The amount of food eaten on a cruise?!

[bobjad21]

Hi guys,

has anyone ever seen how much food is used on a cruise?

its a crazy amount,

i found this and its quite interesting,

the thing that shocked me the most was probably the amount of china that they go through, imagine doing all that washing up! aha

http://www.cruise.co.uk/cruise-guides/food-queen-victoria/

[dcarch]

Interesting. No coffee served?

dcarch

[Kerry Beal]

Interesting. No coffee served?

dcarch

It's a British cruise line!

[IndyRob]

Hmmm....

164 tons of food...

= 1.48778 typical blue whales....

= 1.6 x cargo mass capacity of a Boeing 747-200F aircraft...

= 328,000lbs...

... divided by 90,000 meals....

= 3.64lbs per meal (not including beverages)

[naguere]

Years ago, I read that it was easy to put on a pound in weight per day , if you attend all eating opportunities.

Also a chef being interviewed about what you could have to eat, it seemed it was up to you and he cited one

female client who had a caviar sandwich every day and this was the real thing, so she had eaten more than the

cruise cost her by the end. (phew)

[CaliPoutine]

We just returned from a cruise( Celebrity Silhouette) a couple of weeks ago. We specifically booked Aqua Class for the use of Blu restaurant and the upgraded menu( and not having to eat at an assigned time or dress up). I was told that Celebrity has great food and their food costs per passenger is higher than most lines. I did the galley tour and was very impressed. Still, while I found the food tasty for the first few days, I grew really sick of it. Each day for breakfast, we would eat in Blu. Almost every day I had an egg white omelet with various veg. It was ALWAYS served with 2 asparagus spears and 1 fingerling potato. Dinner was at Blu as well and I had the fish almost every night. The fish was frozen, but was always prepared really well and was very tasty. The lunches were eaten at the buffet restaurant. I had salad every day and small tastes of whatever I wanted. I did not gain 1lb on the ship, I actually lost weight. I was really sick of the buffet food for lunch. The hot veg was always the same. Either peas, carrots, green beans or a combo of both. The Indian selections were actually my favorite and I'm not a huge fan of Indian food. The first night, we ate at Murano, a specialty restaurant. That was an excellent meal. There was a fee for that(45.00 a person), but we got a special offer for 2 for 1. I had a table side lobster that was amazing. My partner had filet that she enjoyed. I would have went back again had there not been a 45.00 charge. The portions were so large too.

I have some pics which I will add later.

[annabelle]

Interesting. No coffee served?

dcarch

It's a British cruise line!

Brits drink coffee, too. I would think if it were a Captain's Table type of meal, there would be demitasse if not regular coffee service either with or after the dessert course.

[Jaymes]

I've cruised a lot. And I mean a lot. For a couple of decades. Including one "Round the World," nearly 4-month marathon.

What I've learned regarding food:

The first tip to first-time cruisers is that most of us are so accustomed to eating in a restaurant where, for the stated price, the meal includes "one item from the appetizers, one item from the salads, one main," etc. And that's not the way it is on a cruise. It's more like eating in yo' mama's kitchen where you can just ask for whatever you want, including several items from column 1, and several items from column 2, and none from column 3. And if there's something that you don't like, or are tired of seeing, or want prepared a different way, just ask. Cali mentions that her omlet was "always served with 2 asparagus spears and 1 fingerling potato." All you would have to do on day three is to ask if you could have some sliced tomatoes, or hash browns, or maybe some fruit instead. I'd bet a lot of money that's exactly what you'd get.

And the most expensive ingredients are invariably in the appetizers. I frequently order all of the appetizers, and then just a soup or salad. I find the main courses often to be not particularly to my taste. Also, you can order extras of most things. They might run out of something down in the galley, but usually there's enough that if you want extra lox, or grilled shrimp, or oysters Bienville, or king crab or lobster or whatever it is, you can have it. Especially if your waiter knows that there's something on offer that night that you really love, he or she will be certain to set aside an extra portion of that early on. Be sure to become dear friends with him/her as early on as possible. I like to tip them a bit the first night, rather than just waiting until the end of the cruise. That seems to sort of seal the deal.

