Silversea Food vs Seabourn Food

[Merriem]

For what it's worth .... I am of the very firm opinion that this aspiration is very fine words but isn't going to be fulfilled.

 

The owner has always had that aspiration. He wanted to move further upmarket and took specific actions to better understand how to, but the reality is that people say one thing but spend differently. They say that they will spend a bit more for better quality but in fact they do not seem to do so. And it was easier to achieve a few years back then it is today - but they were unable to take the revenue needed to underpin the aspiration. So what chance is there realistiacally now.

 

You can argue it's chicken and egg, but the reality is that most or all of the cruise lines are not just close to the edge - they are way over it. They cannot fund the improvements you and I would like without the revenue increasing in advance of it and the revenue is unlikely to increase whether they improve or not.

 

Hence the promise of "better things to come" is more likely to be edge chipping rather than a game change.

 

 

I agree they are at the top of the heap cost wise but that is all. I would have rather donated my money to a good cause than an overpriced bad "luxury" cruise. The time we wasted was more valuable than the money. Having been on all the high end lines, this should get a very low rating. Misrepresentation of a product, and you can do nothing when you come home.

[Travelcat2]

Just want to ask a question...... it sounds like (could be wrong) that the harshest criticism of Silversea's food is coming from the passengers from the U.K. It is possible that this is just a matter of different tastes?

 

Although we have only sailed on Silversea and Regent, we found the food on both cruise lines to be good to excellent. Of course there were items that we did not care for but we enjoyed our dining experiences on both lines. Being a "mixed" family (U.K./U.S.), we are very aware of the differences in tastes. I can only imagine what Asian passengers think of the food on any of the cruise lines:confused:

[RachelG]

I did not think the food on silversea explorer was as good as that on regent. But I attributed that to being a different type of ship. We are booked on silversea. Spirit for April. That will be the true test. If they run out of bacon and diet come( as the explorer did), I will be Very disapponted.

[UKCruiseJeff]

Just want to ask a question...... it sounds like (could be wrong) that the harshest criticism of Silversea's food is coming from the passengers from the U.K. It is possible that this is just a matter of different tastes?:confused:

 

This calls for more diplomacy than I own!

[Mr Luxury]

This calls for more diplomacy than I own!

 

Shall we start with the way that a lot of Americans hold their knife and fork.:eek:

[billcrooz]

Shall we start with the way that a lot of Americans hold their knife and fork.:eek:

 

So we Yanks don't know how to hold the utensils, but the Brits know great cuisine when they see it .must be true as there are so many great English chefs and cookbooks out there

[wripro]

Let's not talk about how anyone holds his/her knife and fork. Let's not be condescending or patronizing and look down our noses at other peoples' cultures. However, this topic is important as food is a major part of the luxury cruise experience. And just like Bruce Springsteen i was born in the USA.

[Mr Luxury]

Henry,don't tell me that you hold your irons like a caveman too.:D

[Travelcat2]

Certainly did not expect my question to spark anger:eek: I happen to love food in the U.K..... but, that was not the question. Seasonings, preparation, etc. are not the same from country to country. I wondered if there is something about the way the food is prepared on Silversea that is making the dishes less palatable? Nothing more or less was meant by my question.

[Skeezics]

I did not think the food on silversea explorer was as good as that on regent. But I attributed that to being a different type of ship. We are booked on silversea. Spirit for April. That will be the true test. If they run out of bacon and diet come( as the explorer did), I will be Very disapponted.

 

Rachel: Totally agree with you. We were on the Explorer in 2010 for 19 days (Antarctica). The food was so-so. Great soups until the end and supplies were low...I assumed that perhaps it was due to several containers that were held by the Argentinian Government; thus didn't have all the necessary food supplies. We are booked on the upcoming Amazon cruise in November. Keeping an open mind....as long as I don't have to cook, and the cuisine is better than mine, I'm happy. Won't have to lose weight when I arrive home!

However, this cruise will probably determine whether we use SS in the future. Expect he Cloud to be in tip-top condition...something that was not so on the Expedition. So the jury is still out.

 

As an aside, I would not hesitate to book Celebrity's Expedition. Has proved itself quite successful over the years. Really have to book as soon as new schedules come out....they must be doing SOMETHING right! It's like buying a Chanel Purse you didn't like (if there is one), you wouldn't do it just for the cache....nor would you sail on a line for the same reason, in this case, SS....at least, I wouldn't.

[Mr Luxury]

Certainly did not expect my question to spark anger:eek: I happen to love food in the U.K..... but, that was not the question. Seasonings, preparation, etc. are not the same from country to country. I wondered if there is something about the way the food is prepared on Silversea that is making the dishes less palatable? Nothing more or less was meant by my question.

 

Yes,we are having a bit of fun here.This could have been another dress code or smoking thread.

