Now for something completely different

[OzKiwiJJ]

Yikes, that's certainly not what I'd expect from a cruise line like Viking. I've heard such good things about them in the past. Such a disappointment for you. Hopefully you'll get some decent meals in the speciality restaurants. 

[NSWP]

1 hour ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

Yikes, that's certainly not what I'd expect from a cruise line like Viking. I've heard such good things about them in the past. Such a disappointment for you. Hopefully you'll get some decent meals in the speciality restaurants. 

I get the impression our Lyle Blackduck is not a happy little Vegemite on board Viking Orion.  Yes, Viking Ocean and Viking River normally get good reviews. It appears they have dropped the ball.  We need to organise a Coastguard helo drop of....

Edited April 15, 2022 by NSWP

[Mareblu]

All I can say is that our North Pacific crossing must have been over a millpond.  We found Orion to be really stable, particularly noted because our suite faced forward, and I was alert for any signs of movement.  As to the food....yes, it's probably the only reason we wouldn't sail with Viking again, although yours, Lyle, seems from description to be even worse.  When I completed the post-cruise comments form, I begged their senior staff to please, please, take an Oceania cruise and learn why its cuisine is consistently voted "the best at sea".  I added that even halfway to that benchmark would be acceptable.  We found the crew, each and every member with whom we had dealings, to be remarkable, but service, I guess, is a separate issue.  Service delivery policy is an executive matter, and looking back there were only one or two times over five weeks that we could complain about that.  The glaring one was the night of our 50th wedding anniversary, when we had our request for a window table in the specialty restaurant confirmed.  Our children and TA had even arranged for champagne and a small cake to be delivered.  When we arrived at the door, we were told to wait in line, because that table had been taken.  We told them we'd stand aside, not being a hindrance, but near the desk, until our table was available.  They soon found a window table.  I do wonder, though, how less "assertive" guests would have fared.  We really loved the decor and the comfort of the public spaces, and the lectures were some of the best of any cruise we've enjoyed.  I read on a CC Viking thread the other day that the pandemic seems to have dispensed with a lot of Viking's crew, and those who are sailing seem to be "learning the ropes".  That's simply not good enough, because Viking cruises are certainly the antithesis of a bargain.   I'm so sorry, Lyle, that your much-anticipated cruise has been such a disappointing experience.

Linda

[onlyslightlymad]

2 hours ago, Blackduck59 said:

Well we have a much better sea state, things are much more pleasant. This ship is not really stable in even a moderate sea.

We abandoned eating in the "Restaurant" which is what they call the main dining room. At these prices people expect a fine dining experience. Perfectly prepared meals, plated to impress. In the one lunch and 2 dinners we had the plating was akin to Chuck's diner. Although the food was okay it was just chucked on the plate. The last time we ate there I ordered the "Rib eye steak" I had visions of a nice thick cut with heavy sear marks for the grill and an appropriate array of sides. What I got was a half inch thick chunk of meat looking rather grey with a slight hint of grill marks (anything more and the steak would be overcooked it was so thin)

After informing our TA, our customer service person on board and writing a very pointed note to the head of guest relations we actually have the 2 "guaranteed" meals in the Specialty Restaurants. 

We will be happy to get home on Saturday, I can do a much more impressive plate at home.

Cheers everyone Lyle & Lynn 

That's just terrible to hear.  We are booked on Orion in December (if it goes).  Makes me think that I've made a terrible mistake and  should have stuck with Celebrity.

[NSWP]

1 hour ago, onlyslightlymad said:

That's just terrible to hear.  We are booked on Orion in December (if it goes).  Makes me think that I've made a terrible mistake and  should have stuck with Celebrity.

It would be a worry, Lyle said Celebrity is 50% cheaper than what he paid on Viking Orion.  Can you cancel without penalty?

Edited April 15, 2022 by NSWP

[BRANDEE]

On 4/11/2022 at 10:51 PM, Blackduck59 said:

The sea has calmed considerably. 

In answer to your question @NSWP Les we did the included in your fare excursion which was basically a bus tour. Unfortunately we got a terrible guide and it was not very enjoyable. 

I'm afraid Viking has NOT lived up to the hype. Service is slow and unattractive. Specific requests are ignored and we really feel poorly treated in general. We could have done Celebrity for half the price.