I very strongly advise that you order a main course of something that features a protein that you like, that is messed with and gunked up with as few ingredients as possible. For example, the prime rib. Or a lobster. It's when the galleys start adding sauces, or adding the protein to some other sort of constructed dish that you often run into trouble. It's hard to mess up a big piece of protein to which the cooks have done not much more than cook in some manner. Not to mention that these sorts of plain dishes are going to be far less caloric and far better for you than a heavily-sauced casserole-type dish. Also, many cruise itineraries travel through areas where folks like to fish (Alaska comes immediately to mind, but many cruise itineraries include fishing excursions). Most galleys are happy to prepare your day's catch for you, and you can ask that it be simply grilled or broiled. And you can count on the fact that the flavors of the so-called "ethnic" dishes will be toned down to the point that you won't like them. There will be bland curries, mild Mexican, mushified Chinese & Thai. The only exception to this is that if you find the kitchen is staffed with folks from a particular country, and there's something from that country that you like and you notify everyone in advance, they'll prepare it for you. For example, I used to live in the Philippines, and as soon as I get on board a long cruise, I find a way to chat up the Filipinos on the crew and ask if I can have pancit, or adobo, or lumpia, etc., one of the nights. Then the food comes out great. I particularly remember one cruise with an all-Italian kitchen staff. We were lucky enough to be sitting at a table with a bunch of Italians and the ship's hotel manager had brought his wife along for the cruise and she spoke no English, so they were seated with us. The hotel manager did all the ordering, in Italian, of course, and boy was the food terrific.

I, too, always lose weight on cruises. For one thing, you walk the length of that ship many times over. You can't hop into your car and drive from the showroom that's all the way aft, up to the Eagle's Nest Cocktail Lounge that's on the top deck, all the way forward. Plus, when you go ashore, you're undoubtedly going to do at least some touring on foot. On that nearly 4-month cruise, I lost about 20 pounds. I'm sure doing things like climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge, and the Acropolis helped work off a couple of those desserts.

Cruising, and the caloric consumption, get a very bad rap. But that's certainly not the way it has to be. Nobody marches you to the midnight buffet and shoves food into your mouth and then wraps your mouth closed with a Hermès scarf like some sort of upscale ocean-going pâté duck, you know. It's all up to you. And, most ships now feature a "spa menu" with low-calorie options. I've never tried any of them but, with careful ordering, you can still have a very healthy trip and return home relaxed, refreshed, and several pounds lighter.

Edited April 8, 2013 by Jaymes (log)

[Jaymes]

Forgot to add that virtually all of the cruise ships now offer a fitness center, most with state-of-the-art exercise equipment, and classes ranging from aerobics to Pilates to early-morning walks and runs around the promenade deck.

Seriously, gaining weight on a cruise is not a given.

And, speaking of those early-morning runs on the promenade deck, here's a non-food tip. Try not to get an outside cabin located directly underneath that deck if you're a late-sleeper. You'll be unavoidably awakened every morning to what sounds like a very determined herd of buffalo descending upon your laconic waterside retreat.

Again.

And again.

And again.

Edited April 8, 2013 by Jaymes (log)

[rotuts]

I cant resist a comment: Ive been around the world twice on the precursors to 'cruse ships' this was in the last century. on the old P & O line.

SF -> Gibraltar then Southampton -> SF via the Panama canal.

I was 10. they had in Tourist fixed seating at the same table for myself and my family. they had printed menus for all meals.

they had a Zillion choices ( it seemed to me at the time ) at all meals. My mother did not fly. then. the fare for 4 to gibraltar was similar to a plane ride at that time. 3 1/2 months. and you could take those old fashioned steamer trunks.

I cant recall how long it took from Southampton to SF 6 weeks?

I still have some of the menu's. this was 'tourist' God only knows what they ate in First Class.

this was a working ship and P&O at the time ( 1960 ) had two ships going round and round. I loved every minute of it.

Full Disclosure: they had a "fancy dress" party for all the children, once / trip. it was held in First Class. there were awards.

I won with my 'pals' twice! ( cant disclose the winning formula ) but the First Class did really eat well back then.

Ive also gone across the Atlantic 4 times: Queen Mary and the United States on its last trip. It won the 'Blue Cup' or whatever its called and the vibrations from 'full steam ahead' were evident.

bunker oil, which is another story, which fueled these ships, as almost free at that time.

