December 1-26, 2021,  Part 2, Food

 

We’ve already covered the special wine and food pairing dinners at La Reserve, and our Culinary Center cooking classes, so we won’t repeat those here. We also don’t want to bore you with too much on the food we’ve experienced, so feel free to skip if you’re not a foodie. We’re dividing this into several parts: Provisioning and our Favorite Dishes onboard. Food off the Ship will be covered in our next report on excursions, and Cap will eventually add something on wines, we think.

 

In San Antonio, Chile, the industrial port for Valpariso and Santiago, we docked overnight, as it was the stop/start point for the two cruises we combined, and both passengers and staff got off and on. It was a provisioning port for the galley, and we thought you might enjoy a few photos of that, because we had a good view of the process.

 

Pallet after pallet meant for the main galley (there are five different refrigeration rooms for produce--each at a different temperature and humidity) was delivered dockside—many bottles of water, cases of wine, lots of fresh produce. There was more than this first photo shows; more pallets were brought after some were loaded. Notice the dog sniffing--for illegal drugs, perhaps?

 



The fellow in the white jacket at right is our Executive Chef on Marina, supervising all seven galleys. There are seven individual chefs aboard, yet Chef Laurent himself is out inspecting all the incoming produce--here it's Romaine lettuce.













Below he is being sure that all the wine ordered has been delivered. He checked every pallet for quantity and quality. We didn’t see anything rejected, though we’re sure he would have if the quality wasn’t what he wanted.



 


 









Now for a few of the special dishes we loved.

 

Foie gras is always on the menu at two of the specialty restaurants, and often on the Grand Dining Room menu as well—all different preparations.

 


Sauteed Duck Foie Gras Escallop with Lemon Confit and Roasted Pineapple

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  Tournedos Rossini with Duck Foie Gras (post the first bite)

 

Duck Foie Gras Terrine with Candied Black Cherries

 

Lobster, too, is always on multiple menus—whole Maine lobster, lobster tail, with risotto, in salad—you name it.

 

Some great appetizers:


Jumbo Bay Scallops & Watercress Carpaccio with Green Apple, Candied Hazelnuts, and Orange Vinaigrette

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tuna Tataki with Sesame Crust and Wasabi Cream


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Molten Goat Cheese Souffle


 


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We are privileged to be able to order dinner from any restaurant served in our suite. The first time we did it for just the two of us.

 

 

The piece de resistance—Sea Bass Filet in Puff Pastry for Two with Beurre Blanc—beautifully served by our butler Himhit.

 


 

Then, of course, there is dessert--way too many beautiful presentations to show--the Grand Dining Room has a different souffle every night, for example. But here are a few: favorites:

 

Molten Chocolate Volcano with Passion Fruit Center and Caramel sauce

 

 

 

 

 



The ever elegant cheese plate of fine French cheeses, selected and served tableside at Jacques (Jacques Pepin is the Executive Culinary Director of Oceania Cruises)











You can see we're not suffering any food deficit aboard.

 

 

 

 

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