We have sailed on the Maasdam before in 1997 in Eastern Med/Black Sea. The food, service and ship were nicer then, but that may be true of everything. The Maasdam is still a nice ship, the dining room food was quite good but not spectacular, as was most of the ship. Strangely enough, what was exceptionally good was a Romanian string quarter that played every night at dinner and then in Explorers Lounge. I have sailed on 8 different cruise lines and rarely listen to their music, but this particular group was outstanding. They only have a few months left on their contract and may not return anywhere, but if you are sailing soon on the Maasdam, it is worth the visit.
I like the smallness of the Maasdam class ships (we were on the Veendam 2 years ago). We docked in various ports next to the Princess Sapphire, P&O Ventura (?) and other ships that were 2-3 times as large, and we were quite glad not to have the hassle of such a large ship. Holland America ships are generally nice, the food good, but overall caters to a much older crowd.
The bad:
We had an A category Verandah suite amidship. Room was nice, and did have reasonable storage space. Not opulent by any means, but quite comfortable and clean. Verandah is a necessity for us, as we smoke.