Post by Trevor on Jun 26, 2016 16:34:20 GMT
Posted by Pam, Dorset on 26/6/2016, 13:16:02
It was brilliant!
Stayed overnight in Vancouver before the cruise and the restaurant attached to our hotel, Frankies at the Georgian Court, but open to all, was gf aware and served gf pasta which was delicious. Gf toast at breakfast. In Vancouver gf muffins and cakes seemed to be on sale in a few coffee shops, and I had a gorgeous muffin at Take Five which is a chain. As the hotel was so good we ate there on our return too, but when visiting a long lost cousin out in Surrey we went to another Italian restaurant which was also aware and served gf pasta.
We cruised with Holland America for the first time and for the first few days it was brilliant .
I did the usual meeting with restaurant manager, seeing the chef and special diet area in the galley, ordered my dinner the night before so dishes could be adapted, and always ate in the same restaurant for breakfast and dinner so staff could get to know me. For lunch the buffet was great with staff aware of what salad dressings etc were gf and gf pizza and burger buns available at those places. I ate really well UNTIL day 5 when my preordered starter arrived with a piece of baguette on it.
As soon as I pointed it out the waiter apologised and brought a suitable one. I didn't think too much of it as the service had been so good till then. At breakfast next day I ordered the gf pancakes (as I had enjoyed the gf waffles the previous day. - not perfect but with banana and maple syrup a real treat!) . When they arrived the waiter confirmed they were gf and I ate them though was a little bit unsure as they didn't seem quite the right texture, but not having had American style pancakes before I wasn't sure what they should be like. That day we were tendered ashore in the morning for us to have some time to look round before a booked excursion in the afternoon.
As soon as I got ashore I started feeling ill with the unmistakeable signs of having been glutened. You can imagine the rest - it certainly wasn't pleasant! When I had recovered enough to move I went back to the ship and spent the afternoon in bed recovering. We went to see the restaurant manager and guest relations person who didn't seem to take my complaints seriously but said they would see about getting me a refund for the lost excursion. At dinner time, still,feeling a bit queasy, I did go along to the restaurant with my husband. The preordered melon starter was ideal, then fish with pasta. I ate some fish and a tiny bit of pasta as I wasn't up to eating much, but then our waiter came over and said he thought I had got the wrong meal.
He brought the head of that section and they disappeared off to the kitchen only to come back and say sorry madam you got the wrong meal. You can imagine my reaction - extreme anger and tears! We ended up with waiters, managers, chef, guest relations all round the table now taking it seriously and being very apologetic. I was offered wine ( I don't drink) and a meal in the speciality restaurant for the next night but when you have been ill all day and are facing a night of worse, it didn't seem the most tactful suggestion and we declined. As it turned out, because I had eaten such a tiny amount of pasta I wasn't too bad but spent a very anxious night and felt totally wiped out the next day.
They did refund my excursion but made no other offer of compensation which we are now in the process of chasing with their head office who so far have offered a 30dollar drink package on our next HA cruise .
We don't plan one so are trying to take it further as due to the breakdown in their system I lost the best part of 2 days of my holiday. I must say that on my last day I was treated like royalty in the dining room, with the top manager himself serving me every course and not even letting me put my own teabag in the pot! The waiters were so apologetic and all had had extra training but nobody seems to know where the previously efficient system had broken down and that is the important thing. I have always been so well looked after on cruises that this was such a disappointment.
The Rocky Mountaineer was amazing and the gluten free food second to none, with lovely well informed staff and a gf option for everything.
In Banff our hotel the Caribou Lodge did gf toast for breakfast and did me special eggs and bacon as the buffet was possibly contaminated.
Our best find there was the Old Spaghetti Factory, one of a big chain in Canada, which had a gf menu and was really cheap. We went there twice, and once to a newly opened Indian, can't remember it's name but it's on the main drag, upstairs by a pizza place , and they did wonderful dosas.
It was a great trip and gf wasn't too difficult to find. Don't let my Holland America experience put you off - cruises really are good for gf.
Sorry about the long post.