Cruise passengers, at least ones who sail regularly, tend to be very skeptical of change. Many like their cruises to be the way they always have been. They're not against something new being added, but many are very wary when a cruise line changes a core offering.
Royal Caribbean (RCL) angered a lot of passengers recently when it made major changes to its Main Dining Room (MDR) menus. Essentially, the cruise line gave every night a theme (like Italian, Mexican, and Caribbean among others) and stopped offering the "Classics" section of its menu.
DON'T MISS: Royal Caribbean Confirms Huge Main Dining Room Menu Change
That was a very large change because the "Classics" included both fan-favorite choices like escargot as an appetizer, and basic options like New York Strip Steak and pasta bolognese. The change made the menu a lot less friendly to people who are not daring eaters as the cruise line essentially removed the nightly "safe" choices for anyone who might not like the themed entrees.
It's important to note that every night still offers a meat, a fish, a chicken, and a pasta dish, but not in the simple preparations the "Classics" lineup offered. Royal Caribbean made the change in order to cut down on waste and speed up its meal times.
Now, Carnival Cruise Line (CCL) has a plan to change the menus in its Main Dining Rooms and the cruise line's president Christine Duffy shared a message on social media laying out what's going to happen.
Carnival's President Shares MDR Plans
Duffy posted her remarks on Carnival Brand Ambassador John Heald's Facebook page where he routinely answers hundreds of questions each day.
"Hi, John thank you for letting me tell your fans about some changes coming to the main dining room across the fleet," she opened.
Heald's page is followed by nearly 500,000 people and his posts regularly get hundreds and sometimes thousands of comments.
"Starting with Saturday's embarkation of Carnival Dream, we're going to be testing a new menu in the main dining room. Then, the goal is that we'll start implementing these changes across the fleet this fall," she added.
That's very similar to the process Royal Caribbean used. It first tested new menus on Symphony of the Seas, tweaked them based on passenger feedback, and then rolled them out across the entire fleet.
Image source: Carnival Cruise Line
Emeril Lagasse Played a Role In Carnival's MDR Changes
Back in December, Carnival appointed celebrity chef Emeril Lagasse as its Chief Culinary Officer. Duffy made it clear that the "bam!" chef's role is not merely ceremonial.
"This was all done in consultation with our Chief Culinary Officer Emeril Lagasse," she said of the MDR changes. "We've been looking at every aspect of the Main Dining Room offerings."
Lagasse, who rose to fame hosting a daily show on Food Network, made it clear when the job was announced that he would take an active role.
“I’ve been creating and operating restaurants for many years but developing my restaurants with Carnival and learning about the cruise industry has been an exhilarating experience. I love Carnival’s focus on food and fun and the many great dining options they offer their guests. I’m looking forward to building on our success at sea with Carnival’s exceptional culinary team,” Lagasse said.
And while Royal Caribbean cut its menus back, Duffy said that Carnival has very different plans.
"We plan to bring more variety with nearly 60 new entree presentations that will rotate through the menu in Main Dining Room," she said.
The new menu will include offerings from the cruise line's specialty dining restaurants across the fleet.
"We're also addressing bigger portion offerings on certain entrees based on your feedback," she added.
Duffy also made it clear that fan favorites would still have a place on the menu and that more vegetarian choices are being added. The cruise line will also add an entree salad -- a "nice big salad with a protein," she shared.
Carnival's president did make it clear that the cruise line would be taking and listening to guest feedback over the summer as the menu gets tested on Carnival Dream.
ALSO READ: Passenger Totally Freaks Out on China Airlines Flight Crew for Not Speaking Japanese
