How many appetizers and entrees do you eat?

[petesweet]

In case there are those reading this thread who have not yet cruised, maybe it would be good to explain something.

You are certainly free to order what you want (and I hope you would not order something and waste it). However, it is a kindness to your serving team to order at the appropriate time. They have a "flow" to the service, and it helps them if they can bring your two appetizers, or two entrees, or two desserts or whatever at the same time. In order words, IF YOU KNOW you are going to want two appetizers, order them both at the same time; don't eat one and then order the second. Now, you won't always know you want a second one, and this is not a law set in stone. You can certainly feel free in that case to ask for another one. But if you do know, it's considerate of the wait staff.

Happy voyages and happy eating!!:D

[Sabbo]

It just depend on the menu. Some times the appetizers look really good and I will order 2 or 3 and have less entree. I do find myself ordering less towards the end of the cruise. I seems like I just can't stuff anymore down.

[Lil Davy]

I'm getting hungry just thinking about this thread now...and yet I have 38 days left...:(

[CruisinManiac]

I use to order one of each course, until they started combining the appetizer (including soups) and salads. Now, I choose one or the other plus my entree' and then dessert. By the time I eat the bread, and have my appetizer, I am stuffed to the gills anyway. :eek:

[andynlala]

Multiple appetizers and entrees, I think it's called over-eating, an unfortunate American phenomenon. Did anyone see the statistics this week about the cost of over-eating in this country? An overweight person costs our medical system an average of an additional $1,400 per person per year compared to someone of normal weight. That unfortunately, hits us all in the pocketbook.

 

Keep in mind that most people don't eat like this on a regular basis. I know that for myself, part of the cruising experiance is the food, and being able to try new things. Now if people ate this way all the time....Ugh :eek:

 

As for the original question....as much as I can fit in my belly, plus a little extra. I'd hate to have to order room service in the middle of the night because I got hungry!! MMMM...Lobster night!! I can taste it already!

[63galaxie]

We always order something different from what we all got and pass it around so we all get to try it. Sometimes there's something I just want to taste and this works out well. If you don't mind sharing-we do all use a clean fork or spoon to take our bite. We do this for each course.

I'm crusing with your group!

My immediate family always does this, but my DH hates it when I eat off of his or anyone else's plate!!

I've always wished they would just have a sampler plate with one bite of everything on the menu!!!

[wanderlust79]

I am always tempted to order more than one appetizer or entree, but I am never able to eat that much. So instead I make sure I order something different than my husband and then we share food. It's a pretty good system for us, but I still kind of wish I had room for more food!!! :D

[shelby_36]

Personally I can't eat one entree neverless two. I get a salad and an entree and sometimes dessert. My sons never get appis but they will sometimes order them and give them to my husband. This trip for the first time my son ordered two steaks. He doesn't eat his veggies and never gets appis and rarely gets dessert so I didn't feel bad about that.

 

I feel guilty ordering too much and then not eating it. The waste. If your going to eat it - go fo it.

 

Our last trip we must not have been ordering enough because our waiter started bringing out extra appi. for us to try.

[gerif]

I've found that the portions in the MDR have been getting smaller and smaller over the years so have no problem ordering an appetizer, soup, entree (often with an order of steamed veggies - they've really cut back on veggies) and dessert (usually with a side of ice cream) each night. I never eat the bread and since most days I have salad for lunch, skip that as well. I do try to hit the gym every morning and do a LOT of walking in ports, so rarely gain more that 5 lbs. which comes off within the first week home.

 

I certainly never judge others who order a lot - as long as they eat what they order, can't stand people being wasteful. I feed my cat sitter several times a week - she is quite thin but can eat more than DH and me put together, so it's not about gluttony or overweight people, some people just require more "fuel" to even maintain.

[EBFURR]

Ok boys & girls, please don't flame me too bad for this - I am just telling a true story. I am not endorsing this or promoting it, but it fits this thread, I think.

 

We have a friend that cruises with us, we will call him Matt (because his name is Matt :D). Matt LOVES seafood. He prefers it to anything else, although I never really saw him turn anything down. Matt is in his 20's and works very hard at a manual labor job (Heating & A/C) and gets lots of excercise. Back in 2005 Matt took his first cruise with us on the Mariner and when lobster night rolled around he was in heaven. The waiter saw how much he enjoyed the lobster and kept bringing more. He ate seven that night.

 

We booked onboard for the following year and Matt talked about the lobster all year long. On the first night, he asked our waiters the most lobster tails they had seen anyone eat. They asked around and the next night they said the consensus seemed to be twelve. Matt says "I am going to eat 13." All week long the waiters kidded him about it and it got to be a bit of a legend on our side of the dining room, especially among the staff. Matt told our waiter that RCI was going to have to put his picture on the menu after this cruise.

 

Lobster night came after the port of Cozumel and we all had a very good time that day, which continued on the pool deck at sail away. When we went back to our cabin, Matt was still on the deck nursing a Dos Equis. At dinner, we were seated and there was no Matt. shortly, he arrived, red faced and huffing. He had gone to sleep on the pool deck and almost missed the big event! The waiter brought him two right away and the feast was officially under way. We began to notice other waiters hanging around near our table watching the fesitivties. Matt was eating the lobster AND the shrimp that was on the plates. After the first six or seven, they stopped bringing the shrimp and just brought the lobster tails. He easily reached the dozen mark and kept going. After all the dust settled, the final tally was 15 lobster tails. There was no food wasted, it all went to feed a hungry boy.

 

The following year we kidded him about it again, but the wait staff that year was not into it so much and actually acted like they might get in trouble, so he "limited" it to eight. He has never attempted to match or break his "record" again.

 

Matt never really overindulges except for lobster night. It is actually fun to see someone enjoy something so much. As he is eating, he will sometimes say "this is pure bliss." I, myself, have never eaten more than one, but they are very good.

