On Costa Cruises, Your "Waiter" Will Take Your Bread Basket Away And Give It To Another Table
There were lots of problems on the recent Costa Cruise vacation that Krista and her friends took, including lukewarm hot tubs, closed buffets, and missing towels. But the biggest surprise was when their waiter was replaced on the second day with a newly promoted, untrained busboy who abandoned them nightly. Well, when he wasn't taking their sugar or stealing their basket of bread.
Below are excerpts from the letter Krista sent to Costa Cruises:
Two days into the cruise our waiter disappeared and was replaced by our former busboy. We were told that our previous waiter was sick, leading us to assume that he would return and that the horrible replacement was temporary. The new waiter, Marvin, could not comprehend the English language well enough to bring us drinks, take our orders correctly, replenish the bread ever, or bring us the plate of cheese each night.
It was commonplace for us to wait over an hour before even getting our soup. And that is a long time without replacement bread or drinks either. Instead of having a friendly interaction with the waiter and utilizing dinner to discuss the day with our friends, our main conversation centered upon the horrible service, and how shortchanged we felt. Our interactions with our waiter were awkward at best.
From the start of Marvin's reign as waiter, we either never had sugar on the table for the tea or it would be taken from us without warning and given to other tables. When we asked for the sugar back, we had to wait for Marvin the waiter to steal it from a different table. We started putting sugar packets under our plates just so that when Marvin took the container we would not be completely stuck for a half hour. The fact that we had to go to such trouble is just ridiculous. This lack of class and manners was certainly a surprise for a restaurant, let alone a restaurant aboard a very expensive cruise that my friends and I paid full price for.
Over the course of the week we missed the dances put on by the waiters, we ate later than everyone else, and we even missed the champagne toast! As we watched the other tables rejoice with their waiter smiling and drinking champagne, our waiter had not even filled our champagne glasses. Two minutes later he ran in and filled them, too late; these are the types of mishaps that are not forgivable.
I can vouch for my friends and me when I say that we felt totally shortchanged. Night after night we waited through three hour dinners, not getting refills on water or tea, having dirty dishes left in our faces for up to a half hour, watching other guests enjoy their waiters and develop camaraderie, while we had a horrible experience for the majority of our trip.
Here's our favorite part, where Marvin goes totally nutso about the bread basket. Maybe by this point he was trying to get removed from emergency waiter duty?
After two nights we were pretty sick of the horrible service, but still grinned and bore; it hoping that our "sick" waiter would return. Finally on formal night our waiter committed what I consider the most disrespectful display I have seen in any restaurant ever. He asked if I was finished with the bread basket, which still had bread in it. I told him clearly and to his face that I was not finished with the bread and that I wanted to keep it. I know that he heard me; he was looking directly at me. He grabbed the bread basket and replied that he wanted to see if the table next to us wanted it. He then walked it over and offered it to them, although they already had a full basket of bread. When they refused it he returned it to our table and walked away with no apology or acknowledgement.
On the last day of the trip, the sick waiter mystery is solved, which unfortunately left Krista and her friends feeling even more ripped off:
Finally on our last night we walked in, and upon seeing that our "sick" waiter had still not returned, we asked to have our seat changed. It was our last night there; our entire week had been nothing but atrocious dinner conduct. If the Maitre De did not accommodate us we would have had no choice but to go to the buffet, it was so awful that I could not stand another night of horrible service. The Maitre De only then informed us that the first waiter was getting surgery and was not returning. Had we been told that in the first place we would have changed days ago!
Krista sent a very detailed letter to Costa Cruises including the above paragraphs and more, and asked for a partial refund. According to her boyfriend, who sent us the tip, "We got a very cookie-cutter response from them a few months later saying they would forward our complaints to the appropriate departments, but would not try to correct the situation."
(Photo: ThisParticularGreg)
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Comments:
Wow, that's ridiculous. One of the major upsides of taking a cruise is that waiter-table interaction, something which I think the letter touched on perfectly.
The bread incident, however, is amazing. Absolutely incredible.
After the first night of that, you should've raised hell with the maître d. I consider even one night of such service and a 3 hour dinner inexcusable.
