Indian Food

In all of my Carnival cruises, I've never tried the Indian food that everyone is always raving about. I'm pretty unfamiliar with Indian food in general. Which Carnival Indian menu items do you recommend?

Hi,

You don't choose "menu items" . You just pick the Indian vegetarian meal from the menu and they bring you 3 different small dishes and the typical condiments that go with them. You don't get to pick which dishes. It is the chef's choice. I'd recommend going to an Indian restaurant to taste some of the food to see if you like it before your cruise.

If the ship you are on has the Tandoori buffet then it is DELICIOUS. The butter chicken is my favorite along with any of their rice dishes. It is all delicious, honestly. In the MDR the Indian vegetarian dish is great. I got it twice on my last cruise and was surprised to find out that it is different from night to night so you can always try it to see what is on there any given night. I hear the pumpkin soup is amazing but is no longer on 4 and 5 night cruises. You can also order other Indian dishes in the MDR which are not on the menu but you have to find the list online (it has been posted here before) and order a day in advance.

Hi,

You don't choose "menu items" . You just pick the Indian vegetarian meal from the menu and they bring you 3 different small dishes and the typical condiments that go with them. You don't get to pick which dishes. It is the chef's choice. I'd recommend going to an Indian restaurant to taste some of the food to see if you like it before your cruise.

You can also preorder the night before an Indian meat meal. Did this on the Miracle. It's the same set up as the Indian Vegetarian but one of the entrees is substituted out for meat. One night it was chicken, another it was a fish. The hostesses have the info.

Some ships (Splendor) have a Tandoor open at lunch.

In all of my Carnival cruises, I've never tried the Indian food that everyone is always raving about. I'm pretty unfamiliar with Indian food in general. Which Carnival Indian menu items do you recommend?

Hi Martini Mom

Of course just like any food choice offered on board the ship the way it is prepared will ultimately determine if you will enjoy it.

If you are really unfamiliar with the types of dishes that might be offered, I would suggest you go to an Indian restaurant at home that has a buffet selection. That way you would be ale to try a variety of dishes to see what you might like. That way when you are onboard you won't be unfamiliar with the dishes and you will have a reference for comparison.

Have a great cruise and

enjoy all the food choices

Hmm? So it is a "secret" menu? I had no idea I could order an Indian meal ahead of time on the Miracle and we've been on her many times!

Hi,

You don't choose "menu items" . You just pick the Indian vegetarian meal from the menu and they bring you 3 different small dishes and the typical condiments that go with them. You don't get to pick which dishes. It is the chef's choice. I'd recommend going to an Indian restaurant to taste some of the food to see if you like it before your cruise.

Riff is right, but go to one that has a lunch buffet so you can try several items for one price. That way you don't have to order several entrees to decide if you even like the flavor profiles. Keep in mind, buffets will mostly have milder offerings. The Indian Vegetarian Dinner is usually just a bit more spicy but shouldn't burn your mouth.

If the ship you are on has the Tandoori buffet then it is DELICIOUS.

We had it on the Dream and it was awesome! Loved having this choice! I highly recommend it

I do love Indian food, but I tend to prefer the less spicy, less hot dishes. I loved the tandoor grill when I was on Freedom five years ago, but it was taken away to make place for guy's or blue iguana (boo hiss from me) I also loved the Indian entrée in the MDR back then, and then it changed to a vegetarian offering that differed nightly. I actually like vegetarian food and only eat meat about three times weekly. I have ordered that several times and it varies nightly, sometimes it is too hot/spicy for me. I just wish Carnival had not done away with tandoor on so many ships, for me it was always my go to lunch.

I can't stand the way it smells. I can tell someone had it three days later. Sensitive nose I guess. Tandoor grill does not even compare.

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The Indian food on carnival is not very good. I am glad I live in a city with 6000 East Indian residents. We have several Indian restaurants that serve authentic Indian cuisine. Carnival doesn't even have goat curry, saag paneer, alu mater, biriyani, or tikka. Carnival generally has tandoori chicken, butter chicken, and horrible naan bread.

Naan is only available at the tandoors. The MDR meal has the cracker (can't spell the proper name). For one cruise the hostess was ordering crust only pizza as a naan replacement for the MDR meal.

Doubt Carnival will ever have goat. It's almost a stretch that they have lamb.

The Indian food on carnival is not very good. I am glad I live in a city with 6000 East Indian residents. We have several Indian restaurants that serve authentic Indian cuisine. Carnival doesn't even have goat curry, saag paneer, alu mater, biriyani, or tikka. Carnival generally has tandoori chicken, butter chicken, and horrible naan bread.

I thought the MDR Indian food was good but not great. Definitely try the suggestion of a lunch buffet at an Indian restaurant sometime. I do love ve Indian food.

