RC Food Suck

[cruisellama]

On 12/3/2022 at 1:01 PM, KevinJ said:

I was disappointed in the MDR food I had on Voyager in October so I just booked with Celebrity. I'm going to give Royal a chance to change my opinion during my next six Royal cruises. 

We just got off Apex and didn't think the menus and food were not quite up to our past experiences.   Kinda dull...  (Others we dined with others in Luminae and they had similar perceptions - but maybe we're just becoming too used to it..  "familiarity breeds contempt")   Hope you experience better, but be prepared.

[bretts173]

1 hour ago, cruisellama said:

We just got off Apex and didn't think the menus and food were quite up to our past experiences.   Kinda dull...  (Others we dined with others in Luminae and they had similar perceptions - but maybe we're just becoming too used to it..  "familiarity breeds contempt")   Hope you experience better, but be prepared.

Absolutely agree with this. How many times have you heard people as they get older say it's not as good as it used to be. I would bet a lot more times than the opposite.

[Pooch]

On 11/30/2022 at 5:37 PM, Thorntor said:

Could it be that RC has made a business decision to reduce quality in the dining rooms in order to sell more specialty dining venue meals ?   We walked out of the main dining room on lobster night on Harmony in Oct 22 due to poor quality.

Those tails are awful.  Always have been, always will until they stop serving warm water tails.  FWIW, hubby & I had what we thought were the best crab cakes we’ve ever had on Explorer last month.  And, with only 2 cruises this year to go by, we have NEVER stood in any line for our MTD reservation.  We have always been waved to the inner check in desk and are seated within 5 minutes.  Don’t know why my experience has been so different

[Big Tule]

59 minutes ago, bretts173 said:

Absolutely agree with this. How many times have you heard people as they get older say it's not as good as it used to be. I would bet a lot more times than the opposite.

 

[BowTieBrigade]

But the red velvet cake!

[smokeybandit]

I like the RC crabcakes, but they're definitely not what I think of when I think of a crab cake.

[steverk]

On 12/3/2022 at 3:54 PM, cruisellama said:

We just got off Apex and didn't think the menus and food were quite up to our past experiences.   Kinda dull...  (Others we dined with others in Luminae and they had similar perceptions - but maybe we're just becoming too used to it..  "familiarity breeds contempt")   Hope you experience better, but be prepared.

I was on Celebrity Inifinity in July and was disappointed by the food as well.  Don't get me wrong, it wasn't bad. In fact it was in line with RCI.

But Celebrity prides itself as a foodie line and RCI doesn't.  Therefore, I expected Celebrity to be significantly better.  

As a point of comparison, I've sailed Carnival, NCL and Princess.  Princess food was a better than RCI, but Carnival and NCL were both significantly worse.

[cruisellama]

1 hour ago, steverk said:

I was on Celebrity Inifinity in July and was disappointed by the food as well.  Don't get me wrong, it wasn't bad. In fact it was in line with RCI.

But Celebrity prides itself as a foodie line and RCI doesn't.  Therefore, I expected Celebrity to be significantly better.  

As a point of comparison, I've sailed Carnival, NCL and Princess.  Princess food was a better than RCI, but Carnival and NCL were both significantly worse.

Based upon 2 recent sailings, RCL and X  converged to be pretty much the same.

[mac66]

On 11/30/2022 at 2:06 PM, Boba Milk Tea said:

I’m currently on Symphony of the Seas.  The food sucks. 
1. The nachos cheese is fake. 
2. crab cake doesn’t have real crab

3. same food at wind jammer every day

4. dining room food was also bad most days 

 

quality has gone done. 
 

I’m done with RC. 

Just got off the Explorer on Sunday.  The food (and service) was actually very good (including the crab cakes and lobster) and better than any of the 3 Celebrity cruises i was on this year. 

I'm back to RC for the foreseeable future.

[Pooch]

We thought the food on Explorer was ok.  Crab cakes, Coq au vin, beef bourguignon were EXCELLENT.  Hubby got tenderloin that was very undercooked and the replacement was inedible.  Everything else was decent but not noteworthy.

[khynzelman]

Well, was just on the Grandeur and had a crab cake with a long blonde hair in it and the the beef tenderloin was cold as well (Maybe that's why they had a major Gastro virus problem on this cruise).  Always glad to have other choices and went to the Windjammer instead and found it tasting great with the usual choices as well as a different theme each night.  As I've heard many times it depends on the ship and the cruise.  However if I only took one cruise a year I can understand it being disappointing.  For what the cruise fares are I do expect more consistency though.

[Pattycruise]

Enchantment-lobster tail was served with 1/2 of a “boiling potato” not a thick skin baked potato, additionally butter was already on everything the plate when it arrived.  I sent it back as butter is not my thing.  The next tail arrived and was undercooked.  I did not ask for a third.  My Harisma (sp?) chicken was dry.  Not a good night in the MDR. 
my MIL had prime rib that mooed…she had asked for medium.  
the good did outweigh the bad though. 

[WAYNO]

Whoops. Seems I posted a reply earlier.

 

[bretts173]

11 hours ago, khynzelman said:

Well, was just on the Grandeur and had a crab cake with a long blonde hair in it and the the beef tenderloin was cold as well (Maybe that's why they had a major Gastro virus problem on this cruise).  Always glad to have other choices and went to the Windjammer instead and found it tasting great with the usual choices as well as a different theme each night.  As I've heard many times it depends on the ship and the cruise.  However if I only took one cruise a year I can understand it being disappointing.  For what the cruise fares are I do expect more consistency though.

So how much are you paying for your dinner in the MDR. First take off your accommodation and associated charges, entertainment, transport expenses and all other meals. About $3.99.

[ChessE4]

Judging by dining staff gratuities, comp food and beverage average $40 per day. Hotels provide some breakfast. So figure 10 to 15 for lunch and 25 to 30 for dinner in comp eateries. Guests who eat modestly, as at home, aren't consuming large portions. Snacks and beverages offer extra value. Food quality needs to be acceptable. For us it is.

[mike2608]

We will be on our first RC cruise coming this February and we are looking forward to the dining experience on the Symphony OTS. We plan on going to 2 specialty restaurants Hooked and Chops Grille with frequent stops @ MDR and Windjammer and the other dining spots that are inclusive of this cruise. Just typing this statement has made me hungry. Happy Cruising.

[GatorCruiser]

Symphony is a great ship , you’ll love her. 

[dustfsu]

When they are cooking for 1,000 of guest at a time in the MDR you are going to get a bad dish from time to time.  The WJ usually has the same stuff when it comes to burgers, fries, hot dogs, but then they have something different daily based on theme.  The way I look at it on the Oasis class you have so many other places to eat that are FREE that you could find something to eat.  The last thing I have to say is for a week long cruise that I don't have to cook for a week, so if I eat something I don't care for, I do feel bad for wasting it, but I typically look at something and determine if it looks or sound good at the moment before I plate it.  I also think the cruise lines are having a hard time getting quality out of their vendors when ordering food week to week. Some dishes are hit or miss, but I do not fault the cruise lines since they are making it for a lot of guest. 

[Last2Know]

On 11/30/2022 at 2:06 PM, Boba Milk Tea said:

I’m currently on Symphony of the Seas.  The food sucks. 

First world problems...

[CruisingNewb]

On 11/30/2022 at 11:06 AM, Boba Milk Tea said:

I’m currently on Symphony of the Seas.  The food sucks. 
1. The nachos cheese is fake. 
2. crab cake doesn’t have real crab

3. same food at wind jammer every day

4. dining room food was also bad most days 

 

quality has gone done. 
 

I’m done with RC. 

I'm sure this was a one off, or rather 9 off, but:

1. Nacho cheese fake?  Please do tell!  Let me say this....I don't know what you think "nacho cheese" is, but it can be anything from just melted shredded cheese to cheese goop.  Honestly, I want the cheese goop.  Also, I have been to many, many cities in Mexico, many places use the cheese goop that I am referring to.

2. I'm fairly confident in saying that either you are mistaken, or the crab moratorium has reached RCCL crab cakes.  I don't know what you think "real crab" is, but most non-seafood specialty restaurants use claw meat and/or knuckle meat.  Those places that specialize in seafood will more often than not use lump crab.  I have NEVER eaten imitation crab meat crab cakes...anywhere.  If the crab moratorium is affecting the cruise industry, what makes you think that it isn't affecting other cruise lines.

3. I seriously, highly, and confidently doubt that Windjammer is serving the SAME food everyday.  Even during breakfast, there are daily changes although the main staples like scrambled eggs, omelets, breakfast meats, etc will remain the same.

4. MDR food is what you make of it.  AS a former chef, I honestly think that the food is decent considering the sheer number of people they have to feed daily.  

I know that complainers will complain and nothing that I say or write will change that.  But honestly, making blanket statements or statements that are highly dubious doesn't help your cause.  LOL fake nacho cheese!  BAHAHAHAHA

[CruisinMikeD]

We just got back from the Allure and our experience with the food quality was excellent.  The MDR crew knocked it out of the park.  The food in the MDR was absolutely top notch... with the exception of - get this - The Key welcome lunch and departure breakfast.  It was shocking to me that The Key meals were by far the worst meals on our trip, with the worst service.  The food came out lukewarm, and the staff seemed lost.  I'll post my review of The Key in another thread, but in short, I won't buy the Key again - it was a big disappointment.

Aside from The Key meals, most all of the food on the Allure in every venue was delicious. 

MDR - amazing, every night we went.  We had two excellent lunches in the MDR as well, and a very good breakfast. 

Windjammer - couldn't go wrong here with the quick food.  Breakfast always worked out fast with plenty of choices. Try the kanji!

Solarium Bistro - love the made to order omelets.

Sorrento's - better than I remember.  They've stepped up their pizza quality a bit.

Izumi Hibachi - stellar, delicious lobster, scallops, and beef - cooked perfectly.  Mochi and sesame balls were excellent desserts.  My 2nd favorite restaurant.

150 Central Park - easily the best food on the ship: amazing scallops, perfect soup, and the fried cheesecake is the best dessert of all.  After trying 150 for the first time, this is now a must book for us on every cruise.

Chef's Table - delicious courses, but surprisingly inconsistent quality with the main course fillet.  My lady's was cooked perfectly, but mine was chewy and dried out on the outside.  The bad main course, plus the poor communication over where to meet to begin the meal (we had to sneak in to the diamond lounge and ask the host where to go), has made me fall out of love with the Chef's Table.  I very much prefer 150 Central Park.

Hopefully most other guests had a similar experience.  I don't think I am that easy to please when it comes to food 

[Templecruiser]

We just got off Harmony and for the most part the food was great. Ate dinner every night at Coastal Kitchen and was very happy with it. Breakfast there was awesome also. My daughters family was in a JS so we had a couple breakfast in the MDR and neither was that good. The difference between CK and MDR breakfast was knight and day. The food at Barefoot beach was also in the alright category, but can't expect to much for outdoor eating. But for the most part, I had no problem with the food. I gained 6lbs so I did eat.

[FireFishII]

On 12/3/2022 at 6:08 PM, bretts173 said:

How many times have you heard people as they get older say it's not as good as it used to be. I would bet a lot more times than the opposite.

Did you know that:

Infants have around 30,000 tastebuds spread throughout their mouths. By the time we hit adulthood, only about a third of these remain, mostly on our tongues. 

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/wordofmouth/2013/jan/29/changing-tastes-food-and-aging#:~:text=Infants have around 30%2C000 tastebuds,experience for the very young.

 

I have also read that some adults can have as few as 2,000 tastebuds. 

I remember my dad, when cooking steak on the grill, kept adding more and more garlic salt the older he got.  We finally had to tell him to stop because we could not eat the meat.  

[CruisingNewb]

Another thing to remember here is the frequency of our cruising experiences.

I will give you an example.  

I used to work for NY/NY Hotel and Casino, the Palms Casino, Caesar's, Venetian, and MGM in Vegas.  As employees, we would have access to the EDR (employee dining room).  At first, man-oh-man, the EDR was GREAT!  Its was a buffet everyday for employees.  Every break I got, I would go down to EDR and eat something.  After about a year of eating at least one meal a day and multiple snacks a day while working, the food seemed to get old and poorer in quality.

For us, we thought the food on our first Carnival cruise was outstanding!  Then after our 3rd or so cruise on the same ship, it became meh.  

Our first RCCL cruise was this past June.  I thought the food was night-and-day different and worlds apart better than anything on Carnival.  

Recently, we took a short 3 nighter on our second RCCL cruise.  The food was good.

This is when I realized that eventually, our perceptions diminish based upon our first experience(s) and usually, secondary and tertiary experiences do not live up to the first time.  

Soooooo....maybe its just us and not the actual food?  Sometimes it is the food, the preparation, the quality of ingredients--no doubt.  But to generalize things and simply say that the food quality is going down is not a fair assessment.

[Raxter54]

On 11/30/2022 at 7:10 PM, Ampurp85 said:

The food can be hit or miss, this seems to be a recent development. However as a whole I don't think Royals food sucks too bad. There will always be mainstays in the buffet and dining room, but I do think they rotate the offerings.  

I also doubt they are trying to drive 3500+pax to fight for 50-90 spots in the specialty restaurants.  In all honesty, imho, other lines have always had better free food than Royal but lacked in other areas. 

The "mainstays" may be going away with the new menus....

[MJ_]

I just took my first ever cruise on Enchantment a little less than a month ago. I'm a foodie, so I tried really hard to lower my expectations so as to not be disappointed.

The thing I wasn't expecting was the fact that things were so hit or miss. It's one thing to have consistently mediocre quality, but everything was SO all over the place. I had a few wonderful dishes but I also had a few inedible dishes. I've never had an inedible meal in a restaurant on land before, but had multiple on the ship. The worst was probably the room service grilled cheese which was literally a cold piece of cheese on a slice of white bread...

That being said, when I did have to send something back as inedible, the replacement was typically edible.

I'm really hoping for the best on my cruise on Vision this summer, but planning on avoiding room service and expecting a few inedible dishes, which really makes me a bit sad. 

[CruisingNewb]

17 minutes ago, MJ_ said:

I'm a foodie, so I tried really hard to lower my expectations so as to not be disappointed.

 

I am glad that you had some good experiences alongside the bad ones.

Its my perception and therefore my opinion that being a "foodie" means that a person has high expectations and tastes.  

I am a former chef of a couple of well-known high end restaurants.  From my experience, alot of us (chefs) want simple comfort foods when we aren't working.  For example, in Vegas, many of my chef friends and I would go to Fat Burger after work for a greasy cheeseburger with fried egg.  Nothing extravagant by any means.  In fact, many "foodies" have negative things to say about many of the places we (chefs) eat. LOL

The reason I go into my narrative above is that this is a fan forum.  I appreciate all opinions, good or bad, but I personally make sure that when I type a comment, that people understand the perspective I come from.

My family is by no means wealthy, but we are well-off.  Still, we are budget conscious and try to live humbly below our means. 

When I cruise, I am expecting an overall pleasurable experience.  I never go into a cruise ship dining venue expecting Michelin Star quality food.  If I wanted that, I would be dining Robuchon's at the MGM. 