 

I don't think that it is a uk or even a European thing but rather what standard of living you have and your likes and dislikes it may even be a difference between how people appreciate or understand top end cuisine or not.

[Travelcat2]

Yes,we are having a bit of fun here.This could have been another dress code or smoking thread.

 

I don't think that it is a uk or even a European thing but rather what standard of living you have and your likes and dislikes it may even be a difference between how people appreciate or understand top end cuisine or not.

 

Glad to hear that as I did not want to offend anyone.

[UKCruiseJeff]

Glad to hear that as I did not want to offend anyone.

 

And nor do I.:)

 

The reality from my point of view is that Brits have always been outnumbered on SS cruises by Americans, and so my views of how Americans view SS food is based on quite a few observations and exchanges whilst living with them. It always seemed to me that many Americans complimented the food more on the generousity of portions. - in particular the breakfast buffets than about the actual quality. It often seemed that when Europeans were saying the food was mediochre Americans were saying hhow wonderful it was. I was particularly struck on several occaisions that whereas Europeans seemed more able to discern what was fresh and what was frozen and be less hapy with frozen - this didn't seem to bother the Americans on our tables. Not always .... Just generally.

[Emperor Norton]

Shall we start with the way that a lot of Americans hold their knife and fork.:eek:

 

On my recent Seabourn cruise I was accused by some Australians of not being American as I didn't hold the knife and fork in the correct manner for an American.

 

For thread relevance: I found the food in Seabourn to be for the most part far superior to Silversea. I thought Seabourn had better ingredients, betters ideas, better execution and a slightly over the top chef who actually seemed to enjoy his job.

[Stumblefoot]

...I was accused by some Australians of not being American as I didn't hold the knife and fork in the correct manner for an American.

We use knives and forks in America? I thought it was just spoons and fingers. :)

[Scotspea]

We use knives and forks in America? I thought it was just spoons and fingers. :)

 

And the cutlery is a much poorer quality than one gets on Seabourn, Regent, Cunard etc, blah,blah.:)

[billcrooz]

And nor do I.:)

 

The reality from my point of view is that Brits have always been outnumbered on SS cruises by Americans, and so my views of how Americans view SS food is based on quite a few observations and exchanges whilst living with them. It always seemed to me that many Americans complimented the food more on the generousity of portions. - in particular the breakfast buffets than about the actual quality. It often seemed that when Europeans were saying the food was mediochre Americans were saying hhow wonderful it was. I was particularly struck on several occaisions that whereas Europeans seemed more able to discern what was fresh and what was frozen and be less hapy with frozen - this didn't seem to bother the Americans on our tables. Not always .... Just generally.

 

This coming from the folks that eat salami and other cold cuts for breakfast!

 

 

 

 

 

This,coming from Thr folks that eat salami and other cold cuts for breakfast!

[Emperor Norton]

And the cutlery is a much poorer quality than one gets on Seabourn, Regent, Cunard etc, blah,blah.:)

 

That would be funnier to me if I hadn't run across a number of restaurants who had such low quality utensils that attempting to use the knife and fork would bend them.:eek:

[dusababy]

Shall we start with the way that a lot of Americans hold their knife and fork.:eek:

 

 

This really is getting pretty snobby -- not nice at all. :(

[Travelcat2]

The cutlery on the Spirit is different than on the Whisper. We found the cutlery on the Spirit difficult to hold. We do not typically notice things like cutlery or plates -- if we are getting good food and great service, we'll eat on almost anything.

[UKCruiseJeff]

This coming from the folks that eat salami and other cold cuts for breakfast!

 

 

This,coming from Thr folks that eat salami and other cold cuts for breakfast!

 

 

There's no need to repeat yourself .... I said there's no need to repeat yourself ......

[Wellseasoned]

This coming from the folks that eat salami and other cold cuts for breakfast!

 

Bill, that was hysterical! From now on I will not read your posts while drinking. I almost aspirated some very good scotch.

[billcrooz]

There's no need to repeat yourself .... I said there's no need to repeat yourself ......

 

Bologna,repeat bologna!

[billcrooz]

Bill, that was hysterical! From now on I will not read your posts while drinking. I almost aspirated some very good scotch.

 

Hope it wasn't Dewars!

[Neuhoftraveler]

Excuse me if I return to the ostensible topic of this thread, but even though we are mere Americans, we found the food on the Whisper this past June to be mediocre in the main dining room, not bad in La Terrazza, and simply outstanding in Le Champagne. In addition, the service in the main dining room was poor to virtually non-existent (on a night when the room was 2/3 empty).

 

As to food in Britain (as opposed to British food, or at least traditional British food), we find London to be a culinary heaven, albeit an expensive heaven. The restaurants there are a major attraction for us. So despite being Americans maybe we do understand and appreciate top end cuisine, even if we also (sometimes) hold our cutlery like cavemen.