Breakfast in the Pinnacle

[Deac1966]

Pardon my ignorance - but what is a Code Red?

[CtheW0rld]

Pardon my ignorance - but what is a Code Red?

 

it indicates norovirus is present on the ship. a certain set of procedures is put into place including no self-serve items and extra cleaning.

[GmaPajama]

I wonder if this means no Pinnacle Breakfast for the 2nd segment of a Collectors Voyage too. That would be 4 days closed. I don't much like that. :(

[HeatherInFlorida]

I suspect that due to cutbacks in staff (which I definitely noticed on our recent cruise) they need "all hands on deck" in the Lido during the Code Red first few days (which would be Monday and Tuesday morning). They need to keep rates down as low as possible to get people to cruise during a particularly bad period in our economy. Something has to give.

 

When passengers can't serve themselves, they need to be served everything including coffee/juice, etc. So they need the Pinnacle staff in the Lido.

 

So I think it's a misunderstanding to infer that it has anything to do with Code Red specifically, but rather because they need the staff from the Pinnacle.

 

Am I wrong or isn't breakfast in the Pinnacle a relatively new perk for suite passengers? People were booking suites long before there was breakfast in the Pinnacle.

 

Stuff happens .... HAL is trying to protect their ships from Noro and they're doing everything they possibly can to assure it doesn't happen. Nothing is perfect; they can only do their best. If I were ever a suite passenger (not likely to happen) I'd give up breakfast in the Pinnacle any day rather than get Noro. Small price to pay IMO.:)

[Two@Sea]

... If I were ever a suite passenger (not likely to happen) I'd give up breakfast in the Pinnacle any day rather than get Noro. Small price to pay IMO.:)

 

I totally agree, but we cruise far less often in order to afford a suite, and the primary reason we do that is because we enjoy the leisurely breakfast in the Pinnacle. I suppose the only way I could equate its value to us is to inquire how people would feel if all passengers were excluded from the MDR for 30% of their cruise. Everybody paid for the use of the dining room, but suddenly it is not available?

 

Taking away two days from our usual seven day cruises is a deal breaker for us, and we will have to rethink our options.

 

(OT: Heather, I LOVE your new avatar pic! Great hat!)

[HeatherInFlorida]

Marsha, thanks! Pic was taken on a recent non-cruise vacation on Topsail Island (off the coast of NC) ... have to say it was a close 2nd to cruising:).

 

I do understand your feelings. But I would also give up the MDR for breakfast happily if it made me a little safer. On our last cruise we had to endure the 1st 72 hours or so of a stepped down version of Code Red and truthfully it's not fun. I hate having to rely on staff for a simple cup of coffee. Nothing is available without a helping hand and as a really low maintenance person, it's plain annoying for me and half the time I would go without before having to ask someone to serve me.

 

The problem is people come on the ship sick. No matter how hard HAL tries, they can't catch every sick person getting on the ship. So they do what they have to hoping that just maybe they can avoid a Noro outbreak.

 

It was sheer joy to see the more stringent care lifted after a couple of days knowing an outbreak was avoided. No one is asking anyone to go without breakfast. If so, then I'd be with you 100%.

 

You can always have a really nice leisurely breakfast out on that wonderful suite verandah!!! To me that's heaven itself anyway and we did that several mornings.

[Krazy Kruizers]

I wonder if this means no Pinnacle Breakfast for the 2nd segment of a Collectors Voyage too. That would be 4 days closed. I don't much like that. :(

 

I suspect that the Pinnacle will be closed on second segments of all cruises as that is a new cruise for the majority of the passengers.

[kelleherdl]

A little contrarian view....

 

We were in a deluxe suite on our last cruise. I had fully expected that I would eat breakfast every morning in the PG. It is one of the perks that I thought I would value. I really do not care for the MDR for breakfast and was looking forward to the PG.

 

I must confess I only ate breakfast two times in the PG. Either our tour was leaving early or something else prevented us from getting there in time. ;)

 

My wife didn't didn't get there at all. She was perfectly satisfied with the NL. Our suite was just across the passsageway.

 

Dennis

[Krazy Kruizers]

For a few years we used to have breakfast in the Odysey or Marco Polo or King's Room or Queen's Room -- depended on the ship. It was stopped in 2004.

Then around 2006 or 2007 it was brought back.

