Posting "Celebrity Secrets" Backlash

[bob278]

This is why lawyers have so much influence in the business world (and why so many people hate them).

 

I haven't looked at the details recently, but I am pretty sure the official policy is that you can order from a room service menu anytime (regular, CC or suite) and you can get anything on the dinner menu during dinnertime, all at no charge. Anything else would be catering. If your waiter, in trying to be nice (hoping for that big tip) gives you one at the table, that does not mean it has been added to the menu.

 

Yes, sometimes the cruiseline (or individual employees who are empowered to provide "over and above") will do some things free that could carry a charge. Folks, that does NOT mean that it will always be free to anyone who wants it. Our society is too full of people who think they are ENTITLED to whatever they want.

 

If not having a shrimp cocktail in your cabin for free is going to be a big issue, you probably should not be cruising on most of the mainstream lines. Pay the extra $1000 or so a week and get your "free" goodies.

[Oxo]

There's a steakhouse here in Arkansas where the waiters aren't allowed to ask you if you want steak sauce. You are supposed to ask for it. The reason - the steaks are so good that they shouldn't need steak sauce (I'm friends with several of the waiters and this is what they've all told me - when I still ate beef I agreed). I've been to other places as well where condiments are only provided if someone specifically asks for them, so it doesn't shock me that they wouldn't automatically have certain condiments available unless people asked for them.

Thanks for your information and I agree with your specific example. However, this is not about a specific product such as steak or a specific sauce. I have been on many cruises and this is the first time that I have not seen these items displayed. There are always exceptions to any occurrence. My DH never uses any sauce on his steaks, too.

[LMKohler]

OOPS!! I guess I'm guilty. Not only do I order shrimp cocktail on a night when it's not on the menu and I don't care for the other appetizers, but I also ask for sliced pineapple every morning for breakfast. That's not on the menu either:o

 

I didn't know you couldn't ask for shrimp cocktail on a night when it wasn't on the menu until my waiter suggested I get one since I didn't like the other choices. Also, regarding dessert--one night I couldn't make up my mind about the desserts and my waiter brought me ALL of them. I didn't ask for that either. Ditto for ceasar salad.

 

Do I feel guilty--sorry, NO!!!!

 

Lucy

[Outlanderssc]

And should this same "logic" apply to land-based restaurants? That what's printed on the menu is irrelevant and people should order whatever they want?

Perhaps not at the local McDonalds, but at a full service restaurant I often ask for specials. "Can you make the eggs benedict with salmon instead of Canadian Bacon?" "Can I get the steak without the bernaise sauce?" "Do you have French Onion soup?' They then have every right to say "sorry, we don't prepare it that way" or "sorry - no, we don't have that today", and I can order something else or go to another restaurant (or cruise line). If too many people are ordering shrimp cocktails on X and it's no longer profitable, they then have every right to say "sorry, we no longer have shrimp cocktail". It's not rocket science, it's supply and demand.

[bob278]

Lucy,

 

Oh no! :eek:

 

I didn't mean to make anyone feel guilty (and you shouldn't) about asking for something (especially when I have also heard waiters suggest it on almost every cruise). Celebrity makes it a point to tell you to ask and they will try to satsify every request.

 

My point is that it should not be a big deal if it isn't available all the time, especially in the cabin. Some of the posters seem to feel they are being cheated if they can't have everything they want whenever they want it.

 

There's a huge difference between asking for something and feeling entitled to unlimited quantities and variety.

 

I would guess if you were told "I'm sorry, we don't have any prepared tonight" that you would be a little disappointed and order something else. Not come to CC and vent loudly that you had your dinner (or worse, your entire cruise) ruined because Celebrity wouldn't give you shrimp cocktail every time you wanted it.

 

It's that latter attitude that set me off. I'm sorry I didn't make that clear.

[LMKohler]

Bob -- I wasn't responding to your post:p -- just in general;) . If I was told they didn't have shrimp cocktail one night it wouldn't be the end of the world, I would just do without, and it certainly wouldn't ruin my cruise. I actually can't think of much that would ruin my cruise:D

 

We rarely order room service;) Maybe breakfast before an excursion but that's it -- so have never asked for a shrimp cocktail in our cabin.

