They forgot about us tonight on the Zuiderdam

We always get tables for 2. Have had staff focus on larger tables at our expense in the past.. best way to deal with it is make it clear to the head waiter, you expect to be served first... that is actually correct protocal for a table for 2. We always, have late seating... that may help you as well. Late seating is less hectic. Hope you enjoy your cruise.

Terri

Thanks for checking in.

Glad you had such a good lunch that you don't have to deal with the dining room.

Keep us updated.

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Now, back to the topic.

This is one reason we went back to early/late seatings. We have the same waitstaff and dinner companions with whom we almost always become good friends during, and occasionally after, the cruise.

The best part is that one is seldom forgotten in that setting unlike a regular sit down restaurant where the wait staff assigned can be random.

As for reporting service lapses to the head waiter or Maitre d', how else will they be able to identify those who need performance reminders? By that I don't mean reporting a 5 minute wait for, say extra butter, but when the main course arives before the appetizer, or the ordered wine does not show up, that's really unacceptable.

Now, back to the topic.

 

This is one reason we went back to early/late seatings. We have the same waitstaff and dinner companions with whom we almost always become good friends during, and occasionally after, the cruise.

 

The best part is that one is seldom forgotten in that setting unlike a regular sit down restaurant where the wait staff assigned can be random.

 

As for reporting service lapses to the head waiter or Maitre d', how else will they be able to identify those who need performance reminders? By that I don't mean reporting a 5 minute wait for, say extra butter, but when the main course arives before the appetizer, or the ordered wine does not show up, that's really unacceptable.

Walt,

Thank you for the reminders.

Just as a point of fact. We do have early fixed dining. That made no difference in the dining steward forgetting that our table was assigned to him.

We will not be back at the table until Sunday. I am sure that by that time he will have forgotten us again. We will see.

Terri

I know how awkward sitting there can be. It happened to us last year (not on HAL). We had a table RIGHT THERE! and were, well not exactly ignored, but didn't quite feel special. Trying to get more water let alone a second glass of wine was nearly impossible. Maybe it's because we are not an in-your-face couple. We let it slide and refused to let it affect the rest of our time on board.

Walt,

Thank you for the reminders.

Just as a point of fact. We do have early fixed dining. That made no difference in the dining steward forgetting that our table was assigned to him.

 

We will not be back at the table until Sunday. I am sure that by that time he will have forgotten us again. We will see.

 

Terri

Not sure this will make you feel any better, but we were once totally ignored on a 2-top, the first night in the MDR. After I spoke with the Dining Room Manager, the two servers in the area each said they thought the other was responsible for our table. I guess we were on the dividing line.:rolleyes: Now, I can't say if they were being truthful or not, but service every night thereafter was excellent.

While I'm empathetic to the tough job the wait staff has, especially with the added pressure of open seating, but on board a cruise ship the wait staff should be intimately familiar with the coverage responsibilities. Unlike a regular land side restaurant, tables in a ship's dining room are bolted down so the table plan does not change from night to night.

While I'm empathetic to the tough job the wait staff has, especially with the added pressure of open seating, but on board a cruise ship the wait staff should be intimately familiar with the coverage responsibilities. Unlike a regular land side restaurant, tables in a ship's dining room are bolted down so the table plan does not change from night to night.

now where is that LIKE button :)

While I'm empathetic to the tough job the wait staff has, especially with the added pressure of open seating, but on board a cruise ship the wait staff should be intimately familiar with the coverage responsibilities. Unlike a regular land side restaurant, tables in a ship's dining room are bolted down so the table plan does not change from night to night.

Actually Walt, that is not quite right. The table plan changes every night.

On any given meal period, there is a different number of waiters working in the Dining Room.

Someone is ill and cannot work, a waiter left the ship for a family emergency, a replacement waiter did not arrive at the ship as scheduled, the Lido is extremely busy so some staff are re-assigned there, Room Service is extremely busy so some staff are re-assigned there, a large family group is very demanding so that station is made smaller, on a slow meal period some stations are closed or re-sized, etc.

The tables may be bolted to the deck, but the size and configuration of the waiter service sections change constantly. It would be far too easy for the staff to assume (incorrectly)that a table that was in their station yesterday is no longer theirs today.

Absolutely agree. Mistakes can be made but clearly there is an issue.

