Jump to content

Orange Crush

Recommended Posts

As I complete the "live" blog of my recent Christmas cruise on the Majesty at a glacial pace, there's something I really need to talk with other cruisers about.

Let me start by saying that I am FAR from a pizza snob.  While I've enjoyed some excellent pizza in my time, and I frequently make my own cast iron pan pizzas from scratch, I still appreciate a slice from a national chain, the mall, Cici's or even Digiorno's and Red Barron.  I was a firm believer that there's no such thing as bad pizza.  Just good pizza and better pizza. 

I was wrong.  Sorrento's is bad pizza.  What in gods name do they DO to it?  They appear to be using pre-made crusts with a normal-looking sauce and shredded mozzarella.  The toppings are kinda skimpy, but that's not a big deal.  The problem is that it's got a texture I can only describe as gluey as all hell.  Like Elmer's school glue.  The crust crisps up reasonably well on the bottom and edges, the cheese browns on the top, but there's something going terribly wrong at the crust-sauce-cheese interface.  The entire mass stuck to the roofs of our mouths and left an unpleasant film on our teeth and tongues.  I tried multiple different kinds across different days to see if it was just a particular variety to rule out a bad batch, strange customized recipe or something that's been sitting out too long.  It was consistently gluey and terrible.  An especially well-done pie, fresh out of the oven was only marginally better.  It was still noticeably gluey.  Soggy elementary school cafeteria pizza is superior to this.  I'm just baffled how the pizza can miss the mark so much.  Are they using artificial cheese or some peculiar ingredient?  Pizza isn't a complex food and doesn't require any ingredients they don't already carry for their otherwise excellent bakery and galley operations.  How can it possibly be this bad?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You know, I hate that all the terrible reviews of Sorrentos is just convincing me that I have to try it when I cruise.  If everyone told me "oh you have to eat here, it's the best pizza ever" then I might try it.  But with so many people talking about how bad it is, now I feel I must try it to see how pizza can possibly be that badly done.  Why in the world would that be my reaction?? :6_smile:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I completely agree @Orange Crush. It reminds me of the pizza they used to serve at Chuck E Cheese. The last time I had the cheese pizza, it was kind of soggy and if folded over treated more like a cheese quesadilla than pizza. And once you've tried the pizza on some of the other lines, you realize how bad the pizza is on Royal. Sadly, though, it doesn't stop me from eating it when hungry late at night. 

For what it's worth, the pizza has been terrible since the 1990s, so at least they've been consistent. :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, NS8VN said:

You know, I hate that all the terrible reviews of Sorrentos is just convincing me that I have to try it when I cruise.  If everyone told me "oh you have to eat here, it's the best pizza ever" then I might try it.  But with so many people talking about how bad it is, now I feel I must try it to see how pizza can possibly be that badly done.  Why in the world would that be my reaction?? :6_smile:

Oh, I'm exactly the same way.  I heard the bad reviews online and I couldn't quite believe it myself.  No pizza can be that bad!

It was.

I had to try multiple slices of different kinds on different days because I still didn't completely believe it.  Same result.  Every time.

200.gif#1-grid2

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I heard a call.  Did someone set off the "bash Sorrentos" siren? 

Yeah, I'm not a fan - at all.  Many lines do pizza poorly and Sorrentos is definitely one of them.  We had pretty great pizza (from a similar style venue) on HAL's Nieuw Amsterdam recently, so floating and good pizza are not incompatible.   

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I am a pizza snob, and Sorrentos is awful.  It is what it is: mass produced quickly produced pizza.  My kids generally like it.

That being said, the pizza on Independence was inedible in my opinion.  Not sure why Indy's version of Sorrentos was different from the rest of the fleet.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 minute ago, Matt said:

I am a pizza snob, and Sorrentos is awful.  It is what it is: mass produced quickly produced pizza.  My kids generally like it.

That being said, the pizza on Independence was inedible in my opinion.  Not sure why Indy's version of Sorrentos was different from the rest of the fleet.

Frozen, microwaveable pizza they sell at gas stations still beats Sorrentos and that's about as mass produced as it gets.  There has to be more to it than that.  I must understand this!

You mention Indy's pizza being different and somehow more horrible, so maybe that's a clue?  Majesty's my only Sorrentos experience so far.

I'm sailing on the Allure this coming March.  I will try the Sorrentos there and report back.  For science.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Orange Crush said:

You mention Indy's pizza being different and somehow more horrible, so maybe that's a clue?  Majesty's my only Sorrentos experience so far.

I think it was the cheese.  Tasted and felt different than Sorrentos on other ships.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

16 hours ago, mworkman said:

I haven't tried it yet and was looking forward to trying it.  I did have the pizza on Carnival Splendor in Nov and I hate to say this, but I think there on to something over there at Carnival. I couldn't get enough of it, It was fabulous!

Oh my goodness - on Carnival Victory earlier this year for a 4 day cruise and I think my wife and I had at least 15 pizzas.  It was AMAZING!