 

Lucy

[WeBeCruisin']

Perhaps not at the local McDonalds, but at a full service restaurant I often ask for specials. "Can you make the eggs benedict with salmon instead of Canadian Bacon?" It's not rocket science, it's supply and demand.

 

But it's still tacky. :D

[Outlanderssc]

But it's still tacky.

 

Asking for what you want tacky?

Demanding is tacky, asking is simply communication. If you don't ask, how will they know what you want?

[WeBeCruisin']

Asking for what you want tacky?

Demanding is tacky, asking is simply communication. If you don't ask, how will they know what you want?

 

"Asking" for something in a land-based restaurant which isn't on the menu is indeed tacky. It ranks right up there with putting A-1 sauce on your seared foie gras.:rolleyes:

[bananavan]

I cannot see why Celebrity would NOT charge for the in room shrimp cocktails.

Heck they give you the canapes. Apparently they are not well received. I know that they leave a lot to be desired. So some folks started to order cheese plates and fruit. Not a big deal. Then people decide to order the shrimp cocktails as appetizers. WHY? If you want one, or two, go to the dining room and try to play by the rules. What is next? Lobster daily as a canape replacement? Come on folks, be reasonable.

[AFT_LOVER]

as we saw trays of shrimp cocktail going out to table in the DR every night whether on or off the menu. We had large glasses of cranberry, pineapple & grapefruit juice delivered for cocktails. They even offered carafes of each..........

 

Just for CC who want to substitute shrimp cocktail for canapés & being told they have to pay $6 each......... never saw a charge in the dining room, just room service. My DH thought it was another excellent example of the attitude of Summit's staff. Then the next week our breakfast menu shows a nice jump in extras listed there that I posted previously here in another thread on CC charges.

 

 

OOPS!! I guess I'm guilty. Not only do I order shrimp cocktail on a night when it's not on the menu and I don't care for the other appetizers, but I also ask for sliced pineapple every morning for breakfast. That's not on the menu either:o

 

I didn't know you couldn't ask for shrimp cocktail on a night when it wasn't on the menu until my waiter suggested I get one since I didn't like the other choices. Also, regarding dessert--one night I couldn't make up my mind about the desserts and my waiter brought me ALL of them. I didn't ask for that either. Ditto for ceasar salad.

 

Do I feel guilty--sorry, NO!!!!

 

Lucy

[bob brown]

make all food service ala carte... then the price of cruise will come down and everyone will pay their fair share of their food and inventory will be easier, etc.:)

[Sahaj]

Well I guess the secret's out! if you ask for something on a Celebrity Cruise...you just might get it! How Horrible!!!!

 

I feel that we all pay for the luxury of sailing on Celebrity's ships...personally I ask for the things I enjoy! 99% of the time they are very nice and accomodating! I love having a plate of olives (black) on the dinner table.... don't tell anyone or they might run out!

 

They might just have to funnel some of that money from the AquaSpa or Casino into the Cuisine budget (just kidding???)

[C 2 C]

I like the shrimp well enough to ask for it almost every day. On a past cruise our waiter could not fill any special order... or would not.. I don't think she got on well with the assistant maitre'd... but since it was a B2B the next journey everything we asked for was available...

We have also been on a cruise where the shrimp (jumbo) shrank to shrimpy shrimp because the jumbo kind was no longer available. This past cruise we asked for a spinach salad every day after it was initially offered... until they ran out of spinach three days before the end.... no big deal... X tries to fill special requiests and pride themselves when they can make you happier than you expect....going beyond the call of duty etc. The possible they do right away... the impossible takes a little longer...

 

I have no experience with suites and concierge service.. I'll leave those topics to the people who pay for the privilege..

[WeBeCruisin']

. This past cruise we asked for a spinach salad every day after it was initially offered... until they ran out of spinach three days before the end.... no big deal... ..

 

It might have been a big deal to the poor people who during those last three days decided it would be nice to have some spinach, but were told it was impossible because a certain couple had "special-ordered" spinach 25 days in a row. :D You did say it was two 14-day back-to-backs, right?

[C 2 C]

I'm sure popeye was stressed..

 

Even I could hardly lift my fork the rest of the meal... never mind the special of the day....

