Gluten-Free feedback from recent cruises?

[Jenbirds]

I'm interested in feedback from recent cruisers of Royal Caribbean, who required gluten-free meals.

 

I'm sailing on Adventure of the Seas in April, and this will be my first cruise where I'm required to eat gluten-free. I've contacted them via email about my requirements, and received the standard email response from them.

 

Any feedback on the staff's compliance? Did they serve any gluten-free desserts?

 

Any suggestions you have would be greatly appreciated.

 

Thank you in advance,

Jennifer

 

Adventure of the Seas '04

Adventure of the Seas '10

[canuckcruiselover]

I was just on the Jewel of the Seas and there were no gluten-free choices in any of the dining venues.

[SamFritz]

DW is Ciliac, she says the MDR staff is complient to a fault. :) If they know that you have any type of needs they will bend over backwards to make sure that you are properly taken care of. On our first few cruises we notified them and they would let us know the next day's menu and take my wife's order at dinner the night before. It's become a bit of a distraction for us, so she dosen't tell them now, and simply orders food that she knows will be OK. We absolutely appreciated their very high level of attention. They will even make special gluten free bread for your dinner. Also many of the desserts are GF. Enjoy your trip! :)

[SamFritz]

I was just on the Jewel of the Seas and there were no gluten-free choices in any of the dining venues.

 

Been on the Jewel, they took great care of us.

[barb in ga]

DH has celiac disease and requires gluten-free, and we have taken several RCCL cruises. He generally does not like the substitute bread products, so he has gotten very good at choosing items that comply with his diet. The waiters are very helpful if he has questions on menu items. He generally has ice cream for desserts, and he prefers to have breakfast in the Windjammer so he can enjoy his fill of fruit, yogurt, eggs, grits or potatoes, ham or bacon, with no toast or bread.

 

He has been very satisfied with the food, and has never had any episodes of gastric distress.

 

Happy sailing!

Barb

[oh2cruisemore]

We were also on Jewel and my DD age 15 liked the gluten free bread. We also brought some buns along so she could have a few hamburgers at lunch time. They would also inform her what she needed to stay away from. They always gave her choices and bent over backwards to help her out each and every day.

 

Have a great cruise!

[80 Wolfpacker]

I have been on 6 cruises since discovering I have Celiac Disease. All of the ships have been wonderful in helping me make good choices! I always let customer service (or my travel agent) know of my diet needs before the cruise (usually when I book the cruise). I go to the dining room after boarding to let the Maitre-D know of my special diet, so that my waiter can be prepared.

 

They have bent over backwards to make certain that I have many choices. I have had great success with my diet and cruising on RCI! The waiter always gives me the menu for the next night in advance. I make my selections and they make sure that my selections come to me gluten free. Some of my waiters have even asked me to make two choices for entrees so that I have a backup - just in case I do not like the first choice.

 

I could not happier with my success of living gluten free and cruising. Royal Caribbean has been great to help me enjoy my vacation and have many choices for gluten free dining! It makes my family very happy too - not to have to worry about me and the stress of traveling in other countries with language barriers, limited menues etc. Most of our vacations now are RCI cruises - just because I am certain I will not have to worry about my diet restrictions.

[#1packerfan]

I was recently on the Monarch, and during dinner the first night, our waiter brought me the menu for the following night so I could look and choose what I wanted. There is always sherbert or ice cream to choose from for dessert. I have had the flourless chocolate cake, and while it is very good, it's a bit too rich for me. I do not like the gf bread they offer, but think it's great that they offer it at all.

 

I always eat in the WJ for breakfast, choosing meat, fresh fruit and hard boiled eggs, things I know are safe.

 

That was my second RCCL cruise since being diagnosed, and I have 4 more in the works. I have always had plenty of choices of what to eat for meals, and generally prefer to bring my own snacks like fat free chips and things.

[mickym]

We cruise with my DHs family. His sister and brother both have ceiac and they treat them wonderfully in making sure they have gluten free choices. As long as you make sure they are aware of your needs there will be no problem in the dinning room.

[g_rock]

Check in with the main dining room staff when you board to remind them. I've heard that the gluten free bread that they serve in the MDR is pretty good! But sometimes they will forget if you don't remind them when you board.

[Craig_K]

I'll be traveling with my newly diagnosed 14 year old son with Celiac in February. I am a little nervous, but am happy to hear the positive experiences people seem to have with Royal Caribbean. We will be on the Oasis of the Seas.