For others who are new to Royal or cruising in general, I would have to say don't "lower expectations" - just have different expectations.  Expect not to have to drive home after having several cocktails during dinner.  Expect plenty of options for dining, drinking, entertainment.  Expect to relax and let your guard down.  

[AshleyDillo]

On 1/5/2023 at 12:12 PM, MJ_ said:

The worst was probably the room service grilled cheese which was literally a cold piece of cheese on a slice of white bread...

This is not unique to that ship or your experience, right @Ampurp85?

As for grilled cheese, we tried so hard on our Harmony cruise to find somewhere that understood the assignment.

[Ampurp85]

10 hours ago, AshleyDillo said:

This is not unique to that ship or your experience, right @Ampurp85?

As for grilled cheese, we tried so hard on our Harmony cruise to find somewhere that understood the assignment.

Ugh the burnt bread and uncooked cheese is prevalent on all Royal ships.......made worse by the uncooked bread and cold cheese from MDR. 

My only successful grilled cheese on Royal came from CK and it wasn't a traditional one.

[CruisingNewb]

On 1/7/2023 at 5:21 AM, Ampurp85 said:

Ugh the burnt bread and uncooked cheese is prevalent on all Royal ships.......made worse by the uncooked bread and cold cheese from MDR. 

My only successful grilled cheese on Royal came from CK and it wasn't a traditional one.

I am curious.  If you were to take some bread and cheese from the Windjammer, would the omelet bar cook grill it in the omelet pan for you?  That would be the best grilled cheese on a cruise ship.  Perhaps someone has tried this hack?

[WAAAYTOOO]

39 minutes ago, CruisingNewb said:

I am curious.  If you were to take some bread and cheese from the Windjammer, would the omelet bar cook grill it in the omelet pan for you?  That would be the best grilled cheese on a cruise ship.  Perhaps someone has tried this hack?

I certainly do not know the true answer to this, but it is my guess that they would not accept food passed from a passenger to them to prepare (possible exception being some kind of baby food).  More likely, you could ask them to please get the food items that you want (bread and cheese) and see if they will make a special preparation (which isn't anything special, but it is what it is with their [lack of] grilled cheese skills...).  I feel like there are some kind of sanitation and chain of custody issues with their accepting food items directly from a passenger.

[CruisingNewb]

22 minutes ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

I certainly do not know the true answer to this, but it is my guess that they would not accept food passed from a passenger to them to prepare (possible exception being some kind of baby food).  More likely, you could ask them to please get the food items that you want (bread and cheese) and see if they will make a special preparation (which isn't anything special, but it is what it is with their [lack of] grilled cheese skills...).  I feel like there are some kind of sanitation and chain of custody issues with their accepting food items directly from a passenger.

That is a keen observation and good point that you make!  

[BrianB]

28 minutes ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

I certainly do not know the true answer to this, but it is my guess that they would not accept food passed from a passenger to them to prepare (possible exception being some kind of baby food).  More likely, you could ask them to please get the food items that you want (bread and cheese) and see if they will make a special preparation (which isn't anything special, but it is what it is with their [lack of] grilled cheese skills...).  I feel like there are some kind of sanitation and chain of custody issues with their accepting food items directly from a passenger.

[Maggie M]

I, too, think having DIFFERENT expectations versus lowering them is what will make a difference in your cruising experience. I consider myself a foodie and have had many opportunities to dine all over the world at some of the best rated restaurants. I'm still "loyal to Royal" over the years because they are consistently good with their service and their food most of the time is better than something I could cook! I try to keep everything in perspective - they are serving thousands of guests and staff multiple times a day and nothing is ever going to be perfect but they do try their hardest to please even the pickiest of guests. In my 20+ years of cruising, I've only ever had to send a meal back once or twice d/t temperature v. flavor issues. We are so incredibly blessed and fortunate to be able to vacation when so many people in this world have no idea where their next meal is going to come from. I hope you will give cruising another chance if you are afforded the opportunity to.