[Schplinky]

It is the waiter's job to make you happy with the food. Our last waiter told us that if we put that we didn't like the food on our evaluation, it reflected badly on him since he should have seen this and offered us something from the menu or offered something else. I think this is unfair to the waiters but it does show that X expects special requests. I think it unrealistic to believe the OP when waiters practically foist seconds on you.

[jasm8449]

 

Schplinky....Why would I make this up? Was there not enough reasonable detail in my original post? I've been a member of cruisecritic for a few years, and I thought I would share this information. Isn't that what this site is all about?

 

I will add that this was on the Constellation, but I will not name the staffmember...I would never risk getting any Celebrity employee in trouble for taking the time to talk to me, and then turn around and publicize their name on the internet.

 

I never said that waiters don't allow seconds or special orders, I only reported about the shrimp in particular, because according to this staffmember, it was a particular "food perk" that had become problematically popular, and that the food managers have taken note, and that Celebrity suits and staff monitor this forum. That being said, you might take note that in previous years, the waiters could bring seconds or specials at will. Now they must have the asst. maitre d' sign an approval for those requests.

[Schplinky]

Sorry, I really didn't mean that you made it up, although I realise that's pretty much what my post says. What I meant was that the X staff member is likely complaining to a listening ear about all the special requests and saw an opportunity to dampen them by getting you to tell us all to knock it off. At the same time, they're pressing others to take seconds. There's a great inconsistency there. I suspect this fellow was just a humbug,

[Jimsgirl]

I wish someone could tell me if the diningroom is telling lies when on the last morning breakfast they are "out of x and y and z" this has happened on several of my Celebrity cruises.

 

Frankly I thinkthey are lying, they just do not want to be bothered cooking those items on the last morning.

 

By the way, why does the dining room, not serve English Breakfast tea, at breakfast. If you ask for it you get English Tea time tea, a much more delicate tea, they even argue that you have received the tea you ordered The Maitre D' even told me that if I wanted English Breakfast tea I should go to the Cova Cafe and BUY IT!

Also why was the tea in the dining room served with teabag in the cup and tepid water that had stood around quite a while)being poured on it. The excuse was "There are no teapots" Is this being treated like a Queen as per their TV commercial

[C 2 C]

I suspect this fellow was just a humbug,

 

And what do you have against humbugs? This is the only time of year when I get special recognition... a season for me as well as jolly fat guys who must get lots of seconds and special requests.

[Jimsgirl]

I wish someone could tell me if the diningroom is telling lies when on the last morning breakfast they are "out of x and y and z" this has happened on several of my Celebrity cruises.

 

Frankly I thinkthey are lying, they just do not want to be bothered cooking those items on the last morning.

 

By the way, why does the dining room, not serve English Breakfast tea, at breakfast. If you ask for it you get English Tea time tea, a much more delicate tea, they even argue that you have received the tea you ordered The Maitre D' even told me that if I wanted English Breakfast tea I should go to the Cova Cafe and BUY IT!

Also why was the tea in the dining room served with teabag in the cup and tepid water that had stood around quite a while)being poured on it. The excuse was "There are no teapots" Is this being treated like a Queen as per their TV commercial

[C 2 C]

"There are no teapots"

 

There were lots on the dance floor.

[flashdog_1]

There are usually quite a variety of items in each course each evening. If you happen to be a non-adventurous eater, I think that is the reason you may have a steak, chicken breast, mashed potatoes etc. any night. But just because ordering off the menu is available for those that truly do not like the chef's suggested menu or the alternate items, it doesn't mean the rest of us should compound the problem by ordering off menu. This is not your down the street family restaurant owned by one of your neighbors who bends over backwards to please you! He may be serving only a couple hundred meals, whereas the cruise ships are serving thousands.

[Schplinky]

I think the dining room expects a certain range of special requests. If most people on CC know you can request shrimp cocktail, I'm pretty sure the dining room does and they anticipate that. Same goes for escargot and the like. I doubt they consider these "special" so much as they consider them predictable. If folks want to claim that this made them feel special and more like tipping, so much the better. I don't think they would offer off the menu stuff if they couldn't do it efficiently and with some degree of predictability. They're not going to sacrifice tips at three tables to run and get something for one customer, I believe. You may think you're getting something "extra" but I doubt the chef is whipping up anything they didn't already know that "x" people order on a given cruise.