Cruise Food Recap

The food on a cruise is often one of the most talked-up aspects of cruising. You hear about these wonderfully prepared, beautifully presented gourmet meals. Oh, did I mention they’re every evening?

I’ll give my overall opinions at the end, but here are some of the starters, entrees, and desserts that Ross and I sampled on our anniversary cruise (Royal Caribbean’s Enchantment of the Seas).

Starters

Escargot – that’s right, we tried snails! Ross tried one but couldn’t get over the fact that it was a snail. I didn’t think they were actually too bad – a fairly chewy texture, and pretty tasty. Then again, what isn’t tasty covered in a garlic butter sauce?

Chilled Pear Soup – (mine is garnish free since the garnish contained nuts) this soup was in a word, uninspiring. I felt like to replicate it at home all I should do was throw a can of pears into a food processor and puree. Think: pear applesauce. I can appreciate the simplicity though, and did think it was a simple, refreshing starter.

Caprese Salad – since we were imagining simple tomato and mozzarella slices with basil and olive oil, we thought it a more interesting take with the traditional caprese salad with the lettuce and onion (blech, raw onion!).

Antipasta Platter (melon, prosciutto, roasted garlic, breadstick, tomatoes, roasted portabellos, zucchini, eggplant and squash) – tasty! The only thing I didn’t eat was the garlic and the prosciutto (gave it to Ross – too salty).

Exotic Fruits with Mojito Jelly (watermelon, pineapple, papaya, mango, strawberries, lychee) – delicious! I loved taking a tiny bit of the mojito jelly with each piece of fruit. Great flavor combo!

Wild Mushroom Tart (I think) – ok, but was way too creamy for our tastes.

Pineapple with Apricot Ricotta and Cracked Pepper – I really enjoyed this! It was refreshing and the perfect amount for a starter.

Entrees

Indian dish – Please forgive me, I do not remember the name of the Indian and can’t seem to find my picture of the name! It was fairly good though, spicy but not overwhelmingly so. I believe there was a vegetarian Indian dish offered every night.

Sea Bass – I was excited to try sea bass as I’d never try it, but I personally wasn’t too excited. The sauce was just ok, and the fish didn’t seem that fresh (which I suppose is to be expected since you’re on a cruise ship with all the food stored on it).

Roasted Duck – I believe it was roasted. This was Ross’ first time trying duck (and mine, with the bite I stole). It was actually pretty good. I believe Ross said that it similar to the dark meatof a turkey?

Leg of Lamb – again, another first for Ross (and me with my stolen bite – hey, may as well try it!). I know Ross enjoyed it. He said it was very tender, almost with a tender pot roast type texture.

Chicken Marsala – I loved Italian night. This was a very delicious dish! (Although two pieces of asparagus? Seriously?)

Asparagus and Brie Tart with an Arugula Salad on top – disappointing. The brie taste was almost undetectable, and the asparagus in the tart was so sparse! I did love the arugula.

Turkey Scallopini – (I think this was Turkey scallopini!) very tender and Ross loved it! (The bite I tried was quite tasty). But again – one broccoli floret?

Lobster Tail & Garlic Shrimp – I don’t really do shellfish, so I didn’t try this, but Ross enjoyed it! (And if you really like lobster tail, I know you can get two).

Thai Barbeque Chicken with a Lemongrass Coconut Rice – so disappointing, and I was sad this was the last dinner I had on the ship! The chicken just wasn’t that flavorful, and the rice had a strong lemongrass scent, but I could barely detect the coconut.

Desserts

**No, we’re not greedy, but our waiter got in the habit of just bringing us whatever desserts didn’t have nuts in them.**

From top (by Ross) to bottom: Grand Marnier Souffle (too eggy, yuck!), Light Strawberry Cheesecake (just ok), Cherries Jubilee with ice cream (loved the cherries!)


Molten Chocolate Cake – (or whatever it’s called!) it’s the chocolate cake that is still melty and fudgy in the middle. This was dessert the third night and I was SO glad that there was finally a chocolate dessert that was nut-free and I could enjoy! (And it was scrumptious, to boot!).

Choca-chino Trilogy – white chocolate mousse (very good!), milk chocolate Kahlua cheesecake (ok), dark chocolate cake (the cake was too dry, but the ganache was pretty good!)

Banana Creme Brulee – our waiter brought us this because it was his favorite, but (since I’m not a huge banana fan) I had one bite and was done.

Dessert Sampler – Mud Cake (SO GOOD!!!), Cheesecake (good), Grand Marnier Soaked Yeast Cake (no thanks!)

This “mud cake” was divine. It was a flourless cake that seriously tasted like it was made solely of dark chocolate, butter, and cream. It tasted like a blob of ganache! I know this is a bad picture, but I had to try to show you the texture of this cake:

Now, overall the food was ok but honestly? I wasn’t that impressed overall. I think because I try to be very creative and ambitious in the kitchen, I just wasn’t that impressed with a lot of the dishes. Except for that mud cake. That is the exception to all.

Thoughts on cruise food if you have an allergy, intolerance, or different eating lifestyle:

• Try to be very clear with allergies! I don’t think our waiter quite understood “nut allergy” at first, but he did catch on.
• They did have vegetarian options, but substitutions/ changes would definitely have to be made to create vegan options.
• Vegetable serving sizes were pathetic! For someone who is used to the vegetable portion taking up most of the plate, with the starch and protein the smaller portions, the dinners were a little “off balance”. However, this can be easily “balanced” by loading up on the salad bar at lunch.

Miscellaneous Thoughts on Cruise Food:

• Breakfast: For me, the formal dining room for breakfast was not worth it. Every morning they offered the same things, and you could find all of those things (and more!) and control how much you wanted in the buffet area. Another note: focus on the fresh fruit, omelette station and such at the buffet. I had a very strong feeling that the pastries were just packaged pastries. There weren’t that many exciting options.
• CHECK OUT THE BUFFET!!! I’m not saying this in the sense that you can eat, eat, eat. However, from a healthy lifestyle, vegetarian, or vegan stand point (or even from any standpoint!) there are MANY more options, especially vegetarian options in the buffet. (There are also more desserts, so if you don’t like the dessert in the dining room, check out the buffet, hehe). Case in point: The last night when I had the disappointing Thai BBQ Chicken, I could have gone to the Buffet for the “Asian Night” with a wide variety of stir frys, other dishes, and even a sushi chef who would custom make sushi rolls for you!
• If you’re disappointed with your dish and there was something else you wanted to try, you can always tell your waiter and s/he’ll bring out another option for you.
• The wait staff was also great with kids – there was a table near us that had a little girl who pretty much only wanted to eat burgers, PB&J and french fries. The wait staff did whatever she wanted, and they even got used to setting out a little bowl of ketchup and mustard on their place setting.

I hope my “cruise food review” doesn’t seem too harsh. These were just my honest opinions and thoughts as we were eating!

Have you ever been on a cruise? What were your thoughts?