A proper cup of tea?

[Penzance]

As it will be our first time on Celebrity (Constellation in May 2015) could some please tell me if we can get a proper cup of tea anytime - meaning tea made with fresh boiling water. My fussy DH does not drink coffee, so his tea must be perfect, especially first thing in the morning!

 

Thank you.

[bbappel]

I haven't watched carefully but I believe Cafe Al Bacio does good tea. However it isn't free unless you have a drinks package. The classic no alcohol would be sufficient for good tea.

I've gotten a nice pot of Earl Grey on occasion though I'm more likely to have an espresso drink like a latte or cappuccino in the morning.

I don't know if the buffet has water at the proper temp and you may wish to bring your own tea if he is particular. They have standard US teas.

I'll see what the Summit has in September.

Beth

[hamrag]

No, you will not get that.....certainly not freshly boiled as we do it in the UK. My wife is a tea drinker and I have never failed, with perseverance, to get the teabag to infuse well enough to give a 90% version of tea! You will get a very good selection of teas, including Earl Grey and the various berry type flavours.

[Sloop-JohnB]

In general for grab & go tea, I found the best to come from Cafe al Bacio which uses the boiling hot water from "the still" of the espresso machine.

 

Tea (and coffee) was less desirable to us from the MDR or the Buffet venues.

 

The Tea served at the "Champagne Tea" event (extra charge for this special event) in Murano's was also excellent.

 

Hope this helps,

 

Cheers!

[Ruthk]

In the main dining room, for years it was my complaint that the water was only luke warm at best. Finally several years ago I mentioned to our waiter that next year I will bring my own kettle to the dining room to get boiled water. Well, before you know it, as waiters are always willing to please, my water came boiled every single evening. So now I stress to our waiter that I want freshly boiled water and I seem to have no problems any more.

[Penzance]

Thank you all. I will certainly make it a point to ask for boiling water in the MDR and will keep fingers crossed in the buffet. Oh, and he only drinks "English Breakfast" tea bags too. !!

[Sloop-JohnB]

English Breakfast... Pretty sure that was one of the many Forte teas on offer at Cafe al Bacio (I know I tried a great variety over the course of the cruise). Not sure about what they had in the Buffet or MDR... So if no one here on CC answers differently, you may want to bring along your own stash to be safe (and ensure he is happy)

 

Cheers!

[elena7seas]

On our last Celebrity two cruises (February and May 2014), the teas that I had been used to for years had been swapped out for a new "no-name" brand that was just awful, in my opinion (which is not so humble where tea is concerned). I was told that it was a permanent change.

 

I think the original tea was Bigelow...which isn't fabulous tea, but it was decent. I take my tea clear, so it doesn't have to be too strong to be acceptable. But it should, at least, taste like tea.

 

At the Elite Afternoon Tea, people all around me on both cruises were complaining about the tea (it was the same tea that was on offer in the buffet and at dinner). I was drinking the English Breakfast variety, and you just couldn't get any flavour out of it, no matter how long you steeped it, even if you managed to convince some kind soul to bring you water just off the boil. I tried the Darjeeling, with no noticeable improvement.

 

I usually have the Classic non-alcoholic beverage package and can get the Tea Forte from Café al Bacio, which is very good. But it is not convenient for your assistant waiter in the MDR to get you tea from Café al Bacio, so if it matters to you, it is best to bring a decent tea bag with you to breakfast or dinner.

 

What can you do. British born, raised in Canada by a pair of British tea jennies. The new Modern Luxury? Have tea bag, will travel.

[Ruthk]

Every year I bring my Tetley Tea bags with me, but for some reason that I can't remember, this year I came home with my tea bags. Could they have been using Tetley on my February cruise??? I had no complaints - I like a strong tea (as I never drink coffee) and can't for the life of me remember what they served that made me happy.

p.s. they do have English tea in the main dining room - they have lots of varieties for you to choose from.

[true45]

I have used 2 tea bags to make it stronger

[barneymag]

Let's face it .... Brits take our tea different to the US and Europe

Regardless of where we travel we always pack some Yorkshire Tea Bags - it's the only way to get a cup of tea the way we're used to it ...... Even with Luke warm water it's better than the American or European Teabags which always produce a colourless, tasteless cup of warm water ..... without milk as well !!!:)

[Penzance]

Everyone has been so helpful, thank you all.

 

Elena7seas - yes, I will make sure to buy and take some decent teabags to ensure the man is happy :-) At home, it's the full monty - - loose tea, in a heated pot, boiling water then covered by a tea cozy for three minutes. No wonder I need a cruise !!

[cb at sea]

It's quite difficult to get BOILING water delivered to either a cabin, or even, a table in the dining room!

 

For one week, he'll make do. My hubby is a tea freak, too....and he deals with it. So will your hubby.