Edited April 8, 2013 by rotuts (log)

[Jaymes]

Rotus... love, love, loved your post. Especially the bit about the kids. That reminded me of something I hadn't thought of in years.

I remember crossing the Atlantic on the SS United States http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_United_States on one of her first voyages in 1952, when I was about eight. The most vivid memory was that we hit a very, very bad storm and that ship was rocking wildly from side to side. All of the grownups were sick. But in the nursery where all the kids were, we were having a wonderful time. They had laid down mats on the floors due to the wild rocking so that we wouldn't injure ourselves if we fell. And as the ship rocked, we all lay down on the "high side," put our arms above our heads, and rolled like so many laughing logs down to the other side.

I remember that dining room as being very grand, and we kids had to dress up and behave ourselves. But in return, we got dessert at every meal, something that had never happened before, or since. It was a fine tradeoff. And sailing into New York harbor is about as good a memory as anyone can have.

[rotuts]

Yar. thanks for your post. If I find the few menus I have Ill post some scans!

those were the Days!

now the Queen Mary I dont recall much about that! the the United States, I sure do! and I recall on the TransAtlantic Crossings: the

announcement that NY Harbor was to Port and we might see the Statue of Liberty Now!

[rotuts]

On that last crossing of the U.S. there was a massive storm of sorts. to the south. My mother, who never got sea sick, was laid

low in the 'cabin' My father, a veteran of the WWII various Aircraft carries battles was not affected nor was I.

we went down to the Dinner area or it might have been Lunch. No One was there.

Our waiter came by and I said Id like Two of the Duck a la Orange. these were 1/2 split ducks. I got them and enjoyed them

the days ..............

[rotuts]

the Ship also had these wooden items on the sides of the tables for meals that could be raised in Rough Weather about 2 inches.

they prevented all the table ware from sliding off! for those Ducks, they were at Full Mast!

[Kerry Beal]

the Ship also had these wooden items on the sides of the tables for meals that could be raised in Rough Weather about 2 inches.

they prevented all the table ware from sliding off! for those Ducks, they were at Full Mast!

Those raised wooden sides are called fiddles.

[emmalish]

You should check out this image gallery. Scroll down past the first vacation-type shots to see behind-the-scenes in kitchens. Yikes! The lobster blew me away.

[fvandrog]

You should check out this image gallery. Scroll down past the first vacation-type shots to see behind-the-scenes in kitchens. Yikes! The lobster blew me away.

Wow -- considering the quantities of food and the general ratio between quantity and quality, a cruise seems even less appealing to me than before....

[Jaymes]

You should check out this image gallery. Scroll down past the first vacation-type shots to see behind-the-scenes in kitchens. Yikes! The lobster blew me away.

Wow -- considering the quantities of food and the general ratio between quantity and quality, a cruise seems even less appealing to me than before....

I've had some really great food on cruises. But frankly, the food while you're aboard ship is pretty far down on my list of reasons to go.

You're right. If all you want to do on vacation is eat, you'd be better off flying to a terrific "food town" somewhere and just staying there for a week.

Edited April 24, 2013 by Jaymes (log)

[suzilightning]

BUMP

 

Johnnybird and I are going on our first cruise this coming January out of New York into the eastern Caribbean.  Love the info here and any new hints y'all might have would be appreciated.  The only thing that looks interesting is that Geoffrey Zakarian has 3 eating spaces that he consults on on the vessel.  Other than that I could not care less about the food ... I think.

[munchymom]

Go to the website Cruise Critic and find the forum for your cruise line - the people there are cruise junkies and experts who discuss everything including food in extremely specific detail.

 

I just got back from an Alaska cruise on Celebrity - actually lost a few pounds, the food was really profoundly meh.

[CaliPoutine]

Go to the website Cruise Critic and find the forum for your cruise line - the people there are cruise junkies and experts who discuss everything including food in extremely specific detail.

I just got back from an Alaska cruise on Celebrity - actually lost a few pounds, the food was really profoundly meh.

We are going on celebrity to Alaska in a month. We cruise Aqua class. I like the food in Blu. It's lighter. Less heavy sauces..