Meraviglia - Food Quality

[Gatordad1967]

2 minutes ago, GonzoWCS said:

Wrong ship we are on Meraviglia here.

 

Cheers

Meraviglia has good food.  You won't be upset.

 

[GonzoWCS]

17 minutes ago, Gatordad1967 said:

Meraviglia has good food.  You won't be upset.

 

Awesome Thanks!

 

Cheers

[Oxo]

1 hour ago, GonzoWCS said:

Wrong ship we are on Meraviglia here.

 

Cheers

I know that. 

However, I just țhought others maybe interested in another ship. 

All the best!

[svnet]

On 7/8/2022 at 12:33 PM, Nunagoras said:

1st of it all: Welcome aboard the MSC's CC boards.

 

Taste is certainly subjective, on that only you can rate if it's good or not. General sense of quality is objective and can be measured by the ones whom have the skills to do so. Having been a market analyst for several years, I think I have some skills to do so, IMHO. So, here it goes my humble analysis:

 

MSC; like Carnival, RCI, and even Princess to an extent is part of what we can consider the baseline mainstream cruise market, or if you prefer, on European Hotel Industry words, it is something like a 4 star land hotel in Europe. Food on those ships will follow most likely the 4 star hotel industry included breakfast or other meals European standards for 4 star venues, with the obvious needed adaptations due to the confines a ship demands from the providers. That said, and as per my personal experience, both MSC and RCI the unique lines I've travelled follow mostly the same standards (bear in mind I'm comparing Europe sailings only; not Europe vs US sailings). There are obviously some details that are different: MSC tends to the "Mediterranean comfort food" dishes, while RCI tends more to the American ones. And of course nobody wins against an Oasis class ships due to the amount of space available there... Oh, well: MSC will compete at that league from late this year on with the World ship class...

 

That said; and taking an Oasis class ship as example; I'd say:

 

Breakfast and lunch buffet: Similar quality. Oasis has some more options, but it is larger ship.

Dinner buffet: By design MSC buffet is far inferior because Europeans want a served dinner as a social event more than just a meal to be had. Buffet is seen as a "last opportunity to eat" if one fails its allocated time slot at MDR or elsewhere.

MDR Breakfast and lunch: Similar quality. MSC is somewhat more refined on the options. Portions are also smaller at MSC but that is OK on me, so I give a slight edge to MSC.

MDR dinner: Similar quality even though desserts tend to be far better at MSC. You'll find less entertainment from the waiter or other crew members at MSC. Dinner is held like a family dinner that can last for 2 hours. Maybe they have that sorted out to a faster pace on US sailings. Portions are smaller, but you can ask for more food, that's OK on me. I'll give a slight edge to MSC due to the desserts, the not on your face service, and the usually quieter ambience during the dinner time.

 

Hope to have helped a bit and have a nice day!...

 

This is a very good description.

We, as portuguese, love our food and gatherings, but we also love to cook and everything that goes with it.

People have to understand and one person expectations regarding food is completely diferent than the other.

For me having cruised in diferent cruise lines and loving food in general, I have to agree that MSC pros in food is: Pizza, Gelato, some pastas (i am very picky in my pasta, but MSC is the best at cooking it "all-dente") and coffee (if it is Lavazza Blue). Deserts are like every other cruiseline (or restaurant): some hits and some misses.

 

Sílvia

[Nunagoras]

34 minutes ago, svnet said:

 

This is a very good description.

We, as portuguese, love our food and gatherings, but we also love to cook and everything that goes with it.

People have to understand and one person expectations regarding food is completely diferent than the other.

For me having cruised in diferent cruise lines and loving food in general, I have to agree that MSC pros in food is: Pizza, Gelato, some pastas (i am very picky in my pasta, but MSC is the best at cooking it "all-dente") and coffee (if it is Lavazza Blue). Deserts are like every other cruiseline (or restaurant): some hits and some misses.

 

Sílvia

Sem dúvida! Seja bem vinda Sílvia!... (no doubts! Be welcome Sílvia!...) Wonderful to see other Portuguese members here in CC!...

 

Yes, we enjoy our meals as a social event, at home with the cooking time as part of the fun involved on it!... Back in the day MSC used to give us at least part of that relaxing environment, with multiple course meals to happilly share! Not anymore. They become your typical 3 course meal cruise experience, by the most part, eventually giving you a bit more time than the others...

 

While I enjoy Italian food, paradoxically pizza is not my cup of tea. Yeah, MSC one is good, but nothing we couldn't have better here everywhere else, really. I can't see where the hype is about!... Pastas are, of course, my cup of tea plus so many other things!... Going to a good rural area trattoria in Italy is always a joy!... MSC is getting less authentic with the times, but understandably they cater for a very international crowd... Their Venchi gelato offering is great (when available). Lavazza Blue? Don't remember having it, unless it was perhaps on the UAE cruise, but their coffee trademarks vary really by the sailing!... On my ones it was mostly Segafredo. On Brazil it was Santista, a Brazilian trademark. Their coffee uses to range from good to great, and pretty much every bar serves it!... Even the included buffet coffee is normally decent to good, to say the least.

 

My observation on whether MSC desserts are far better than RCI is based on that on MSC they tend to be far less sugary than on RCI. So; while on MSC, consistently, sugar is the element that joins the other elements on a dessert dish, letting them to be the stars of the dish; on RCI, consistently, sugar is the star of the dessert while the other elements seem to be pretty much decorative. Obviously there will be the ones whom don't enjoy that difference.

 

Have a nice day!...

[CruizinSusan70]

On 7/6/2022 at 7:17 PM, rkacruiser said:

A pasta dish with a sauce made with Pesto was a new one for me.  It was very good.  

Try pizza with pesto sauce, it's even better.

[rkacruiser]

14 hours ago, CruizinSusan70 said:

Try pizza with pesto sauce, it's even better.

 

Pizza with pesto sauce and what other ingredients?  

[CruizinSusan70]

2 hours ago, rkacruiser said:

 

Pizza with pesto sauce and what other ingredients?  

There's a place near us called Mod Pizza.  You get an 11" individual pie and it's one price no matter how you top it.  Chopped garlic, pesto, a little spinach, grilled chicken, hot peppers, hot honey drizzle, mozzarella cheese and a little ricotta.

[baelor]

On 8/17/2022 at 7:50 PM, CruizinSusan70 said:

There's a place near us called Mod Pizza.  You get an 11" individual pie and it's one price no matter how you top it.  Chopped garlic, pesto, a little spinach, grilled chicken, hot peppers, hot honey drizzle, mozzarella cheese and a little ricotta.

I love Mod.  I particularly enjoyed the Calabrian spicy sauce mixed with their signature red sauce.  

[Morgsmom]

On 7/18/2022 at 12:37 PM, GonzoWCS said:

Wrong ship we are on Meraviglia here.

 

Cheers

Same cruiseline, same US purveyors, same food.  Different cooks, perhaps, but same ingredients.

[rkacruiser]

On 8/17/2022 at 10:50 PM, CruizinSusan70 said:

There's a place near us called Mod Pizza.  You get an 11" individual pie and it's one price no matter how you top it.  Chopped garlic, pesto, a little spinach, grilled chicken, hot peppers, hot honey drizzle, mozzarella cheese and a little ricotta.

 

There is a discussion about pizza on the Cruise Foodies Message Board of CC.  May I suggest that you join that and contribute information about  the ingredients of this pizza?  

[Gatrcruzer]

I am surprised by the responses here. I went on Meraviglia in March and thought the food quality was poor. Were there items that were okay to eat? Yes. Did I starve on the ship? No. I have been on a lot of cruises over the last 40 years or so, and in general have found food quality on cruise ships to be on the decline over the years, even before the pandemic. It is tough to compare Meraviglia this past March to what they might be serving on RCL currently, although I found RCL food quality to really decline between 2010-2017.

 

As far as Meraviglia, the dinners in the MDR weren't of terrible quality, but there were more limited options compared to other ships I have been on, even on small things like ice cream selection. The buffet at lunch did have some things like salad bar and pizza that I though were good, but there were fewer options than previous cruises, and some of the options were odd. For example in the "Mexican" section they offered chips and cheese sauce. The chips were made out of fried wonton skins, and the cheese sauce was room temperature and did not seem to include any cheese (more like colored mayonnaise?). For the waffles in the morning there was a berry topping, but it seemed to be mostly made out of currants. Overall, there was plenty of quantity, but not a lot that was super appealing. That said, I do enjoy their pizza. We did not stay in the Yacht Club, so can't speak to food quality there. We opted to dine in the specialty restaurants for 4 nights and we found quality of food to be significantly better there. This said, things might be different now on Meraviglia - the lead chef may have been switched out, and our cruise had few passengers (and there were still a lot of Covid-related supply issues at that time), so things might have improved. We were definitely not impressed by the food on Meraviglia. You won't starve, but maybe not the best dining experience.

[JAGR]

On 8/21/2022 at 5:19 PM, Morgsmom said:

same US purveyors, same food.  Different cooks, perhaps, but same ingredients.

That may well be the case come October, but I'm guessing most of these comments reflect her sailings in the Med. I'm guessing the purveyors are more local than this side of the Atlantic.

 

[GonzoWCS]

1 hour ago, Gatrcruzer said:

I am surprised by the responses here. I went on Meraviglia in March and thought the food quality was poor. Were there items that were okay to eat? Yes. Did I starve on the ship? No. I have been on a lot of cruises over the last 40 years or so, and in general have found food quality on cruise ships to be on the decline over the years, even before the pandemic. It is tough to compare Meraviglia this past March to what they might be serving on RCL currently, although I found RCL food quality to really decline between 2010-2017.

 

As far as Meraviglia, the dinners in the MDR weren't of terrible quality, but there were more limited options compared to other ships I have been on, even on small things like ice cream selection. The buffet at lunch did have some things like salad bar and pizza that I though were good, but there were fewer options than previous cruises, and some of the options were odd. For example in the "Mexican" section they offered chips and cheese sauce. The chips were made out of fried wonton skins, and the cheese sauce was room temperature and did not seem to include any cheese (more like colored mayonnaise?). For the waffles in the morning there was a berry topping, but it seemed to be mostly made out of currants. Overall, there was plenty of quantity, but not a lot that was super appealing. That said, I do enjoy their pizza. We did not stay in the Yacht Club, so can't speak to food quality there. We opted to dine in the specialty restaurants for 4 nights and we found quality of food to be significantly better there. This said, things might be different now on Meraviglia - the lead chef may have been switched out, and our cruise had few passengers (and there were still a lot of Covid-related supply issues at that time), so things might have improved. We were definitely not impressed by the food on Meraviglia. You won't starve, but maybe not the best dining experience.

Thanks for taking the time here!

 

Cheers