Food on the Magic

[chesfarm]

Has anyone been on the Magic recently? I am going in January and I would love to know how the food in the dining rooms and steakhouse were. I just got off the Glory, and I have to say that the dining room food was really bad, and I am not a food snob. The first night was good, but the 2nd night I was horrible. Even the melting cake was just a brownie on a plate.  The steakhouse was only mediocre this time, and I went there 2x. 

 

I mainly ate from the deli and the mexican spot. Since I am a diabetic now, it is a little bit harder to find food that is better for my diet. The medications I am on take away my appetite, so I don't eat that much anyway. It is just a little bit sad that I couldn't enjoy what I did eat a little bit more.

 

If you come across Emeril's BBQ salmon, it was really good. 🙂

 

I did have a great vacation though. Even with rain, it wasn't home. 🙂

[mz-s]

I was on the Magic over Labor Day. It was bar none the worst food I've ever had on a cruise. Nothing tasted good. The best anybody on the ship had to say about the food was it was mediocre.

[chesfarm]

Ok. May have to pack myself a snack bag or something. They do have the italian restaurant on the Magic. It was good on the Horizon the last time I was on her.

 

I will be on the Celebration in October. Hopefully her food is better with more to choose from. 

[mz-s]

4 minutes ago, chesfarm said:

Ok. May have to pack myself a snack bag or something. They do have the italian restaurant on the Magic. It was good on the Horizon the last time I was on her.

 

I will be on the Celebration in October. Hopefully her food is better with more to choose from. 

 

Everyone will have a different opinion of the food. All I can give you is mine. I was never hungry on the ship, it's not like the food was inedible, it's just that nothing was good. The cakes tasted like they were frosted with straight Crisco. The Guy's burgers had very little flavor and the fries were just basic Ore Ida fries with taco seasoning sprinkled on.

 

Some meals were disgusting, like breakfast in the buffet every morning and the second elegant night. But on the whole everything was sorely below par.

 

I firmly believe that I would have had better food if I had stayed home and ate at Golden Corral that week.

[ProgRockCruiser]

1 hour ago, mz-s said:

The cakes tasted like they were frosted with straight Crisco.

I've found the cakes to be somewhat bland on Carnival ships - except the really nice ones you get in the Steakhouse.  They just seem to be lacking in overall "flavor" - it looks delicious, but once you taste it you think they forgot to add something.

 

But beyond the cakes:

 

We were on Magic last December (2022), and the food was generally quite enjoyable in the MDR for dinner and seaday brunch (we don't eat dinner at the buffet) and the other non-buffet areas on Lido (Deli, Guy's Burgers, Blue Iguana Cantina) or Guy's P&A BBQ spots for lunch - oh and the Cucina del Capitano lunch.  I wonder if they had a kitchen/galley crew change.

 

My wife and I are both foodies and know how to make and enjoy a good meal, so it's not like we have low expectations...

[Lizard13]

I was on the Magic within the last few weeks. Like any restaurant I have been to it had hits and misses.  The dining room food was quite good at times, other times not to my taste but still fine.  Outstanding was short ribs, Indian plate, melting cake.  Most soups, salads and apps were good.  The Italian restaurant was also outstanding at both lunch and dinner.  Guys burgers, fries, and pizza always a winner.  The chicken salad sandwich at the deli was good, the fries there not so much.  And the chocolate cakes at the chocolate buffet delicious.  

[mar214]

Sailed on the Magic this past summer. Food was delicious and my bathroom scale showed the result when I returned home. We ate many of our Carnival favorite items all over the ship and enjoyed way too much, as we usually do when cruising. You do not have to worry about sailing on the Magic! It's one of our favorite ships!

[ninjacat123]

We were on Magic this past January and the Steakhouse was so good that we went 3 times over an 8 day cruise.  We just finished a 10 day cruise on Pride and after our first night at Steakhouse we decided to stick with Bonsai Sushi and MDR.

[StephPS79]

We were on the Magic last in May.  I find the food to be the same as always, it was decent, it's not a 5 star meal, but perfectly acceptable.  I'll say though I don't think we ate in the MDR that much, we kept getting steakhouse dinners from the casino, and Capitano once.  I'll say, if people find much to complain about from the steakhouse, their expectations need to be reevaluated.  Our expectations were exceeded by far on each visit.

[GalaxyJane]

Was just on the Magic 2 weeks ago and thought the food was the best and most consistent I have had in 15 Carnival cruises, especially in the MDR.  That said, that was the last cruise with the old menus, the new ones rolled out on Magic on the 23rd, so there could be some growing pains.

[chesfarm]

Thank you everybody! 

[NJ CRUISE]

We just got off the Magic today. Overall, we like Carnival food, although can be very subjective.

These are a few of the dinners I had that were all pretty good.

 

Beef Short Ribs

Braised Beef

Chicken Cordon Blue

Chicken Parm

 

Soups and sides were good also.

 

We don't eat any seafood.

All our meals were hot and good presentation. 

Had an excellent service team.

Six-night cruise, went to MDR each night and dinner took 45-60 mins. Right on target to eat and see the dining room performance.

 

Had the early seating (6pm) in the aft dining room.