Oosterdam: The Good, The Bad and the Ugly

[BaltiGator]

A Brief Review / August 2010, Alaska


No worries HAL devotees! Our cruise was excellent and lots of fun. The “bad” and “ugly” categories are mostly because I wanted a goofy thread title. But I will throw a few minor criticisms out there.

The Good

Let’s start with the food. I am a self-proclaimed foodie, and I was more than satisfied. Yes I know how pretentious the word “foodie” can sound. It IS pretentious. And let’s face it - it can’t be easy to prepare haute cuisine for hundreds or thousands of people every night on a cruise ship. But when the steamed mussels are served in a delicate white wine broth, and the filet mignon is topped by juicy tiger shrimp, what’s not to like? Meals in the main dining room were darned tasty, and the Pinnacle Grill was simply superb. The Canaletto was also decent, if not quite on the same level as the other venues. But try not to miss their Tiramisu Trio. I don’t love tiramisu, but even I wanted to lick the little serving dishes.

Our cabin, a superior verandah suite, was plenty comfortable. It’s not really a suite - HAL needs a less confusing name for these spacious cabins - but we had more storage than stuff to fill it with, and we had both a shower and a shower tub…which meant both people could shower at the same time! (This works better for spouses/partners or at least good friends, since you can see each other through the clear glass separator.) We also had two sinks and acres of counter surface. With so much bathroom space, we almost felt like inviting others in just to share it with us! We also enjoyed a big balcony with a table and chairs plus two lounges, quiet nights for sleeping, and perfectly functional plumbing and air conditioning. Two of our traveling mates had an inside cabin, which was reasonably spacious and accommodated their needs well.

The service onboard was sterling. Classic HAL. Smiling faces, always eager to please. Problems addressed pronto. Nothing more to say here.

The dress code was a non-issue. On the first formal night, maybe 75% of the pax dressed up. Second formal night, maybe 50%. But some of the women were getting away with fashion murder, wearing casual black pants and a colorful top as "formal" attire. (And in some cases a scarf for that extra Alaskan touch!) Our group stuck to “smart casual” attire, dined at Canaletto, and fit right in everywhere on the ship.

The Bad

The coffee in the Lido remains unfit to drink, IMO. Even your great-grandfather who lost his taste buds in the war would gag. Your cat too. It’s just…yuk.

(Disclaimer: I do not advocate serving coffee to cats. Not even really good coffee like Tully’s, although discerning felines might appreciate the effort. Best to keep Kitty healthy with plenty of water and a few Alaskan salmon treats. Oh wait, someone already ate all the treats! Darn those delicious, tragically-fated pink fish!)

The equipment in the gym was not in great condition. Between the half of stuff that wasn’t fully functional and the other half that was packed with people, I ended up getting a better workout running back and forth trying to find an open machine. Okay, okay, I exaggerate. But there’s no denying the gym equipment needs some upgrading and better maintenance.

Service in the Canaletto was…confused. It didn’t seem that any of the staff knew quite what to do from one minute to the next. Plates were left on the table long after a course was over. The timing between courses was sometimes painfully long. But at least everyone was always smiling. And that Trio of Tiramisu made everything better.

The Ugly

The frequent sales pitches got a little annoying. We’ve only been on HAL twice so we’re not sure if this is a recent phenomenon. It’s certainly not as bad as some other mass lines. But why did it seem as if every encounter with staff, every otherwise innocent interaction, was twisted into a chance to sell us something? Can’t a person ask a gym staffer a question without being prompted to sign up for some extra-cost class? Can’t a person enjoy a cocktail or two without being urged (five times in three days, and at length) to sign up for the absurd “pub crawl” thingy? Wouldn’t it have been nicer if the cruise director’s announcements didn’t all sound like commercials (and if he sounded less like a cheesy game show host)? Even when we bought stuff, it felt like we were being pushed to buy more! I know this is not exclusive to HAL. I just hope it doesn’t get much worse.

