Cruise ships are often heavily rated by the quality of their food. Great attention is paid to its excellence, availability, and visual appeal, as eating is a primary onboard pasttime. When describing this voyage to friends, they would gasp in horror at the mental calculation of just how much weight one could actually gain if confined to live on a cruise ship for six months.
Insignia’s food excels, presenting challenges to the passengers regarding overindulgence, with every meal an exercise in self-restraint. And while there are many good and prudent food choices, including a Canyon Ranch spa menu available at each meal in the Grand Dining Room, there are exponentially more wicked temptations.
Insignia has a beautiful Grand Dining Room with open seating, fine china service and ever-changing menu. For more casual dining, there is the Terrace Cafe with an extensive buffet and al fresco option, and Waves Grill for a quick poolside lunch. Two upscale restaurants offer dining by reservation at the Polo Grill, a classic steakhouse, or Toscana, for fresh and authentic Italian cuisine.
If that’s not enough, afternoon canapés can be delivered to your suite to enjoy with cocktails, or 24-hour room service that can include en suite breakfast, if desired. Between mealtimes, lovely finger sandwiches and cookies are freshly displayed, to enjoy as a snack or with a custom espresso. And, every afternoon is the popular, opulent, and delectable high tea, with cakes, sandwiches and small savory delights.
The logistics of providing food for hundreds of passengers on this floating hotel are immense. Menus are planned and provisions ordered months in advance. At larger ports, truckloads and skids of food are conveyed onto the ship at the docks. And at times local products are procured as a feature item. We would often see Chef Farid returning on the ship’s tender from the local fish market, with buckets of the fresh catch of the day or exotic, local fruits, to be showcased on the evening’s menu.
To overcome all this opulence, the ship does have an excellent fitness center complete with a trainer, if you require more encouragement. Nevertheless, it all comes down to good old self-control, or in many cases, as we discovered….lack of it.
NICE!
It seems Deano has no difficulty doing the right thing……it’s knowing exactly what “right” really means. I just love “high Tea” on a cruise ship.
High tea is an extravagance we rarely indulge in….it’s one small way to practice restraint!