 

Some specific questions below and I would be grateful if anybody could help:

1. Where exactly do you meet the maitre d' when you board to discuss this with them? Do you have a hard time finding them? I want to make sure we have enough time to talk with them when they are not busy taking care of all the other guests. I picture one person trying to take care of 5,000 guests being kind of crazy.

 

2. Anybody know about the soft-serve ice cream/yogurt by the pool areas? Will someone onboard be able to tell me if it is gluten free? What about other ice creams in the other shops?

 

3. What about the bacon? I have heard that some bacon "smoke flavoring" is not GF. Anybody know about this onboard?

 

4. French fries okay by the pool, or are they cooked in the same oil as chicken tenders, etc.

 

This and any other advice you can offer would be so much appreciated. I am trying to get as much of this housekeeping stuff done ahead of time so we can just go and enjoy. I don't want to have to spend the first few days of our short time on the ship waiting for people to check on everything.

 

Maybe there is a head of all food service on the ship that would be able to help us in advance?

[graceinmelbourne]

I'll be traveling with my newly diagnosed 14 year old son with Celiac in February. I am a little nervous, but am happy to hear the positive experiences people seem to have with Royal Caribbean. We will be on the Oasis of the Seas.

 

Some specific questions below and I would be grateful if anybody could help:

1. Where exactly do you meet the maitre d' when you board to discuss this with them? Do you have a hard time finding them? I want to make sure we have enough time to talk with them when they are not busy taking care of all the other guests. I picture one person trying to take care of 5,000 guests being kind of crazy.

 

2. Anybody know about the soft-serve ice cream/yogurt by the pool areas? Will someone onboard be able to tell me if it is gluten free? What about other ice creams in the other shops?

 

3. What about the bacon? I have heard that some bacon "smoke flavoring" is not GF. Anybody know about this onboard?

 

4. French fries okay by the pool, or are they cooked in the same oil as chicken tenders, etc.

 

This and any other advice you can offer would be so much appreciated. I am trying to get as much of this housekeeping stuff done ahead of time so we can just go and enjoy. I don't want to have to spend the first few days of our short time on the ship waiting for people to check on everything.

 

Maybe there is a head of all food service on the ship that would be able to help us in advance?

 

I would also love to know the answers to these questions especially the fries and soft serve ice cream. Thanks!

[graceinmelbourne]

I have been on 6 cruises since discovering I have Celiac Disease. All of the ships have been wonderful in helping me make good choices! I always let customer service (or my travel agent) know of my diet needs before the cruise (usually when I book the cruise). I go to the dining room after boarding to let the Maitre-D know of my special diet' date=' so that my waiter can be prepared. [/font']

 

They have bent over backwards to make certain that I have many choices. I have had great success with my diet and cruising on RCI! The waiter always gives me the menu for the next night in advance. I make my selections and they make sure that my selections come to me gluten free. Some of my waiters have even asked me to make two choices for entrees so that I have a backup - just in case I do not like the first choice.

 

I could not happier with my success of living gluten free and cruising. Royal Caribbean has been great to help me enjoy my vacation and have many choices for gluten free dining! It makes my family very happy too - not to have to worry about me and the stress of traveling in other countries with language barriers, limited menues etc. Most of our vacations now are RCI cruises - just because I am certain I will not have to worry about my diet restrictions.

 

That's great to hear. Have you been on Brilliance of the Seas?

[Irish90Cruiser]

I'll be traveling with my newly diagnosed 14 year old son with Celiac in February. I am a little nervous, but am happy to hear the positive experiences people seem to have with Royal Caribbean. We will be on the Oasis of the Seas.

 

Some specific questions below and I would be grateful if anybody could help:

1. Where exactly do you meet the maitre d' when you board to discuss this with them? Do you have a hard time finding them? I want to make sure we have enough time to talk with them when they are not busy taking care of all the other guests. I picture one person trying to take care of 5,000 guests being kind of crazy.

 

2. Anybody know about the soft-serve ice cream/yogurt by the pool areas? Will someone onboard be able to tell me if it is gluten free? What about other ice creams in the other shops?

 

3. What about the bacon? I have heard that some bacon "smoke flavoring" is not GF. Anybody know about this onboard?

 

4. French fries okay by the pool, or are they cooked in the same oil as chicken tenders, etc.

 

This and any other advice you can offer would be so much appreciated. I am trying to get as much of this housekeeping stuff done ahead of time so we can just go and enjoy. I don't want to have to spend the first few days of our short time on the ship waiting for people to check on everything.

 

Maybe there is a head of all food service on the ship that would be able to help us in advance?