[sail7seas]

We always enjoyed room service breakfast and rarely went to Pinnacle for breakfast....perhaps once or twice a cruise at the most.

 

Lately, my DH has been preferring Pinnacle and when on Westerdam, Eurodam and Maasdam in the last 7 months or so, we had breakfast most mornings in Pinnacle and enjoyed it.

 

It is not something new that it is offered and it is not free.... it is included in the substantially higher price charged for Suites. If it is advertised as part of what we are buying when we purchase use of a suite, it should be available barring an extreme, unanticipated situation. (ie burst pipe or such). No company IMO should advertise something, take the money for it and then withdraw it without refund. I don't want 'compensation', I want what we purchased. We have spent a great many days in suites and are carefully attuned to whatever changes 'creep in'.

 

JMHO.......If they sell it, they should provide it.

[Oceanwench]

The one time we stayed in a suite, we ate in the PG almost every morning. We loved it, and it helped keep my croissant consumption in check! :eek:

 

Is the breakfast menu for the MDR the same as the one in the PG?

[LMB01]

I want what we purchased. We have spent a great many days in suites and are carefully attuned to whatever changes 'creep in'.

 

JMHO.......If they sell it, they should provide it.

 

I agree. We sail in suites and this is one of the perks that we like about HAL as we are not crazy about room service for breakfast and the Lido is just too crowded.

[Krazy Kruizers]

The one time we stayed in a suite, we ate in the PG almost every morning. We loved it, and it helped keep my croissant consumption in check! :eek:

 

Is the breakfast menu for the MDR the same as the one in the PG?

 

Yes -- the main dining room and Pinnacle have the same menus.

[Copper10-8]

Perhaps a good question to ask DBA (DutchByAssociation) as to what's happenin' with the PG breakfast;). Part of the duties of the PG's staff is to reprovision the Neptune Lounge and that's why you'll see them in there. They wear a pretty distinctive uniform (white jacket) and still include some Eastern Europeans (plus other non-Indonesians). I sure haven't seen them in the Lido in the morning hours so I wouldn't immediately assume that's the reason there's no breakfast in the PG, at least for those first 48 hrs.

The new "anti-Noro" preventive measures during the first 48 hours of every HAL cruise that were instituded around March of this year is not a full Code Red for the entire ship, btw.:cool:

[alexandria]

I was also on the May 30 Oosterdam sailing in a category SA and was disappointed in the unavailability of the Pinnacle on Mon and Tue as those were two of the five days we had planned on eating there as we had two morning with early tours that left before the Pinnacle opened. That left only three days out of seven we could eat in the Pinnacle.

 

That was one of several reasons why I was "underwhelmed" by the Deluxe Suite amenities on this cruise and will probably book lower categories in the future absent some incredible upgrade offer.

[Murray's Pop]

We were on Noordam for 20 days in April/May. Yes, it is closed for breakfast the first 3 days of the cruise for code red precaution. They use the staff in the Lido as they do the code red drill there as well. I agree it is not OK. This seems to be based on the staff reduction across the board.

[pms4104]

Is the lack of a PG breakfast for a couple to several days compensated in some way ... OBC or refund? Shouldn't it be?

[TahoeTraveler]

How does room service work for breakfast, since the PG won't be available the first couple of days of our cruise? I know you can fill out the card to put on your door the night before, but the selection is pretty limited. Can you call and order "regular" breakfast room service instead?

 

Sorry if this is a stupid question, but we pretty much eat every morning in the PG, and if it is not available, we want to know what our other options are. I understand that because of the new Code Red rules the first few days, any food in the Neptune must be served to us as well...limiting yet another great suite perk that we've paid for and won't be getting.

[sail7seas]

You can write in most anything you want on your breakfast card. If your order is delivered during hours dining room breakfast served, there is almost nothing from that menu they won't bring you.

 

We served ourselves in Neptune Lounge the whole cruise. Self service was permitted.

 

It makes no sense to me the MDR is open for breakfast and Pinnacle is open for dinner so the excuse about precaution against Noro virus makes no sense. If they can serve dinner in Pinnacle with no Noro spread risk, why can't they serve breakfast in the same restaurant with the same servers? Something more to this story. I don't know if it is low staff, if it is because they have new ladies serving who are not as experienced as their male counterparts or something else.....

 

 

 

[SJSULIBRARIAN]

On the Zaandam March-April Sea of Cortez Cruise, I don't know if suite passengers had the breakfast option since we eat very early either the Lido or room service. However, lunch was not available in the Pinnacle the first few days since "the girls had to help out in the Lido" as the Manager put it. So it must be a staffing thing for the precautionary code Red.

[peaches from georgia]

......

......I understand that because of the new Code Red rules the first few days, any food in the Neptune must be served to us as well...limiting yet another great suite perk that we've paid for and won't be getting.

Not sure what you won't be getting that was paid for. Even under Code Red the Neptune is open and available to all suite guests, even if they are being served and not serving themselves. Are the food and goodies any different or inferior to what they are when the Code Red restiction isn't in force?

[sail7seas]

Selections in Neptune during those first two days were the same or similar to what we always have.

 

On both Eurodam and Maasdam, I always served myself in Neptune Lounge and no one indicated I should not.

 

[HeatherInFlorida]

Yes -- the main dining room and Pinnacle have the same menus.

 

That said, since the food is exactly the same, I can only assume when some here say they paid extra in their suite price for the Pinnacle they are referring only to ambiance with the rest of us.

 

...............

 

The new "anti-Noro" preventive measures during the first 48 hours of every HAL cruise that were instituded around March of this year is not a full Code Red for the entire ship, btw.:cool:

 

That is correct. I said as much in an earlier post. It is a watered down version of Code Red. Still, they definitely need extra staff in the Lido to serve everything ... we could touch nothing.

 

So the reason for closing the Pinnacle for breakfast has nothing whatsoever to do with protecting Pinnacle diners from Noro, but everything to do with needing the staff in the MDR or Lido.

 

I am guessing that they would not wear their special white Pinnacle uniform when serving in the Lido.

 

We were on Noordam for 20 days in April/May. Yes' date=' it is closed for breakfast the first 3 days of the cruise for code red precaution. They use the staff in the Lido as they do the code red drill there as well. I agree it is not OK. This seems to be based on the staff reduction across the board.[/quote']

 

This post bears out my assumption.

 

I have to say I'm amazed at the response here. There have always been deluxe suites on HAL ships at much higher prices, but there's no question they did not always have the Pinnacle available. The Pinnacle is relatively "new" (the last several years).

 

They are not taking away your food, they are simply not providing you the luxury of dining among a smaller group a few mornings. I must be missing something here, but I just don't see the big deal. The deluxe suites and the extra service provided is sufficient in and of itself to warrant a higher cost than us steerage passengers receive.

 

Not to be able to eat in the Pinnacle 3 mornings would hardly make or break the deal for me, but maybe that's why I'm in steerage and those who are so upset about this are not. I guess they just have a much higher standard that is out of my scope of comprehension. It's entirely possible.

[Oceanwench]

Yes -- the main dining room and Pinnacle have the same menus.

 

Thanks, KK. I thought I had heard that. I have never had breakfast in the MDR!

 

So basically, suite guests have the same menu/food as those in all the other categories on the ship at breakfast time -- they just are afforded a different venue!

 

Not the same if, say, suite guests were allowed to dine free of charge in the PG each night.

 

So really, it's a nice little perk - but it doesn't really cost HAL anything to provide it. Seems silly to think HAL would compensate by giving OBC or anything!

It's more like getting priority boarding or tendering. Just a little nicety to reward those who paid more.

[TahoeTraveler]

Not sure what you won't be getting that was paid for. Even under Code Red the Neptune is open and available to all suite guests, even if they are being served and not serving themselves. Are the food and goodies any different or inferior to what they are when the Code Red restiction isn't in force?

Nope, apparently the food is the same. However, if the concierge must serve it to you, and there happens to be 10 people in there at the same time wanting something to eat, that can create an atmosphere that is totally against what the Neptune means to suite guests...a relaxing, quiet non-stressful environment. Plus, I don't like bothering the concierge with something like serving food...they need to be able to concentrate on what they're trained for and have worked so hard to achieve. However...

Selections in Neptune during those first two days were the same or similar to what we always have.

 

On both Eurodam and Maasdam, I always served myself in Neptune Lounge and no one indicated I should not.

 

If this is true and you can serve yourself in the Neptune even during Code Red, my concern is moot and I apologize for even bringing it up. I had just read in a post a few weeks ago that the new "first two days' Code Red" policy also required that the concierge serve any food in the Neptune. I guess we'll find out when we get onboard.

 

Thanks for all the info, everyone.