 

Again, not to endorse overeating, but a splurge once in a while is not such a terrible thing. There are much worse things that good food one can over indulge. We do think you should eat what you order and not waste food.

[tip]

You don't get THAT with freestyle dining! Chalk up one more plus for traditional dining.:D

 

In your haste to knock "Anytime Dining" or as you call it "Freestyle Dining", you may not be speaking from a viewpoint of knowledge. When we were on the Independence of the Seas in February, it was our first experience with Anytime Dining. We had the same waitstaff each evening and the service was the best we have ever experienced! They remembered that we did not do rolls and starches and brought us out extra steamed veggies every night!:)

[petesweet]

In your haste to knock "Anytime Dining" or as you call it "Freestyle Dining", you may not be speaking from a viewpoint of knowledge. When we were on the Independence of the Seas in February, it was our first experience with Anytime Dining. We had the same waitstaff each evening and the service was the best we have ever experienced! They remembered that we did not do rolls and starches and brought us out extra steamed veggies every night!:)

 

You're right. If you get the same wait staff, you can get the same experience. And I'm really not knocking it - it's just that I truly enjoy the traditional dining experience. You'll see I have another NCL cruise in two months and another planned for next year.

Don't you just love those wonderful waiters?:) Kathy

[BroncosFan2010]

I have had 2 appetizers, but that is about it. My father has been known to order 2-3 appetizers, and 2 entrees. On lobster night, he ordered 2 lobsters and the steak dinner.

[mojitodiva]

Escargot - 2

 

Shrimp Cocktail - 2

 

Lobster - 3 (the Lobster now a days is small so 3 really counts as 1) :eek:

 

 

:rolleyes::):p:cool:

[crischickie]

A few years back we cruised Hawaii on the NCL Star with DS who was in the Army at the time. Very active and very fit! NCL had "freestyle dining. DS enjoyed dining early and we preferred late dining. We would have soup and salad with him early and then have our entre's later. DS would eat 2-3 entre's early and then 2-3 more when we ate later. DS is not a soup and salad person so he only ate entre's.

 

That was an advantage over traditional dining.

[Water Lilly]

I was wondering since you do order two lobsters which ship and line were you on? Our cousin just returned from RCL doing the Alaska cruise and they were limited to one lobster each. My husband and I will be on the Carnival Miracle in September and this will be our third time on this ship and we couldn't remember if we were limited to one lobster last year.

[will work to cruise]

On our Mariner cruise I often ordered 2 apps and sometimes 2 entrees. I can't understand why I gained 10 lbs. that weeks. :rolleyes:

[mattshwink]

I was wondering since you do order two lobsters which ship and line were you on? Our cousin just returned from RCL doing the Alaska cruise and they were limited to one lobster each. My husband and I will be on the Carnival Miracle in September and this will be our third time on this ship and we couldn't remember if we were limited to one lobster last year.

 

We were on Radiance last year (May, Alaskan Itinerary) and no one at our table was limited.

[smoosh21]

Food is one thing I look forward to on the cruise. I've never been bashful when it comes to dinner in the MDR. If something looks tempting, I order it. Even if that means ordering 2 or 3 appetizers and 2 or 3 entrees.

 

I'm not a glutton by any means (but I can eat quite a bit sometimes), but I just think cruising gives me an opportunity to try things that I typically wouldn't try at a normal dinner in a restaurant.

 

Does anyone else do this?

 

I eat one/one/one unless something looks really good I might order a second app. I don't think I have ever ordered 2 entrees.

[jen-ja-fer]

The menus now say there are only 3 courses, but I still have 4 or more if there's a salad and an appetizer I really want to try.

 

I can't ever remember ordering two of the same thing however.

[hazeleyez3]

I was wondering since you do order two lobsters which ship and line were you on? Our cousin just returned from RCL doing the Alaska cruise and they were limited to one lobster each. My husband and I will be on the Carnival Miracle in September and this will be our third time on this ship and we couldn't remember if we were limited to one lobster last year.

 

 

I've been on the Mariner and the Independence. I think my husband had 2 on the Mariner and at least 2 on the Independence (he was offered a 3rd just can't remember if he took it).

 

I know my husband has 2 lobsters on Carnival Imagination and Valor, but that was a few years ago. Don't know if that has changed.

[Garyorient]

. We do think you should eat what you order and not waste food.

 

That is actually the crux of this thread.

 

Over indulging on holiday is aonce/twice/three times a year luxury, but ordering for the sheer hell of it and not eating it is nothing short of criminal and is truly my pet hate.

 

I have the added problem in October. After 7 nights on the Mariner (Lobster Tails 'n All) I go to Vegas for 5 nights buffets.

 

I have lost 70lb so far this year.

Expect 68 of them to go back on in a 12 day period

HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[temple1]

That is actually the crux of this thread.

 

Over indulging on holiday is aonce/twice/three times a year luxury, but ordering for the sheer hell of it and not eating it is nothing short of criminal and is truly my pet hate.

 

I have the added problem in October. After 7 nights on the Mariner (Lobster Tails 'n All) I go to Vegas for 5 nights buffets.

 

I have lost 70lb so far this year.

Expect 68 of them to go back on in a 12 day period

HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

I have to agree about wasting food. That drives me crazy - I really hate it when people allow their children to get all kinds of food and not eat it, instead of getting just little tastes.

 

Congrats on the weight loss, I found it. :o

[Garyorient]

 

Congrats on the weight loss, I found it. :o

 

Great choice of phrase.

I've not heard that one before.

DW thought it was most amusing;)

[temple1]

Thanks, I don't know how original it is. Just don't use it when you are standing next to someone who really should drop 40+ more. :eek: (If you know what I mean)