Ahhhh! Cruising and food. Two of my favorite topics rolled into one. And speaking of one word, I have the only one you need to know--Celebrity. We have cruised with three different lines and then tried Celebrity and we will never go back. And the food is one of the biggest reasons. And not necessarily the food in the main dining room. X (that's what those of us who are Celebrity fanatics call the line because of the huge X on the side of all the ships--dates from their early Greek beginnings) has speciality restaurants on board their Millennium class ships. And OH MY GOD, they are special. We sailed a 14 night Panama Canal cruise on X's Infinity (now sailing out of Vancouver to Alaska) last November and ate in the dining room most nights but our two nights in the United States (all are named after famous ocean liners of the past) were wonderful. Let me relate a typical dinner we had the first night we ate there. We started with a tomato and goat cheese souffle accompanied by prosseco. It was wonderful. The perfect way to start a fantastic meal. The second course is what most of us would consider the entree. I had a rack of lamb in puff pastry carved at the table. My bride had steak diane prepared at the table. Following the wonderful entree, there is a cheese course. A fantastically knowledgeable waiter rolls a cart to your table with around 20 different types of cheese. Any you can have a sample of as many of them as you want. Lastly dessert. One of my favorites was on the menu, Grand Marnier souffle. A true delight. All of this for a $30 service charge per person. $30! And the best service you have ever had. Basically one waiter per person. Seriously, when came back to eat there again later in the week, we went with a party of 8. When the entrees were brought to the table they came on plates covered with silver domes (I know there is a name for those, I just don't know what it is) we were surrounded by four waiters and a all the domes were reviewed at once. Again at the end of the meal all four waiters appeared and surrounded us and removed our plates at the same time. So, outstanding service, wonderful food and all that for only $30 plus the cost of wine/drinks. And the wine list was pretty good as well. All of this and one of the finest martini bars anywhere. And the food in the main dining room wasn't too bad either. Stick with appetizers, entrees and soups. Skip the salads and the desserts. They could be better. And spend the $30 as often as you can. And here's the best news. You can go to Alaska from Vancouver on either Summit or Infinity, both have speciality restaurants. Enjoy!
