28 Aug 2023
Working in a cruise line is always a dream job for many hospitality professionals as it gives you an opportunity to work in a multi-cultural environment.
One of the main reasons people choose to work on cruise ships is the chance to travel the world, handsome salary package, less expenses on board and at-last you makes a good bank balance.
IICA sailing on - Spectrum Of Seas
We got the opportunity to sail on Spectrum of Seas a part of Royal Caribbean International Fleet for an intensive Seven days consultancy project (4days regular cruise & 3days Charter Cruise by Herbalife) sailing from 08.09.22 to 15.09.22.
The key objective of the assignment is to improve the quality of Indian food served on the cruise. This is executed by understanding their kitchen operations, demographic of the ship (guests), food tasting of the buffet (breakfast, lunch and dinner) and sharing observations with the cooks. Also, to balance the buffet with appropriate combination of dishes (side dishes, accompaniments) to make it complete and wholesome for all Indians (Jains, South or North Indians)
An Insight into Royal Caribbean Fleet
The ship is huge; it can accommodate around 4 thousand guests and 16 hundred crew members on a single sail. It won’t be wrong to say, “A small city is sailing” in the deep blue sea. The culinary adventure starts as soon as you get on board, with 18 different dining venues to choose from, some of them are mentioned below:
- Grand Windjammer Marketplace. (International cuisine buffet style; open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner)
- Main Dining Room (fine dining, sit down meal experience)
- Noodle Bar (select your own choice of ingredients to make a meal)
- Splashaway Café
- Sorrento’s Pizza (Hand crafted thin-crust pizza’s)
- The Cafe @ Two70.
- Seaplex Dog House. (delicious variety of hot dogs)
- Jamie’s Italian (specialty restaurant)
- Sichuan red (Chinese cuisine)
- Chops Grille (steak house)
I observed that luxury service and international cuisine are served on board cruise ships, giving passengers an unforgettable experience. For the young chefs who want to join a cruise, this enormous food and beverage business provides many opportunities to delve into the “Ocean of Opportunities.”
Audit cum Excellence Report
Food Quality Audit Points Before food goes in the buffet, I need to do the sampling (tasting) of all the Indian Food there in the final menu. I need to suggest them the changes required in terms of
- TASTE OF THE DISH
- CONSISTENCY OF THE GRAVY (THIN, SEMI-THICK, COATED)
- COLOUR OF THE DISH
- APPROPRIATE GARNISH OF THE DISH
- DONENESS OF THE INGREDIENTS (OVERCOOKED, UNDERCOOKED)
All the feedback related to dishes is briefed to Chef Maria Terassa, Executive Chef, by me. I gave them a list of a variety of garnishes that can be used to decorate the food served to the guests. We took photographs of all the dishes with proper presentation to maintain consistency. I presented an audit and compliance excellence report based on the aforementioned points, which assisted them in meeting dish specifications and easily implementing them in their food operations system.
Assignment Completion
In this assignment, a lot of constructive feedback related to Indian Cuisine is shared with the Executive Chef (Ms. Maria) and Sous Chef (Mr. James).
Based on the daily meal trials, this report documents all the input that was provided. When I voiced my concerns regarding the dishes, the crew responded in a very positive way.
The buffet’s presentation and food quality have both improved, in my opinion. Additionally, I spoke with the Herbalife visitors and solicited their opinions on the cuisines. They were ecstatic.
While working on this project, I discovered a tremendous career opportunity in cruise lines, which I believe young professionals should explore.
Some of the popular cruise lines are Royal Caribbean International, P&O Cruises, MSC Cruises, Norwegian Cruise Lines, Regent Seven Seas Cruises, and Carnival Cruises.
Minimum qualification required
- You can apply directly to a cruise line on their website or to their official hiring partners throughout the world.
- In general cruise lines require minimum 21 years of age for shipboard employment.
-
Culinary course certification from a recognized institution.
- Must be having at least 2 years of experience working in the hotel or restaurant.