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vegan dining options?


Tortoiselvr
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Does anyone have any experience with dining vegan with Carnival?

 

I've used the search, but some of the posts are older so I don't know if much has changed. I know to contact guest services prior to my cruise, but was looking for some pointers/experiences.

 

Thanks in advance.

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Can be done but it also depends on how restrictive your vegan-ism is.

 

Talk with the maître d at embarkation. Usually around 1. The hostess can help you with choices for the first night. She will then come to the table each night for the next days meal.

 

On the lido ask the lido chef or hostess about what is vegan.

The pizza can be made without cheese and the deli has a veggie sandwich that is usually good, just ask them to make it without the cheese. (Confirm what's in the pesto, though)

 

Might want to bring some things from home. Best to take on commercially prepared, sealed items.

 

A month or so ago it read a very good vegan review.

Edited by SadieN
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We sat next to a couple one night and the lady was vegan. So while I don't have any personal experience I can tell you what I learned from her.

She preordered her meals a day or so in advance. One of the servers had a paper he kept referring to verifying her choices.

The night we sat with her she had ordered the strawberry bisque and eggplant parm. She only took a bite or two out of each. They had used soy milk for the bisque and it did not turn out well. She said that almond milk would have probably been fine. Not sure what was up with the eggplant parm, but it wasn't good either.

After that night we ran into her several more times (both smokers so we tend to cluster in the same areas). Over all, she said she had a hard time finding enough to eat on board. Not because there weren't options or that Carnival didn't try to accomodate her, but because it wasn't palatable. She said she was pretty much relying on pizza as she had finally gotten the guy back there to understand "no cheese".

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Last cruise I was on in Dec. 2013 for one meal I sat next to a guy who had a variety of allergies. It was the first night and he had not called ahead, but they tried to be very accommodating. He ate steam veggies with no butter or anything and a plain baked potato the first night, but the waiter said they could prepare things ahead of time for the future. I think if you can be somewhat flexible in what you eat, they try to work with you.

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Does anyone have any experience with dining vegan with Carnival?

 

I've used the search, but some of the posts are older so I don't know if much has changed. I know to contact guest services prior to my cruise, but was looking for some pointers/experiences.

 

Thanks in advance.

 

My daughter is a vegan. In addition to what's already been said, I will tell you that it's best to be seated at a set time in the MDR. Carnival has been one of the best (for us anyway) at doing vegan. Daughter has never brought her own food and has always eaten a full meal. I suggest explaining in detail to your waiter as well. They've been more then happy to review ingredients, answer questions and prepare special meals. She struggled on RCCL, but never on Carnival.

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My daughter is a vegan. In addition to what's already been said, I will tell you that it's best to be seated at a set time in the MDR. Carnival has been one of the best (for us anyway) at doing vegan. Daughter has never brought her own food and has always eaten a full meal. I suggest explaining in detail to your waiter as well. They've been more then happy to review ingredients, answer questions and prepare special meals. She struggled on RCCL, but never on Carnival.

 

Oh, thanks!

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You may have already read that the vegetarian and indian vegetarian options in the MDR do contain cheese and chicken broth so be careful of them.

 

If you do have the MDR prepare vegan entrees just be open minded and not too picky. If you are too picky then you probably should dine in the Lido buffet and create your own vegan meal from what is available.

 

Even for a vegan, you should have plenty of food options.

 

Enjoy your cruise!:cool:

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A restatement of my above reply. The vegetarian and indian vegetarian options probably don't contain chicken broth. I meant to say to be careful about the vegetable soups because it has been mentioned they contain chicken broth.:cool:

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  • 1 month later...

Reviving this thread to see if anyone has some late breaking answers. I'm a cruiser like most of us, good for a ten pound weight gain on a 7 day cruise, and the type that eats a snack between breakfast and lido brunch, got me? I went vegan two months ago and the weight has flown off. My ability to stick with any eating plan is as limited as my faith in myself :o. But it's working and I hope to stay with it long term. Two cruises coming up and possibly booking another one for May. I'll ask for a menu the night before and I'm not picky at all just wondering what the MDR options currently are.

 

Thanks in advance!

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Confused by post 3. Eggplant parm isn't vegan if it has Parmesan cheese. Lol. Unless it was soy cheese?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

Also confused by post 3

Vegan but expects tasty food....

 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using Tapatalk

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Also confused by post 3

Vegan but expects tasty food....

 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using Tapatalk

 

 

How can it be tasty without bacon? Lol!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

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  • 2 months later...

