What exactly is so bad about the pirate night food, and is anything good?

Angeliki19

DIS Veteran
Joined
Apr 3, 2011
Hi! I hear repeatedly that people hate the food on pirate night and try to avoid it. I am looking at menus online and it doesn't seem terrible to me! There are a few things I would order. I don't get if the food quality is just bad, or people just don't care for the style of food (which personally looks like stuff I would like.) Is there anything we should go out of our way to try or avoid at all costs?

ETA: We are foodies, but also easy to please, and realistic about food in the MDRs. We have found our food on the other DCL cruises we have done to be good, but nothing AMAZING.
 
Everyone has different tastes. For us it's our favorite menu of the cruise - crab cake, shanghaied noodles and falafel are awesome. You will always find something you will enjoy on the menu :)
 
Hi! I hear repeatedly that people hate the food on pirate night and try to avoid it. I am looking at menus online and it doesn't seem terrible to me! There are a few things I would order. I don't get if the food quality is just bad, or people just don't care for the style of food (which personally looks like stuff I would like.) Is there anything we should go out of our way to try or avoid at all costs?

ETA: We are foodies, but also easy to please, and realistic about food in the MDRs. We have found our food on the other DCL cruises we have done to be good, but nothing AMAZING.
I like the menu well enough, although I liked the older menu (3-4 years ago) better.
 


It's not so much that the Pirate night food is bad - it's just that it's not as good as other nights. Add to that, some frequent cruisers have had their fill of pirate night antics so they plan a nice meal at Palo instead.
 
Hi! I hear repeatedly that people hate the food on pirate night and try to avoid it. I am looking at menus online and it doesn't seem terrible to me! There are a few things I would order. I don't get if the food quality is just bad, or people just don't care for the style of food (which personally looks like stuff I would like.) Is there anything we should go out of our way to try or avoid at all costs?

ETA: We are foodies, but also easy to please, and realistic about food in the MDRs. We have found our food on the other DCL cruises we have done to be good, but nothing AMAZING.
I usually get the mango soup and the pasta. I don't really like the desserts though.
 


I usually get the beef option most nights (I'm a plain eater and I don't do seafood). I enjoy the Strip Loin on Pirate Night very much. I prefer that over the beef offering on the rotational menu in Royal Palace/Court, and some of the other options on the 7 night cruises too. The corn bread (Johnny Cakes) is delicious too. I'm not a big fan of the nightly bread offerings but this is one I make a point to eat.
 
I think it has the worst appetizer and dessert selections of any menu DCL has. Main course, there's always a beef or chicken option (I don't eat seafood) I can have, but there's no app or dessert that appeals to me. Therefore, it is an easy choice to make it our Palo night. Besides - unpopular opinion coming - I'm not a fan of pirate night as a whole. I think it's time has come and gone and should be updated to something new.
 
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I don't get it either, I quite enjoy the Pirate menu, but don't care for the entrees.
I get:
Mango Soup, Baby Gem Salad and Samosa as apps. I then get two crabcakes as my entree and I love the sundae with the pineapple coconut ice cream.

Once I learned to get the crabcakes as my entree....game changer!

DH really likes the noodles.
 
One of our favorite menus. We look forward to dinner on pirate night! I hate the night with the Thanksgiving turkey menu - hate everything on that menu!
 
Add me to the "I like the Pirate Night menu" camp. It's not my favorite menu, but I definitely look forward to it (and have had it a few times).

For some, I guess it might be the cuisine-that menu has a Caribbean flair which some may not be as familiar with (or not like). Of course, everyone has their personal preferences; that's just a guess on my part.
 
I really enjoyed the Braised Barbecue Beef Rib Salad and the Rum-Soaked Chocolate Cake from the Pirate Night menu.

I think RedHead0186 is right, it's a menu where a lot of people might find fewer things they want to eat, so especially after a few cruises it might get a bit boring. We've only had Pirate Night on one of our cruises so it's still a bit of a novelty!
 
For us there isn't anything WRONG with it so much as it just misses the mark on what its trying to do.

Some of it SOUNDS flavorful, with their chili salsas, jerks, and curries but they are bland if you're the kind of person who likes spice. Then you have their tendency to overcook meat and these entrees are big wedges of meat... the dessert menu can be hit or miss depending on your tastes. I know a lot of people who dislike tropical flavors - coconut, pineapple and even banana.
 
I'm picky so it's never been my cup of tea. We usually just try to go to Palo that night.
 

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