Miscellaneous

Overall the ship is in very good shape despite being nearly 10 years old. I believe she has undergone one major renovation already. The bedding was comfortable, the carpets were clean and public spaces were in fine condition. The décor is not especially to our liking (too many bright colors) but we found it less assaulting than the Noordam (but both ships feature an abundance of outstanding artwork). Our balcony furniture was grungy, but that’s been our experience on most ships. We only saw one elevator out of service, and only for a few hours. Loved the glass elevators changing colors at night. And the HAL staff at the Seattle pier were great. One of our companions lost her passport (yikes!) but they made it work so she could board the ship anyway. One night the PG menu was completely different. It was called Le Cirque, based on a French restaurant in New York. I’m surprised there haven’t been threads about this yet. We enjoyed the meal, although the cover fee jumped to $35 that night.

A few minor imperfections aside, we had a wonderful cruise and highly recommend the Oosterdam.

I’ll be happy to answer any questions.

[IRL_Joanie]

Thank you for the review and welcome home!!

Good to hear that my favorite (so far) HAL ship is till doing well.

Canaletto is a new addition since I cruised on her May 2008...

I, like yourself, consider the food on Oosterdam quite tasty. And I am not ashamed yo say I am a foodie:D

Welcome home!!

Sorry if any typos, meds kicked in and spell check does not work well in my state (of medicated mind:D)

Joanie

[RuthC]

You didn't mention entertainment. Do you have anything to say on that topic? Especially about the lounge acts.
Thanks.

[TracieABD]

Thanks for the review...
Never, never feed coffee to cats. It steals their snarky edge and turns them perky (like golden retriever puppies)-- a decidedly cool cat feature!

[JeffCoud]

Good job! Good sense of humor!! You had me at "Darn those delicious, tragically-fated pink fish!" lol....but I got a good sense of what you liked, didn't like and why.

[Barocl]

Glad you enjoyed your cruise. Who was your cruise director? My wife agrees with you about the horrible tasting coffee. I don't drink coffee so I don't have a opinion. Take care.

[SwissMyst]

When you used ugly and Oosterdam in the same sentence I was waiting to hear your reactions to the decor, because that was her weakness primarily in the color scheme and bilious carpeting. One quirky thing about the Oosterdam are her badly painted "blue boy benches" which seemed more than a little tacky and out of place because HAL decor is a little more restrained and undertated, if anything.

Yet we saw those same large plaster cast benches on the Zuiderdam and they had their original colors which while quite colorful were muted to almost an antique patina which played off the reds and burgundies of the Zuiderdam casting the whole effect was far more pleasing than the exact same elements on the Oosterdam. (And who knows, they may be on the Noordam and the Westerdam too).

The Zuiderdam clicked with us better than the Oosterdam for just these few silly reasons but both were fine cruises and we did like the short 7 day Mexican Riviera cruise a lot more than we expected, being native Californians ourselves thinking there wouldn't be much new to see. But it was a very nice trip with just enough difference between our Upper California and Lower California coasts.

[dobiemom]

BaltiGator, thanks for you review. Can you tell me what was on the Le Cirque menu?

[Krazy Kruizers]

Welcome Home

[matondo]

Thank you for the review. We will be boarding the Oosterdam for the first time in November. We have already been on the Zuiderdam and Westerdam. After this cruise we will only have one more dam Vista ship to go and we will have sailed them all!!!

[portofrome]

Thank you for the review.

[PirateShark]

Thanks for the insight on the Oosterdam. Now, I just have to get through two more painfully long weeks until we get to cruise on her.

[solocanadian]

A Brief Review / August 2010, Alaska


No worries HAL devotees! Our cruise was excellent and lots of fun. The “bad” and “ugly” categories are mostly because I wanted a goofy thread title. But I will throw a few minor criticisms out there.

The Good

Let’s start with the food. I am a self-proclaimed foodie, and I was more than satisfied. Yes I know how pretentious the word “foodie” can sound. It IS pretentious. And let’s face it - it can’t be easy to prepare haute cuisine for hundreds or thousands of people every night on a cruise ship. But when the steamed mussels are served in a delicate white wine broth, and the filet mignon is topped by juicy tiger shrimp, what’s not to like? Meals in the main dining room were darned tasty, and the Pinnacle Grill was simply superb. The Canaletto was also decent, if not quite on the same level as the other venues. But try not to miss their Tiramisu Trio. I don’t love tiramisu, but even I wanted to lick the little serving dishes.

