I hate the food on holiday

[pandarific]

Gutted. We’re at a villa in Greece with PIL, I’m pregnant. This villa (organised by PIL) comes with a ‘chef’, who you give money at the start of the week and they cook breakfast lunch and dinner.

It’s run by an English lady, who manages the chef - all we got asked was ‘are there any vegetarians?’ and one person has said they don’t like fish - ‘oh okay, good you said as we have fish three times this week.’

My problem is... The food is cooked fine, but it’s very, very plain and the same thing over and over. I can’t have a bloody drink, I LOVE food anyway so was really, really looking forward to nice food on holiday. Varied, interesting, with nice desserts, stuff I wouldnt have at home - holiday food, iyswim? I could honestly cry.

For lunch yesterday it was spinach and feta pie, plain tomato onion olive pepper and cucumber salad, a loaf of bread and a slab of feta. Fine - bit dull, but fine.

For dinner yesterday it was plain cooked chicken (no sauce of any kind) cooked potatoes and the same salad. A loaf of bread, a slab of feta cheese. An odd orange cake for after which was strangely wet inside and not very nice. ...again a bit dull, but fine.

For breakfast, it’s been eggs, a loaf of bread, Greek yoghurt, jam, cut up fruit. Oh or cornflakes. (Three large packets of cereal, all bloody cornflakes. WTF?)

For lunch today, it was the chicken from yesterday, the spinach pie from yesterday, a slab of feta, a loaf of bread, and salad.

We have just had dinner. I had a word with myself beforehand as I’m beginning to get severely grumpy and struggling to hide my rage, and everyone else, DH included, seems to be delighted with it. I was thinking I shouldn’t pre-judge it, I’m sure she’ll do something different, etc etc. Can you guess where I’m going with this?

Plain grilled chicken or plain grilled pork (), no sauce of any kind, the same salad, a slab of feta, a loaf of bread, the spinach pie again. Nothing for after.

I am fucking gutted. I KNOW I am putting too much importance on this, but I can’t have anything to drink, I’m pretty bloody food focused anyway and now I’m pregnant I’m dying for nice, interesting food to relieve some of the massive fucking boredom of being pregnant, and I was SO looking forward to this. Idk if I was stupid to expect something better, I’ve never been on a holiday like this before, wasn’t . No shops open at the min as it’s a public holiday - I have privately moaned to DH and he’s said we can go to the supermarket .

If I see that fucking salad again I may scream. Please Mumsnet, I know IABU - hand me a grip someone?

Margaret because it was booked very last minute under a considerable amount of stress/shock and that was the only option available at the time?

I had been to Italy before and didn't think you go far wrong with Italian food in Italy, even if the food wasn't the best it would still be the type of food I would like.

I certainly wasn't expecting bad German food for the elderly and no pizza or pasta in sight for a week.

The one night I did order what the English translation described as pasta I got this. It was the texture of wet bread.

So, you're in a Greek villa, you have your own private chef, they've been told not to cook fish when asked for dietary preferences and now people are whining that there isn't enough variety/it's boring?
Wow. Why not take yourself out for dinner/tea/supper whatever if you want something different?! They're not mind readers.

That picture makes me SAD.

Food is so important to me on holiday that I’m already planning to escape our AI holiday (not my choice). For those being sniffy- you’re clearly not foodies and OP is and there’s so much lovely Greek food it seems criminal to have the same things three days in a row. To a foodie. It’s clearly a first world problem but still a huge disappointment to go to a country renowned for food and be given bland stuff

PP has it right: go out for your meals if you want, otherwise tell the chef what you’d like for lunch and dinner. The chef is being lazy.

I agree with Expat all this sycophantic gushing that OP can be a princess because she's pregnant is ridiculous. Ok to be a bit emotional but demanding your own way and having strops over something so inconsequential isn't on!

In fact OP you're verging into Drama Queen territory with comments like struggling to contain my rage and I feel like crying and I could scream

I'll concede you've back tracked now OP in your subsequent posts so I hope you've seen the error of your ways here.
I'd recommend a lie down and some deep breaths.

@CadyHeron not quite - fish is on the menu, they are doing something different for the person who doesn’t like fish, rest of us will keep with whatever they do.

I'm afraid this is why I'm always put off going to Greece on holiday. This is Greek food, isn't it? Something grilled, some salad, some bread. Every single meal.

And the lack of sauce is what would drive me mad. I can't bear dried, grilled meat. Yuk.

You have my sympathies.

@ILostItInTheEarlyNineties I swear I have only stropped on here and privately to DH!

A large bowl of cornflakes with honey and I’m a new woman.

Ok, so you’re not allowed to be a princess when you’re pregnant, jeez.

But to be fair to the OP she said she hasn’t expressed her disgust in RL, just on here, so fair enough.

Treat yourselves to a restaurant meal

So you even have fish on the menu as well? See, sounds like you have different dishes if that's the case as it didn't sound like you did in your OP.
I get it, you're PG, if you can't be irrational then, when can you
I know I was lol.
Seriously though lots of food being served by your own personal chef on holiday.
All good. Either suck it up or go for a walk via some taverna

I can’t remember the name of the dish but when I was last in Greece I had fried feta in honey as a starter a few times . Omg if I could eat one thing for the rest of my life it would be that!

A friend and I went to Cuba in 1998. Quite literally the only food available in restaurants was dried rice with kidney beans in, with dried out pork for me, none for her as vegetarian. Several times the manager would come out to let us know that due to power cuts the fridges had been off for 24 hours. On those days we just drank rum, which as we found out from locals, is an fortuitously an appetite suppressant. I lost half a stone on that holiday and was slim anyway. Happy days!

OP, you're getting a very tough time here.

Great food is one of the things about holidays I look forward to the most so I would be gutted if I was you! Can you politely request a couple of specific dishes be added to the menu under the guise of having read so much about the wonderful local cuisine amid wanting to try them?

Fair enough you haven't stropped but I wonder if you're inadvertently making an awful face at meal times? Pil might feel hurt after laying on the holiday if you're looking like you've been served a plate of maggots (see pastas photo)

Hopefully the fish dishes will be great and you'll be eating your words later this week.

I travelled round the Soviet Union back in the days of the Iron Curtain. Tough meat and potatoes, an apple for dessert, water or tea to drink. I also went to East Germany. No variety, not many veg, again - no choice. But the worst? Burma - just grim, awful tasteless gruel. Loved the countries, loved the people, hated the food, ate to survive!!

The ILs probably asked for bland food. My ILs eat very bland food. I wouldn't go on holiday with them if we all had to eat the same food for that reason. Cruises are great because everyone can have what they like, but no booze would suck.

Blimey. Sounds lovely to me. Hopefully it's just your hormones making you appear ridiculous OP!

Try and enjoy the rest and the sunshine 🌞

The ILs probably asked for bland food. My ILs eat very bland food

Jeez, that's a good point actually
If your IL's are in charge and have arranged it all, if anything like my MIL she literally will not eat anything deemed as forrin muck, doesn't even like pasta
No spices AT ALL, no pasta, no rice, you're screwed if it's not always a Sunday roast on the menu for every meal!

Ok to be a bit emotional but demanding your own way and having strops over something so inconsequential isn't on!

Ffs, did you read the thread?

you have your own private chef

What OP has is a slightly shit cook. Worlds away from a ‘chef’.

Why don't you pay for everyone to have a meal out as a thank you for the holiday?

I would be disappointed if I didn't like the food but it doesn't sound as though you actually dislike it. I really think if specific things are important to you then you research, book and pay for your own holiday....Greece probably wouldn't be the choice!

Great you've got a bit of variety sorted.

Otherwise, can you and DH go off for a "date lunch" in a local restaurant? Make it not about the food, more that the two of you would like some time alone before the baby comes?

Moussaka is definitely Greek! And people saying Greek food is just grilled meat and salad are wrong-there is a whole wealth of delicious dishes, which range widely across regions and islands.