What are the off-menu possibilities on Celebrity?

[spookwife]

See, this last bit is what I would specifically want to try. How do I ask the waiter to be brought a dish from the crew menu each night? (and no, I'm not kidding! I'm completely serious)

 

you have to basically express extreme disappointment with the main menu or wistfully fantasize out loud how you are jonesing for some Kimchee.

 

in all seriousness I have only seen actual Koreans get Korean food ( the table next to ours last time, he was on his honeymoon with his occidental spouse) as well as Indians. and I know it took effort.. you could NOT ask and get it that night, you had to make arrangements for the next.

 

EVERY night and you are pushing it.. sorry but that is almost an insult to the menu offerings you normally have, most of which are pretty damn tasty.. it is also a major inconvenience to the person who has to schlep down to the crew mess and retrieve your meal, causing delays in the service of everyone around you.

 

ONCE is a novelty and a reasonable request. the entire cruse is just inappropriate.

[We're The Groupnors]

Celebrity is wonderful about people who have eating restrictions ordering off menu, given a night's notice. DH has Crohn's and BFF has Celiac, and while both try to order off the regular menu, whan factoring in other allergies, etc., sometimes they just can't. I realize that this is a different situation than someone who simply wants a unique meal, but I wanted to point out just how accommodating the crew can be. In fact, on one cruise our assistant Maitre d' was often in the Buffet at lunch, and noticed that I ate curry often. He asked what my favourite Indian dish was, and when I told him he had a fabulous Beef Vindaloo made for me the next day. I told him he should not have gone to so much trouble, but he said he was happy to do it as Vindaloo comes from the area where he was born.

[ECCruise]

ONCE is a novelty and a reasonable request. the entire cruse is just inappropriate.

 

Ah, but the devil is in the details.

 

2850 pax x20% = 570 "reasonable" requests. 570 meals. Just where would you plan for them to source those meals? Should they lade on more crew food or just slice back the crew's portions? Do I think 20% of the pax will do this? No. Do I think if you open the door wide for this type of abuse it will increase? Yes. (Oh, the people in the next table over did this, we want it, too!)

 

With 2850 pax, sorry, I don't think any request of this sort is reasonable.

 

Have had too many long conversations with crew and staff to even think about something like this. Sorry, just one of my pet peeves. Like lingering after late seating so you can continue your conversation, while the dining staff patiently waits for you and cut into their meal and rest time. Like (less an issue on =X= than other lines) seeing every towel animal multiple times and tossing them off the bed seconds after entering the room (we tell the steward "no towel animals".

 

Yes, they are there to service you, and generally do an extraordinary job. No, they are not your servants.

[herbanrenewal]

If you want to try cuisine of different countries, take a cruise to SE Asia or take a land trip.

 

I was going to suggest a port intensive cruise to another continent - then spend your day in port trying out the local cuisine.

 

I would also suggest looking at the menu at some point during the day, and if nothing appeals to you, check out the menus at the specialty restaurants.

 

However, asking an already over-burdened employee to make special provisions just for you is not fair to him or to his other tables of customers who would need to be delayed by someone making special arrangements just for you.

This is not something a mass-market cruise line can cater to.

Edited September 3, 2014 by herbanrenewal

[CathyCruises]

Several years ago I read a post about someone asking about Indian food in Blu. I just conversationally asked our waiter about it (after I had ordered my dinner,) I was just curious if such a thing was possible.

 

In one minute the asst. maître d' ran over and started quizzing me about what I liked, and about the time my actual meal arrived, so did a huge Indian banquet!!! It was fantastic but I felt horribly guilty for making them do extra work and for having to leave half of it--I have never asked for anything again.

 

I did one night several cruises ago have a delicious lemon tart for dessert. The next night I asked the waiter if there was any left; he said they have to throw all the unused food away within a few hours of it being cooked, but they would happily make me a fresh tart for the next night, and how many other people at our table would like to have it too? Sure enough, it showed up!

 

In both cases they seemed delighted to be able to offer us something special which made me feel good. I am very sensitive to the fact that they have thousands of meals to prepare and would never want to be a PITA!

[Ex-Airbalancer]

Several years ago I read a post about someone asking about Indian food in Blu. I just conversationally asked our waiter about it (after I had ordered my dinner,) I was just curious if such a thing was possible.

 

In one minute the asst. maître d' ran over and started quizzing me about what I liked, and about the time my actual meal arrived, so did a huge Indian banquet!!! It was fantastic but I felt horribly guilty for making them do extra work and for having to leave half of it--I have never asked for anything again.

 

I did one night several cruises ago have a delicious lemon tart for dessert. The next night I asked the waiter if there was any left; he said they have to throw all the unused food away within a few hours of it being cooked, but they would happily make me a fresh tart for the next night, and how many other people at our table would like to have it too? Sure enough, it showed up!

 

In both cases they seemed delighted to be able to offer us something special which made me feel good. I am very sensitive to the fact that they have thousands of meals to prepare and would never want to be a PITA!

