HAL now serving fake crab? YUCK

[leoandhugh]

It does no good at all for one person to report on what they experienced and then put the thing "to rest" as you say. That represents nothing more than one person's experience on one ship which would hardly be a basis to determine what is being done on othe HAL ships. :)

[Cruise Junky]

I'm hoping for you regular HAL sailors that this was a one off and they were drastically cutting corners on these beginning of the season cruises because they were selling them so cheaply. However, it's not a way to gain new customers who were trying them for the first time.

[babyher]

A friend of ours that we go out for dinner with quite often is allergic to all fish , but he is not allergic to shellfish. GO FIGURE *LOL*

 

So he constantly asks if the crab meat stuffing is really crab or "sea legs". Like others have posted , the server always swears that it is real crab meat . My friend then says "Ok because if it isn't I will be laying on your floor in a few minutes with my throat closing up and my wife trying to force a Benedryl in me"

 

You would be surprised how many times they come back and say "Oh the chef says it is pollack"

[bepsf]

Yuck. How disappointing.

Regardless, HAL owes it to its passengers to accurately describe the menu. If it's imitation crab, say so.

 

Indeed - Those of us who are Celiac can't eat surimi because it contains wheat gluten.

 

Aren't you glad HAL is spending all that money adding staterooms, etc to their ships so that they can no longer afford to serve Crab - and can now only afford to serve Krab?

[Down-Unders]

We just returned this morning from our first HAL cruise - What a disappointment! I'll write a full review that will get into the no hot water for 4 days, and many other issues...but what is going on with the main dining room? Day 3, one of the appetizers was a dungeness crab in pastry item, it was pollack, fake crab. Another lady at our table (same night) ordered the Alaskan King Crab Cobb Salad, again, imitation crab. I really expected more from Holland America. If you're out of crab, take it off the menu, but to substitute imitation crab is just bad.

 

 

 

 

Did you send it back, talk to the head waiter or wait until you got off the ship to complain?

 

 

:):):):):)

[pipedreams62]

Just give me a few hours please

 

 

[BruceMuzz]

Welcome to America.

The food purity regulations and mis-representations here are a disgrace.

 

My family is in the apiary business.

We produce pure honey and sell it to large food companies.

But in America "100% Pure" Honey only has to be 50% honey to be called 100% pure.

The other half is usually cheap corn syrup, but legally can be nearly anything.

 

US Wine laws are nearly as bad.

A California Cabernet Sauvignon must be only 75% Cabernet Sauvignon to be called that.

The other 25% doesn't even have to be wine - and doesn't have to come from California.

 

2% milk is advertised as low fat.

"Whole" milk is only 3%.

What's that all about? Does anyone really believe that 1% makes any difference?

 

 

What happened to all those warnings about cancer and consuming large quantities of artificial sweeteners?

 

You buy some juice at a supermarket and they advertise it is "8% Real Juice !!!"

Is 8% something to get excited about?

Doesn't anybody wonder what the other 92% is?

[Cruise Junky]

Did you send it back, talk to the head waiter or wait until you got off the ship to complain?

 

 

:):):):):)

 

Mine was the crab appetizer, I didn't eat it, complained to the waiter and the maitre d...so basically, all three :) They basically shrugged and said they had no crab. Similiar response the next night when my husband and another table mate ordered the Maple Walnut Ice Cream Sundae... vanilla ice cream, with a couple of walnuts on top.

[DAllenTCY]

It isn't just the fake crab, it also the fake ham. While at the lido on the Veendam last week they were carving one of those pressed hams.

David

[iancal]

It seems to me that all the main line cruise companies are cutting back on the food budget. We really notice it on beef dishes. HAL, based on our one experience, is no different.

[Cruise Junky]

It seems to me that all the main line cruise companies are cutting back on the food budget. We really notice it on beef dishes. HAL, based on our one experience, is no different.

 

We completely understand cost cutting in this economy, just don't advertise something that you're not serving. We'd much rather see crab taken off the menu than be substituted with imitation.

[Brad1185]

Isn't fake crab spelled with a "k"

 

I stay away and Krab spelled with the letter k

 

Sham on then if it's not real don't serve it

[CowPrincess]

Isn't fake crab spelled with a "k"

 

I stay away and Krab spelled with the letter k

 

Sham on then if it's not real don't serve it

 

No, fake crab is not always spelled with "K". Trust me on this. As I mentioned earlier, I no longer eat "crab" in any restaurant if I don't see it in its shell. The lack of knowledge of servers and kitchen staff is frightening. Many think that "sea legs" really is crab. And that kamaboko (sp???) crab is a real crab. Some kid will have to die from eating fake crab before anyone cares enough to ban the use of the term "crab" in conjunction with pollock psuedo-crab.