I'm guessing the waiter was favoring passengers who had payed them off, I mean tipped them at the beginning of the cruise.
OK I'm not condoning the poor service, but cmon, grow some balls and say something early. Why wait basically the entire trip? Nice guys finish last, or somesuch...
Errr... why not go to the Maitre'd (sp?) after the first night (or even two) of horrible service? Why put up with this crap for three nights? It seems a little off to not complain until after three entire nights of suckiness, and then turn around and demand more than a token amount.
Bad service to a captive audience sucks. They have every right to be angry, but am I the only one who feels bad for the poor jerk stuck doing waiter duty for which he clearly wasn't trained?
Not that I'm blaming the customer, but I am curious - why didn't they take a more active stance in this problem?
The first night I'd have been all "Well, it happens. I'll roll with the punch." Night two would have been sending up red flags all over the place, and at the START of night three, when Waiter 2.0 reported for duty, I'd have been out of my chair like a rocket and talking to the Maitre D', the guy who signs the Maitre D's paycheck, the guy that signs HIS paycheck, the captain of the boat, and the head chief until I got things resolved to my satisfaction.
@Dracoster: Sue them? For what? Sure, it was horrible service, and they should get something for their trouble, but they weren't "wronged" in any way whatsoever that would warrant a lawsuit.
Be careful about raising hassles with the captain. They are the last legal dictators in the world. They have the legal authority to lock you in your room for the rest of the time or kick you off in some port.
(But talking to the captain nicely is definitely warranted.)
@supercereal: Agreed, there is no tort for that, what damages would he allege. a dollar in baked goods?
They should have complained immediately after the first dinner and had their table changed. Hoping for the 1st waiter's return to the point of nightly aggravation ruins a no-doubt expensive cruise. Could it be masochism?
I'll probably go to hell for finding this story sort of amusing in an Office Space kind of way.
I doubt complaining would have done any good with this cruise line but I think ryes is right. It couldn't hurt to try. I know these customers were trying to be patient and understanding but after one night of this I would never go through another meal with that idiot. Y'all paid premium prices, honey! If someone hits me over the head again and again and I just keep quiet, guess what?.... he is going to hit me again.
Hear hear. Why wait so long before they said anything?
That guy is the worst waiter ever.
Next time - go with NCL. Freestyle dining at your convenience amid a choice of restaurants.
You know, I've read a lot of posts here about cruises and they all seem like nightmares. I think I'll keep the money and buy myself a boat instead.
I went on a cruise with this cruise line in February and I have to say it was the worst cruise I have ever been on. The ports of call were good but the experience on the boat was absolutely terrible. The food was awful along with the eating times. I would have to say one of the highlights was our waiter and helper, they made the dinners experience enjoyable even though the food was mostly awful. Room service was a joke. Even worse you had to deal with a bunch of extremely rude Europeans. My 10 year old asked me if they ever said excuse me or always pushed people out of the way. The best part about the cruise was that we rocked the casino for a very large bounty.
You ever get the feeling that if tipping was allowed, they'd have gotten better service?
(ducking for cover)
@easy2panic: Or marry you to some arbitrary person when they're in a snit. It's a great perk of being a captain, but BOY does it suck for everyone else.
This is horrible, mon! My wife and I had the coolest Jamaican waiter on our cruise, mon! He provided good service and even told us where the good night spots were to be found, mon! He even said "mon" at the end of every sentence! He was the best, mon!
@nerdtalker: What's the waiter-table interaction? I don't get it. Is it something above and beyond what you'd get at a regular restaurant?
@sonneillon: To be fair, I think it would a claim in contract, not tort. When the bargain is one to provide entertainment and enjoyment, damages can be recovered for mental distress suffered from the disappointment, distress, upset and frustration caused by the breach. The question is, did the customer suffer from mental distress as a result? At least, that's the law in Canada. It could be very different in the US or whatever country their contract is governed under.
IANAL...
I am confused. Could you not have asked the people at the next table for some sugar.
Who wants to get to know the waiter? I've only been on two cruises and I did not get to know the staff. The waiters brought the food, and drinks and were otherwise invisible except when needed - just like a restaurant that does not float.
I don't want to chat up the waiter, or watch him dance.
If the service is substandard, and there is an alternative as you mentioned why not take the alternative. Will they not bring food to the cabins on these ships, they do on the ones on which I have cruised.
@ArcanaJ: Except why the heck would he offer their bread basket to people at another table that already had bread?! What was that? Some kind of passive-aggressive thing?
@sonneillon: Cost of the cruise, since you did not get what you paid for. You can sue for things other than torts, y'know.
I checked out Costa when I was looking for a Mediterranean cruise, but all of their itineraries (at the time) required a stop in Tripoli, which killed it for me.
For those not familiar with our new most favorite reformed terrorist state, Libya still officially calls for the destruction of Israel. So you think non-Jews have a chance to visit a historic city? Jah, unless you're American - American passport holders aren't welcome in Tripoli either. So much for our new friends.
When Costa reforms it's anti-Semitic, anti-American view of the world, I might consider them. Except I hear their food sucks. So never mind.
@mythago: They had lousy service at dinner and didn't say anything about it until the last day. While I believe they should be given *something* in return, believing they're entitled to a full refund seems a bit steep.
Yes, you can sue for things other than torts, but there still has to be damages. The damages were poor dinner service - which the cruise line was not made aware of until the last day. I wouldn't trust the attorney who picks up the sword for this cause.
@supercereal: I think the initial comment was largely a vehicle for the "out of the water" pun.
I liked it well enough.
@nerdtalker: My father took a cruise on Costa once and his description of the service and the quality of the cruise mirrored this lady's experience.
Needless to say, he nor I will never book a Costa cruise.
All your bread are belong to me.
@Trai_Dep: Heh, but that's "Horn of Africa". "Cape Horn" is the southern tip of South America.
Cape Horn probably has a lot of cheap boats, too. But mainly due to shipwrecks, not piracy.
"Horn of Africa", I recently learned, is called such because it resembles the short of a goat or sheep (if the rest of Africa is the nose of said animal, I suppose).
That's all the useless knowledge I have for today.
This sounds like it was a few months ago, but a willing CCC might be willing to do a partial(Lets say 40%) chargeback.
@BluePlastic: I'd guess because the people he was waiting on were being rude to him. Not saying what he did was right but trying to do a job you haven't been trained to do and have people you are serving not appreciate you trying would probably become frustrating.
..or maybe their server is just a douche.
No cheese plate?
OH NOES!
One of the reasons I will never go on a cruise is that you are stuck. If the food or service sucks you have no where else to go. It doesn't excuse bad service but, buyer beware. They should have brought it to someone's attention the first night
My first evening on Costa the dinner service was very bad, even allowing that Europeans enjoy dining for a much longer time. I spoke to the maître d' after dinner and I was assigned a new waiter the next evening. He must have been told to provide good service because the attention was excellent for the next 6 evenings.
@WNW: "I think I'll keep the money and buy myself a sweet bread boat instead."
That picture is enough to convince me to start saving and searching for the perfect carbo-high-seas vessel.
@Zorantor: Shitty service or not, the company did get a cruise which was technically "what they paid for" you can be sure Costa would argue this point in court.
@deliciouscake: He probably got frustrated and overwhelmed due to his lack of training and proficiency in english.
@rpm773: Thanks for the useful lesson.
Boy, it would have been so awkward had I been caught hopping over the rails in my ruffled shirt, parrot clutching my shoulder, and uncomfortably snug pantaloons. In Tierra del Fuego. ¡¿Tierra del Fuego?!
I mean, my parrot doesn't even speak Spanish!
Phew!
I don't wish to "get to know" the waiters, unless my sister is serving at Thanksgiving. I cringe when they do their ridiculous dance, but feel fortunate that they're not onto karaoke next. I resent it when they're not available to serve the tables while they're dancing. Waitstaff should be as invisible as possible.
Why did they wait so long to complain? That's ridiculous. The second night of problems, I would have immediately spoken up and gotten my seat changed, rather than wait and take their crap.
Seems like a cruise is a big waste of money...
Holy crap! I'd so sue them out of the water.