 

 

1) We haven't been on Oasis but on Serenade the maitre d' is usually by the door of the main dining room in the afternoon. On our last cruise my hubby went to talk to him when we boarded but he wasn't around and they told him to come back later. Even if you aren't able to talk to him, it should be fine. We told our waiters about 10yo DD's celiac when we sat down the first night and they were able to take care of her from the get go. They have GF bread, which they would bring to her every night automatically, and they would go over the following night's menu to see what she could have. There were always several options for her from each course. This was our 3rd cruise, 1st after diagnosis, and I have to say the head waiter was also very helpful this time. He told us that GF diets are relatively simple for them to handle, some people have a huge list of ingredients that they cannot eat and it gets hard when they have to look at individual ingredients.

 

2) We didn't let DD eat the frozen yogurt only because we were worried about cross contamination with people touching their cones to the dispenser. I think if you talk to one of the chefs in the Windjammer (they have the white jackets and scarves) they can tell you about everything.

 

3) Again, check with the chef in the Windjammer but I'm pretty sure our daughter ate the bacon with no problem.

 

4) don't know the answer to this one

 

 

In our experience, breakfast was no problem, she always had enough to eat. Lunch/snack was usually somewhere in the port (so I brought pre-packaged rice bars and chips for her to eat just in case). And dinner in the MDR was a piece of cake. We fed the kids dinner in the Windjammer one night and she was able to find food because one of the chefs walked us around to each station and told us what was safe but it was just a random collection of stuff - rice, salad, jello. So the second night DH and I were doing a specialty restaurant, we just brought the kids to the MDR and sat with them while they ate. It was much easier that way.

 

Let me know if you have any other questions. We are 18 months into being GF with DD and even though it was pretty overwhelming at first, it has gotten easier and much more manageable.

[Craig_K]

I'll be traveling with my newly diagnosed 14 year old son with Celiac in February. I am a little nervous, but am happy to hear the positive experiences people seem to have with Royal Caribbean. We will be on the Oasis of the Seas.

 

Some specific questions below and I would be grateful if anybody could help:

1. Where exactly do you meet the maitre d' when you board to discuss this with them? Do you have a hard time finding them? I want to make sure we have enough time to talk with them when they are not busy taking care of all the other guests. I picture one person trying to take care of 5,000 guests being kind of crazy.

 

2. Anybody know about the soft-serve ice cream/yogurt by the pool areas? Will someone onboard be able to tell me if it is gluten free? What about other ice creams in the other shops?

 

3. What about the bacon? I have heard that some bacon "smoke flavoring" is not GF. Anybody know about this onboard?

 

4. French fries okay by the pool, or are they cooked in the same oil as chicken tenders, etc.

 

This and any other advice you can offer would be so much appreciated. I am trying to get as much of this housekeeping stuff done ahead of time so we can just go and enjoy. I don't want to have to spend the first few days of our short time on the ship waiting for people to check on everything.

 

Maybe there is a head of all food service on the ship that would be able to help us in advance?

 

1. Never was able to find the "maitre 'd" but did not matter much. As long as you talk with your waiter and most importantly HEAD WAITER they will take care of everything for you directly. Ours always coordinated dinner for the following night as well as breakfast for us the following morning. The head waiter also coordinated a GF dinner for my son at Giovanni's Table for us as well as a GF flourless chocolate cake for us to enjoy on my wife's birthday.

 

2. Soft serve ice cream at the pool was GF according to the person we asked. We just put it into the plastic cups and used a spoon.

 

3. We ended up eating the bacon, no problems.

 

4. French fries were not GF. In fact everything at the wipeout cafe, except ice cream, was off limits. This was because they used the same oil to fry everything and there was too great a risk of cross contamination with the way everything was served.

 

One added note: We made a lot of use of Johnny Rockets. Their hamburgers and shakes and sundaes (NOT MALTS) are GF. Even though it was a small upcharge, at least it was one place where the whole family could sit for lunch and eat together. We ended up eating lunch and dessert after dinner there several times. It ended up being pretty much the only junk food my son could have (and the soft serve yougurt by the pool.)

 

Also the salads at the Park Cafe in Central Park were a good GF option. Just make sure you use the individual packets of dressing supplied, not the dressing from the big containers.

 

I hope this helps. Let me know if you have any other questions.

[#1packerfan]

I am also Celiac. I don't even bother notifying the special needs dept anymore because all I ever get is the standard letter, then I let the Maitre'd know, he or she always says let your waiter know.

