This was published 9 years ago
Jamie Oliver restaurant on Quantum of the Seas
By Sally Macmillan
On board: Jamie Oliver's Italian is one of 18 restaurants one the Quantum of the Seas.
Blog
Jamie Oliver is the latest celebrity chef to jump on board a cruise ship, figuratively speaking – Jamie's Italian is one of 18 restaurants on the just-launched Quantum of the Seas. There are branches of Jamie's Italian all over the world (Britain, Ireland, Russia, Canada and Australia, to name a few countries) and the Quantum menu will be similar to those in the land-based restaurants. Passengers can expect popular dishes such as antipasti and cheese planks; prawn linguine and crab spaghetti; and signature main courses such as slow-cooked pork belly and Jamie's famous Italian burger.
While the Naked Chef will not be manning the Quantum galley in person, he and his team are overseeing the space, staff training and designing the menus. It remains to be seen if the menus will change when the ship repositions to China in 2015. Meanwhile, Jamie's Italian will also feature on Quantum's nearly identical fleetmate Anthem of the Seas, which is due to launch next March.
Euro-style: Jamie Oliver's restaurant, Italian.
Luke Mangan is the best-known local masterchef to have signature restaurants at sea; the dynamic entrepreneur-restaurateur has Glass and Mojo restaurants in Sydney, Salt and Salt Grills in Japan, Singapore, Indonesia, and Salt Grill on P&O Cruises' Pacific Dawn, Jewel and Pearl. His seaborne restaurants will incorporate a cool cocktail bar in the Salt Bar Grill on the line's two new ships, Pacific Aria and Pacific Eden, when they set sail in November next year. Mangan visits P&O Cruises' ships regularly and the chefs train at his restaurants: speciality dishes including crab omelette with enoki mushroom salad and miso broth are served at sea and ashore.
Another local chef, author, restaurateur and TV star who has turned his hand to cheffing on ships is Luke Nguyen. He sails on APT's river ship AmaLotus in Vietnam once or twice a year, taking guests to meet his extended family in Saigon, running cooking classes and hosting shopping and tasting tours. APT is spending millions of dollars on refurbishing its Russian river ship Anastasia, which will sail on the Volga, Svir and Neva Rivers between Moscow and St Petersburg from May next year, and the ship's new Indochine restaurant is another collaboration between Nguyen and the Australian travel company. The menu will feature French-Vietnamese fusion dishes – perhaps they will appear in the Red Lantern restaurants in Sydney too? Foodies can only hope – or book a river cruise on Anastasia.
MEET THE CREW
Asia bound: Chef, author and restaurater Luke Nguyen sails aboard the river ship AmaLotus running cooking classes and tasting tours in Vietnam.
NAME: Jane Wilson, Australian
POSITION: Expedition leader, APT's MS Caledonian Sky
MY JOB: I co-ordinate the team of onboard expedition experts and the activities ashore on our remote expedition cruise itineraries.
Calendonian Sky: sails to Indonesia and Antarctica.
MY TYPICAL DAY … starts early on the bridge with the captain and chief officer to plan the logistics of where we will be able to go ashore on our Zodiacs. After we decide on the plan, we brief passengers, then spend most of the day adventuring. In the evening we usually get together again with guests for a recap and briefing, followed by some socialising over dinner.
FAVOURITE CRUISE MOMENT: Arriving at a remote island where villagers are more curious about us than we are about them.
FAVOURITE CRUISE PORTS: Indonesia for its endless remote, unspoilt islands, friendliness and rich culture; and Antarctica for the rugged wilderness and great wildlife.
Meet the crew: Jane Wilson
TIP FOR PASSENGERS: On expedition voyages, anything can happen. To take full of advantage of opportunities, a go-with-the-flow attitude goes a long way.
TIP FOR BANNER: The Cruise Finder app by iCruise has more than 25,000 itineraries on 20-plus cruise lines, plus detailed info and photos of staterooms, deck plans and more. Free for iPhone and iPad.
EUROPEAN GARDENS
Fjord forward: Eurodam is one of two Holland America Line ships cruising Europe.
Expert gardener Sue McDougall is escorting a 12-night Europe cruise on HAL's Nieuw Amsterdam that will visit some of Italy, France and Spain's most beautiful gardens. Highlights include the spectacular cypress maze of Barcelona's Parc del Laberint, La Mortella in Naples, the formal gardens of Villa Lante in Civitavecchia and the manicured French brilliance of Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild (pictured). The 21-day round trip departs on June 16 and takes in visits to Venice, Naples, Rome, Livorno, Dubrovnik, Kotor, Corfu, Monte Carlo, Marseille and Barcelona. See travelrite.com.au
EUROPE FROM TOP TO BOTTOM
Travellers looking to explore the history, culture and famous sights of Europe next year can choose cruises ranging from seven to 50 days on eight Holland America Line ships. Itineraries cover all corners of Europe and include northern Europe and the Norwegian fjords, Iceland and the Baltic; the British Isles; Canary Islands; Italian and French Rivieras; Iberian Peninsula; Black Sea; the eastern and western Mediterranean; and trans-Atlantic voyages. The fleet includes Eurodam and Nieuw Amsterdam — HAL's two Signature-Class ships —Maasdam, Prinsendam, Rotterdam, Veendam and Zuiderdam.
Garden goals: Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild is on the itinerary of Sue McDougall's European cruise.
CHRISTMAS ESCAPE ON TRUE NORTH
Forget all the Christmas palaver and join a four-day cruise of Sydney and surrounds on the boutique luxury adventure ship True North – there are still a few spots left. Departing on December 25, Christmas dinner will be served on Sydney Harbour, and on Boxing Day you'll have front row seats for the start of the Sydney-Hobart Yacht Race. A pre-race visit to the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia is also included. Over the next three days, True North will sail the Hawkesbury River and the ship's helicopter will take passengers off to the Hunter Valley for wine-tasting. Email cruise@northstarcruises.com.au.
DEALS
OFFER OF THE WEEK
Save up to $3000 on ecruising.travel's 20-night rail-sail package from Singapore to Sydney, combining trips on Legend of the Seas and the Indian Pacific train. The package includes three days in Singapore, 14 nights cruising in South-east Asia with stops in Broome and Geraldton, and three nights' rail travel from Fremantle to Sydney. From $3399; phone 1300 369 848, see ecruising.travel.
MORE DEALS
UNIWORLD
Save up to $1000 per couple on selected 2015 departures of the eight-day Castles along the Rhine itineraries onboard SS Antoinette. Cruises include all shore excursions, drinks and gratuities. From $2439; phone 02 9028 5199, see uniworldcruises.com.au.
BEYOND TRAVEL
is offering discounts of up to $780 per couple on its eight-day Jewels of the Cyclades cruise on the 25-cabin megayacht MS Galileo, between April and October 2015. The itinerary includes port visits to some lesser-known Greek Islands, as well as Santorini and Mykonos. Book and pay by December 19. Phone 1300 363 554, see beyondtravel.com.au.
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