Today I attended a cooking demonstration by the Executive Chef followed by a tour of the ship’s galley. It is amazing to me that with 600 passengers and 400 crew that they can turn out such tasty meals for a thousand people - three times a day, with snacks and room service in between. Speed is of the essence. The Chef decorated a cake in 58 seconds – and it looked good! There are 62 people working in the galley with another 20 people just washing dishes at all times since they go through about 6,500 dishes and 3,200 glasses a day. And this is for a small ship! They prepare between 700 and 800 pounds of meat and fish a day, 200 liters of soup (that must be some stock pot) and use 175 pounds of butter daily. Between the butter, ice cream and my bacon intake I figure my cholesterol level will be close to the 4 digit range by the time I get home. They make 2000 pastries a day, from scratch, and 1000 pounds of fresh fruit is eaten daily. The kitchen was incredibly clean and efficient and had a full size, people escalator to help get the food to the dining room quickly. An escalator on this little ship, who knew? The Chef said for an “average cruise” they load 50 tons of food on board. I can’t imagine what they do for this cruise. If you think about it, they will serve over 75,000 pounds of meat and 100,000 pounds of fruit alone on this trip! We must have wiped out entire herds as well as a pineapple plantation or two. Can anyone say gluttony - no wonder my slacks are starting to feel a little snug.
No comments:
Post a Comment