 

I heard they also delivery people birthday cakes when it not their birthday :p

 

They also have a killer gluten-free chocolate cake that you have to ask for

Edited September 3, 2014 by Airbalancer

[jenniebnyc]

Since we usually know the MD in Murano, he usually asks us ahead of time if we would like something special when we dine here. As long as they know the day before, it is doable. The staff are VERY excited to make us what we like (Steak Diane, truffle pasta, etc.). NEVER have I felt this is a burden on them. X likes to please it customers and this is another way of showing their excellent service. The food in Murano is made to order. Not a big deal to them. Believe me, we have asked and they always say no problem!

 

Other examples...in MDR, we always ask in the beginning of our cruise if we could have a large plate if steamed spinach (or asparagus) with olive oil and garlic for the table to be served with the entrees each evening. Again, no problem, just tell them ahead of time.

[groryjm]

..... Can you talk to the chef and come up with something?

 

Next spring you will be able to but at a price:)

 

"A dedicated restaurant will be reserved exclusively for Suite Class guests and will be available morning, noon, and night.

 

Each meal will feature unique menus that offer dishes not available anywhere else onboard.

 

Guests can immerse themselves in the local culture with specially crafted menus inspired by the local destination, and enjoy the world’s best ingredients.

 

The Suite Class chef can provide a tailor made experience to suite guests and prepare a dish to their liking."

[ECCruise]

Next spring you will be able to but at a price:)

 

"A dedicated restaurant will be reserved exclusively for Suite Class guests and will be available morning, noon, and night.

 

Each meal will feature unique menus that offer dishes not available anywhere else onboard.

 

Guests can immerse themselves in the local culture with specially crafted menus inspired by the local destination, and enjoy the world’s best ingredients.

 

The Suite Class chef can provide a tailor made experience to suite guests and prepare a dish to their liking."

 

Excellent! And this is how it should be--they will be geared up for it and your suite fare will compensate for niceties such as these. Fair for all concerned.

[cyntil8ing]

I remember reading reviews from a couple years back of someone who mentioned to their waiter that they would like to have a dish of the crew indian food at dinner.I believe they were on carnival or Royal Caribbean and it wasn't a huge issue.

 

Carnival has a off-menu indian option each night in the mdr. I order it at least once per cruise.

 

I really missed the indian options on the Summit buffet this summer. Once in a while, there was one choice, but in previous years, there was a small section of indian choices next to the sushi each night. When I could find it, the naan looked and tasted like tortilla chips :eek:

[Chunky2219]

I'm really struggling with the idea of going off menu in MDR. It's just a production line to deliver resaonable quality food in good time and get people on their way to the theatre before curtain up.

 

By all means, if you want to be adventurous, try a speciality restaurant. Even better, try a premium line or book a fancy cabin on Cunard. There's an apocryphal story about a former Maitre d' in Queens Grill (nice chap, we met him), who was asked for a portion of elephant ears. His reply was, "would Sir prefer African or Indian?" Nevetheless, if you are paying the big bucks they will whip up just about anything you can imagine.

 

Just about every major town in every western country has an option for Indian or Chinese or Lebanese cookery or whatever and they are certainly worth investigating at your leisure.

 

But if you must stretch the envelope and ask for more on a mass market cruise ship, please do remember to tip generously to reflect the effort made. I say that as a curmudgonly Brit, not someone brought up and indoctrinated with the idea of tips with everything.

 

.

[DavidYYC]

<wordless>

[Kevnzworld]

If you take the Celebrity galley tour, it will give you insight into the Celebrity food factory . Every dish is featured in a picture, arranged along a 14 day menu. As many have mentioned, the Indian / phillapeno food possibilities are there, especially given the Asian delight area and the crew kitchen. The buffet features Indian food most nights, so they have the the sauces and ingredients handy.

There aren't " real " chefs on Celebrity, just trained cooks. IMO they have a hard enough time executing the preplanned meals properly, I'm not going to try to have them make up a recipe on the fly, grilled foods aside.

[Caribbean Chris]

I'm guessing the all suite restaurant will be much like cruising any premium line was (Princess, etc) back in the 1980s pre-Celebrity. It was very typical for the maitre 'd to approach your table and suggest something special for the next evening, prepared tableside such as flamed crepes Suzette, bananas Foster, steak Diane, Caesar salad, etc.

 

Of course, the ships held far fewer passengers then.

 

Lots of differences in today's cruising, but it still never fails to amaze me how wonderful it all is at such a reasonable cost. (Yes, I know prices are going up.)

[NLH Arizona]

But if you must stretch the envelope and ask for more on a mass market cruise ship, please do remember to tip generously to reflect the effort made. I say that as a curmudgonly Brit, not someone brought up and indoctrinated with the idea of tips with everything.

 

.

And I will add....If you are at a table other than for 2, please be considerate of your tablemates, as you don't want them having to wait for their food, when it might take a lot longer to get yours.

[Jane2357]

Unbelievable to me what people feel that they are entitled to and to be further deluded to think the staff is so happy and excited to do it for me. I hate to break the news but the ENTIRE ship is basically an upscale buffet - this isn't fine dining even in Murano where the recipes are the same from ship to ship. There is no Chef back there doing the happy dance that Mr. and Mrs. Pain in the Butt want steak Diane that we no longer offer. Some of you need to get off a mainstream cruise line and pay to move up.