I thought the MDR Indian food was good but not great. Definitely try the suggestion of a lunch buffet at an Indian restaurant sometime. I do love ve Indian food.

I eat at one of 5 Indian lunch buffets every Thursday. Also, my next door neighbor and the family across the street are East Indians.

The Indian food on carnival is not very good. I am glad I live in a city with 6000 East Indian residents. We have several Indian restaurants that serve authentic Indian cuisine. Carnival doesn't even have goat curry, saag paneer, alu mater, biriyani, or tikka. Carnival generally has tandoori chicken, butter chicken, and horrible naan bread.

Food is subjective. Just because they serve certain dishes and not others, you think it is not very good or very authentic? I strongly disagree with you. You don't like it. That is a big difference from "not being good". The Indian food on Carnival ships, I feel, is about as authentic as you can get outside of India (most chefs on the ship are Indian) and very, very good. But what do I know? I'm only Indian.

I can't stand the way it smells. I can tell someone had it three days later. Sensitive nose I guess. Tandoor grill does not even compare.

 

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I've never tried it. The Tandoor Grill was Lido Deck starboard aft on the Triumph (if I remember correctly.) I would make a point of walking on the port side to avoid the smell. When I hung out at that pool, I always looked for a chaise on the port side to stay away from the smell. I don't know what it was, but once (when the grill was closed) they had a big tray of what appeared to be some kind of seasoning (green) with a horrible strong smell that I think was the source.

Its also interesting to learn that most senior chefs on Carnival ships are Indian/Bengali (maybe a few other lines also) so they know what they are doing.

I adore Indian food and thats a good thing living in the UK and found the Indian Vegetarian MDR option spicy but tasty.

As for the tandoor at the buffet I would suggest giving everything a little nibble as I have found that when eating different dishes around the UK they can vary it hotness. A Rogan josh at one restaurant blows my head off then it is much milder at one down the road.

Bon appetite! :)

The Indian food on carnival is not very good. I am glad I live in a city with 6000 East Indian residents. We have several Indian restaurants that serve authentic Indian cuisine. Carnival doesn't even have goat curry, saag paneer, alu mater, biriyani, or tikka. Carnival generally has tandoori chicken, butter chicken, and horrible naan bread.

Wow... You should order the Indian meals that you can pre-order. I have had a LOT of Indian good, and the Carnival 'crew meals' (that is really what they are-- there is a menu made up with a 28 day rotation) are some of the best I have had. Remember: most of the Chefs on Carnival are from India.

The Indian food on carnival is not very good. I am glad I live in a city with 6000 East Indian residents. We have several Indian restaurants that serve authentic Indian cuisine. Carnival doesn't even have goat curry, saag paneer, alu mater, biriyani, or tikka. Carnival generally has tandoori chicken, butter chicken, and horrible naan bread.

They have some of those things, especially if you order off of the special menu in advance.

Additionally, if you know so much about Indian food then you know it varies greatly by region. Perhaps you prefer the Indian you have at home but the food on Carnival IS in fact very good. You seem to suggest it isn't authentic because you have authentic Indian every day and this is simply not the case. The chefs and many on staff are Indian. Sorry if you don't prefer it but the way you said it bothers me.

By the way, can anyone find the link to the special Indian menu? I thought I had it saved and can not find it. I sail in 3 weeks and want to email them soon and let them know what days I want the Indian meals. :)

By the way, can anyone find the link to the special Indian menu? I thought I had it saved and can not find it. I sail in 3 weeks and want to email them soon and let them know what days I want the Indian meals. :)

If you can't find it online, go to the MDR when it is open at embark. They have the list. You probably need to order it nightly.

Hi Martini Mom,

I have always enjoyed the main dining room Indian vegetarian dishes, as well as the Tandoor Indian Buffet on Lido ( on Carnival Breeze).

You could always order the Indian vegetarian in the main dining room in addition to your regular items ( including main dish) to try it out. On the first night in the dining rom, Carnival usually offers a delicious mushroom and pea curry ( at least on Ecstasy, Glory, and Breeze), which is mild and not very spicy.

I just got off the Carnival Breeze today and can post picture of the Tandoor buffet if you are interested.

I've always found it interesting that Indian food in general has a much greater following in Commonwealth countries than in the states - probably the British influence!

Thanks for the great ideas guys! I think I'll order it as a second entree and share it with my family, so we can all try it :)

Thanks for the great ideas guys! I think I'll order it as a second entree and share it with my family, so we can all try it :)

The many bowls its served in makes it perfect for that,my husband and I shared it when I ordered it.

From Memory there was raita (Yoghurt dip), indian spiced onions, Lime pickle, Tarka Dhal (curried lentils), Paneer (cottage cheese) and pea curry and a mild spinach style curry with other veggies although the last 3 items seem to vary.

I found a picture: