I cruise to eat

[Mack704]

I'll be the first to admit. I do not eat to cruise, I cruise to eat! Next month I will enter the HAL experiece for the first time. I'll be boarding the beautiful and elegant Maasdam, out of Norfolk, for an eleven night cruise.

 

I may be interested in booking the PG once or twice. But, I don't want to miss one of my favorites in the main dining room. I looked and searched and can only find possibly outdated menus from other ships. Not much from the Maasdam. Everything on cruiseclues.com is pretty much outdated too.

 

Do any of you, my fellow CCers, have or know where to find current Maasdam dining room menus? After a week, do the menus start repeating? Even menus from other HAL ships would be good too. I would think they would be the same or similar. I'd love to look at a preview of my upcoming dining room experience.

 

Thanks

 

Harvey

[hammybee]

I'll be the first to admit. I do not eat to cruise, I cruise to eat! Next month I will enter the HAL experiece for the first time. I'll be boarding the beautiful and elegant Maasdam, out of Norfolk, for an eleven night cruise. Thanks Harvey

 

Oh Harvey,

I loved your post. Alas, I do not have any menues for you. But I am sure plenty of the posters on this board will. Please see thread about what to do on a sea day. Disregard the silly ones about personal enrichment and focus on the food.

 

Enjoy your cruise.

[raadsel]

I know one poster who was sailing on the Volendam was able to contact the HAL contact for the Volendam in Seattle and get the menus. Might be something you or your TA could try.

[Krazy Kruizers]

We do not cruise to eat!!

Usually we book a couple of back-to-back cruises a year - no way we will eat everything in sight.

One year we cruised 68 days on HAL!! -- we watch everything we eat and how much we eat --- and that includes the Pinnacle.

[RuthC]

Can't help with the menus, but I can say that on a 10- or 11-day cruise the menus will not repeat at the end of a week. There may be repeats of individual entrees, but not the menu as a whole.

The chilled soups and the chocolate desserts do not repeat---of this I am certain. :D

[Grampy]

Harvey, I hope you can repeat your clothes after 11 days. I have trouble on a 7 day and on our 8 day I was begging to wear sweats to dinner on the last night. Our tablemates didn't know if my red face was from the sun or TIGHT clothes.:p

 

Can I please go cruising now?

[Old As Dirt Mom]

Do any of you, my fellow CCers, have or know where to find current Maasdam dining room menus? After a week, do the menus start repeating? Even menus from other HAL ships would be good too. I would think they would be the same or similar. I'd love to look at a preview of my upcoming dining room experience.

 

Thanks

 

Harvey

 

Hi Harvey:

 

The best I can find for you is a recent list of menus on Volendam to Alaska, as Raadsel mentioned earlier. Here they are.

 

We ended up not eating at the Pinnacle Grill at all; we enjoyed the main dining room that much!

 

Raadsel also had a good suggestion regarding asking HAL for some recent Maasdam menus, either through your TA or directly yourself.

 

Happy eating!

[happy cruzer]

I love your way of putting it. I requested the menus for longer cruises too. and some were found from about 1 year ago

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=401305

 

enjoy!

[airlink diva]

I'm so glad that you are a "foodie" that enjoy cruising!! May I make a suggestion?? Order the cheese plates from room service!! The are to die for :D :D :D !!

[AAAAmerican]

Dutch Cheese is some of the best in the world..

its goo....da to me.

 

The care of all there animals is so important in Holland. Once in Gelderland Province on a St Patricks day I saw and helped birth Twin Rams. One we called Kenoop (Hansome) the other Patrick... yes the day helped..

 

Cheese aboard the H A L ships is way above board and so nicely offered. When you can have a Dutch crew member or staff it is great.

 

In the Pinacle Grill the cheese varieties are nice also.

 

Wish they did talks and presentations in the Culinary Art Center, with NEW Stadium Seating so all can see well! What a perfect fit cheese and the C A C! YUM for the tum not the bum...

 

 

(\:D/)

[thomasale]

We do not cruise to eat!!

Usually we book a couple of back-to-back cruises a year - no way we will eat everything in sight.

One year we cruised 68 days on HAL!! -- we watch everything we eat and how much we eat --- and that includes the Pinnacle.

 

No fun at all for us ... we are with the OP but if I was onboard 60 plus days per year I guess my priorities would change

[Candy]

I'll be the first to admit. I do not eat to cruise, I cruise to eat! Next month I will enter the HAL experiece for the first time. I'll be boarding the beautiful and elegant Maasdam, out of Norfolk, for an eleven night cruise.

 

I may be interested in booking the PG once or twice. But, I don't want to miss one of my favorites in the main dining room. I looked and searched and can only find possibly outdated menus from other ships. Not much from the Maasdam. Everything on cruiseclues.com is pretty much outdated too.

 

Do any of you, my fellow CCers, have or know where to find current Maasdam dining room menus? After a week, do the menus start repeating? Even menus from other HAL ships would be good too. I would think they would be the same or similar. I'd love to look at a preview of my upcoming dining room experience.

 

Thanks

 

Harvey

Hey, Harvey... welcome to HAL!

 

See this CruiseClues page that has loads of menus, daily programs, photos, reviews and Maasdam lovers' personal pages.

 

Candy the ZuiderPrincess

 

 

 

[BumperII]

I'll be the first to admit. I do not eat to cruise, I cruise to eat! Next month I will enter the HAL experiece for the first time. I'll be boarding the beautiful and elegant Maasdam, out of Norfolk, for an eleven night cruise.

 

Harvey

 

Harvey, we are taking this cruise leaving Norfolk on October 28. We don't have the menus, but for 9.95, your dining room manager will sell you a souvenier set of menues for the cruise. We have them for a seven day on the Statendam in Alaska, and all the dining room staff autographed the cover for us.

[missygirl]

You sound a lot like my husband. Our first cruise, which was our honeymoon, every time the ship docked naturally I wanted to soak up as much island as possible and all I saw was him checking his watch. Then those famous words "they will be serving lunch in a few minutes". He would then comment that it would be so expensive to eat on the island. Granted I didn't rush back and satisfied him with a cold soda and crackers only to be reminded that around three is when they had ice cream so we normally arrived back for that. Now after being together for twenty years, numerous vacations including cruises I can still expect the same watch checking and lovable comments on our upcoming cruise abourd the Zuiderdam.

 

Missygirl:)

[Sea King]

this could be a first; someone who actually admits what many may think but may be afraid to post, say, admit or accept: food is the #1 priority of a cruise:eek:

 

suggest you go back on the threads and look at reviews of Maasdam (I can think of at least 2) within the past several months

 

from what I remember, both posters gave the dining room high marks

 

good luck AND REMEMBER the gym on Maasdam is just outside the burger/taco/pizza/hot dog bar which is forward of the Lido Buffet!:)

 

one tip: don't forget the tums!:D

[vpoopsy]

You sound a lot like my husband. Our first cruise, which was our honeymoon, every time the ship docked naturally I wanted to soak up as much island as possible and all I saw was him checking his watch. Then those famous words "they will be serving lunch in a few minutes". He would then comment that it would be so expensive to eat on the island. Granted I didn't rush back and satisfied him with a cold soda and crackers only to be reminded that around three is when they had ice cream so we normally arrived back for that. Now after being together for twenty years, numerous vacations including cruises I can still expect the same watch checking and lovable comments on our upcoming cruise abourd the Zuiderdam.

 

Missygirl:)

missygirl i can relate. my DH says "we paid to eat on the cruise" so why eat at port. we worked our excursions around lunch and dinner time. i do think i have him convinced to eat lunch at St. Thomas this time around because our excursion goes through lunchtime!!! he actually said we could get food off the boat and make us a lunch. "cheap, cheap"

[bisbee]

I'll be the first to admit. I do not eat to cruise, I cruise to eat! Next month I will enter the HAL experiece for the first time. I'll be boarding the beautiful and elegant Maasdam, out of Norfolk, for an eleven night cruise.

 

I may be interested in booking the PG once or twice. But, I don't want to miss one of my favorites in the main dining room. I looked and searched and can only find possibly outdated menus from other ships. Not much from the Maasdam. Everything on cruiseclues.com is pretty much outdated too.

 

Do any of you, my fellow CCers, have or know where to find current Maasdam dining room menus? After a week, do the menus start repeating? Even menus from other HAL ships would be good too. I would think they would be the same or similar. I'd love to look at a preview of my upcoming dining room experience.

 

Thanks

 

Harvey

Mrs. Mack704 here. Sweetheart - I know looking at menus is one of your favorite activities! I'm sure some of the nice people on CC will help you. Looking forward to eating with you (and everything else too) on the Maasdam!

bisbee

[Mack704]

Wow! Thanks for your responses. I am a realist and I know what keeps me going; what I like. I'm a foodie and I admit it. One would think I weigh 400 lbs. But I think I've peaked at 225 lbs. Been this weight for a couple years now. At 56 yrs. old and 5'9", I don't think I'll get any heavier. I do work out a couple times a week and take long walks.

 

I love looking at menus. Before going to a restaurant, I usually know what's on the menu already, if it's on line. Before going on vacation (other than a cruise) I usually know what restaurants I want to go to.

 

This will be my first HAL cruise: Oct. 17 Maasdam out of Norfolk. Been on CCL, X, and RCCL. One thing that prompted me to book the HAL cruise is my cruise this past March on CCL. Will never cruise CCL again. Among other reasons, the dining room food on the Valor was definitely inferior.

 

Even though they're owned by Carnival, HAL's upscale reputation hasn't been over-compromised. The activities offered; i.e. lecture series, movie theater, cooking demos, cooking classes, (notice the theme here?) seem to fit nicely with DW and me.

 

It's not Just the food though. I've fallen in love with the entire cruise experience. Happened to co-inside with falling in love with my wife. We met 3.5 years ago, will have been married 2 years Oct. 10, and this we be our 6th cruise together. Our first test together was a 5 day cruise.

 

Anyway, thanks to all again and I hope the responses keep on coming. I love to look at those menus. (I wish they had pictures to go with the menus). Still, in my minds eye and nose, everything looks and smells delicious.

 

Harvey

[Copper10-8]

......The care of all there animals is so important in Holland. Once in Gelderland Province on a St Patricks day I saw and helped birth Twin Rams. One we called Kenoop (Hansome) the other Patrick... yes the day helped..

 

......In the Pinacle Grill the cheese varieties are nice also.

 

Just being curious: what language is "Kenoop" supposed to be?

There is cheese on the menu in the Pinnacle Grill?

[Mack704]

 

There is cheese on the menu in the Pinnacle Grill?

 

Hey Copper; I believe I've seen cheeses on the meus of many upscale restaurants, as a dessert course, including the PG. They usually recommend a dessert wine, like port, as a pairing.

 

Harvey

[sail7seas]

Yes, certainly cheese with fruits/nuts and port wine makes a wonderful dessert but I don't recall seeing that on the Pinnacle Grill menu.

 

It has, however, been seen on the menus in the dining room.

 

[Copper10-8]

Hey Copper; I believe I've seen cheeses on the meus of many upscale restaurants, as a dessert course, including the PG. They usually recommend a dessert wine, like port, as a pairing.

 

Harvey

 

 

Thanks for that Harvey:) . Like S7S, I have seen the assorted cheese plate (Brie, blue cheese, Edam, Gruyere, herb pepper, cheddar, Limburger) with dried fruits and nuts, assorted crackers and French bread on the menu for dessert in the main dining room. Just never have seen it being offered in the PG

[crystal808]

I believe that, on the Noordam in July, the Wine Tasting menu's last course was a cheese plate (petite!) served with an accompanying port. One of the two evenings I had to decline it! Ouch! (too much of a good thing...even at the Pinnacle :eek: )

 

I don't believe it was offered on the main menu.

 

Paul

[kryos]

missygirl i can relate. my DH says "we paid to eat on the cruise" so why eat at port. we worked our excursions around lunch and dinner time. i do think i have him convinced to eat lunch at St. Thomas this time around because our excursion goes through lunchtime!!! he actually said we could get food off the boat and make us a lunch. "cheap, cheap"

LOL ... I'm pretty much of the same mind. I generally only eat in port if the meal is part of an excursion I booked. But I did make one exception ... in St. Maarten. I had completed the last two of my four open water dives for SCUBA certification, and there was this nice restaurant/bar right near the SCUBA shop. So, I invited my instructors to join me for a drink and a bite to eat (this was after our dives were completed). :) Had a bowl of the best french onion soup I've ever eaten. I could taste that for days afterward. Can't wait to get back there one day on another cruise.

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[vpoopsy]

the way my pants are fitting today, i'll fast for the next 2 months getting ready to eat on the cruise!!!:mad: