Tipping: Keeping Up With Inflation?

[GUT2407]

My husband had to do exactly that on our May 9 crossing. Due to undetected zero circulation, he couldn't walk more than 20 ft without sitting. He managed on the ship with severe pain but absolutely needed the chair for boarding and debarkation. This was unexpected and Cunard was more than accommodating in giving us this service. I'm pleased to say that after major surgery, he is back to normal.

 

I hope you don't give a thought to what others might think and do exactly what needs to be done to have the best trip possible. :)

 

 

Please don't worry I really don't care about what anyone thinks about me [well maybe except the bride].

 

I honestly don't think I will need the chair, even in Port but am not prepared to not take it so soon, [i only stopped using it about 6 weeks ago and the cruise is only 12 weeks away] and really the only practical way to get it on and off is to use it.

[NeilT66]

I may be wrong but I was basing it on what I would normally give at a decent restaurant i.e £50+

 

One can get lunch at the Chewton Glen, Britain's best 5* hotel, for just £25! So you tip twice that, each day?

 

That is just showing off :(

[DDBINK1]

I think that if you don't experience the problem you should not judge.

A person with circulation problems may need to use a chair to get around off and on based of pain, stability, even time of day.

Best advice we give in clinic is to keep active as much as possible. That could take the form of using a chair for long distance but if you can get up and dance a few Rumba's do it. Then rest and try to do it again.

Those ramps to get onto a cruise ship can be daunting with the angle walking up to the ship.

 

My best story was when on my First QM2 voyage, standing in line for dinner outside the MDR and there was actually 4 scooter chairs lined up with people on them and I smartly waited for the doors to open and said Gentlemen ARE YOU READY, GET SET, and suddenly a lady on one of the scooters shouted RUN HIM DOWN !!!! :eek: And I swear she tried to get me. Of course she was at the next table to mine and we had a great time laughing about it.

[PunkiC]

It is impossible to determine by looking, what another person is capable of doing. It isn't even possible for me to tell you from day to day or even hour to hour what I will be able to do.

 

Last night I was able (with the help of my TENS unit and two Aleve) to dance an entire set, including one pretty fast jive number. Sometimes I can ski most of the day, but other times I have difficulty just walking to the bathroom. I know for sure that standing is by far the most difficult activity for me, so that means that I can't handle lines either at the airport or at cruise terminals.

 

One of my solutions has been to acquire Global Entry status which pretty much eliminates the need for lines at security and at US Customs. I just tell the gate agent that I need to board early and since I use a cane, that is never an issue. Likewise, I always use a cane when boarding a ship and access the special assistance lines.

 

To those who see me using a cane, and on really bad days even a wheelchair, at boarding, and then see me dancing on the ship, I would just ask them not to judge. I have had back issues for 55 years and am proud of the fact that I can still remain quite active part of the time. Yes, it would be a lot easier to just give up and be an invalid (I know a lot of people in my position who have done so) but it is a big wide world and there are still a lot of place that I want to travel, so mobility, whenever possible, is essential to me.

 

Just be patient and try to understand.

[balf]

Sorry Toad, perhaps I didn't express what I meant clearly enough.

 

This £10k 'in their back pocket' is what they use to support their family back home (house, electricity, food, schooling, clothes, etc.). It's not money to 'spend on whatever they like'. Those who are married still have a home that they have to pay for, even if they don't live in it.

 

 

I've just got off QE and yesterday in Piraeus watched lots of crew returning to the ship, many carrying new pieces of electronic gear. And in every port terminal with wifi the range of equipment they bring out is amazing. Good luck to them but it isn't all sent home.

 

I'd wager there are many pax on board taking their one cruise of the year who earn less than the waiters and room stewards.

 

David.

[balf]

When I am on a cruise, I think of the foods in the buffet as simple, because I can pick up what I like from a huge selection. No pressure, no waiting, no ordering, just get some food and eat it.