This is what I call cheating the customer.....providing a level of service below expectations and below the norm. It is what happens when staff are cut, manager's spans of control are increased in order to reduce the number of managers, or staff training is cut back.

We are have experienced these types of inconsistencies on other lines besides HAL. I think that it is better to call it out politely, once maybe twice, rather than make excuses or ignore it. After that, we typically vote with our feet and with our wallets at the next opportunity. The question to ask if you experienced this one, two, or more times in a land based establishment would you return or recommend it to a friend? We would not. We do not want anything special....just what we paid for.

Actually Walt, that is not quite right. The table plan changes every night.

On any given meal period, there is a different number of waiters working in the Dining Room.

Someone is ill and cannot work, a waiter left the ship for a family emergency, a replacement waiter did not arrive at the ship as scheduled, the Lido is extremely busy so some staff are re-assigned there, Room Service is extremely busy so some staff are re-assigned there, a large family group is very demanding so that station is made smaller, on a slow meal period some stations are closed or re-sized, etc.

 

The tables may be bolted to the deck, but the size and configuration of the waiter service sections change constantly. It would be far too easy for the staff to assume (incorrectly)that a table that was in their station yesterday is no longer theirs today.

One time (first night in MDR on this particular cruise) we were at a table for 4, even though there were only 2 of us. I got up at the end and nearly tipped the table over. The top was just a piece of heavy cardboard, hiding under the tablecloth to make it a four-top. It wasn't held in place with anything. The table itself was secure, just not the top.

The next night it was back to a 2-top, so I'm assuming that on the previous cruise it needed to be a four-top.

Absolutely agree. Mistakes can be made but clearly there is an issue.

 

This is what I call cheating the customer.....providing a level of service below expectations and below the norm. It is what happens when staff are cut, manager's spans of control are increased in order to reduce the number of managers, or staff training is cut back.

 

We are have experienced these types of inconsistencies on other lines besides HAL. I think that it is better to call it out politely, once maybe twice, rather than make excuses or ignore it. After that, we typically vote with our feet and with our wallets at the next opportunity. The question to ask if you experienced this one, two, or more times in a land based establishment would you return or recommend it to a friend? We would not. We do not want anything special....just what we paid for.

you are absolutely right. I remember all too well a cruise where I was told "our waiter was in training". I replied politely - sorry, I didn't sign on for 20 days to train a waiter and if I have to I will eat in the Lido, but that's not why I came on the ship. If that is the service we will get then can I serve the table?

We ended up with good service but only because the Asst. dining room manager stepped in. Sometimes you have to speak up. sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. But if you don't ask, you don't get.

In our case we had great service and I don't regret one word I said. It was done nicely but.....(as my dogs know) I meant business.

HAL always asks you to let them know what they can do to improve it - I just did it early ;) flame suit on.

Actually Walt, that is not quite right. The table plan changes every night.

On any given meal period, there is a different number of waiters working in the Dining Room.

Someone is ill and cannot work, a waiter left the ship for a family emergency, a replacement waiter did not arrive at the ship as scheduled, the Lido is extremely busy so some staff are re-assigned there, Room Service is extremely busy so some staff are re-assigned there, a large family group is very demanding so that station is made smaller, on a slow meal period some stations are closed or re-sized, etc.

 

The tables may be bolted to the deck, but the size and configuration of the waiter service sections change constantly. It would be far too easy for the staff to assume (incorrectly)that a table that was in their station yesterday is no longer theirs today.

But...Am I incorrect in assuming that HAL is part of the professional hospitality industry? With professional managers who prior to the evening seating make sure all staff know what's what? I assume that if this is a nightly event they are more than capable of handling changes in tables. There is no excuse for letting customers sit at a table unnoticed until they ask for assistance. An apology is, of course, appropriate, but something extra delivered to the passenger's stateroom or table the next evening would have cost HAL nothing and we would all be cheering about how well the unfortunate situation was handled. JMO Cherie

I will reply to these posts.

 

I think the Wine Steward never even noticed that the corkage was not paid at the entrance. There was no table when we got back on the ship in Venice with three bottles of wine. We were ready to pay, but no one there to take our money. We thought we would pay last night but he never asked for the card. So we win.

 

Terri

Any chance you could tell the Wine Steward that you never were charged the corkage fee? (Or am I incredibly naïve?)

