]

When I questioned them one time about the people eating lunch in the DR they told me that they were holding a private meeting at the time. Possibly they were TA's also?

[gloriajean]

We are sailing on Aug. 4th. We prefer the dining room for lunch. The last cruise we were on NCL and the buffet on embarkation was an absolute nightmare and very frustrating. I try to go with the flow on vacation and be glad I'm there, but it would be nice to get on, get my reservations set up for things I want to do and then go sit down without a huge crowd and eat lunch.

 

Anyone on the CB lately try to eat lunch in the dining room? Did you have an issue and which dining room was it served in? Thanks!

[RickEk]

We are sailing on Aug. 4th. We prefer the dining room for lunch. The last cruise we were on NCL and the buffet on embarkation was an absolute nightmare and very frustrating. I try to go with the flow on vacation and be glad I'm there, but it would be nice to get on, get my reservations set up for things I want to do and then go sit down without a huge crowd and eat lunch.

 

Anyone on the CB lately try to eat lunch in the dining room? Did you have an issue and which dining room was it served in? Thanks!

 

Yes, as I mentioned before in this thread, we sailed on the Caribbean Princess on 6/29 and had a great meal in the Coral dining room on embarkation day. They were serving lunch between 12pm and 1:30pm. No problems at all, the menu was posted, there was a head waiter seating folks and it was all business as usual. Our waiter was named Gabriella and she provided us with excellent service!

[gloriajean]

Sorry I missed your posting about the CB. I tried to read all 9 pages, but somehow missed it.:o

[RickEk]

Sorry I missed your posting about the CB. I tried to read all 9 pages, but somehow missed it.:o

 

s'allright...:)

[cruzendude]

You are completely correct on this point.

Princess however should never had issued a press release stating that lunch could be enjoyed on embarkation day if they did not intend to see it through.

 

What needs to happen is for a bunch of folks to raise holy hell with the corporate office.....it is totally unacceptable for every officer on these ships to KNOW the policy and tell pax to lie to the MDR staff just to get something that is supposed to be standard onboard....:rolleyes:

 

The inmates are truly running the asylum on Princess...:mad:

[cruzendude]

You are correct.....it is back to Colorado. I joined the company 7 years ago -- after we had closed the restaurants in Colorado. So I always forget that some of these "new" markets aren't really "new".

 

I think that Jack in the Box by SDSU is still there!!! And yes our food is a guilty pleasure -- one I try to stay away from. I tend to eat our salads and the Chicken Fajita Pita. And the tacos aren't too bad -- which was very surprising to me. Tacos - YUM!!! :D

 

I agree...those dog food looking, mystery meat tacos are AWESOME!!! First time I had one 30 years ago I thought the meat looked a little sketchy but damn they sure taste good!!

 

Speaking of Jack in the Crack 30 years ago....what was up with them getting busted sellin kangaroo meat as beef???? Maybe the roo is what makes the tacos so good! :eek: :p

[gloriajean]

A few pages back someone mentioned that they saw a large group in the DR and were told they were Travel Agents. This is always a major problem for turnaround days.

 

Some Princess sales-rep sends out a letter to a whole bunch of local travel agents and asks them to take a tour of the ship and enjoy lunch. BINGO!! The word "lunch" hooks them, they are not interested in the tour, rarely even go to the cabins being shown, but head right to the DR for a free meal.

 

Now you know why on some days they do not encourage REAL passengers to go to the DR.

 

I am not sure why you have that perception of travel agents. Having been one a few years back for many years, I have to tell you I never took a tour of a ship just for the "free" lunch. I was always interested in seeing all the categories of cabins so that I could honestly tell a potential customer all about them. My boss loved to send me on trips because I came back well-educated about where he sent me and was able to give our customers a real feel for wherever it was they were looking to go. I lived about 2 1/2 hours and $30 worth of tolls away from the pier. Do you really think I would spend that amount of money and time just for a lunch??

[Alaskalovers]

You are correct.....it is back to Colorado. I joined the company 7 years ago -- after we had closed the restaurants in Colorado. So I always forget that some of these "new" markets aren't really "new".

 

I think that Jack in the Box by SDSU is still there!!! And yes our food is a guilty pleasure -- one I try to stay away from. I tend to eat our salads and the Chicken Fajita Pita. And the tacos aren't too bad -- which was very surprising to me. Tacos - YUM!!! :D

 

Spingal, Is there any possible way jack can come to Alaska. We will make sure he stays warm. My DH and I carry Jack Cash with us at all times when we travel outside of Alaska. It is the first thing we hit when we are in Seattle or Las Vegas. I grew up with Jack in So California and do so love those mystery Tacos and Sourdough Jacks. I have written corporate a couple of years ago and they said they have no plans to come to Alaska but if you came you would have to stay open 24/7 for the amount of patrons that you would get. Please Please Please Jack come to Alaska.:p

[aaerobear]

I have been in the travel/transportation business for 45 years, I stand by my statement.

[sultan_sfo]

I agree with you.

 

We don't care about "Embarkation Day Lunch". But on one of our cruises out of SF we boarded very early -- first batch. And we saw a bunch of folks with deck plans and brochures and we followed them out of curiosity and ended up in the dining room. We joined a pair of travel agents. And they were definitely not there because of the free lunch but to look around the then "New" Island Princess. A senior Princess Marketing person was also there with them. And we found 2 tables away our own TA. They were all excited not only to be on the ship but also to know the other TAs. The menu was a simple one with a choice of only 2 appetizers, 2 entrees, and just ice cream.

 

 

...

My boss loved to send me on trips because I came back well-educated about where he sent me and was able to give our customers a real feel for wherever it was they were looking to go. I lived about 2 1/2 hours and $30 worth of tolls away from the pier. Do you really think I would spend that amount of money and time just for a lunch??

[cruzendude]

I have been in the travel/transportation business for 45 years, I stand by my statement.

 

I stand by you standing by your statement! :p

[spingal]

Spingal, Is there any possible way jack can come to Alaska. We will make sure he stays warm. My DH and I carry Jack Cash with us at all times when we travel outside of Alaska. It is the first thing we hit when we are in Seattle or Las Vegas. I grew up with Jack in So California and do so love those mystery Tacos and Sourdough Jacks. I have written corporate a couple of years ago and they said they have no plans to come to Alaska but if you came you would have to stay open 24/7 for the amount of patrons that you would get. Please Please Please Jack come to Alaska.:p

 

Someday!!! I wish we could open restaurants for you immediately!! And I know you would keep Jack warm! :D

 

So glad to hear that you carry Jack's Cash cards! :D

[spingal]

I agree...those dog food looking, mystery meat tacos are AWESOME!!! First time I had one 30 years ago I thought the meat looked a little sketchy but damn they sure taste good!!

 

Speaking of Jack in the Crack 30 years ago....what was up with them getting busted sellin kangaroo meat as beef???? Maybe the roo is what makes the tacos so good! :eek: :p

 

Kangaroo!?!? I guarantee that we don't serve "roo" in our tacos!! They are a soy and beef mixture. So yummy!!!!! Glad you like them!!:D