We are taking our 10 year old daughter on her first cruise on Mariner in 2018 and was really looking forward to the pizza on board :-(

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Maybe I'm alone, or I just got a good batch, but back in November on Majesty I didn't think it was terrible.  Was it the best pizza I've had, no, not at all.  But I would put it in the realm of pizzas made for school fundraisers here in the midwest.  I think it's all about how you go into it.  If you didn't know it was bad before you got on board, it would be really terrible.  Since I'd already heard horror stories, it was more of "that wasn't as bad as everyone made it out to be."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

28 minutes ago, Gears said:

The Molson score for Carnival's pizza?

15!   (The limit of the Cheers! drink package)

To me it's very close to something you buy at a big box store, preheat to 450 and bake for 12-15 mins. but greasier.  Like dab paper towels on it to soak up some of the liquid oil on top before consuming.  Sorrentos is generally better but to each their own.  On Indy it's a weird taste but at least it doesn't ooze oil.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I’m a born and bred New Jerseyan, enjoying good pizza is in my blood. I want to thank everyone here for the multiple warnings about Sorrentos. I’ll be sure to avoid it, as having it might lead me to swear off ever cruising again, and that would be a Bad Thing. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 12/31/2017 at 5:36 AM, JLMoran said:

I’m a born and bred New Jerseyan, enjoying good pizza is in my blood. I want to thank everyone here for the multiple warnings about Sorrentos. I’ll be sure to avoid it, as having it might lead me to swear off ever cruising again, and that would be a Bad Thing. 

That's horrible news. You MUST try it. It's part of the shared experience talking about how bad it is. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 12/31/2017 at 8:36 AM, JLMoran said:

I’m a born and bred New Jerseyan, enjoying good pizza is in my blood. I want to thank everyone here for the multiple warnings about Sorrentos. I’ll be sure to avoid it, as having it might lead me to swear off ever cruising again, and that would be a Bad Thing. 

Nope, you need to try it for "research purposes" and then live blog it ?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I must have been on a different cruise I found it tolerable not terrible I will be on the indy in 10 days I will give it a try I did find the royal old room service menu fit for a vulture but the new menu is pretty good maybe the sorrentos pizza will be improved if enough people b---h or maybe if we all cater a sorrentos lunch directly to boss bayley if I am not mistaken carnivals pizza is on flatbread

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 12/31/2017 at 3:36 PM, JLMoran said:

I’m a born and bred New Jerseyan, enjoying good pizza is in my blood. I want to thank everyone here for the multiple warnings about Sorrentos. I’ll be sure to avoid it, as having it might lead me to swear off ever cruising again, and that would be a Bad Thing. 

Its not that bad, 

If you use your Alcohol package as it should and you  pour on the slice half of Tabasco bottle with some of the dry spices its eatable ....

Also there are two things I love about the Sorrento   :

It reduce the lines in cafe promenade.

It add seating area in the promenade ...

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have strong gastronomic empathy for you. I actually didn't have a problem with the pizza on my last cruise on Liberty. Is it possible that it is different from ship to ship? Or that the recipe has changed since last year? Or am I just a pizza boar, whose opinion is not to be trusted? 

Either way, I trust the rest of the cruise was pleasurable. You might try to grab a passable pizza slice in one of the ports.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I am picky about good food and I like sorrento's better than johnny rockets. Johnny rockets is terrible. Greasy cold fries and onion rings, Cheap frozen pre-formed patty's with no seasoning, limp greasy undercooked bacon. AND IT COSTS EXTRA! At least sorrento's is free and their sandwiches/stromboli's are good. Carnival has Guy Fieri's Burgers and I have heard from everyone that has tried them how great they are and it's included! Royal Caribbean needs to up their burger/pizza/bar food game. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, tiny260 said:

Nothing like a piece of pizza after drinking all day (Sea day) and night, best hangover cure on the ship.

Couldn't this be said about just about anything? If Sabor was open, then that would be the best hangover food, too. ;)

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 hours ago, Jason.H. said:

I am picky about good food and I like sorrento's better than johnny rockets. Johnny rockets is terrible. Greasy cold fries and onion rings, Cheap frozen pre-formed patty's with no seasoning, limp greasy undercooked bacon. AND IT COSTS EXTRA! At least sorrento's is free and their sandwiches/stromboli's are good. Carnival has Guy Fieri's Burgers and I have heard from everyone that has tried them how great they are and it's included! Royal Caribbean needs to up their burger/pizza/bar food game. 

Frankly, I was not at all impressed with Guy Fieri's burgers on Carnival. But the pizza was pretty good.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Sorrentos is not good.

 

I'd gladly take any of the big chains over it- Dominos, Papa John's , Pizza Hut, or even up here in Canada Pizza Pizza.... that is saying something

 

Michael Bayley has said they are working on the pizza... There had been no improvement on my last cruise.. we'll see what the Anthem has in store for me in a month.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, constable145 said:

or even up here in Canada Pizza Pizza.... that is saying something

Sure , if you prefer Pizza Pizza over Sorrentos its saying allot about Sorrentos :1_grinning: 

Pizza Pizza is something we used to have during the middle of sleepless night which we had huge production problem , it was the only things that was open and after I was eating it I use to cruised myself for doing so.

Agree that any chain will be better , but even not a chain (since they will need to pay for the name and guess who will pay for what they are paying) , just better recipe  and better cheese (they should find something else to do with the recycle plastic bottles, Sorrento "cheese" is not the answer for everything)

   

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...