 

That being said, the wait staff has been fantastic. Our last cruise in December, our waiter brought me the next night's menu each night to discuss what would be gluten free and not. They did not have "gluten" free desserts per se, but they have ice cream, sherbert, and will get you the flourless chocolate cake if you ask.

 

In the Windjammer, I just ate what I knew absolutely was safe, like hard boiled eggs and fruit for breakfast. I am about the pickiest eater in the world, and I always manage to find enough to eat. Just don't expect the fancy dishes with the sauces, etc. Most of the gluten free meats/entrees are plain, which is the only way I'll eat my food anyway, so it works for me.

[graceinmelbourne]

1) We haven't been on Oasis but on Serenade the maitre d' is usually by the door of the main dining room in the afternoon. On our last cruise my hubby went to talk to him when we boarded but he wasn't around and they told him to come back later. Even if you aren't able to talk to him, it should be fine. We told our waiters about 10yo DD's celiac when we sat down the first night and they were able to take care of her from the get go. They have GF bread, which they would bring to her every night automatically, and they would go over the following night's menu to see what she could have. There were always several options for her from each course. This was our 3rd cruise, 1st after diagnosis, and I have to say the head waiter was also very helpful this time. He told us that GF diets are relatively simple for them to handle, some people have a huge list of ingredients that they cannot eat and it gets hard when they have to look at individual ingredients.

 

2) We didn't let DD eat the frozen yogurt only because we were worried about cross contamination with people touching their cones to the dispenser. I think if you talk to one of the chefs in the Windjammer (they have the white jackets and scarves) they can tell you about everything.

 

3) Again, check with the chef in the Windjammer but I'm pretty sure our daughter ate the bacon with no problem.

 

4) don't know the answer to this one

 

 

In our experience, breakfast was no problem, she always had enough to eat. Lunch/snack was usually somewhere in the port (so I brought pre-packaged rice bars and chips for her to eat just in case). And dinner in the MDR was a piece of cake. We fed the kids dinner in the Windjammer one night and she was able to find food because one of the chefs walked us around to each station and told us what was safe but it was just a random collection of stuff - rice, salad, jello. So the second night DH and I were doing a specialty restaurant, we just brought the kids to the MDR and sat with them while they ate. It was much easier that way.

 

Let me know if you have any other questions. We are 18 months into being GF with DD and even though it was pretty overwhelming at first, it has gotten easier and much more manageable.

 

 

Thank you for that very interesting reply.:) It sounds like your daughter was well looked after. Our daughter enjoys her food and it sounds like she will have plenty to choose from even if it might be tad plainer than she is used to. As far as the soft serve ice cream goes I think we would be fine with that unless there was obvious contamination. Maybe we will get a little bit out first just to make sure. I can understand how getting used to the diet can be a bit overwhelming at first. I work for the celiac society here which is a support group in our state. I answer calls from newly diagnosed celiacs and many of them do find it daunting at first but after talking to them for a while they feel more confident. We are lucky here that we do have excellent support and information from the celiac society and good awareness in the community. My daughter has been a celiac since she was 2 years old so we are well used to the diet now. She does find it frustrating and inconvenient at times (parties, food related things at school etc.)but she doesn't miss out on much and she manages really well. How is your daughter finding it? What is the awareness and availability like where you live?

[barb in ga]

I know that the OP has already sailed, but for the benefit of other people researching GF dining/Celiac I wanted to add my comments:

 

We have had great success on Royal Caribbean and Celebrity cruises with gluten-free dining.

 

I would absolutely agree that involving the waiter and head waiter will result in attentive service. My husband always eats breakfast in the WJ, since he can have eggs, fruit, etc.

 

Lunch works well in the WJ also, as there is always a selection of grilled chicken, salad, baked potato, etc.

 

For dinner in the MDR we strongly recommend booking traditional dining time, so that you get to know your waiter and head waiter; the waiter will assist a guest in selecting appropriate choices from the next night's menu, even having certain dishes(veal osso buco was a good example) prepared GF especially for him. We were told that any food that is available during the week can be requested the night before you want to eat it--so I strongly recommend going to the MDR the first thing after embarkation to find out what choices are on the week's menus and which courses will be most appropriate to meet your dietary rquirements as well as personal taste preferences. Some people to be safe pick something very plain, like a baked chicken breast every night, but that is absolutely not necessary! Part of the pleasure of cruising is the dining, and the RCI staff have always worked to make my husband's meals safe, varied, and delicious!

 

Don't be shy--communication is the key, and you'll enjoy your cruise while eating safely.

 

Barb

[Irish90Cruiser]

Thank you for that very interesting reply.:) It sounds like your daughter was well looked after. Our daughter enjoys her food and it sounds like she will have plenty to choose from even if it might be tad plainer than she is used to. As far as the soft serve ice cream goes I think we would be fine with that unless there was obvious contamination. Maybe we will get a little bit out first just to make sure. I can understand how getting used to the diet can be a bit overwhelming at first. I work for the celiac society here which is a support group in our state. I answer calls from newly diagnosed celiacs and many of them do find it daunting at first but after talking to them for a while they feel more confident. We are lucky here that we do have excellent support and information from the celiac society and good awareness in the community. My daughter has been a celiac since she was 2 years old so we are well used to the diet now. She does find it frustrating and inconvenient at times (parties, food related things at school etc.)but she doesn't miss out on much and she manages really well. How is your daughter finding it? What is the awareness and availability like where you live?

 

I'm continually amazed at how well my daughter has handled her diagnosis. I know I wouldn't have handled it that well myself! Like you said, the worst parts for her are when there is food at school or at a party that she cannot eat. We are really lucky in that there is a specialty shop for all allergen free foods less than a mile from our house. So I am able to find all sorts of different foods for her. In general I have tried to go mostly GF for the rest of the family by making dinners that are naturally GF - lots more rice and potatoes instead of pasta. We stopped eating out for a long time until I felt comfortable knowing what she could and couldn't have. But there are more and more restaurants that are offering a GF menu and I have noticed there is a lot more awareness in general. All in all, it hasn't been nearly as difficult as I imagined it would be.

 

And now to get back on topic...have an amazing cruise!! :)

[graceinmelbourne]

DH has celiac disease and requires gluten-free, and we have taken several RCCL cruises. He generally does not like the substitute bread products, so he has gotten very good at choosing items that comply with his diet. The waiters are very helpful if he has questions on menu items. He generally has ice cream for desserts, and he prefers to have breakfast in the Windjammer so he can enjoy his fill of fruit, yogurt, eggs, grits or potatoes, ham or bacon, with no toast or bread.

 

He has been very satisfied with the food, and has never had any episodes of gastric distress.

 

Happy sailing!

Barb

 

Thanks Barb for your feedback. Can I ask you what 'grits' actually are. I have heard of them but not quite sure what they are. Are they naturally gluten free? Also was the bacon and ham gluten free in the Windjammer?

[barb in ga]

Grits are a form of corn. The corn is ground and cooked with water to make a consistency very similar to cream of wheat, but it is totally gluten-free! Most of us in the Southern US eat grits at breakfast as a side dish with eggs, but I have seen a few people treat it as a hot cereal with milk.

 

You will find grits in a large kettle right next to the oatmeal at breakfast--be sure and try some, with salt and pepper, and a little butter or grated cheese.

Barb

[barb in ga]

I forgot to mention that grits are very much like Italian polenta, same basic idea.

My husband did well with the bacon and ham in the Windjammer, no GI distress, but we did not specifically inquire. I know that some cured meats can be a problem, but it is not for him.

Barb

[graceinmelbourne]

Grits are a form of corn. The corn is ground and cooked with water to make a consistency very similar to cream of wheat, but it is totally gluten-free! Most of us in the Southern US eat grits at breakfast as a side dish with eggs, but I have seen a few people treat it as a hot cereal with milk.

 

You will find grits in a large kettle right next to the oatmeal at breakfast--be sure and try some, with salt and pepper, and a little butter or grated cheese.

Barb

 

 

Thanks Barb. It is my 13 year old daughter who is the celiac. I read out your description of grits to her and her reaction was ' eeeew gross'! :rolleyes: I am sure that I can convince her to try some though and she might end up really liking it. She is an adventurous eater normally. I am going to give it a try as unless we visited the southern US we would not get the opportunity to try grits. We come from a very multicultural city and we have every type of cuisine here but one thing I have never come across is grits.

[graceinmelbourne]

I forgot to mention that grits are very much like Italian polenta, same basic idea.

My husband did well with the bacon and ham in the Windjammer, no GI distress, but we did not specifically inquire. I know that some cured meats can be a problem, but it is not for him.

Barb

 

 

Oh so it's like polenta. Polenta is quite popular here and my family is from Italy so i know it well. Sometimes we make up polenta, add some parmesan cheese, herbs etc. and then set it in the fridge. After it has set you can fry it or bake it. I told her it is similar to polenta and she doesn't think it is so gross now. Thanks for the info re. bacon and ham - good to hear.