 

Now, when I go to the sit down areas, the MDR or a restaurant on board the ship, then to me, that is gourmet. I sit down, I am dressed up, I get a cloth napkin, a wait staff member hands me a menu, I choose a meal and it is served. Now I cannot say that I think all the food served is gourmet by taste, because all chefs are not created equal. But comparing my home cooking to a meal on the ship, definitely the meal on the ship is GOURMET!!!!!

 

 

You must eat very poorly at home. I agree about the buffet but rarely have a meal in the MDrm that compares with what we eat every day at home. Yes you get the treatment, napkin on lap etc, but I find the food stodgy and mostly poorly cooked. Cunard need to have a re think on food, their menus are so dated. Modern food is simpler (as food in the Golden Lion) much tastier and has none of the often unpleasant sauces which seem to accompany most meals.

 

And don't even get me started on what they do with meat. At least I think it's meat, it's often difficult to tell.

 

David.

[DreamflightPat]

You must eat very poorly at home. I agree about the buffet but rarely have a meal in the MDrm that compares with what we eat every day at home. Yes you get the treatment, napkin on lap etc, but I find the food stodgy and mostly poorly cooked. Cunard need to have a re think on food, their menus are so dated. Modern food is simpler (as food in the Golden Lion) much tastier and has none of the often unpleasant sauces which seem to accompany most meals.

 

And don't even get me started on what they do with meat. At least I think it's meat, it's often difficult to tell.

 

David.

I think I have lost the plot on this thread. The title states tipping and inflation. Seems to have gone off topic.

[balf]

I think I have lost the plot on this thread. The title states tipping and inflation. Seems to have gone off topic.

 

Don't all good conversations?

 

David.

[DreamflightPat]

Don't all good conversations?

 

David.

Ha Ha.

 

Rgds Pat

[ednria]

I fail to find much "good" in the recent turns of this conversation.

[DDBINK1]

You must eat very poorly at home. I agree about the buffet but rarely have a meal in the MDrm that compares with what we eat every day at home. Yes you get the treatment, napkin on lap etc, but I find the food stodgy and mostly poorly cooked. Cunard need to have a re think on food, their menus are so dated. Modern food is simpler (as food in the Golden Lion) much tastier and has none of the often unpleasant sauces which seem to accompany most meals.

 

And don't even get me started on what they do with meat. At least I think it's meat, it's often difficult to tell.

 

David.

 

I beg your pardon?

When I eat my Lucky Charms for breakfast, my Spaghetti-O's for lunch and my TV dinner for whatever, I eat very well, thank you very much !!

I have not eaten in the MDR since my first Cruise on QM2 on the Inaugural Caribbean Cruise. I have been in the Queens Grill. So I may have missed some of the recent changes on the menus. And to bring it back to the topic, it never changes my tips to the wait staff. They are not the chef. I rate their work on the way they interact with me and serve me. Not the taste of the food.

[Salacia]

You must eat very poorly at home. I agree about the buffet but rarely have a meal in the MDrm that compares with what we eat every day at home. Yes you get the treatment, napkin on lap etc, but I find the food stodgy and mostly poorly cooked. Cunard need to have a re think on food, their menus are so dated. Modern food is simpler (as food in the Golden Lion) much tastier and has none of the often unpleasant sauces which seem to accompany most meals.

 

And don't even get me started on what they do with meat. At least I think it's meat, it's often difficult to tell.

 

David.

 

David. Modern food ? The Golden Lion food is modern? And simple and much tastier? None of the unpleasant sauces? Seriously? What's that brew in a Shepards Pie?

 

I have no doubt that a soufflé would rise to incredible heights in your kitchen.

 

Going for the cheap shot ("You must eat very poorly at home") was something I would not have expected from you.

 

Salacia

[DDBINK1]

" You must eat very poorly at home. "

 

I didn't think of it as a cheap shot.

I just figured it was a British thing to say to an American from Tennessee.

Of course David may not be from the UK ??

 

If not, maybe he did not agree with my posting.

 

But overall, I think my point is that the food taste and how it is cooked does not change my opinion of the wait staff in the dining rooms. I might send something back or not eat something on my plate if I do not appreciate its taste or sauce or whatever, but it was not the waiter who cooked it. If I have a complaint about the food I address it to the Maitre D. If I think the waiter is slow, not paying attention to me properly, or doing Deal a Meal with service then I tell the waiter what my problem is with them. I doubt the waiter wants to hear me complain about the chef.

[brigittetom]

I doubt the waiter wants to hear me complain about the chef.

 

I agree. The waiters only objective is to serve you in a prompt, friendly fashion in the hopes that you leave the dining room pleased with your expierence.

[cunardaddict]

I agree. The waiters only objective is to serve you in a prompt, friendly fashion in the hopes that you leave the dining room pleased with your expierence.

 

A waiter has to secure that you will receive your dishes as ordered. So this profession requires more knowledge and qualification than just carrying the plates. In PG and QG senior waiters prepare some dishes at the table.

[cunardaddict]

David. Modern food ? The Golden Lion food is modern? And simple and much tastier? None of the unpleasant sauces? Seriously? What's that brew in a Shepards Pie?

 

I have no doubt that a soufflé would rise to incredible heights in your kitchen.

 

The so called 'pub food' is simple, more often primitive, made of basic and cheap material and certainly not modern. I avoid it.

[brigittetom]

A waiter has to secure that you will receive your dishes as ordered. So this profession requires more knowledge and qualification than just carrying the plates. In PG and QG senior waiters prepare some dishes at the table.

 

Yes, the waiter has more responsibility than just carrying plates but he doesn't correct problems other than to replace the unsatisfactory item from the kitchen. I agree that taking the proper orders and keeping the orders straight is a daunting task....especially being understaffed as they have been the last few years.

[balf]

I And to bring it back to the topic, it never changes my tips to the wait staff. They are not the chef. I rate their work on the way they interact with me and serve me. Not the taste of the food.

 

Agree on that, the waiters can't be blamed for the food in any way.

 

Didn't stop a guy at a near table doing just that though.

 

David.

[balf]

I beg your pardon?

.

 

I am sorry for the comment. Must remember that postings here are so different from those made face to face.

 

Am I forgiven?

 

David.

[balf]

David. Modern food ? The Golden Lion food is modern? And simple and much tastier? None of the unpleasant sauces? Seriously? What's that brew in a Shepards Pie?

 

/QUOTE]

 

Well I have no idea what is in the brew in a Shepherds Pie in the Golden Lion. Maybe it's from the same pot as the gloop served in the MD. Personally I don't eat it, usually go for the fish and chips or bangers and mash.

 

On our first night in the Britania resteraunt a man at the next table had obviously had an issue with his meal and a chef arrived. He made his complaint abot the rack of lamb I think but then he said "the menus are too complicated"

 

I don't know what the outcome was but thinking on this he could have a point very much connected to my thoughts.

 

Move to the second to last evening. In desperation I ordered from the Royal Spa Selection, Seared Beef Tenderloin with mashed Redskin Potatoes, Ratatouille, Truffle Jus and Cress Salad. I don't need to describe the Tenderloin, suffice to say I ate little of it. Of course the waiter asked if there was a problem and could he get me something different. I said no, I didn't want anything else and explained my issues generally with the meats served in the last few evenings. And assured him that it really was not his fault: unfortunatly the waiters usually bear the brunt.

 

So he said "what you like to eat tomorrow night. Wow, what an offer. Pan fried fillet steak, medium rare would be nice. Next evening the meal was, compared with so many before "chalk and cheese" , beautifully cooked with the criss cross seared lines to prove it. Succulent steak with juices running. And where did the fries/chips come from. Not only silver served not just for me but on all the tables around. More smiles that night than all the rest together.

 

So it can be done on a one off basis and in the Grills obviously, but then I know I am in a minority, though I suspect nowhere near a minority of one. As long as not too many push for change nothing will change.

 

But those smiles when the chips appeared tell a story to me.

 

David.

[fantasy51]

I've been on a table where someone asked for chips. They appeared every night for him and others - the quantity grew and grew as more people wanted them.

[balf]

I've been on a table where someone asked for chips. They appeared every night for him and others - the quantity grew and grew as more people wanted them.

 

Now you tell me.

 

David.

[DDBINK1]

I am sorry for the comment. Must remember that postings here are so different from those made face to face.

 

Am I forgiven?

 

David.

 

I never hold a grudge. Life is way way too short. I was not offended. I take comments as good fun on here. It helps me pass the day between patients in my clinic. When I can, I try to use my dry wit, a bit of sarcasm thrown in for good measure to answer and comment on here. I usually fall flat but I made the effort.

[Salacia]

David. Modern food ? The Golden Lion food is modern? And simple and much tastier? None of the unpleasant sauces? Seriously? What's that brew in a Shepards Pie?

 

/QUOTE]

 

Well I have no idea what is in the brew in a Shepherds Pie in the Golden Lion. Maybe it's from the same pot as the gloop served in the MD. Personally I don't eat it, usually go for the fish and chips or bangers and mash.

 

On our first night in the Britania resteraunt a man at the next table had obviously had an issue with his meal and a chef arrived. He made his complaint abot the rack of lamb I think but then he said "the menus are too complicated"

 

I don't know what the outcome was but thinking on this he could have a point very much connected to my thoughts.

 

Move to the second to last evening. In desperation I ordered from the Royal Spa Selection, Seared Beef Tenderloin with mashed Redskin Potatoes, Ratatouille, Truffle Jus and Cress Salad. I don't need to describe the Tenderloin, suffice to say I ate little of it. Of course the waiter asked if there was a problem and could he get me something different. I said no, I didn't want anything else and explained my issues generally with the meats served in the last few evenings. And assured him that it really was not his fault: unfortunatly the waiters usually bear the brunt.

 

So he said "what you like to eat tomorrow night. Wow, what an offer. Pan fried fillet steak, medium rare would be nice. Next evening the meal was, compared with so many before "chalk and cheese" , beautifully cooked with the criss cross seared lines to prove it. Succulent steak with juices running. And where did the fries/chips come from. Not only silver served not just for me but on all the tables around. More smiles that night than all the rest together.

 

So it can be done on a one off basis and in the Grills obviously, but then I know I am in a minority, though I suspect nowhere near a minority of one. As long as not too many push for change nothing will change.

 

But those smiles when the chips appeared tell a story to me.

 

David.

 

Now that you mention it, I can envision a pot labeled "Gloop" in the kitchen :eek:

 

I remember on QM2 voyage where nothing on the menu appealed to me. So I asked the waiter if it would be possible to have a plain salad, steak and whatever veggies and potato available.

 

"Madame", he replied. "this is the QM2 - anything is possible!" My husband said "In that case, may I have the same please?" which was met with "certainly Sir!" Oh boy, I thought, now I've done it, over stepped my bounds and asked for too much! Well..to make a long story even longer, the meal we were served was one of the best we've had on QM2.

 

So yes, David, I agree with you that it is possible to have a gloop free, tasty meal in the MDR.

 

Oh just to mention that if a Yankee requests crisps on board, chances are they [we] will be served potato chips, as opposed to the very tasty fried potatoes freshly made on board, so I've learned to ask for French Fries (and malt vinegar, not ketchup :D)

 

Yours in Gloop Free Dining,

Salacia

Edited October 1, 2014 by Salacia

[balf]

 

The crew is not really short changed. They have agreed to work for a guaranteed minimum salary. If some one removes the tip the ship makes up the short fall in their salary. .

 

This is most confusing if it is really the case.

 

If the crew have a guaranteed salary (nothing to do with tips) why would there need to be any top up? And the idea of the company effectively paying tips to staff is frankly rediculous. I don't pay my tips to pay the salaries of the crew. That's the employers responsibility.

 

David.