Up to date FYI - I'm not a vegan. I've had some recent medical issues and my doctor has directed me to eliminate meat-eggs-all dairy. I'm sailing in late September on the Conquest. I wasn't sure what to expect or how I would manage given this is very new to me. I wrote to Carnival and this is the reply I received today...

Thank you for contacting us. We appreciate the opportunity to be of assistance.

We do not offer vegan menus on any ship.

We do not have Dieticians on board; therefore, we can only offer assistance with simple requests such as the method of preparation of menu items. The diet requirements need to be arranged with the guest's Head Waiter on the first night of the cruise.

Healthy Food Selections

Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner menus in the main dining room feature Healthy Option selections designated by a heart symbol on the menu.

· Starters and entrees are:

§ Low in fat

§ Low in sodium

§ Low in cholesterol

· Desserts are prepared without sugar or sugar substitutes.

Trans Fat

Carnival stopped using cooking oils containing trans fats in 2005. While most items among the cuisine choices are already trans fat free, we continue conducting a detailed analysis of remaining items that can be replaced with trans-fat-free variations and are working with vendors to find suitable alternatives. We began moving away from ingredients containing trans fats, motivated simply by a desire to take the healthiest possible approach to food preparation and menu offerings in the interest of our guests’ well-being.

Gluten-Free

Guests must discuss their meal options with the dining staff. The following Gluten-Free food items will be available on board:

· Bread

· Pasta

· Cake

Guests with Food Allergies

Food Allergy dietary requests are handled on board and guests must discuss their meal options with the dining staff.

 

 

 

The following milk/dairy products are available on board:

 

  • 2% Milk
  • Whole Milk (upon request in the Main Dining Rooms only)
  • Skim Milk
  • Chocolate Milk
  • Plain Soy Milk
  • Lactose-Free Milk
  • Soy Margarine

The following sweeteners are available on board in addition to sugar:

 

  • Splenda (yellow)
  • Sweet n’ Low (pink)
  • Equal (blue)

Etcetera

· Low-fat and fat-free salad dressings

· Low cholesterol egg substitute

· Diet jellies

· Sugar-free syrup

Thank you for choosing Carnival Cruise Lines.

 

Regards,

Edited by mooveebuff
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Carnivals reply doesn't really help me much...and I'm a little nervous. I will continue to search for more information and devise some strategies before I sail. I'm thinking that the Lido Buffet is where I will find the most options. If anyone reading this has any ideas, I'd appreciate hearing them. :o

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Carnivals reply doesn't really help me much...and I'm a little nervous. I will continue to search for more information and devise some strategies before I sail. I'm thinking that the Lido Buffet is where I will find the most options. If anyone reading this has any ideas, I'd appreciate hearing them. :o

 

I've posted some info earlier on this thread, but here's an update to vegan dining...We sailed the Freedom last month in May. Family of 7, one vegan who's sailed numerous times & we've never had any issues on Carnival.

 

First night in MDR you'll be having Indian I'm sure. It's quite good & they'll quickly do a vegan version without using the broth, cheese. Dessert that night was a sorbet and yes, it's vegan. Our head waiter went over the menu himself for the next night because for the first time on Carnival, the hostess was an idiot / knew nothing. I will tell you, after our steakhouse visit, the MDR chef was given the go ahead to prepare full vegan dinners...start to finish and each was a beautiful creation & tasted delicious.

 

The lido can be tricky. Sure there are always salads, fruit, veggies etc., but again the hostess was no help. The chef was excellent up there and very helpful / showed exactly which foods were vegan. No veggie burgers though. The guys at the blue iguana brought out packages for her to review and she did in fact eat there. Over the years we've just found the lido to be a lot of work for a vegan, but certainly you won't go hungry.

 

Breakfast - our party of 7 gathered early morning for room service on our balconies. I'd hang the card ordering it the night prior. Vegan had fruit plate (order without cottage cheese), Cheerios with soy milk, juice & coffee. The soy milk is not listed on the card, just write it down. On day two they actually asked exactly what the soy milk was for because they were never sure how much to send up. Later on we'd go to the lido for those wanting more.

 

Brunch - absolutely plan to go. You must have a set time for the chef to prepare a vegan brunch. He wanted us there around 10am. Upon arrival they knew who we were and although 6 of us were handed the menu, they spoke directly to my daughter, assuring her the vegan brunch had been arranged. Massive amounts of vegan food and she was quite happy!

