Wonder servers - that bad??

[GoofyLovingFamily]

Our favorite crew members are on the Wonder. At Palo, we are thrilled when Leo (India) is working and will request him every time. Our last cruise he was on vacation and his "cousin" Ashleigh was just as fun. We've been on the Wonder more than any other ship so we might be a little biased but it's always good to see familiar faces when we are onboard.

On our last Alaskan cruise, Geoffrey (Philippines) was our head server and set up a special Filipino breakfast for my DW and her family.

Geoffrey is awesome!!

 

[Napoleon Dynamite]

We were on the Wonder in February and our servers were terrible. I can't even remember their names, but after having great experiences on 4 prior cruises on the Dream, we were disappointed in the team we had.

 

[efam]

If you have a bad experience with your servers, can you ask to switch? I'm gluten free as well, and if I'm treated as a "chore", I will be really upset.

 

[TestingH2O]

More and more departments are starting to move CMs ships after two or more contracts on one ship. If dining go with this they'll be a lot less ship specific server issues.... I can see it become a thing by the time the new ships are around.

I find this interesting. Which teams? Is there a reasoning from management?

Personally I would only want to work the Magic or Wonder because they go interesting places, but I've heard the Dream can lead to more money.

 

[bbel]

I find this interesting. Which teams? Is there a reasoning from management?

Personally I would only want to work the Magic or Wonder because they go interesting places, but I've heard the Dream can lead to more money.

Entertainment. GS. I've heard or a couple of others but not 100%
Magic and wonder get most requests. Dream gets a few because you save money because you don't go anywhere. But a lot of people are happy on the fantasy.
I don't think it's any reason from management as such. More from shoreside. It's easier to put people where they're needed rather than where they want. Too many people were getting too comfortable. Transfers would come and be like 'on the dream we do it this way....' but you're on a different ship.

Honestly. It's what helped me make the decision to leave. They wanted me to go to the dream. After 7 contracts between the classics I really didn't want to go, and it wasn't even to do with the itinerary. I just have no desire to be on a bigger ship at all.

 

[Chipmunkmaniac]

I only once had an issue with a server and that was on the Magic on the TA2010. Our tablemates were of the same opinion. Luckily his assistant was great.. we ended up undertipping the server (only time I've not overtipped) and wayyy overtipped the assistant.... just to make a point (we also mentionned the issues during the cruise to himself and he didn't care, and we ended up mentionning it to guest servers including the compliments for the assistant who was basically doing the work of 2)

 

[bamagirl@hrt]

Geoffrey is awesome!!

I agree completely!! We also loved Shane and Suzana, the rest of our serving team. We enjoyed chatting with them each evening. If any of them saw us at other dining venues during the day, they would help us find tables and make sure we had anything we needed. Shane would bring out extra desserts and/or appetizers just because he thought we'd like them. We are laid back and very easy to please, but also appreciate exceptional service. I'd love to have this team again!

 

[Shanti]

It's probably luck of the draw to a great extent. When you're talking about gluten, though, Dream-class vs. classic might have some kitchen-related differences that bleed into the perceived quality of MDR service for gf diners. I have read a lot of trip reports with an eye for gluten issues, and have seen more complaints in this area about the classics than the Dream class.

We've sailed on the Magic and the Fantasy, both in 2016. My son is gluten-free, and our dining experiences in relation to gluten were much superior on the Fantasy. My son's meals were uninspired & seemed to be an afterthought on the Magic, but on the Fantasy they really went above and beyond to provide him with great meals (he's 12, and hasn't eaten "kids' meals" for years- he enjoys good adult food). Our server & head server were both dedicated to a great dining experience for him. In fact, I found the overall service to be considerably better in general on the Fantasy than on the Magic, but of course, being Disney, it was never bad on either ship.

 

[Dug720]

It's probably luck of the draw to a great extent. When you're talking about gluten, though, Dream-class vs. classic might have some kitchen-related differences that bleed into the perceived quality of MDR service for gf diners. I have read a lot of trip reports with an eye for gluten issues, and have seen more complaints in this area about the classics than the Dream class.