Our cabin, a superior verandah suite, was plenty comfortable. It’s not really a suite - HAL needs a less confusing name for these spacious cabins - but we had more storage than stuff to fill it with, and we had both a shower and a shower tub…which meant both people could shower at the same time! (This works better for spouses/partners or at least good friends, since you can see each other through the clear glass separator.) We also had two sinks and acres of counter surface. With so much bathroom space, we almost felt like inviting others in just to share it with us! We also enjoyed a big balcony with a table and chairs plus two lounges, quiet nights for sleeping, and perfectly functional plumbing and air conditioning. Two of our traveling mates had an inside cabin, which was reasonably spacious and accommodated their needs well.

The service onboard was sterling. Classic HAL. Smiling faces, always eager to please. Problems addressed pronto. Nothing more to say here.

The dress code was a non-issue. On the first formal night, maybe 75% of the pax dressed up. Second formal night, maybe 50%. But some of the women were getting away with fashion murder, wearing casual black pants and a colorful top as "formal" attire. (And in some cases a scarf for that extra Alaskan touch!) Our group stuck to “smart casual” attire, dined at Canaletto, and fit right in everywhere on the ship.

The Bad

The coffee in the Lido remains unfit to drink, IMO. Even your great-grandfather who lost his taste buds in the war would gag. Your cat too. It’s just…yuk.

(Disclaimer: I do not advocate serving coffee to cats. Not even really good coffee like Tully’s, although discerning felines might appreciate the effort. Best to keep Kitty healthy with plenty of water and a few Alaskan salmon treats. Oh wait, someone already ate all the treats! Darn those delicious, tragically-fated pink fish!)

The equipment in the gym was not in great condition. Between the half of stuff that wasn’t fully functional and the other half that was packed with people, I ended up getting a better workout running back and forth trying to find an open machine. Okay, okay, I exaggerate. But there’s no denying the gym equipment needs some upgrading and better maintenance.

Service in the Canaletto was…confused. It didn’t seem that any of the staff knew quite what to do from one minute to the next. Plates were left on the table long after a course was over. The timing between courses was sometimes painfully long. But at least everyone was always smiling. And that Trio of Tiramisu made everything better.

The Ugly

The frequent sales pitches got a little annoying. We’ve only been on HAL twice so we’re not sure if this is a recent phenomenon. It’s certainly not as bad as some other mass lines. But why did it seem as if every encounter with staff, every otherwise innocent interaction, was twisted into a chance to sell us something? Can’t a person ask a gym staffer a question without being prompted to sign up for some extra-cost class? Can’t a person enjoy a cocktail or two without being urged (five times in three days, and at length) to sign up for the absurd “pub crawl” thingy? Wouldn’t it have been nicer if the cruise director’s announcements didn’t all sound like commercials (and if he sounded less like a cheesy game show host)? Even when we bought stuff, it felt like we were being pushed to buy more! I know this is not exclusive to HAL. I just hope it doesn’t get much worse.

Miscellaneous

Overall the ship is in very good shape despite being nearly 10 years old. I believe she has undergone one major renovation already. The bedding was comfortable, the carpets were clean and public spaces were in fine condition. The décor is not especially to our liking (too many bright colors) but we found it less assaulting than the Noordam (but both ships feature an abundance of outstanding artwork). Our balcony furniture was grungy, but that’s been our experience on most ships. We only saw one elevator out of service, and only for a few hours. Loved the glass elevators changing colors at night. And the HAL staff at the Seattle pier were great. One of our companions lost her passport (yikes!) but they made it work so she could board the ship anyway. One night the PG menu was completely different. It was called Le Cirque, based on a French restaurant in New York. I’m surprised there haven’t been threads about this yet. We enjoyed the meal, although the cover fee jumped to $35 that night.

A few minor imperfections aside, we had a wonderful cruise and highly recommend the Oosterdam.

