brunch buffet in the Main Dining Room? celebrity constellation? ice sculpures and all

can someone tell me if they have been on recent constellation and they had brunch buffetbrunch buffet in the Main Dining Room in the Main Dining Room? ice sculpures etc?

I was on the equinox in 2011 and did not see this

This buffet is no longer done as far as I know.

J.

If it is, it is a great time to have lunch in the buffet. The brunch (in our experience) is a zoo.

Yes the brunch in the MDR is long gone but it has been replaced on cruises we have been on with a special brunch in the buffet area that features sushi, chocolate fountains and more desserts. Not as fancy as the original but still not a zoo either!

No more grand Brunch in the MDR. They are now doing a special brunch in the Oceanview, we have seen it on our last 3 cruises. Each time it was on a sea day near the end of the cruise.

There are some ice sculptures and some food items not normally in the Oceanview but not at all like it was in the MDR. We didn't care for the MDR extravaganza, it was like a feeding frenzy with a lot of wasted food.

which celebrity cruise has the oceanview brunch any pictures please? recent I hope

No more grand Brunch in the MDR. They are now doing a special brunch in the Oceanview, we have seen it on our last 3 cruises. Each time it was on a sea day near the end of the cruise.

 

There are some ice sculptures and some food items not normally in the Oceanview but not at all like it was in the MDR. We didn't care for the MDR extravaganza, it was like a feeding frenzy with a lot of wasted food.

AFAIK all of them now do this. It isn't that much grander than the daily buffet. There will be sushi, and perhaps an omelette station, a chocolate fountain, maybe a cotton candy machine. There will be ice sculptures and fruit and veggie carvings, too.

The main additions were a chocolate fountain, a kielbasa station which was great, ice carvings, and fruit carvings. It was not as well attended as the feeding frenzy in the MDR. I just went to take photos as I ate elsewhere. The feeding frenzy in the MDR was gross...and I am NOT referring to the food.

No more grand Brunch in the MDR. They are now doing a special brunch in the Oceanview, we have seen it on our last 3 cruises. Each time it was on a sea day near the end of the cruise.

 

There are some ice sculptures and some food items not normally in the Oceanview but not at all like it was in the MDR. We didn't care for the MDR extravaganza, it was like a feeding frenzy with a lot of wasted food.

On two or so of our cruises after the decision was made to discontinue to grand MDR brunch we realized that the Ocean View buffet was "enhanced" (i.e. with ice sculptures and so forth) but the past several cruises I guess I must have been blinking because I didn't notice see any such "enhancements." And neither my husband nor I enjoyed the grand MDR brunch and generally avoided them.

If it is, it is a great time to have lunch in the buffet. The brunch (in our experience) is a zoo.

It is not a zoo. A zoo is organized and the animals are in cages not running loose or wild. :D

The brunch was chaos. I think the embarkation lunch in the buffet was dress rehearsal or training day for the brunch.

happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌞

If it is, it is a great time to have lunch in the buffet. The brunch (in our experience) is a zoo.

It is not a zoo. A zoo is organized and the animals are in cages not running loose or wild. :D

The brunch was chaos. I think the embarkation lunch in the buffet was dress rehearsal or training day for the brunch.

happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌞

Recently on Solstice, head chef advised that due to US health & safety, they are no longer allowed to setup brunch in the main dining room as the floors are carpeted.

Instead they were running a large brunch with the ice carvings, chocolate fountains etc on one of the last sea days in the buffet.

From my understanding, this affected the whole fleet.

Recently on Solstice, head chef advised that due to US health & safety, they are no longer allowed to setup brunch in the main dining room as the floors are carpeted.

.

I find that hard to believe. Is he the same person who said the price of Specialty Restaurants is now at $45 and $50 due to inflation of food prices?

I would think the reasons would be cost and hygiene issues.

The reasons are: all of the above.

It does violate US Health and Safety laws to serve a buffet on a carpeted surface.

It was somewhat chaotic.

It was wasteful.

It was very labor intensive.

Some passengers were inconsiderate, picking through food with their hands, hogging their tables, etc.

There were probably more reasons, too…..

It does violate US Health and Safety laws to serve a buffet on a carpeted surface.

I couldn't start to count the number of charity, wedding, club events where the caterer has set up a buffet on a carpeted area. If this is a US Health and Safety Law then it apparently does not apply to events that actually occur in the US....

Perhaps those of you who are stating this law could post it here or give a pointer so I could take it to our local health department, hotels and caterers.....

6-201.14 Floor Carpeting, Restrictions and Installation.

(A) A floor covering such as carpeting or similar material may not be installed as a floor covering in food preparation areas, walk-in refrigerators, warewashing areas, toilet room areas where handwashing lavatories, toilets, and urinals are located, refuse storage rooms, or other areas where the floor is subject to moisture, flushing, or spray cleaning methods.

(B) If carpeting is installed as a floor covering in areas other than those specified under ¶ (A) of this section, it shall be:

(1) Securely attached to the floor with a durable mastic, by using a stretch and tack method, or by another method; and

(2) Installed tightly against the wall under the coving or installed away from the wall with a space between the carpet and the wall and with the edges of the carpet secured by metal stripping or some other means.

can someone tell me if they have been on recent constellation and they had brunch buffetbrunch buffet in the Main Dining Room in the Main Dining Room? ice sculpures etc?

 

I was on the equinox in 2011 and did not see this

We had it in 2014. We didn't see it this past Jan. I believe it was done away with. A real cluster #. We have a catering company & really laughed at how poorly it was set up. The food & decor were fine. The set up caused huge congestion pile ups. It simply should have been set up as 2 buffet lines on each side of the dining room. The ice sculptures could be set up with blocking ropes in the center(though it would still cause issues with pax gawking at the sculptures.

6-201.14 Floor Carpeting, Restrictions and Installation.

(A) A floor covering such as carpeting or similar material may not be installed as a floor covering in food preparation areas, walk-in refrigerators, warewashing areas, toilet room areas where handwashing lavatories, toilets, and urinals are located, refuse storage rooms, or other areas where the floor is subject to moisture, flushing, or spray cleaning methods.

 

(B) If carpeting is installed as a floor covering in areas other than those specified under ¶ (A) of this section, it shall be:

 

(1) Securely attached to the floor with a durable mastic, by using a stretch and tack method, or by another method; and

 

(2) Installed tightly against the wall under the coving or installed away from the wall with a space between the carpet and the wall and with the edges of the carpet secured by metal stripping or some other means.

Where in that quote from the law does it talk about not being permitted to set up a buffet in the MDR, even with cooking stations (often found at charity/wedding/etc events) on a carpet. BTW, you will find permanently mounted hibachi tables in restaurants in carpeted areas and "tableside preparation" at home...will that be next to go in Murano....under the guise of being required by the health department.

Folks....using that law as an excuse is just a convenient brush off....probably believed by those on board, but it's not the reason the buffet's was cut. Just like the laws on pets on board...it's always good to go back and actually read the law rather than assuming someone is giving you accurate information.

Now if there's another law that covers this....I'm all ears....please post or point to it.

The cancellation of the MDR Brunch had NOTHING to do with any Health and Safety rule ( which does NOT by the way forbid having a buffet on a carpeted floor), but is all about reducing cost.

Although it was indeed a Jungle, the presentation and dishes ( like the swan puffs and other desserts) did remind us of the times when Celebrity was still a Premium line.

By the way, US Health and Safety does not apply when sailing outside US waters.

ghstudio wrote:

"I couldn't start to count the number of charity, wedding, club events where the caterer has set up a buffet on a carpeted area. If this is a US Health and Safety Law then it apparently does not apply to events that actually occur in the US....

"

Unless your events are floating, or are in a venue governed by US Public Health, they would be following the public health rules and regulations of their local state, city or community. Those vary widely depending on where you are.

The ships, on the other hand, are governed by the US Public Health laws, specifically the The Vessel Sanitation Program. VSP operates under the authority of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. Section 264 Quarantine and Inspection Regulations to Control Communicable Diseases). VSP is part of the National Center for Environmental Health's Division of Emergency and Environmental Health Services.

You can see their operations manual here:

http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/vsp/operationsmanual/opsmanual2011.pdf

Here is one relevant part of the manual:

7.4.1.1.9 Nonfood-contact Surfaces

NONFOOD-CONTACT SURFACES of EQUIPMENT that are exposed to splash, spillage, or other food soiling or that require frequent cleaning must be constructed of a corrosion-resistantm nonabsorbent and SMOOTH material

(emphasis theirs)

And here, not from a Celebrity ship, is a citation from a ship's report:

Item No.: 33

Site: Dining Room-Ballindalloch Dining Room

Violation: The mobile breakfast pastry buffet stations were placed on the carpeted-area of the dining room between the main buffet and the aft waiter station during the breakfast service.

Recommendation: Ensure decks in food areas are constructed and maintained for easy cleaning. Do not use carpet in these areas.

Similar citations occur throughout the VSP reports.

Unless a ship never comes to the US, it would be subject to the CDC's Vessel Sanitation Program.

From the CDC website: http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/vsp/desc/aboutvsp.htm

"Which Cruise Ships Are in Our Jurisdiction?

Cruise ships under our jurisdiction:

carry 13 or more passengers, and

have a foreign itinerary with U.S. ports."

I believe that all Celebrity ships come back to the States at some time during the year.

While the ship is outside the US waters, it may not be required to follow the CDC regulations, but as soon as it comes back to the US, it must pass that inspection. Usually that means that they are ready to pass it at any time, and the effort is made not to let standards slack when outside the US waters.

So from this I guess we should assume that the elite breakfast and table side cooking on board will quickly disappear??? Also the specialty restaurant demo will be gone, etc.

I still don't buy that it was stopped for any health/legal reason. That buffet was almost never held within us waters. I think it may have been cancelled due to waste and perhaps cost....and that's certainly something celebrity can do any time....but the health code reasons really seem to be just an easy, but incorrect, explanation.

It doesn't matter in the end, but IMHO, celebrity should be honest with their staff and passengers.

There has already been much discussion in earlier threads about the use of menus instead of the buffet at the Elite breakfast.

And buy their explanation or not, there is certainly motivation to achieve a score of 100 on the inspection. By the way, the ship I found first scored below 85. There are many other examples of similar violations being noted, but interested readers can search for them themselves. The CDC website, and specifically the parts dealing with cruise ships, is a font of information. Several Celebrity ships have scored 100. I'd beware of any ship scoring below 90.

There has already been much discussion in earlier threads about the use of menus instead of the buffet at the Elite breakfast.

 

And buy their explanation or not, there is certainly motivation to achieve a score of 100 on the inspection. By the way, the ship I found first scored below 85. There are many other examples of similar violations being noted, but interested readers can search for them themselves. The CDC website, and specifically the parts dealing with cruise ships, is a font of information. Several Celebrity ships have scored 100. I'd beware of any ship scoring below 90.

Got off the Eclipse last Sunday and the Elite breakfast was a buffet every day. It was round trip from Miami. In December on the Reflection we had menus and it was a round trip Miami. No rhyme or reason.

[quote name=cruisestitch;46305250

And buy their explanation or not' date=' there is certainly motivation to achieve a score of 100 on the inspection. By the way, the ship I found first scored below 85. There are many other examples of similar violations being noted, but interested readers can search for them themselves. The CDC website, and specifically the parts dealing with cruise ships, is a font of information. Several Celebrity ships have scored 100. I'd beware of any ship scoring below 90.[/quote]

I'd beware of a ship that allows dogs to eat off plates in the MDR. Is that addressed in the CDC website? And some people are concerned about carpeted floors!!