Food in decline?

[twonpcb]

I know this is a very touchy subject but I have seen several posts regarding how Royal’s food quality has gone south recently.  My husband and I were on a Celebrity cruise last January to Antarctica and we found the food superb.

 

Can anyone expound on this?  We have not cruised Royal since before the pandemic.

 

 

[ALTravelGal]

See my post "Stewed slop". Not exaggerating. The food looked atrocious. Even the most basic meal breakfast. And a standard hamburger in the Windjammer. The horrid economy and Royal over extending themselves financially, is a terrible combination. Totally wishing I had re thought choice of cruise companies when I purchased May 2023. And we are not upscale cruisers. We might be back to our  much maligned cruise line of choice next year. Glad we noticed the slide in reviews last July and purchased a 3 night meal package last July. Might help on our upcoming Adventure sail.

 

Edited January 12 by ALTravelGal

[JamesEM]

I believe the food quality and selections have gone downhill, as I said to the head waiter after several disappointing meals, "if I wanted muesli I would have ordered muesli."

[ONECRUISER]

1 hour ago, twonpcb said:

I know this is a very touchy subject but I have seen several posts regarding how Royal’s food quality has gone south recently.  My husband and I were on a Celebrity cruise last January to Antarctica and we found the food superb.

 

Can anyone expound on this?  We have not cruised Royal since before the pandemic.

 

 

It's really nothing new, Been Cruising on Royal over 35yrs and been some decline every Decade. Do I miss the Food from 30-35 yrs ago, Yes, but dont miss cost of Cruising back then as even with high Rates coming out on Royal 2025-26 it's still cheaper to Cruise now then was in 80's. Done 100+ nites in 2022-2023, on 3 Ships and can still find Good Hot Food to eat. I never went hungry. But Portion sizes have good down and Desserts defiantly not as Good as were 8-10yrs ago. All my opinion. Interesting is on 3 Ships some the same Dishes from same Menus were prepared totally Different. On Jewel one might be little spice to it, on Radiance it was a little Bland and third Serenade it had different ingredients added. You'd think Fleet wide would be consistent, like a National Rest Chain eat Burger in California, Michigan and Florida they'd all be prepared same way and taste exactly the same.

Edited January 12 by ONECRUISER

[ONECRUISER]

3 hours ago, twonpcb said:

I know this is a very touchy subject but I have seen several posts regarding how Royal’s food quality has gone south recently.  My husband and I were on a Celebrity cruise last January to Antarctica and we found the food superb.

 

Can anyone expound on this?  We have not cruised Royal since before the pandemic.

 

 

Forgot to ask, What Celebrity Ship were you on? Haven't been on Celebrity in long time and curious if was an Expedition Ship or other. 

[Tatka]

We had worse food on our first several RCI cruises in 2004-2009. 
Some days are worse than others, but we always have something we like. 

[Ourusualbeach]

We were just on the Odyssey over NYE and I found that the food had improved in the last 9 months.  Much more variety in the WJ and better quality.  While we did not eat in the dining room we had family that did and they said the same thing.  Also had friends on board the Wonder over NYE and they agreed they had seen a improvement.

 

Is it back to pre covid times, probably not but for me anyway it has improved post covid.

[Engineroom Snipe]

5 hours ago, ONECRUISER said:

It's really nothing new, Been Cruising on Royal over 35yrs and been some decline every Decade. Do I miss the Food from 30-35 yrs ago, Yes, but dont miss cost of Cruising back then as even with high Rates coming out on Royal 2025-26 it's still cheaper to Cruise now then was in 80's. Done 100+ nites in 2022-2023, on 3 Ships and can still find Good Hot Food to eat. I never went hungry. But Portion sizes have good down and Desserts defiantly not as Good as were 8-10yrs ago. All my opinion. Interesting is on 3 Ships some the same Dishes from same Menus were prepared totally Different. On Jewel one might be little spice to it, on Radiance it was a little Bland and third Serenade it had different ingredients added. You'd think Fleet wide would be consistent, like a National Rest Chain eat Burger in California, Michigan and Florida they'd all be prepared same way and taste exactly the same.

I think since the classic MDR meal items were prepared at every single sitting on every ship in the fleet, they did have a higher level of consistency week to week on the same ship and fleet wide in general.