[Gracie115]

unbelievable to me what people feel that they are entitled to and to be further deluded to think the staff is so happy and excited to do it for me. I hate to break the news but the entire ship is basically an upscale buffet - this isn't fine dining even in murano where the recipes are the same from ship to ship. There is no chef back there doing the happy dance that mr. And mrs. Pain in the butt want steak diane that we no longer offer. Some of you need to get off a mainstream cruise line and pay to move up.

 

:) no words necessary

Edited September 3, 2014 by Gracie115

[pris993]

For those who think it is too big deal, please keeping thinking that way, so those of us who know what we want and are not afraid to ask, can continue to do so. After 50+ cruises on 9 different lines, it is clear ordering off menu happens more often than you would think.

[ECCruise]

Unbelievable to me what people feel that they are entitled to and to be further deluded to think the staff is so happy and excited to do it for me. I hate to break the news but the ENTIRE ship is basically an upscale buffet - this isn't fine dining even in Murano where the recipes are the same from ship to ship. There is no Chef back there doing the happy dance that Mr. and Mrs. Pain in the Butt want steak Diane that we no longer offer. Some of you need to get off a mainstream cruise line and pay to move up.

 

So agree. Not only is it an issue with the staff (who you will be certain are just SO happy to meet your wildest whim--they aren't, they are polite and don't want to jeopardize your experience), you put an undue stress on the experience of your fellow passengers while they are running around trying to satisfy you. And yes, "entitled" is exactly the correct term.

[bplazo]

For those who think it is too big deal, please keeping thinking that way, so those of us who know what we want and are not afraid to ask, can continue to do so. After 50+ cruises on 9 different lines, it is clear ordering off menu happens more often than you would think.

 

Simple word is called for people who do this PITA.

[NauticalMiss]

Just a thought - if someone would like to sample cuisine from a different culture, why not visit a restaurant at the appropriate destination? I get that you can't sample an authentic Sri Lankan lamb curry when you always cruise around the Caribbean; but asking chefs on mass market cruise ships to 'rustle up something different' is outrageous.

[sylmack]

Those that continually order off menu should be considerate about how this affects their fellow cruisers.

 

On the Millennium a few years back, we shared a waiter/ass't waiter with an entire table of 8 who ALL ordered off-menu. We were a table of 6. For the first 3 days, we almost never saw our waiter, who was busy getting burgers for the kids, special items from the buffet upstairs, steaks cooked to order, returning food that was not satisfactory, etc. etc. The only time we saw the poor fellow was when he came to apologize for ignoring us.

 

The 4th night, the PITA family decided they had had enough of poor service, and spent the rest of the 14 day cruise eating in their suite. We never saw a happier wait staff than the evening they didn't show up. We spent the rest of the cruise getting special attention because we were now his only table.

 

If I want off-menu, I will eat in a restaurant in port.

[Caribbean Chris]

On the Millennium a few years back, we shared a waiter/ass't waiter with an entire table of 8 who ALL ordered off-menu. We were a table of 6. For the first 3 days, we almost never saw our waiter, who was busy getting burgers for the kids, special items from the buffet upstairs, steaks cooked to order, returning food that was not satisfactory, etc. etc. The only time we saw the poor fellow was when he came to apologize for ignoring us.

.

 

Worse, their kids will probably end up following that example.

 

Ay least they (hopefully) paid big bucks for the suite. We cruised years ago at a table with a "travel writer" who was actually a lawyer who had written a flimsy self-published book about cruising so he could deduct his trips. He behaved that way at the table, and also boasted about how they would send their room stewardess for more towels even though they didn't need them, to "test" her responses.

 

What a jerk. I became a travel writer in the years that followed (not writing about cruising, and I pay all my own expenses), and I've since met other demanding freelanders who give travel writers a bad name.

[spookwife]

Celebrity is wonderful about people who have eating restrictions ordering off menu' date=' given a night's notice. DH has Crohn's and BFF has Celiac, and while both try to order off the regular menu, whan factoring in other allergies, etc., sometimes they just can't. I realize that this is a different situation than someone who simply wants a unique meal, but I wanted to point out just how accommodating the crew can be. In fact, on one cruise our assistant Maitre d' was often in the Buffet at lunch, and noticed that I ate curry often. He asked what my favourite Indian dish was, and when I told him he had a fabulous Beef Vindaloo made for me the next day. I told him he should not have gone to so much trouble, but he said he was happy to do it as Vindaloo comes from the area where he was born.[/quote']

 

not a valid comparison. nearly everything on the reg menu can be made BF, DF, or whatever free to accommodate allergies. furthermore it is not that hard to order a plain poached chicken breast and steamed veggies every night either( had a Table mate on Disney get that) using whatever is in the galley without having to go to an entirely different galley.

[Jaxom37]

We cruise once, sometimes twice a year. On each cruise we always dine in specialty restaurants numerous times. Once they know your going to be in and out all week they have asked us if we had a favorite dish that was not on the menu. The next night or the night of our choice we are treated to our requested menu items. :)