Stewards Suggesting Dinner Entrees

[Saphire]

On our recent Rotterdam cruise, the dining stewards in the MDR would highlight an entrée or two that was set apart from the others. More often than not, we took their suggestion and the food was always wonderful in presentation and taste. Thinking back, I am curious... are they able to sample the entrees beforehand to form their own opinion? Are they told which entrees to suggest because they have more of it? Just wondering how it all works. 

 

BTW, Patrick and Karma, I miss you!

[iflyrc5]

They were doing that on the NS too the last several weeks and we often took their recommendation

 

[Mary229]

This has been my experience for many years.  I don’t know if they taste but it could be kitchen shuttle or the recommendation of the chef.  

[Kay S]

15 minutes ago, Mary229 said:

This has been my experience for many years.  I don’t know if they taste but it could be kitchen shuttle or the recommendation of the chef.  

I have always had this experience.  I just assumed they were promoting a dish because their superiors told them to do it.  I can't say I ever ordered something based solely on the recommendation from my server.

[vswan]

Many times I have narrowed my choices down to 2 and asked the waiter which of the 2 was better. Only been disappointed once and it could have been that neither of my choices were very good....

[rkacruiser]

Quite a good question by the OP.  My thoughts:  If the Steward has had some experience with the menu that he presents to his guests and is aware of the reactions of his previous guests' reactions to some of those menu items, that may form the basis of the Steward's recommendations.  

[Alberta Quilter]

The dining stewards used to have a meeting prior to the first dinner service to try each of the dishes so that they could make recommendations when asked.  I hope they still do this.

[Florida_gal_50]

They do get to taste dishes.  This came up on my koningsdam cruise last week but I don’t think it was for the dining room because I hardly ate there.  I wasn’t to say it was Canaletto, but I can’t remember for sure.   If I can’t decide between 2 dishes I ask the waiter and it’s worked well for me.

[cruisemom42]

On my most recent Celebrity cruise, we absolutely found our waiter's suggestions to be spot-on. One night there was a dish I was going to order and he recommended against it. I insisted (it's a dish I really love) even when he told me that earlier diners who'd had it were unhappy and several sent it back.

 

He was right. (He also had brought me a second choice entree, one he recommended and it was perfect.)  We listened to him attentively for the rest of the cruise.

 

In his case it seems to have been a combination of familiarity with the dishes and reactions from other diners.

[Crew News]

It must be noted that the menus repeat each cruise of the same duration/location for two seating per/night so the Stewards have heard the comments of many diners for each menu item.  I would always count on their recommendations based on their diner feedback.

[4966and556]

I don't think it's any different than a server in a regular (non-cruise)  restaurant.  They tell you the specials of the day if they have any. 

[puppycanducruise]

If I'm unsure at what to order, I ask the steward for recommendations and they are always right.  On one cruise the assistant knew which desserts were the best to order, he had a sweet tooth and I took his advice. 🙂

[GeezerCouple]

9 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

On my most recent Celebrity cruise, we absolutely found our waiter's suggestions to be spot-on. One night there was a dish I was going to order and he recommended against it. I insisted (it's a dish I really love) even when he told me that earlier diners who'd had it were unhappy and several sent it back.

 

He was right. (He also had brought me a second choice entree, one he recommended and it was perfect.)  We listened to him attentively for the rest of the cruise.

 

In his case it seems to have been a combination of familiarity with the dishes and reactions from other diners.

 

I may or may not decide to order something that someone else recommends.  Tastes vary so much.

 

However, if waitstaff are commenting that other diners don't seem to like X, and especially if the report includes that others are sending it back... well... that's quite a statement.

 

I'd probably ask if there was a specific, common complaint, such as "too spicy" (I'd send that back, too, for sure!), but there could possibly be times that "my preference" just differs from others.  For example, if a complaint is that something is too bland, that would be unlikely to dissuade me if that was the only negative.  (This latter situation has indeed happened 😉  although not necessarily on a ship.)

 

It's good to know that the waitstaff actually have a chance to have a taste of each item.  I hadn't thought about that before.

 

GC

[cruisemom42]

On 3/25/2022 at 8:44 AM, GeezerCouple said:

 

I may or may not decide to order something that someone else recommends.  Tastes vary so much.

 

However, if waitstaff are commenting that other diners don't seem to like X, and especially if the report includes that others are sending it back... well... that's quite a statement.

 

I'd probably ask if there was a specific, common complaint, such as "too spicy" (I'd send that back, too, for sure!), but there could possibly be times that "my preference" just differs from others.  For example, if a complaint is that something is too bland, that would be unlikely to dissuade me if that was the only negative.  (This latter situation has indeed happened 😉  although not necessarily on a ship.)

 

It's good to know that the waitstaff actually have a chance to have a taste of each item.  I hadn't thought about that before.

 

GC

 

Happily I am an adventurous eater and value variety. Not too many things (at least not ones that are likely to turn up on the menu of a mainstream cruise line) that I wouldn't be willing to try. Even if I've had them before, the quality, preparation (and therefore the taste) can differ quite a bit.