 

When these staples were pulled from the daily menu, it made other dishes more noticeable resulting in perceived inconsistencies (good and bad). Chefs seem to be trying to put their own spin on the spices and not following a mandated recipe.

Edited January 12 by Engineroom Snipe
spelling

[OCSC Mike]

With the caveat that I'm not picky and have never been a huge MDR fan but eating is a big part of cruising for me... I enjoyed the food on both Wonder in June and Allure in October.

[Mick B]

Hi,

My wife and I will be on the Jewel this April for its TA,

Does anyone know what the food in the MDR is currently like. We were last on it back in 2021 in Cyprus and all seemed OK then.

 

Mick.

 

[Engineroom Snipe]

Just now, Mick B said:

Hi,

My wife and I will be on the Jewel this April for its TA,

Does anyone know what the food in the MDR is currently like. We were last on it back in 2021 in Cyprus and all seemed OK then.

 

Mick.

 

I was on in November for 9 nights. I ate at the MDR all 9 nights. The food was consistently better than my six previous cruises post pandemic. The Windjammer breakfast was very good. I only snacked for lunch at Windjammer (not hungry, so I will not give opinion). I did not go to the Windjammer at dinner.

[Mick B]

Thanks,

That's good to know.

I can eat just about anything, but my wife has limits due to numerous medical operations. Although she has always been able to select something off the menu in the MDR on every cruise including the newer ones with the new menus.

I will post on here in April if we have any issues.

 

Mick.

 

 

[Engineroom Snipe]

2 minutes ago, Mick B said:

Thanks,

That's good to know.

I can eat just about anything, but my wife has limits due to numerous medical operations. Although she has always been able to select something off the menu in the MDR on every cruise including the newer ones with the new menus.

I will post on here in April if we have any issues.

 

Mick.

 

 

Beef tenderloin and New York strip steaks were good. We had salmon on two different nights, both good. We tend to stay away from pasta dishes (and bread) to keep from gaining too much weight even though we walk 5 miles every day onboard. We were not into the desserts but I just do not have a sweet tooth anymore so they might have been good but I did not try them.

 

Breakfast was the best in Windjammer. We are the first ones in at 7am so I cannot tell you if the atmosphere changes during rush hour. Beautiful outside aft dining/sitting area for fantastic wake view. I believe Drago was in charge of the Windjammer and he was around constantly. He runs a tight Windjammer. Morning salmon station was really impressive.

[OCSC Mike]

11 minutes ago, Engineroom Snipe said:

Breakfast was the best in Windjammer. We are the first ones in at 7am so I cannot tell you if the atmosphere changes during rush hour.

As an early riser who also goes later on occasion, generally speaking, it usually does, but that could be even later than you think depending on the cruise.

 

This is why I’m usually on the opposite side of “The WJ is a madhouse” discussions. It certainly can be if you go at the busiest times… but it’s not like that at all at other times in my experience (including embarkation day if you get there as soon as it opens.)

Edited January 12 by OCSC Mike

[Moltar]

Try the food yourself and then if you dont like it go from there. 

[Mick B]

Fantastic!

Good to know.

BTW even eating a reasonable sized breakfast, light lunch and then wonderful dinner, I still manage to put on around a stone in weight during a 12-15 night cruise, even after going in the gym and having a swim. Soon comes off when I get back home.

I am not greedy, but do enjoy the food on board the ships.

 

BTW, only ever had a few bad meals and these were all on the Anthem back in 2019. We complained and got the issue sorted and have been back on it twice since (both after the Pandemic) and all was perfect in the MDR.

 

The wife has to be careful with fat content as amongst other things, she has had her gall bladder removed and can suffer pain and other things. However, since her op in 2018 every waiter in every MDR on every ship we had been on has gone out of their way to provide alternatives on nights where the menu may cause issues.

 

We had to cancel our last cruise back in October 2023 on the Symphony as my wife had to go into hospital for a operation on her shoulder (which was delayed due to Strikes in the UK), so our last cruise was on the Enchantment in May/June from Ravenna to Barcelona and I can confirm that we had no issues with any of the food on board that ship at that time.

 

Mick.

 

 

[Moltar]

Been cruising since 91 and no, I've never had a bead meal in the MDR.  You should try and then know for yourself if you like it or not.

[OCSC Mike]

11 minutes ago, Mick B said:

BTW even eating a reasonable sized breakfast, light lunch and then wonderful dinner, I still manage to put on around a stone in weight during a 12-15 night cruise, even after going in the gym and having a swim. Soon comes off when I get back home.

I am not greedy, but do enjoy the food on board the ships.

 

As someone who doesn't exercise and enjoys eating quite a bit when cruising (pus a handful of drinks per day), this is why I'm afraid of a cruise longer than 7N, lol. This Yank still isn't sure what a stone is, but I can gain 8-10 lbs. on a 7N cruise. But like you said, most of it comes off very quickly once back home. A good portion of it for me is water weight/swelling which is common on cruises.

Edited January 12 by OCSC Mike

[Mick B]

Hi,

Coming to think of it, perhaps some of my weight gain during cruising could be the 13 or so C&A drinks handed out during the Top Tier events, or could be the 5 free drinks per day which usually end up being a Kraken-Colada in the afternoon, a glass of sparling wine at dinner, then the drink of the day during the show, then a glass of Jack or Jameson's later ending with a SideCar last thing x 7 to 15 nights = weight gain. Then there's the food, then the pizza, then the nibbles in the Crown Lounge (ex Diamond Club to us oldies), then a plate of whatever has been left in our room etc etc.

 

And people ask me why I keep cruising!

 

 

 

 

[loman]

Dont worry , you will come across something worthy of eating and might even gain a few pounds.

Most people that like the food dont say anything, so if you see a few negative comments dont take them too seriously. Sure they may have gotten something they didnt like , but they could of ordered something else to replace it at no extra cost.

[smokeybandit]

Food has not gone south.  It's changed for sure, but it's still good.

People just like to complain on message boards and having something "new" gave them new opportunities to complain.

[OCSC Mike]

36 minutes ago, Mick B said:

Then there's the food, then the pizza, then the nibbles in the Crown Lounge (ex Diamond Club to us oldies), then a plate of whatever has been left in our room etc etc.

 

That's exactly  it for me and why I enjoy eating so much on cruises. It's not necessarily the 3 main meals (I only save room if we have specialty dining booked which isn't often); it's all the snacks I grab in between them... a bagel or egg sandwich from Park Cafe with my CL cappuccinos in the early AM (pre-breakfast), tacos from El Loco Fresh and/or a kummelweck from Park Cafe in the afternoon, CL snacks before dinner, pizza at night (or if I happen to be walking by Sporrento's), the ziploc bag of cookies I keep in my cabin at all times and replenish when needed, etc.

[Mick B]

And this is the thing,

How could I even start to complain about the quality of food on board, when there are so many choices in so many venues which are free.

You could not get this sort of food at any other place on land for the price when you factor in your cabin and all the other things like the gym, the pool, the slides etc. It's just great value. Like I said before, we only had one bad experience with the MDR and that was on the Anthem in 2019 and that got sorted and is a lot better. We have done at least 1 cruise a year since 2008 and in some years we have done 2 and even 3 and the 2019 issue was the only time we had cause for complaint. I am happy to eat whatever, but my wife will say something if its not right and she has only done this once in 16 years.

 

Oh, and on some ships they used to have that Kebab counter in the solarium at around midnight, just in case you got hungry before bed.

In fact, you may be amazed by how many people are eating Pizza and stuff in the Park Cafe last thing at night.

I am one of those, and like me, I suppose we are all just enjoying every single moment of time we are on board as it soon goes.

 

Mick

[Mick B]

Damn, I forgot about the Cookies, there were some really nice ones, I cannot remember what they are called, but they used to be in the old Diamond Lounge (sorry Crown Lounge) during the day.

 

Then on some ships there was that hot dog place.

 

Then...

 

 

[Engineroom Snipe]

4 minutes ago, Mick B said:

Damn, I forgot about the Cookies, there were some really nice ones, I cannot remember what they are called, but they used to be in the old Diamond Lounge (sorry Crown Lounge) during the day.

 

Then on some ships there was that hot dog place.

 

Then...

 

 

Ziplock bags are not just for sandwiches when cruising.

 

The universal food pantry that goes with you!

 

😁