[jayoldschool]

We've given up on after dinner coffee and tea in the MDR and Blu. We finish our meal, then head to Cafe Baccio for proper tea (or coffee) and sweets. We found in the MDR that desserts would be finished before tea would arrive, and it was usually delivered with cream, not milk (despite repeated requests for milk). Going to Baccio saves time, too! Tea there is very good (and I'm a fussy Canadian tea drinker). Loose tea in guaze bags, good variety, proper boiling water delivered to your table (with milk!)

[OBX-Cruisers]

Have any of you European tea drinkers that complain about lack of availability of boiling water on ships considered bringing an immersion heater? Simple ones are only about $8 USD and can quickly warm up water in a cup you can get in the Lido/Buffet.

 

Only problem is that they may not be permitted, but if carefully packed will likely look like a hair curling iron which is permitted I believe.

[Lsimon]

The hot water from the coffee service areas in the buffet seems like it is about as hot as boiling water to me but I might not be quite as choosy about it as some. On some cruises they have Tetley, or another name brand, basic tea in addition to the no-name selection of teas they switched to several years ago. But if you want to make sure bring a supply of bags with you - they are easy enough to pack. I always bring some as I like certain green tea and oolong teas.

 

As others have said the tea served in Café al Bacio is very good and served extremely hot off the espresso machine's steamer pipes I think. the cost is about the same as a Latte and it is served in a good sized nice china pot. It is included in the beverage packages. They'll serve it in a paper to go cup on request.

[Elaine0138]

I pack a wee travel kettle never had it confiscated as it has an automatic cut off.

[gold1953]

I am Canadian and very fussy about my tea and yes it does take 2 bags to make a decent cup ..and I don't like strong tea!

You could buy the empty tea pouches and stuff them with your own loose tea. They work quite well .

When we sailed out of UK last fall they had Tetley as well as the sappy brand. I think they were trying to please the Brits as they also provide kettles on those cruises

[nuggett]

In general for grab & go tea, I found the best to come from Cafe al Bacio which uses the boiling hot water from "the still" of the espresso machine.

 

Tea (and coffee) was less desirable to us from the MDR or the Buffet venues.

 

The Tea served at the "Champagne Tea" event (extra charge for this special event) in Murano's was also excellent.

 

Hope this helps,

 

Cheers!

 

Do you have to pay for this hot water at Cafe al Bacio? What time is the cafe open?

[lisiamc]

Let's face it .... Brits take our tea different to the US and Europe

Regardless of where we travel we always pack some Yorkshire Tea Bags - it's the only way to get a cup of tea the way we're used to it ...... Even with Luke warm water it's better than the American or European Teabags which always produce a colourless, tasteless cup of warm water ..... without milk as well !!!:)

 

Yes, yes, yes to the Yorkshire tea bags! You're right, they will still make a drinkable cup of tea even if the water isn't quite as hot as it should be. Unfortunately, I don't think tea drinkers in North America have easy access to them.

[Velvetwater]

Another Yorkshire teabag smuggler here!

 

We take Yorkshire hard water/Yorkshire Gold tea bags on our cruises for a good cup of tea. We once bought Betty's tea to take on a cruise but used all the teabags before we sailed because they were so great.

 

We love our tea although I am one of the 'water has to be just below boiling' for my tea person and to me a teabag has to sit in the water for 3 minutes for the flavour then let it sit some more so its a better temperature. Carnival buffet gave us boiling water if we wanted but Yorkshire bags do hold their own as people have said. :)

 

We take ginger tea bags too for obvious reasons.

[Lsimon]

Do you have to pay for this hot water at Cafe al Bacio? What time is the cafe open?

 

I don't know if they'd charge or not, but for some reason I'd feel odd going into a place that sells all their drinks and asking for a cup of hot water for a tea bag I brought myself.

 

The hot water in the buffet has been just fine for me when making my own tea in the past. It is built into the self serve coffee machines there and while it might not be boiling it is very hot.

[Chip28]

If you sail from Southampton there are kettles in the cabin and you can have your own freshly boiled water for the tea - bring your own tea bags and get a perfect cup of tea any time you want :)

[Ayton lady]

Just off Silhouette and getting a decent cup of tea was a problem. They have stopped Tetleys and Liptons bags now and only do an American brand. We bought some Liptons tea bags ashore as those were the ones we could find but I would certainly say bring your own if you are tea drinkers. Obviously, as a yorkshire lass I would say yorkshire or Betty's would be preferable. Bacio is the best place to get a pot made with boiling water but there is a cost and have never thought of asking for the water without the tea. I wouldn't risk the travel kettle or heating element as they are banned. Great cruise around the Baltic but the kettle went on as soon as the front door was open!!!!

[MuddyPuddles]

They did have Tetleys on the Equinox last week but as others have mentioned, definitely needed two teabags to make a half decent cup. This is the first time I wished I had brought my own teabags.