 

6 hours ago, Blackduck59 said:

Well we have a much better sea state, things are much more pleasant. This ship is not really stable in even a moderate sea.

We abandoned eating in the "Restaurant" which is what they call the main dining room. At these prices people expect a fine dining experience. Perfectly prepared meals, plated to impress. In the one lunch and 2 dinners we had the plating was akin to Chuck's diner. Although the food was okay it was just chucked on the plate. The last time we ate there I ordered the "Rib eye steak" I had visions of a nice thick cut with heavy sear marks for the grill and an appropriate array of sides. What I got was a half inch thick chunk of meat looking rather grey with a slight hint of grill marks (anything more and the steak would be overcooked it was so thin)

After informing our TA, our customer service person on board and writing a very pointed note to the head of guest relations we actually have the 2 "guaranteed" meals in the Specialty Restaurants. 

We will be happy to get home on Saturday, I can do a much more impressive plate at home.

Cheers everyone Lyle & Lynn 

Wow..not what I would expect from Viking.  Just received our Viking brochure and will be putting it out with the trash..Safe trip home!

[Mareblu]

9 hours ago, Blackduck59 said:

Well we have a much better sea state, things are much more pleasant. This ship is not really stable in even a moderate sea.

We abandoned eating in the "Restaurant" which is what they call the main dining room. At these prices people expect a fine dining experience. Perfectly prepared meals, plated to impress. In the one lunch and 2 dinners we had the plating was akin to Chuck's diner. Although the food was okay it was just chucked on the plate. The last time we ate there I ordered the "Rib eye steak" I had visions of a nice thick cut with heavy sear marks for the grill and an appropriate array of sides. What I got was a half inch thick chunk of meat looking rather grey with a slight hint of grill marks (anything more and the steak would be overcooked it was so thin)

After informing our TA, our customer service person on board and writing a very pointed note to the head of guest relations we actually have the 2 "guaranteed" meals in the Specialty Restaurants. 

We will be happy to get home on Saturday, I can do a much more impressive plate at home.

Cheers everyone Lyle & Lynn 

Well, I told you it was an egalitarian experience 😞  I completely agree about the presentation.  You'll find it ironic that in the "Restaurant" (which is more like a massive cafeteria) the only thing I would order after a while was the steak, because everything else was tasteless.  The specialty restaurants, however, were far superior...the Italian fare was really palatable in the Italian restaurant (my husband's from northern Italy originally so we're very particular about cuisine presented as "Italian").  Try the wild mushroom and truffle soup, if they are still offering it.  Delicious.  Also, the cuisine presented in the degastation-style restaurant was beautifully presented and quite exquisite.  Trouble is, of course, reservations in both restaurants are limited.  Hope your last days aboard are much, much better.

[ilikeanswers]

17 hours ago, Blackduck59 said:

Well we have a much better sea state, things are much more pleasant. This ship is not really stable in even a moderate sea.

We abandoned eating in the "Restaurant" which is what they call the main dining room. At these prices people expect a fine dining experience. Perfectly prepared meals, plated to impress. In the one lunch and 2 dinners we had the plating was akin to Chuck's diner. Although the food was okay it was just chucked on the plate. The last time we ate there I ordered the "Rib eye steak" I had visions of a nice thick cut with heavy sear marks for the grill and an appropriate array of sides. What I got was a half inch thick chunk of meat looking rather grey with a slight hint of grill marks (anything more and the steak would be overcooked it was so thin)

After informing our TA, our customer service person on board and writing a very pointed note to the head of guest relations we actually have the 2 "guaranteed" meals in the Specialty Restaurants. 

We will be happy to get home on Saturday, I can do a much more impressive plate at home.

Cheers everyone Lyle & Lynn 

 

That is disappointing to hear☹️. I've been following a world cruise thread on a Viking ship and their food so far has been reviewed as amazing. It would seem Viking are not putting the same effort into their shorter cruises. 

Edited April 15, 2022 by ilikeanswers

[onlyslightlymad]

19 hours ago, NSWP said:

It would be a worry, Lyle said Celebrity is 50% cheaper than what he paid on Viking Orion.  Can you cancel without penalty?

I'm not sure.  As with all of us in this pandemic, we made the booking a long time ago.