 

I don't think many vegans would go to the steakhouse, but please try and go. It was worth every penny. I had emailed the ship regarding a vegan meal after I had our reservation - chef was happy to create something special. He went above & beyond. While we were looking at the menu, the chef came over and talked with her - things she liked, spices, etc. They chatted about what he was 'thinking' of creating ... I must say, I was extremely impressed. She had each course and it was some of the best vegan food she's ever had! IF I could have financially gone here every night, we would have. Thing is when you're paying for everyone, that can't happen, LOL. The chef came out when her main course was served to explain it. After dinner the chef came back to chat with her and that's when we learned to tell our waiter in the MDR ... Write a vegan slip nightly to the MDR chef telling him to create a full meal / his choice. By the way, daughter has been vegan for years, loves trying new foods etc.

 

Hope this help, any questions just ask!

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We're vegan, too, and we've never had a problem. Yes, there's the buffet with salads, fruits, etc...and that's yummy. There's also the pasta bar. Ask them to prepare whatever kind of pasta you enjoy and only add olive oil, soy butter, oregano, parsley, lemon, pepper and salt. It's delicious and a perfect light lunch with a small salad!!

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Does anyone have any experience with dining vegan with Carnival?

 

I've used the search, but some of the posts are older so I don't know if much has changed. I know to contact guest services prior to my cruise, but was looking for some pointers/experiences.

 

Thanks in advance.

 

I am a vegan cruiser and have found many ways in which to enjoy cruising when the options are limited.

 

First of all, there are vegetarian options on the menu in the MDR, but some of them cannot be veganized, unfortunately. Actually, they could be, but I don't think the chefs on board know enough about vegan cooking to do so. I have veganized everything I ever enjoyed prior to going vegan, and it wasn't difficult at all.

 

What I chose to do for my last cruise was to bring a small cooler of my favorite vegan butter, sour cream, and salad dressings on the cruise so that I always had the option of ordering baked potatoes, salads, pastas, etc. then adding my own products to make them more tasty. I just placed enough for the meal in a small plastic container, sort of like what they use for jello shots, and took that to the dining room each evening.

 

There are some great organic vegan 'bacon' bits by Frontier that are great on salads, pasta, and potatoes, as well. Seeds and nuts are great on salads and add a lot of protein and nutrients, so bring those as well. Plus, they don't need to be refrigerated.

 

Another product you may want to consider is Primal Strips... which are vegan jerkies. The are AWESOME. Way better than any animal based jerky I've ever had. Very authentic consistency and texture, yet tender enough to even make into a sandwich. All my non-vegan friends loved it. In fact, the non-vegan cruisers in my group loved most of my vegan products.

It's a pain to have to bring food from home to accommodate such a simple lifestyle, but until the cruise lines get with the program, there really is no way around bringing a few things. I've heard that Holland America has quite a few vegan options on their menu, so I think I will be sailing with them in the future.

 

Good luck!

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I've posted some info earlier on this thread, but here's an update to vegan dining...We sailed the Freedom last month in May. Family of 7, one vegan who's sailed numerous times & we've never had any issues on Carnival.

The lido can be tricky. Sure there are always salads, fruit, veggies etc., but again the hostess was no help. The chef was excellent up there and very helpful / showed exactly which foods were vegan. No veggie burgers though. The guys at the blue iguana brought out packages for her to review and she did in fact eat there. Over the years we've just found the lido to be a lot of work for a vegan, but certainly you won't go hungry. Hope this help, any questions just ask!

 

Thanks so much, CocoaMom. I stopped going to the MDR many years ago, but I like the idea of making a reservation at The Point (Conquest) and then asking for a vegan experience...that sounds fun! I will make a determinded effort to speak to the staff at the Lido Buffet until I find someone willing to help me the first day of the cruise. I don't really have to follow "vegan" rules; I don't even know what they are. I'm just suppose to eliminate meat-eggs-dairy.

 

I've been reading a lot of stuff online and it says that the Conquest has a hamburger grill at the aft pool with garden burgers, in addition they have the Blue Iguana Cantina where I can get stuff made to order. Between the Lido Buffet, The Point, Room Service and these other places I should be OK. Thanks again for all the information and encouragment; I appreciate it.:)

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  • 2 weeks later...

I am glad to see that Carnival is accommodating for special diets. I just booked my first cruise since going to a dairy free vegetarian diet. I'm almost more concerned about the dairy then the vegetarian part because they like to hide cheese and butter in so many things.

 

I already plan to bring a container of the soy coffee creamer I like to use when I travel and was told that it was okay. I usually carry a variety of nuts for my husband to snack on (low carb) so I will have them for a protein source if I feel they are lacking in that area.

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