Is the food the same on all ships?

[sjde]

I've only been on one Holland America ship--the Maasdam, about 4 years ago--and was wondering if the food is the same on all. Thanks!

Susan

[sail7seas]

We think the food fairly consistent ship to ship but inevitably one ship or another will be a little better (or worse) depending upon who the Executive Chef may be at a given time. Of course, food is so subjective and what I love you may not. Also, if one seems to enjoy the food one Chef creates more than another, don't count on the fact he will always be on the same ship.

That being said........IMO, you will find the food very much improved from what it was four years ago.

We have sailed Maasdam consistently through the years since she joined the fleet and think the food very, very good on Maasdam. We spent two weeks on her last August and are looking forward to four weeks on Maasdam this summer.

[MHS4]

was wondering if the food is the same on all.

If by "the same" you are referring to quality, that's a rather subjective evaluation and also a variable affected by the purchasing agent, supplier, and chefs -- and even the quality of crops, as affected by weather.

However, your question could be the same as what I have wondered reading various menu postings -- which I love to do. Is the menu the same on all HAL ships given the same 7 days or 10 days, etc.? Does the "dreadful" meatloaf and the "fantastic" bread pudding appear on all HAL ships?

Another question along this line is: have the menus changed recently or are they due for a change soon? One reason we switched to Princess a few years ago was that RC's menu had been the same basically for all 3 of our cruises over a period of 5-6 years. What was great the 1st time, while still the same quality, was boring that 3rd time.

While on the topic of food, here's another. With the popularity of Food Network, its many glamour chefs, and the change in food tastes I'm aware of through participation in a few of the food boards associated with its programs/chefs -- am I the only one that thinks it rather strange that the cruise line menus don't reflect more closely the recent changes in food fashion?

[sail7seas]

-- am I the only one that thinks it rather strange that the cruise line menus don't reflect more closely the recent changes in food fashion?

What is the new food fashion you are looking for? :confused:

[MHS4]

What is the new food fashion you are looking for? :confused:

Barefoot Contessa Ina Garten; Giada DeLaurrentiis Everyday Italian; Nigella; Jamie Oliver; Mario Batali; and let's include Paula Deen for Southern Regional.
-- I think they all have in common the use of the best fresh ingredients prepared simply with the focus more on seasoning than saucing. This focus on fresh & local is being reflected in numerous food blogs many of which are doing a "green challenge" -- buying only fresh local (within 100 miles) produce, no strawberries from Mexio or lettuce from CA if one lives in New England, etc.

I realize cruise lines can not limit their menu to "local" since we, and I do include myself, expect fresh stawberries and other fruit as part of the cruise experience. However, the overall approach & result of these chefs could still be reflected in the cruise menu.

Please don't flame me -- my latest impression of cruise food is last year's Princess menu; my 1st HAL cruise isn't until this fall. So I don't know if HAL is using Jamie Oliver, for example, as an inspiration for their dishes.

[Krazy Kruizers]

The menu offerings are basically the same on all ships. But - some chefs we have discovered can ruin a dish while another can make it absolutely so wonderful that you would like to see it again on the menu.

[Krazy Kruizers]

I would love to see some imput from some of those chefs!!!

[Randyk47]

I probably ought not to comment as we only cruise once a year and, with one exception, have sailed on a different ship each time. (The one exception is the Ryndam as we've been on her twice but 3 years apart in the cruises though we thought food and service were wonderful on both.) So....food and quality. Well, in 2004 on the Oosterdam we thought the food was OK but the service was so poor that the food kind of got lost in the process. Skip the next year as we sailed Celebrity. Back to the Volendam in 2006 and great food and equally great service. So here we were all excited that HAL had "fixed" the problems from the Oosterdam and off we go for 14 days on the Veendam. Our impression....we were back on the Oosterdam with poor service and, quite frankly, average to less than average food in terms of quality and quantity. As I said, probably don't cruise enough to draw a firm conclusion or verdict but if the food indeed has improved over 4 years we didn't see it just last month on the Veendam.

[Stevesan]

Barefoot Contessa Ina Garten; Giada DeLaurrentiis Everyday Italian; Nigella; Jamie Oliver; Mario Batali; and let's include Paula Deen for Southern Regional.
.

You left out the most prolific "chef", Rachael Ray who seems to be on TV every hour.

I predict her followup to THIRTY MINUTE MEALS will be COOKING WITH STOUFFER'S! There will, of course, be two shows: WHITE BOX soon followed by RED BOX, the latter for gourmets only.:p

[BamaBaby]

Another question along this line..... does the menu change on the ship to reflect a new cruise location? Such as, will the Noordam menu change when she moves from the Caribbean to Alaska? I have seen current menus on the Noordam but wondered if more Alaska fare will be featured when she repositions.

[middle-aged mom]

Another question along this line..... does the menu change on the ship to reflect a new cruise location? Such as, will the Noordam menu change when she moves from the Caribbean to Alaska? I have seen current menus on the Noordam but wondered if more Alaska fare will be featured when she repositions.

You'll see a lot more salmon on the menu on the Alaskan itineraries.

[sail7seas]

Mostly, the menus for seven day cruises are the same from ship to ship. For ten day cruises, the same.

World Cruise boasts they never repeat a full menu once in its (approx) 108 days.

There will be more salmon in Alaska (which I would warmly welcome) but for the most part, the menu will be about the same as a seven day Caribbean cruise.

[BamaBaby]

I also noticed a lot of Caribbean type of fruits on the menu. I hope these will still be featured. I love salmon so more of it will be just fine with me!

[Radiomark]

However, your question could be the same as what I have wondered reading various menu postings -- which I love to do. Is the menu the same on all HAL ships given the same 7 days or 10 days, etc.? Does the "dreadful" meatloaf and the "fantastic" bread pudding appear on all HAL...


What about this "dreaded" meatloaf? Is it really that bad? I actually really like meatloaf and would probably order it if they weren't serving Filet Mignon that night.

Mark

[kakalina]

We tried the meatloaf on the Veendam last month. Contrary to popular opinion it was quite good and was true "comfort" food. That said, food is very individual and tastes do differ.