[OzKiwiJJ]

8 hours ago, ilikeanswers said:

 

That is disappointing to hear☹️. I've been following a world cruise thread on a Viking ship and their food so far has been reviewed as amazing. It would seem Viking are not putting the same effort into their shorter cruises. 

Or it could just be that ship. I've noticed that the quality of the food varies from ship to ship on Princess even though the menus arr the same. Cooking, seasoning, presentation. On one cruise all the appetisers and mains slightly oversalted even for me. On another cruise the souffles were terrible although everything else was OK. The best food was on Sea Princess in 2019. 

 

Then again we've done three cruises on Celebrity Solstice and the MDR food quality was different on each cruise - the first was reasonably good, the second was excellent, but the last cruise wasn't anywhere near as good. 

[ilikeanswers]

2 hours ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

Or it could just be that ship. I've noticed that the quality of the food varies from ship to ship on Princess even though the menus arr the same. Cooking, seasoning, presentation. On one cruise all the appetisers and mains slightly oversalted even for me. On another cruise the souffles were terrible although everything else was OK. The best food was on Sea Princess in 2019. 

 

Then again we've done three cruises on Celebrity Solstice and the MDR food quality was different on each cruise - the first was reasonably good, the second was excellent, but the last cruise wasn't anywhere near as good. 

 

That was what my comment was referring to, that Viking should be trying to ensure consistent quality on all their ships or at least close enough. Being so drastically different is IMO not very good business. As Lyle said it makes him reconsider using the brand at all. 

[OzKiwiJJ]

12 minutes ago, ilikeanswers said:

 

That was what my comment was referring to, that Viking should be trying to ensure consistent quality on all their ships or at least close enough. Being so drastically different is IMO not very good business. As Lyle said it makes him reconsider using the brand at all. 

I certainly agree that every cruise line should be ensuring consistent quality across the fleet, not just the luxury lines. But your earlier comment implied it might be because the cruise Lyle is on is a shorter cruise rather than a difference between ships or cruise seasons. I think it comes down to how good the Executive Chef of a particular ship is at managing his team and constantly checking quality. I can't compare luxury lines because I've only been on one, Crystal Symphony, and it was superb, but that 2019 Sea Princess cruise was the best of the other 14 cruises we've done. Carnival Legend was also excellent.

[NSWP]

8 minutes ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

I certainly agree that every cruise line should be ensuring consistent quality across the fleet, not just the luxury lines. But your earlier comment implied it might be because the cruise Lyle is on is a shorter cruise rather than a difference between ships or cruise seasons. I think it comes down to how good the Executive Chef of a particular ship is at managing his team and constantly checking quality. I can't compare luxury lines because I've only been on one, Crystal Symphony, and it was superb, but that 2019 Sea Princess cruise was the best of the other 14 cruises we've done. Carnival Legend was also excellent.

Yes, Budget/Food & Beverage Manager/Executive Chef and his team can make or break food standards on a cruise.  I have read other posts on Lyle's roll call stating food is very good. I suppose different people have different expectations and tastes.

 

## I would like Lyle to post some actual pics up on meals he had.

Edited April 16, 2022 by NSWP

[OzKiwiJJ]

55 minutes ago, NSWP said:

Yes, Budget/Food & Beverage Manager/Executive Chef and his team can make or break food standards on a cruise.  I have read other posts on Lyle's roll call stating food is very good. I suppose different people have different expectations and tastes.

 

## I would like Lyle to post some actual pics up on meals he had.

Food is so subjective. What suits one person may not be nice for another person. 

 

But that steak Lyle described did sound rather horrible.

 

Princess used to do some very nice beef medallions in the past but I don't think they were done on a grill, probably pan-seared then finished in an oven.

 

 

[Aus Traveller]

34 minutes ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

Food is so subjective. What suits one person may not be nice for another person. 

 

But that steak Lyle described did sound rather horrible.

 

Princess used to do some very nice beef medallions in the past but I don't think they were done on a grill, probably pan-seared then finished in an oven.

 

The beef medallions were always my 'fall-back' option if there wasn't anything that really appealed from the 'one-night-only' part of the menu. However, they disappeared from the 'Anytime' menu a few years ago. On our last few Princess cruises, they had a good steak on one or two nights. ☹️

[OzKiwiJJ]

52 minutes ago, Aus Traveller said:

The beef medallions were always my 'fall-back' option if there wasn't anything that really appealed from the 'one-night-only' part of the menu. However, they disappeared from the 'Anytime' menu a few years ago. On our last few Princess cruises, they had a good steak on one or two nights. ☹️

There also used to be a great beef dish (escalopes?) in the MDR for embarkation lunch.

[Cruisers47]

4 minutes ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

There also used to be a great beef dish (escalopes?) in the MDR for embarkation lunch.

We have done a few Princess cruises and on the first one…more than 10 years ago I had the steak medallions which I loved.   There were two pieces and I asked the attendant to only give me one which he did.   Then on the last Princess cruise I asked for only one and was told that I had to have the two as the chef required that.    What a laugh, Ofcourse I left one on the plate as I can’t eat two!   What a waste!    Spoils the meal when you feel there is too much on the plate!

 

eileen

[OzKiwiJJ]

51 minutes ago, Cruisers47 said:

We have done a few Princess cruises and on the first one…more than 10 years ago I had the steak medallions which I loved.   There were two pieces and I asked the attendant to only give me one which he did.   Then on the last Princess cruise I asked for only one and was told that I had to have the two as the chef required that.    What a laugh, Ofcourse I left one on the plate as I can’t eat two!   What a waste!    Spoils the meal when you feel there is too much on the plate!

 

eileen

Each ship is different. Some are more flexible than others. Princess used to have lobster and pheasant on the same formal night menu. I think the lobster also had prawns with it. I wanted the lobster as an appetiser so asked for just the lobster tail. Nope, it came out as a full main. Oh well! I ate the lobster and left the rest. I needed to leave room for the pheasant which I love when it's done well. Princess was a bit variable on that dish, and a couple of time they substituted guinea fowl instead. Tsk! Tsk!

[Aus Traveller]

52 minutes ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

Each ship is different. Some are more flexible than others. Princess used to have lobster and pheasant on the same formal night menu. I think the lobster also had prawns with it. I wanted the lobster as an appetiser so asked for just the lobster tail. Nope, it came out as a full main. Oh well! I ate the lobster and left the rest. I needed to leave room for the pheasant which I love when it's done well. Princess was a bit variable on that dish, and a couple of time they substituted guinea fowl instead. Tsk! Tsk!

My usual order for the second formal night dinner is lobster (as an entree) then beef wellington as the main. I don't think anyone should have to choose between them 🤣. I do manage to get through both. The lobster comes with a small crustacean that I feel is mainly for decoration - I couldn't find any meat on it.. There is also some mashed spud and something else I cannot recall.

 

I haven't tried the pheasant. I might do so on our next cruise.

Edited April 16, 2022 by Aus Traveller

[MicCanberra]

I found the pheasant was pleasant but the crab was drab.

[OzKiwiJJ]

39 minutes ago, Aus Traveller said:

My usual order for the second formal night dinner is lobster (as an entree) then beef wellington as the main. I don't think anyone should have to choose between them 🤣. I do manage to get through both. The lobster comes with a small crustacean that I feel is mainly for decoration - I couldn't find any meat on it.. There is also some mashed spud and something else I cannot recall.

 

I haven't tried the pheasant. I might do so on our next cruise.

They may not do the pheasant any more. I looked at some of the menus from post-Covid US cruises that someone posted somewhere, maybe on the Princess forum, and there was no pheasant on lobster night. 😪

[MicCanberra]

Not surprisingly, it is lobster on lobster night. You need to go on pheasant night if you want pheasant.

[OzKiwiJJ]

1 hour ago, MicCanberra said:

Not surprisingly, it is lobster on lobster night. You need to go on pheasant night if you want pheasant.

🙄 Lobster night was also pheasant night and beef wellington night in the past.🙄

[gbenjo]

2 hours ago, MicCanberra said:

Not surprisingly, it is lobster on lobster night. You need to go on pheasant night if you want pheasant.

Your slowing down Mic …what happened to the pheasant plucker and his son ? 🤔

[MicCanberra]

3 minutes ago, gbenjo said:

Your slowing down Mic …what happened to the pheasant plucker and his son ? 🤔

The pheasant pluckers gone