We've sailed on the Magic and the Fantasy, both in 2016. My son is gluten-free, and our dining experiences in relation to gluten were much superior on the Fantasy. My son's meals were uninspired & seemed to be an afterthought on the Magic, but on the Fantasy they really went above and beyond to provide him with great meals (he's 12, and hasn't eaten "kids' meals" for years- he enjoys good adult food). Our server & head server were both dedicated to a great dining experience for him. In fact, I found the overall service to be considerably better in general on the Fantasy than on the Magic, but of course, being Disney, it was never bad on either ship.

Yeah, I didn't have any issues on the Magic in February. Of course, I didn't have problems with ordering things off the menu (generally there are things I'll eat, and unless the only GF thing on the main menu is fish (which I don't eat), I'm fine with the things that are GF - the Triton's/Lumiere's/Royal Whichever menu being my biggest challenge) so I wasn't expecting them to make me stuff off-menu.

 

[Amunet]

I have cruised Disney 3 times, 2 being on the Wonder, so my stats are skewed right off the bat.

I've been told these amazing stories about servers on DCL but never had AMAZING experiences. My most recent was in the Wonder and it got to be such a chore to go to dining, we just ended up eating other places (it was a 14 night PC). Part of the aggravation is my severe anxiety, but the servers also neglected us (which we didn't notice until we ate at Triton's, when we were right next to a table with different servers). The main server particularly was not that great for us because we aren't too talkative, which seemed to play a large part in our attentiveness to us and he kept drizzling dressing on my salad even when I told him to stop (he did hear my request, I confronted him in the moment and he joked it off). He refused to drizzle my dressing after that. We did tell the head waiter (who was terrific) about our issues and we were given the option for other servers but I wanted to give them a chance to be aware of our complaints so they could fix them in case there were misunderstandings. After 2 days, the main server was definitely treating us differently. I really didn't want to make a big deal a second time (especially considering my health issues can make things seem worse than they really are in the moment), so we ended up having dinner in our stateroom a bit (room service or getting dinner 'to go'), doing cabanas and Palo.

 

[Ravenne]

I based it on a lot of reports lately - including the famed Scott of the DCL blog on his Alaska cruise - reporting issues or "reserving judgment" with/on servers on the Wonder. So I am trying to get a feel for if this is systemic on the Wonder.

I'd read that too in his day 1 review, but he didn't mention it any more in subsequent reviews. He did mention in his day 3 review that their serving team was very nice. I was curious what happened, but whatever it was, it must've gotten sorted out.

 

[Dug720]

I'd read that too in his day 1 review, but he didn't mention it any more in subsequent reviews. He did mention in his day 3 review that their serving team was very nice. I was curious what happened, but whatever it was, it must've gotten sorted out.

Yeah, it seems like the issue might have been the whole timing thing with the tablemates and the servers trying to balance the two desires (a shorter dinner and a longer dinner). Though the initial post definitely made it sound like it was the servers completely.

 

[yargrnhoj]

Just got off the Wonder from the 9-day and our server, Sofia, was fantastic. We're pretty laid back when it comes to ordering but our table mates' kids had some special requirements (wanting just the steak from a meal or not some topping) and she handled it all perfectly. Our assistant server, however, was MIA most of the time. They had him up front handing out baby wipes, which meant he wasn't there to take drink orders (we show up right on time) but Sofia handled it. I will note we knew another couple on the cruise who we had cruised with previously and they said their service was slow. We were supposed to meet for drinks one night at 10:15 and they didn't finish dinner until 10:30. So I suspect it is just an issue with different servers, not the ship. As I said before, we had bad service on the Dream once too.

 

[Pooh2]

We had excellent service on the Wonder from our serving team, prompt and professional and pleasant without being overly involved. I don't need my servers to become my best buddies or do magic tricks for me or ask me what I did that day.