I’ll be happy to answer any questions.
Thanks for posting and glad you enjoyed your cruise. Have to agree with you about the Lido coffee. Would like to know what was on the La Cirque menu. Don't think this was offered on her April 24 sailing and I ate in the PG twice for dinner and once for lunch. Didn't try Canaletto.:D

[Copper10-8]

Good stuff, Baltigator! Enjoyed reading it!

[BaltiGator]

Thank you all for the replies and the "welcome backs." It's always nice to hear from others, and it helps ease the transition back to "dry land."

Regarding entertainment...my apologies for not mentioning it, but we don't tend to take in much entertainment on a cruise ship. I can tell you that two of the lounge acts were very good - the string quartet and the jazz trio. Both played in the same location just about every night - the string quartet in the Explorer's Lounge just forward of the dining room on deck 2, and the jazz trio on the starboard side of the Ocean Bar on deck 3. We really liked the jazz trio and because of the open atrium could enjoy them from our usual perch in the Pinnacle Bar one deck below. To enjoy the strings you really had to be in that lounge. They had a pretty large following every night. I think the Hal Kats (if that's the correct name) were usually playing in the Queen's Lounge (which is really more like a small auditorium where they also do culinary arts presentations during the day). They seemed to have a nice crowd too, but we only passed through. There was only one "hired" evening act that I was aware of, a magician/comedian who some people reported as being pretty good. The other "shows" were mostly "in-house" productions. No one we spoke to seemed to think they were anything special.

I don't remember the cruise director's full name, but he went by the initials "JD" (or JT or something like that). I'm sure he's quite competent, and we never met him, but we didn't care for his announcements. As I said, his voice sounded too game show hosty, and much of what he said was related to extra revenue items. Very little personality or humor, at least in the overhead announcements.

I agree the carpeting patterns and colors are kind of seizure-inducing, but I suppose they also hide stains pretty well. As garish as you may have found the Oosterdam to be, we thought she was more subdued than Noordam. But I can't praise the artwork on both ships enough. A wonderful variety of historical and modern works, worthy of a tour in and of themselves. We keep comparing the art on HAL to that on the Celebrity ships we've been on. Celebrity likes to mention how much money was invested in the art on their ships in the pre-Carnival days. Apparently a lot of it was purchased under the direction of one of the owners' wives. Well, let's just say her tastes and ours don't coincide much. The Celebrity ships we've been on had a lot of overly modern pieces that we just found to be butt ugly. But because HAL redeploys artwork from decommissioned ships to new ones, they've got quite an historic, interesting and museum-worthy collection. Love it. Hope the Volendam has more of the same.

As far as Le Cirque goes, as I said I'm surprised there have been no threads about this. A few weeks ago there was a thread in which someone asked why they couldn't make online pre-board reservations for the PG on the Friday of their Oosterdam cruise. Now I know the answer. At some point early in the summer Alaska season, they decided to "transform" the PG each Friday evening (the same night as the MCD in the MDR - and not the last night of the cruise because of the evening stop in Victoria) into a mini version of a famous restaurant in New York called Le Cirque. Evidently the menu for those nights was developed under the direction of Le Cirque's owner. Copies of his signed autobiography were available for sale, but we'd never heard of him before and didn't buy one.

Anyway, I guess the reason they weren't letting people book that night in advance is because of the increased charge ($35). We got on board and wanted to book the PG for that night right away (honestly, to avoid the MCD). But when we heard the charge and saw the menu, we hesitated. It's a lot of money, and the menu is very, very limited. I can't remember quite all of it from memory, but what I can tell you (because they told us) is that the menu changes each cruise to reflect the menu from the restaurant in New York. So I'll describe what I can remember, but if you sail the Oosterdam later this year your menu is likely to be different.

We had a choice of just two appetizers - a lobster salad or a corn bisque. Both were absolutely incredibly delicious, the presentation was amazing, and the flavors were very sophisticated. But it's not a lot to choose from, and I gather that each cruise the options are similarly limited.

There were just three entrees - halibut prepared with a wild mushroom sauce or risotto or something like that, steak with an amazingly tasty horseradish flan, and something else I can't recall. But the steak could only be ordered by pairs of people so that further limited the options.

We tried all three entrees and let me tell you, they were all fantastic, with subtle layers of flavor and very unique presentation. Good sized portions too - no one went hungry. Also they had different (better) dinner breads and a glass of GOOD champagne was included (presented shortly after we sat down).

I don't remember all the desserts, but they were very good and also very unique. One was a creme brulee, but it was a lot better (and different) than the typical creme brulee. I think another was a selection of special ice creams in little dishes. Also the china was not the usual PG stuff (which is beautiful, IMO). This china had the restaurant's name and a fanciful cartoon monkey, which I guess is their emblem. The name on the underside of the plates is a very prestigious French company. I think the flatware was the same as the usual PG stuff, for anyone who cares about such things.

Was it worth $35? That's a very personal thing. We thought so, but others didn't - including some people who said they enjoyed the meal well enough, but just thought it was too much money. I have to admit that I would have been just as happy with the usual PG menu for a second night (we ate there one other night) but Le Cirque really was a very unique and interesting experience. Apparently it's very expensive to go to the real one in New York (entrees around $50) so I guess you could look at it as a good deal from that perspective. Then again, a night at a restaurant of the caliber of PG would also cost a lot more than $20, and of course there's lots of food on the ship that you already paid for. :D

The question I have is, what was HAL's motivation for this experiment? Any thoughts? To keep people who want to avoid the MCD from reserving the PG ahead of time? As a possible future permanent dining option onboard? Just for the halibut? Not sure.

I'll be glad to answer any other questions.

[PirateShark]

Baltigator...thanks for describing why I couldn't book PG on that Friday night. Having been to LeCirque (in LV not NY :() and being absolutely floored by the delicious food (and not to mention the prices), the $35 per person is an absolute steal. If you are a foodie and can book this, it sounds like it is totally worth it. I may have to go by myself if no one else in our party wants to pay the freight.

How was the Glacier Bay experience Baltigator? I've read reviews that covered a ton of other aspects of this sailing but precious little info as to what everyone thought of the glacier cruising, quality of lectures/info during the tour etc. If you have any insight on that part of it, I'm all ears!

[Krazy Kruizers]

A Brief Review / August 2010, Alaska











The Ugly



Miscellaneous

One night the PG menu was completely different. It was called Le Cirque, based on a French restaurant in New York. I’m surprised there haven’t been threads about this yet. We enjoyed the meal, although the cover fee jumped to $35 that night.


I’ll be happy to answer any questions.

I would love to see this offered on the ships!!

[dobiemom]

As far as Le Cirque goes, as I said I'm surprised there have been no threads about this. A few weeks ago there was a thread in which someone asked why they couldn't make online pre-board reservations for the PG on the Friday of their Oosterdam cruise. Now I know the answer. At some point early in the summer Alaska season, they decided to "transform" the PG each Friday evening (the same night as the MCD in the MDR - and not the last night of the cruise because of the evening stop in Victoria) into a mini version of a famous restaurant in New York called Le Cirque. Evidently the menu for those nights was developed under the direction of Le Cirque's owner. Copies of his signed autobiography were available for sale, but we'd never heard of him before and didn't buy one.

Anyway, I guess the reason they weren't letting people book that night in advance is because of the increased charge ($35). We got on board and wanted to book the PG for that night right away (honestly, to avoid the MCD). But when we heard the charge and saw the menu, we hesitated. It's a lot of money, and the menu is very, very limited. I can't remember quite all of it from memory, but what I can tell you (because they told us) is that the menu changes each cruise to reflect the menu from the restaurant in New York. So I'll describe what I can remember, but if you sail the Oosterdam later this year your menu is likely to be different.

We had a choice of just two appetizers - a lobster salad or a corn bisque. Both were absolutely incredibly delicious, the presentation was amazing, and the flavors were very sophisticated. But it's not a lot to choose from, and I gather that each cruise the options are similarly limited.

There were just three entrees - halibut prepared with a wild mushroom sauce or risotto or something like that, steak with an amazingly tasty horseradish flan, and something else I can't recall. But the steak could only be ordered by pairs of people so that further limited the options.

We tried all three entrees and let me tell you, they were all fantastic, with subtle layers of flavor and very unique presentation. Good sized portions too - no one went hungry. Also they had different (better) dinner breads and a glass of GOOD champagne was included (presented shortly after we sat down).

I don't remember all the desserts, but they were very good and also very unique. One was a creme brulee, but it was a lot better (and different) than the typical creme brulee. I think another was a selection of special ice creams in little dishes. Also the china was not the usual PG stuff (which is beautiful, IMO). This china had the restaurant's name and a fanciful cartoon monkey, which I guess is their emblem. The name on the underside of the plates is a very prestigious French company. I think the flatware was the same as the usual PG stuff, for anyone who cares about such things.

Was it worth $35? That's a very personal thing. We thought so, but others didn't - including some people who said they enjoyed the meal well enough, but just thought it was too much money. I have to admit that I would have been just as happy with the usual PG menu for a second night (we ate there one other night) but Le Cirque really was a very unique and interesting experience. Apparently it's very expensive to go to the real one in New York (entrees around $50) so I guess you could look at it as a good deal from that perspective. Then again, a night at a restaurant of the caliber of PG would also cost a lot more than $20, and of course there's lots of food on the ship that you already paid for. :D

The question I have is, what was HAL's motivation for this experiment? Any thoughts? To keep people who want to avoid the MCD from reserving the PG ahead of time? As a possible future permanent dining option onboard? Just for the halibut? Not sure.

I'll be glad to answer any other questions.
Thanks for the Le Cirque info. I hope HAL keeps it. I would love to try this in November.

Love your (halibut) humor! :D

[PaulMCO]

Thanks for the Le Cirque info. I hope HAL keeps it. I would love to try this in November.

Love your (halibut) humor! :D



Nice Avatar Dobiemom :)

[BaltiGator]

Baltigator...thanks for describing why I couldn't book PG on that Friday night. Having been to LeCirque (in LV not NY :() and being absolutely floored by the delicious food (and not to mention the prices), the $35 per person is an absolute steal. If you are a foodie and can book this, it sounds like it is totally worth it. I may have to go by myself if no one else in our party wants to pay the freight.

How was the Glacier Bay experience Baltigator? I've read reviews that covered a ton of other aspects of this sailing but precious little info as to what everyone thought of the glacier cruising, quality of lectures/info during the tour etc. If you have any insight on that part of it, I'm all ears!

So there's more than one Le Cirque? Are they owned by the same people? On the ship only the one in NY was mentioned to us.

Glacier Bay was impressive, but since it was our first glacier experience I can't compare it to anything else. The park ranger who gave the lecture over the shipwide speaker system was very informative without being overly intrusive (she purposely went quiet for periods during the glacier visit). We were fortunate to have clear weather and got lots of good pictures. I had read in some threads that it is better to view the glacier and park from a public deck. We tried it both ways and decided to spend most of the time on our balcony, where we had perfect, and very comfortable, views of just about everything. Aft cabins wouldn't have done as well, but we were midship.

[PirateShark]

Thanks BaltiGator! The original Le Cirque is indeed in NY. The one in LV is in the Bellagio Hotel and owned by the same family. It was fabulous and one of the very few restaurants I MUST go back to everytime we are there (we don't gamble so we splurge on food and wine).

And I want to thank you for giving us your insight in regards to the commentary of the Glacier Bay experience. The fact that the ranger was respectful (for want of a better word now) of the experience is just what I wanted to hear. Again, many thanks for posting your thoughts on your splendid cruise.

[solocanadian]

Thank you all for the replies and the "welcome backs." It's always nice to hear from others, and it helps ease the transition back to "dry land."

Regarding entertainment...my apologies for not mentioning it, but we don't tend to take in much entertainment on a cruise ship. I can tell you that two of the lounge acts were very good - the string quartet and the jazz trio. Both played in the same location just about every night - the string quartet in the Explorer's Lounge just forward of the dining room on deck 2, and the jazz trio on the starboard side of the Ocean Bar on deck 3. We really liked the jazz trio and because of the open atrium could enjoy them from our usual perch in the Pinnacle Bar one deck below. To enjoy the strings you really had to be in that lounge. They had a pretty large following every night. I think the Hal Kats (if that's the correct name) were usually playing in the Queen's Lounge (which is really more like a small auditorium where they also do culinary arts presentations during the day). They seemed to have a nice crowd too, but we only passed through. There was only one "hired" evening act that I was aware of, a magician/comedian who some people reported as being pretty good. The other "shows" were mostly "in-house" productions. No one we spoke to seemed to think they were anything special.

I don't remember the cruise director's full name, but he went by the initials "JD" (or JT or something like that). I'm sure he's quite competent, and we never met him, but we didn't care for his announcements. As I said, his voice sounded too game show hosty, and much of what he said was related to extra revenue items. Very little personality or humor, at least in the overhead announcements.

I agree the carpeting patterns and colors are kind of seizure-inducing, but I suppose they also hide stains pretty well. As garish as you may have found the Oosterdam to be, we thought she was more subdued than Noordam. But I can't praise the artwork on both ships enough. A wonderful variety of historical and modern works, worthy of a tour in and of themselves. We keep comparing the art on HAL to that on the Celebrity ships we've been on. Celebrity likes to mention how much money was invested in the art on their ships in the pre-Carnival days. Apparently a lot of it was purchased under the direction of one of the owners' wives. Well, let's just say her tastes and ours don't coincide much. The Celebrity ships we've been on had a lot of overly modern pieces that we just found to be butt ugly. But because HAL redeploys artwork from decommissioned ships to new ones, they've got quite an historic, interesting and museum-worthy collection. Love it. Hope the Volendam has more of the same.

As far as Le Cirque goes, as I said I'm surprised there have been no threads about this. A few weeks ago there was a thread in which someone asked why they couldn't make online pre-board reservations for the PG on the Friday of their Oosterdam cruise. Now I know the answer. At some point early in the summer Alaska season, they decided to "transform" the PG each Friday evening (the same night as the MCD in the MDR - and not the last night of the cruise because of the evening stop in Victoria) into a mini version of a famous restaurant in New York called Le Cirque. Evidently the menu for those nights was developed under the direction of Le Cirque's owner. Copies of his signed autobiography were available for sale, but we'd never heard of him before and didn't buy one.

Anyway, I guess the reason they weren't letting people book that night in advance is because of the increased charge ($35). We got on board and wanted to book the PG for that night right away (honestly, to avoid the MCD). But when we heard the charge and saw the menu, we hesitated. It's a lot of money, and the menu is very, very limited. I can't remember quite all of it from memory, but what I can tell you (because they told us) is that the menu changes each cruise to reflect the menu from the restaurant in New York. So I'll describe what I can remember, but if you sail the Oosterdam later this year your menu is likely to be different.

We had a choice of just two appetizers - a lobster salad or a corn bisque. Both were absolutely incredibly delicious, the presentation was amazing, and the flavors were very sophisticated. But it's not a lot to choose from, and I gather that each cruise the options are similarly limited.

There were just three entrees - halibut prepared with a wild mushroom sauce or risotto or something like that, steak with an amazingly tasty horseradish flan, and something else I can't recall. But the steak could only be ordered by pairs of people so that further limited the options.

We tried all three entrees and let me tell you, they were all fantastic, with subtle layers of flavor and very unique presentation. Good sized portions too - no one went hungry. Also they had different (better) dinner breads and a glass of GOOD champagne was included (presented shortly after we sat down).

I don't remember all the desserts, but they were very good and also very unique. One was a creme brulee, but it was a lot better (and different) than the typical creme brulee. I think another was a selection of special ice creams in little dishes. Also the china was not the usual PG stuff (which is beautiful, IMO). This china had the restaurant's name and a fanciful cartoon monkey, which I guess is their emblem. The name on the underside of the plates is a very prestigious French company. I think the flatware was the same as the usual PG stuff, for anyone who cares about such things.

Was it worth $35? That's a very personal thing. We thought so, but others didn't - including some people who said they enjoyed the meal well enough, but just thought it was too much money. I have to admit that I would have been just as happy with the usual PG menu for a second night (we ate there one other night) but Le Cirque really was a very unique and interesting experience. Apparently it's very expensive to go to the real one in New York (entrees around $50) so I guess you could look at it as a good deal from that perspective. Then again, a night at a restaurant of the caliber of PG would also cost a lot more than $20, and of course there's lots of food on the ship that you already paid for. :D

The question I have is, what was HAL's motivation for this experiment? Any thoughts? To keep people who want to avoid the MCD from reserving the PG ahead of time? As a possible future permanent dining option onboard? Just for the halibut? Not sure.

I'll be glad to answer any other questions.
Thanks for taking the time to post this menu. Sounds yummy to me. Since my DH passed away in 1998 I don't frequent this type of place on my own but would be sure to do so if they offered it on the Oosterdam in May 2011.

[fridayeyes]

(Reading comprehension for the win - answered all of my own questions.)


Thanks!!

Friday

P.S. about the halibut6.... OwwwWWWwwwwww! ;)

[adventuregrrl]

Thanks for sharing your insights! This helps us know what to expect next March.

[BaltiGator]

Thanks again for all the additional comments.

One other thing I will add at this juncture, given the recent threads about smoking on HAL...

Personally I am fervently anti-smoking, as are the others I traveled with. Naturally we avoided the casino (none of us gambles anyway). But we pretty much went everywhere else on the ship, inside and out, and never had any issues with cigarette or cigar smoke. None. Zippo. Nada.

Now, how much of that was because of this particular itinerary (only 7 days, lots of families) and how much reflects a smoking policy that is effective at buffering smokers from non-smokers, well, you'd have to ask a HAL executive with lots of data and inside knowledge to know for sure. On our prior HAL cruise (10 days, few families) we did have a problem enjoying our balcony because of some chain-smoking neighbors. But that was the only smoking issue we had on that ship, and overall we enjoyed that cruise just fine.

To those who do still smoke, a plea...you've got one life to live (as far as we know). Why blow it?

[donswife]

I guess I don't know all the HAL lingo, but what is MCD that people want to avoid? We are planning to book the April 16 Mexican Riviera trip.

Thanks,
Karen

[NHRedSoxFan]

The Ugly

The frequent sales pitches got a little annoying. We’ve only been on HAL twice so we’re not sure if this is a recent phenomenon. It’s certainly not as bad as some other mass lines. But why did it seem as if every encounter with staff, every otherwise innocent interaction, was twisted into a chance to sell us something? Can’t a person ask a gym staffer a question without being prompted to sign up for some extra-cost class? Can’t a person enjoy a cocktail or two without being urged (five times in three days, and at length) to sign up for the absurd “pub crawl” thingy? Wouldn’t it have been nicer if the cruise director’s announcements didn’t all sound like commercials (and if he sounded less like a cheesy game show host)? Even when we bought stuff, it felt like we were being pushed to buy more! I know this is not exclusive to HAL. I just hope it doesn’t get much worse

I'm sorry to hear this. We did not experience this at all last October on the "O". Not a good trend. It's what I hate about RCCL.

[GeriatricNurse]

I guess I don't know all the HAL lingo, but what is MCD that people want to avoid? We are planning to book the April 16 Mexican Riviera trip.

Thanks,
Karen


MCD stands for "Master Chef's Dinner"! It is usually the last dinner of a (HAL) cruise. It involves a "crew show" prior to dinner service with much dancing & singing, etc.! It is rather "over the top" and one either likes it or hates it! If you hate it, that would be a good excuse for dining elsewhere that evening, either in the PG (Pinnacle Grill) or in the Lido (minus the trays)!:)

[donswife]

MCD stands for "Master Chef's Dinner"! It is usually the last dinner of a (HAL) cruise. It involves a "crew show" prior to dinner service with much dancing & singing, etc.! It is rather "over the top" and one either likes it or hates it! If you hate it, that would be a good excuse for dining elsewhere that evening, either in the PG (Pinnacle Grill) or in the Lido (minus the trays)!:)

Okay, thanks. We are live in Nevada and eat at casino buffets fairly often, so we are used to not having trays, lol.