J
jnojr
Guest
I just got back from a four day trip to Cabo San Lucas. I just had to report on the food. Overall, I would rate it as mediocre. Several things we had were just plain terrible.
On the first night, we went to the dining room. I started with the beef and barley soup, which was really good. For the main course, I had the filet mignon, and my GF had the salmon. Both were awful. The filet was tough and stringy, and tasted odd. My GF ate two bites of the salmon and declared it the worst she'd ever had. Ever. Someone else at our table had the Caeser salad, and immediately pushed it away... it was apparently drenched in anchovy. Fortunately, I'd had a burger at Tiffany's for a late lunch and so wasn't very hungry. The burger was OK. This dinner was the only meal I tried any wine with. The filet was so awful it ruined the cab I had selected, and left me with no desire to buy any more wine that I couldn't know I could enjoy with a good meal.
On the second day, we had breakfast in one of the dining rooms. The eggs looked like they had come out of a box. Edible, but no more could be said for them than that. The sausage and bacon were OK. At lunchtime, I tried the dessert section in Tiffany's. The mocha cheesecake was absolutely tasteless. The cherry streusel was better, but still very disappointing. For dinner, since we didn't want to deal with the formal night, and were gun-shy about the main dining room, we went to Tiffany's. I had the lamb shank, and was very pleasantly surprised... very, very good for mass-produced food.
Third day: For lunch, I tried the shrimp quesadilla in Tiffany's. They forgot the shrimp, I guess. The rice was good, though. That night, I started with the Caeser salad... hard to do after the first night, but nothing else looked at all appetizing, and I figured I could just dump it if necessary. It was OK. For dessert I had the warm chocolate cake, and it was very good. Some people thought it was a little too gooey, but I liked it just fine. I can't remember what I had for the main course.
On the last night, we went to the dining room and I started with the chicken quesadilla. It was all right. For the main course, I had the chateaubriand. It was... different, but acceptable. My GF had given up on most dining room food and went with the burger, figuring that was tough to screw up. I guess she was right... she ate half and said it was fine. There was no dessert menu... they brought around an ice cream cake, but let the pieces sit too long, so it was getting goopey by the time it was served. It was very bland except for the frosting. Someone at our table was celebrating their birthday and had a chocolate cake, which was better, but still had a lot of room for improvement.
I was really, really surprised and disappointed at how bad some of the food was in the main dining room. Also, it was very surprising that, on average, Tiffany's had better food than the main dining room. I know it's tough to cook for 600 people, but part of that is selecting dishes that aren't too sensitive to tiny variations in the cooking process. I wasn't expecting five star meals, but the food could and should have been much better. I guess if you like Chili's and Applebees, then you wouldn't find fault with the dining room.
When it's time to go on a longer cruise, I'll be looking at other lines. Part of an enjoyable vacation should be really, really good food. I suppose it's possible that things are different on other Carnival ships, but I wouldn't want to gamble.
On the first night, we went to the dining room. I started with the beef and barley soup, which was really good. For the main course, I had the filet mignon, and my GF had the salmon. Both were awful. The filet was tough and stringy, and tasted odd. My GF ate two bites of the salmon and declared it the worst she'd ever had. Ever. Someone else at our table had the Caeser salad, and immediately pushed it away... it was apparently drenched in anchovy. Fortunately, I'd had a burger at Tiffany's for a late lunch and so wasn't very hungry. The burger was OK. This dinner was the only meal I tried any wine with. The filet was so awful it ruined the cab I had selected, and left me with no desire to buy any more wine that I couldn't know I could enjoy with a good meal.
On the second day, we had breakfast in one of the dining rooms. The eggs looked like they had come out of a box. Edible, but no more could be said for them than that. The sausage and bacon were OK. At lunchtime, I tried the dessert section in Tiffany's. The mocha cheesecake was absolutely tasteless. The cherry streusel was better, but still very disappointing. For dinner, since we didn't want to deal with the formal night, and were gun-shy about the main dining room, we went to Tiffany's. I had the lamb shank, and was very pleasantly surprised... very, very good for mass-produced food.
Third day: For lunch, I tried the shrimp quesadilla in Tiffany's. They forgot the shrimp, I guess. The rice was good, though. That night, I started with the Caeser salad... hard to do after the first night, but nothing else looked at all appetizing, and I figured I could just dump it if necessary. It was OK. For dessert I had the warm chocolate cake, and it was very good. Some people thought it was a little too gooey, but I liked it just fine. I can't remember what I had for the main course.
On the last night, we went to the dining room and I started with the chicken quesadilla. It was all right. For the main course, I had the chateaubriand. It was... different, but acceptable. My GF had given up on most dining room food and went with the burger, figuring that was tough to screw up. I guess she was right... she ate half and said it was fine. There was no dessert menu... they brought around an ice cream cake, but let the pieces sit too long, so it was getting goopey by the time it was served. It was very bland except for the frosting. Someone at our table was celebrating their birthday and had a chocolate cake, which was better, but still had a lot of room for improvement.
I was really, really surprised and disappointed at how bad some of the food was in the main dining room. Also, it was very surprising that, on average, Tiffany's had better food than the main dining room. I know it's tough to cook for 600 people, but part of that is selecting dishes that aren't too sensitive to tiny variations in the cooking process. I wasn't expecting five star meals, but the food could and should have been much better. I guess if you like Chili's and Applebees, then you wouldn't find fault with the dining room.
When it's time to go on a longer cruise, I'll be looking at other lines. Part of an enjoyable vacation should be really, really good food. I suppose it's possible that things are different on other Carnival ships, but I wouldn't want to gamble.