Any chance you could tell the Wine Steward that you never were charged the corkage fee? (Or am I incredibly naïve?)

Not Terri, but if I were her, I certainly wouldn't. With the level service they had they should have not been charged corkage at the very least!

Not Terri, but if I were her, I certainly wouldn't. With the level service they had they should have not been charged corkage at the very least!

I don't disagree that it would've been a very nice gesture for them to waive the corkage fee for the inconvenience they experienced. I'm just saying that if you want them to correct their mistakes of not acknowledging them and serving them then all mistakes should be corrected including forgetting to charge them the corkage fee. I wouldn't be surprised if it was waived once it was brought to their attention regarding the level of service.

Any chance you could tell the Wine Steward that you never were charged the corkage fee? (Or am I incredibly naïve?)

Greetings from Athens and the Golden Age Hotel. Neither I nor DH are going to bring it up. Besides we won't be in that dining room until Monday.

If the wine steward brings it up we will pay, but my mother didn't raise a fool. Actually, the wine steward was the first one at the table and never mentioned the fee. We expected he would, but never said a word.

We did not even get as much as an apology from the GSM or anyone else regarding this incident. We did relay it to the Neptune Lounge Conceierges who said they would pass it on. Nada!

Terri

We were on a three week cruise and sometimes were charged a corkage fee sometimes we weren't. We tipped the wine steward nicely at the end of the voyage thinking he was giving us a break. Not so, all the corkage fees were on our final bill even though we didn't get a nightly bill for most of them. Clever move by the wine steward.

When we get an acknowledged new waiter, we find it charming and fun to work with him. They are so eager to please that it is a delight for everyone.

But then we also find dining on ships to be more "food service" due to the nature of the beast; not what we would expect in a dedicated land-based restaurant. Different strokes.

Once we tabled hopped at the beginning of a cruise and found we did not establish the same bonds we normally have with our waiters from the first night, when they take the time for initial introductions.

No more Pinnacle dinners on the first night for us, because they use that empty assigned table for other diners so by the time the actual assigned diner shows up, it is yet again another new face - no established continuity. Same when reassigned to a new table early on.

OP did the right thing, bring this lapse to the attention of someone who can do something about it and it appears they did. One probably does need to assert themselves more into the situation when they have table-hopped at the very beginning just so everyone is on the same page.

And, as I remember, they start as asst. stewards for a while before getting "promoted"

If I understood correctly, some start in the Lido before moving to the MDR as assistant waiters/dining stewards.

That may be true for some, as you say, but I know for sure not all the stewards working Lido at breakfast and lunch are new and/or assistants rather than full waiters. A number of times we have seen our dining room steward working Lido at Lunch and they were well, long time experienced HAL stewards.

So, back to the OP.....

On the corkage fee issue, all I can say is "you go, girl". Not only should they have not charged you the corkage but they should have provided the wine. Evidently the wine steward was doing what he could to alleviate the situation. After your experience, no way should you be offering up the corkage fee.:)

We are not ones to make excuses or brush off shortcomings of a cruise as 'ship happens' because it happens on one of our favourite cruise lines or one on which we have an emotional attachment.

Staff allocation, staffing levels, staff training are not our concern...along with upkeep of the ship and cabin. Our only concern is having a good cruise and obtaining the levels of service and cabin comfort that the cruise line has committed to.

It is what we pay for and it is what we expect. It is not complicated. This is the cruise line's issue....after all they are the ones that parade out the 'Signature of Excellence' tag at every opportunity. It is very easy for a mistake to occur, then the question becomes how quickly and how effectively was it resolved to the customer's satisfaction.

We had such a great time with one "first day of a first contract" waiters in the Lido on one long cruise!!

Watching him take it all in was amazing. Absolutely "sense overload" for him!

This was a B-B and turnaround day. 11:45 am not many pax were around the Lido yet, but those few were enough to make him look very apprehensive.

One of the waiters we had known on several cruises introduced this new guy to us and when my DH spoke to him in Bahasa, I thought he would cry!!

We kept track of him for the next 21 days and he was super, telling us on the second day that he would be our "personal waiter" in the Lido anytime he was there.

We ran into him 2 years later and he was an assistant waiter in the DR at breakfast and lunch. He was outstanding!