 

[we"reofftoneverland]

Last two teams on the Wonder= nice people, but exhausting dinners. So we thought the Wonder had the worst servers.... until our last Fantasy cruise. Worse. Our back server was MIA walking around aimlessly all the time and the head server did everything which made the service very choppy and uneven (good luck getting a dessert menu lol). Kind of unforgivable because one table in the section had some "issue" where they were talking to management and never came back after the first night. And at our table and the table next to us, the kids never came. I think they only had two other tables and they were quiet tables, so they did not have a lot of people to wait on and should have been able to provide excellent service.

 

[jetskigrl]

Just got off the Wonder from the 9-day and our server, Sofia, was fantastic. We're pretty laid back when it comes to ordering but our table mates' kids had some special requirements (wanting just the steak from a meal or not some topping) and she handled it all perfectly. Our assistant server, however, was MIA most of the time. They had him up front handing out baby wipes, which meant he wasn't there to take drink orders (we show up right on time) but Sofia handled it. I will note we knew another couple on the cruise who we had cruised with previously and they said their service was slow. We were supposed to meet for drinks one night at 10:15 and they didn't finish dinner until 10:30. So I suspect it is just an issue with different servers, not the ship. As I said before, we had bad service on the Dream once too.

We had Sofia on the Wonder 5-night cruise (that followed your 9-night). We also thought she was fantastic and I'm going to try and request her again in May. We had a different drink server than you (female) and we noticed that she disappeared at the same time each night and showed back up later so we assumed she was being pulled for another task also. She was still very sweet, but Sofia had to cover for her a lot. The head server, Geoffrey, was great also and would bring drinks and clear plates when the assistant server wasn't there.

 

[Sparky47]

We had Sofia on the Wonder 5-night cruise (that followed your 9-night). We also thought she was fantastic and I'm going to try and request her again in May. We had a different drink server than you (female) and we noticed that she disappeared at the same time each night and showed back up later so we assumed she was being pulled for another task also. She was still very sweet, but Sofia had to cover for her a lot. The head server, Geoffrey, was great also and would bring drinks and clear plates when the assistant server wasn't there.

We were also on the 9-night Alaska cruise (our 10th cruise; 5th cruise on the Wonder). We have never had a bad serving team. Geoffrey was also our head server and he was the best head server in our 10 cruises; he was visible every night and helped the team regularly (not just on "lobster night" or tip night!) which is probably due to what I learned on the ship as explained below. Our team was JoJo and Vicki; I would not hesitate to recommend them and would be pleased if I was assigned to them again.

Initially, it did seem to us that Vicki (assistant server) "disappeared" and we never experienced that on prior trips -- usually it seemed like the server disappeared. We never questioned it because it was never an issue. JoJo or Geoffrey stepped in with beverage refills, etc., when Vicki wasn't around. Midway through the cruise, in general conversation with JoJo, he explained to us (again, without us questioning anything) that the concept for the service teams have changed a lot over the past few years. He said they work now more "as a team" with the head server, server and assistant server stepping in whenever/wherever needed. It used to be that the assistant was around more to fill drinks, refill bread, pepper grinder, etc., while the server would be the runner to retrieve appetizers, salad, meals, etc. Now, they alternate based on timing and in most instances it turns out that because the assistant is running to get initial drinks, the server will then run to get apps and soup/salad, then while server is handing out those dishes, asst server will run down to get main meals (or vice versa). And he emphasized 'they work as a team' frequently -- and he felt it works better now than it ever has before. Although it may seem like your server or asst server "disappears" they haven't...they are doing something in the bar or galley area or even assisting others.

 

[mocodis]

we have been on the Wonder many times and have always had great servers and assistant servers. Yes, we have our favorites and usually asked for them.

 

[Chipmunkmaniac]

I really think the problem is the definition of what is a good/excellent server.
For me personally it irritates me that servers bring extra unwanted food because I fell like I have to eat some of it while I try to keep the kcal under control... not to mention often there are things that are really not up to my taste.
I also don't want riddles etc or explain every single thing I did that day. A normal good evening, hope you had a good day is MORE than enough.
Service wise: what do I expect? That my drinks are filled, that if I have a question regarding the taste/spicyness of things they can help, if I ask something without a sauce or want to change the mashed potatoes for rice they take the order without sighing... and excellent service to me is that after a couple of days (esp on the long cruises like TA) they start to know my taste and can make personal recommandations (if I order a pasta today they might say hey, but tomorrow we have that menu which includes an even better pasta, so are you sure you want to go for that pasta tonight)

 

[jrabbit]

Sorry I don't meet your criteria for an acceptable title. I based it on a lot of reports lately - including the famed Scott of the DCL blog on his Alaska cruise - reporting issues or "reserving judgment" with/on servers on the Wonder. So I am trying to get a feel for if this is systemic on the Wonder.

No Idea, but on our January 2017 cruise earlier this year we had on of our better serving teams - ever (Wonder)

I'd read that too in his day 1 review, but he didn't mention it any more in subsequent reviews. He did mention in his day 3 review that their serving team was very nice. I was curious what happened, but whatever it was, it must've gotten sorted out.

I really don't think so ... see below.

Yeah, it seems like the issue might have been the whole timing thing with the tablemates and the servers trying to balance the two desires (a shorter dinner and a longer dinner). Though the initial post definitely made it sound like it was the servers completely.

Was on the same MDR Rotation as Scott and Co. They were at the 6 top, we were at the 8, and our serving team also had a 4 top (standard tables for a serving team). About half of the time the 4 top people were not there. That being said, our table (4 couples that did NOT know each other before the cruise) would have liked to have been done with dinner by 7:15, and usually did not get our dessert menus until 7:20 or later . It seemed to us that Scott's table and our table were among the last ones to leave the MDR's - every night. Not sure about the 4 top.

The serving team was friendly, professional but slow. And they seemed to disappear at times. Part of the "first night" issue with the asst server was that one couple at our table ordered "the Palo drink" which they loved up in Palo on a prior cruise, but had no idea what it was. They received it, but the Asst. was gone a long time dealing with that request.

A common complaint that I have had on all 19 of my DCL cruises to date is the bread service. At the 8 top we would get usually get only 4 or 5 pieces of the "Bread of the Day" and a Whole lot of hard rolls. The first night we "complained" to the asst server - he said that he would take care of it. Well 15 minutes later he did - he brought out about 4 pieces per person (over compensated). Later in the cruise it happened again where we wanted ONE more piece of bread and 10 minutes later - there's an overflowing basket. Then on Disembarkation morning DW and I wanted One Chocolate Croissant each. 10 minutes later there were 3 per person on the table (while every other asst server had several of these on their trays). On the other hand, after the first night we were not wanting for drinks - Waters, Sodas, Milks, and Adult. Very prepared and ready to serve in this area.

Ryan our server, is very knowledgeable about the nutritional value and properties of the food he is serving (frankly - I Don't Care!). His recommendations were generally very good. Just took a long time to get through the dinner. We mentioned this to him and his Head Server, and for a day or two, service speed picked up, but then slowed down for the remainder. Again, Scott's table was leaving the MDR's around the time we were, so I am at a loss as to why both of our tables service was on the slow side. (Maybe there's a pecking order in the kitchens and Ryan is near the bottom )

No One at our table had food allergies (this cruise) that I know of. In the past we have sailed on the Wonder where there were Gluten, Seafood and mild nut allergies, and DCL was very good, very accommodating to them. Very good service. But on that cruise we closed down the MDR's since we all were getting along great and having a great time visiting (again 4 couples that all were strangers at the beginning of the first dinner together ...)

...
Service wise: what do I expect? That my drinks are filled, that if I have a question regarding the taste/spicyness of things they can help, if I ask something without a sauce or want to change the mashed potatoes for rice they take the order without sighing... and excellent service to me is that after a couple of days (esp on the long cruises like TA) they start to know my taste and can make personal recommandations (if I order a pasta today they might say hey, but tomorrow we have that menu which includes an even better pasta, so are you sure you want to go for that pasta tonight)

Our server did that with the pasta one night - when a couple of people ordered it, he requested that they order something else as well because this particular pasta - most people don't like it and there are a few that LOVE it (and I don't remember which menu it was on). The next night he highly recommended the pasta (again - I don't remember which menu it was). And he was Spot On. Those that had it really didn't care for it and ate their other entree!