 

A restaurant can serve fake crab if it wants -- I don't really care. Just identify it as fake, as "not real crab", as "wannabe crab", as "processed pollock", as "FAKE crab", or "artificially flavored crab substitute". Just don't call it crab.

[Mary Ellen]

That represents nothing more than one person's experience on one ship which would hardly be a basis to determine what is being done on othe HAL ships. :)

Well I can tell you that my Crab Eggs Benedict served in the Noordam's Lido in January should have been spelled Krab Eggs Benedict. Ick Didn't get that again.

[azkitty]

We have never sailed on HAL, but lately have considered it. However, after reading this thread, I think we will just keep on spending more (maybe cruising less) to go Oceania and Crystal. I am not a big eater but the food is very important to me. On a cruise/vacation, I want something special and really good.

[pipedreams62]

I would suggest a cruise on the Northwestern

 

 

 

 

If the crabs aren't up to snuff,just let Sig know

[Roz]

For years I wondered why I would spend the night in the bathroom after eating in a restaurant or at a friend's house. Not all the time, only once in a blue moon, but it was not a pleasant experience. Turns out I have a bad reaction to Krab. It's not the pollock, it's the protein binder that's used to hold it together.

 

For all the reasons all ready stated, plus my own personal issues, this is not good news.

 

Roz

[pipedreams62]

For years I wondered why I would spend the night in the bathroom after eating in a restaurant or at a friend's house. Not all the time, only once in a blue moon, but it was not a pleasant experience. Turns out I have a bad reaction to Krab. It's not the pollock, it's the protein binder that's used to hold it together.

 

For all the reasons all ready stated, plus my own personal issues, this is not good news.

 

Roz

 

 

[Roz]

Not funny! :D

 

Roz

[jhannah]

It isn't just the fake crab, it also the fake ham. While at the lido on the Veendam last week they were carving one of those pressed hams.

I'm with you on this. If I want ham, I want it with the bone in ... the REAL stuff ... not chopped, mixed, and pressed.

[oldengine]

It's not the pollock, it's the protein binder that's used to hold it together.

 

It's called Celiac Disease because the Gluten (wheat, rye, barley protein) causes a reaction in the small intestine. It can also cause Dermatitis Herpetiformis.

 

If you think that the above is a funny joke, you'd be like some restaurant workers that we have run into. Believe me, it's not fun. See http://www.celiac.com/

 

Outfits that sell fake food: take notice!

[Ya Ya Cruiser]

We were on the Zuiderdam with CruiseJunky and I have to agree. Altho' we did have the crab legs on Thursday night they were very salty and they certainly weren't offering seconds - the lady beside was still hungry when she finished. Also, you didn't get any melted butter or lemon unless you specifically asked for it even though on the menu it said crab legs with clarified butter.

 

However the best find of the cruise was Tracy's crabshack in Juneau - OMG!! It's a little kiosk near the dock and she has big pots of crab legs. We had a bowl (about 2 cups) of straight crab meat that we watched her peel from the legs, a couple of buns, a little container of melted butter and some lemon slices that DH and I shared - all for $18.00 - and that bowl was full!!!

 

So, if you're on the Alaska route and want REAL crab that's the place to go!!

 

YA YA

[wilsonqbc]

East coast snow crab is pretty delicious also, fresh from march to july.

Right now we are right in the prime of Lobster season, prices are at a all time low, so good. I have to agree once you have been used to the real thing, its impossiblee for me to even attempt to eat that pollak stuff, so rubbery its not funny

[sapper1]

Scallops are sometimes faked as well. It is hard to fool we scallop lovers who live in the heart of "Digby Scallop" country but the inexperienced scallop eater won't know the difference.

One of my main complaints when served scallops is that some restaurants don't remove the little muscle from the side but at least that is an indication that it is real. Maybe that is why they leave it on. Also, real scallops are not uniform in size so if your scallops look like they were cut with cookie cutters and are all the same size, with sharp edges, they are probably not real. The edges on real scallops are more rounded and the size will vary a bit. I had heard about fakes but have only encountered it once. A friend we were dining with was served with them and when she complained, they were removed and another dish was served with no arguement. We have never gone back there.

[sail7seas]

That's interesting about the scallops, Sapper. I eat scallops out often and really enjoy them..... but plain, no butter. I'll be on the lookout for sharp edges and uniform sizes.

 

In this economy and restaurants struggling to survive, I wonder how many are doing these tricky things to stretch the food dollar. :eek: