We all wondered how they produced the meals so fast for every sitting on the ship so off I went to find out their coveted culinary secrets. Half of the passengers turned out too but luckily we were divided.
Creative Fruit Carvings Demo
We were given a number at the door and limited to about 20 per group. Bruce was on a ship tour at the same time as me and did a tour with the head chef - a German. Each floor has its own complete galley and I assume their own freezers and fridges. We first saw the salad/cold prep area.
They were working on about 60 small plates at a time - they looked like appetizer plates for that evening. Two stations were working simultaneously. Then on to the soup prep area - it looked like a big square stainless steel sink in which he was stirring a steaming liquid. The soups were either the hot or cold variety but always delicious!
In the distance we could see the bread area.
We did not go into any of the food prep areas and none of the food servers are allowed either. They don't cross the red line - ever. The meat is brought on from the USA and kept frozen until needed.
Pictoral Menus for Each Day
Fresh produce is brought aboard every few days and kept in a progressively warmer fridge to encourage ripening. There is absolutely NO SHORTAGE of FOOD on board. They store: 3000 lbs of beef tenderloin, 4500 Lbs chicken, 1900 lbs chicken breast, 12300 lbs potatoes, 2300 dozen eggs, 75000 lbs fresh fruit, etc. for a 10 day cruise. They didn't mention shrimp but we consumed enough to keep us going for awhile!
Water is a big concern on board. The ship can not carry enough water for all the passengers.
They have a de-salination plant on board to produce all the water required for showers, pools, even drinking and cooking. It is tested four times per day so it is potable.
None of us have been sick from the water (or ice) so it must be true. Some of us have blamed Margarita consumption for sea sickness, however.
One of us celebrated his birthday onboard. The ship celebrated one year in service on Oct 9 this year so we got more CAKE!
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