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From VEGETARIANS, to ALL CRUISE LINES - with love


anandaindonesia
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Vegetarians want to cruise and love to eat too.

 

Most vegetarians, due to the limited food items they will eat, like to have VARIETIES.

 

By nature, to keep their appetite fresh, vegetarians tend to be more creative in selecting their day to day meals.

 

It's not enough just to have pasta everyday, or indian curry everyday, or garden salad every meal. Variety and creativity is the key.

 

We all like to have choices. To limit our choice to just one entree - even if it is tasty - makes us feel 'less happy' than our fellow cruisers.

 

Hope you'll understand.

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I find most vegetarian entrees to be something deep-fried or slathered in cheese/heavy cream. I'd love to see some vegan selections on the regular menu! We will be requesting vegan meals on our next cruise so I will be reporting on what kinds of things I will be eating... hope it's good! :)

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I have cruised on NCL and Carnival and I can honestly say that I have never had a problem eating on the ships. I'm a vegetarian (trying to be vegan) too and I was able to eat many meals without feeling like I was starving due to limited options. I will say that on Carnival all I was able to eat on the ship was oatmeal for breakfast since the options were sausage, eggs, bacon, etc :(.

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I've had great success as a vegan on Celebrity, Royal, and Carnival.

 

Here's what you need to do, in order to be very well fed on any cruise line:

 

- Before your cruise, contact your cruise line's special needs department, and let them know you are a vegetarian (or vegan). Most lines ask that you notify them 30-60 days in advance, but I've given less notice for a last-minute booking. If you used a travel agent, then they can make this contact for you.

 

- On the day of embarkation, meet with the maitre d'. He or she should have your name on a special list, and will let you know how they will be taking care of you. On Celebrity, I was told that they had already selected the first night's meal for me, and that I would be brought a vegetarian menu to order the next night's dinner for each subsequent night; on Carnival I was brought the regular menu for the next night and the asst maitre d reviewed it with me, letting me know which items could be prepared vegan; Royal kind of winged it- the maitre d asked me what kind of food I liked, and they prepared a special dinner each night based on my preferences. (I like Carnival's method best, because I ate similar food to my table mate's each night, and I felt I had a nice set of choices for each course. Carnival also offered to show me lunch menus in case I wanted to have lunch in the dining room.)

 

- Anytime you eat at the buffets- for any meal- identify yourself as a vegan to either the maitre d on duty or to any of the station chefs, and ask what you can eat. On every line, I found the chefs practically tripping over themselves to make me something special! Between that and the salad bar (where there is usually at least one bean dish) and fruit selections (where you can also find nuts), I had more than plenty to eat. I was on the Carnival Breeze Trans Atlantic in November, and found the chefs at almost all the stations vegan knowledgeable and friendly, and they usually took out clean cutting boards and knives before I had a chance to ask them to. (Note that at the Mongolian grill, you should ask them to sauté your selection in water, as otherwise they use broth; also only the soy sauce is vegetarian.)

 

Also- don't assume that a station will have nothing that matches your diet. I had a great sandwich prepared for me at Carnival's deli: a thick giabatta stuffed with all sorts of fresh and pickled vegetables. And, of course, the pizzeria will be happy to prepare a cheeseless pizza topped with vegetables.

 

- My usual breakfast is fruit and nuts, but on a cruise I treat myself to bread and sometimes peanut butter or jelly. The chefs were happy to tell me which breads were vegan.

 

In addition to being vegan, I also prefer to avoid sugar and excess fats, and those needs have always been met. I have a standing request to start each meal with a plate of cut vegetables -I ask for tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, and olives, but you could ask for any favorites (this is in addition to my appetizer), and to end it with melon and berries.

 

I've been served all sorts of great appetizers and entrees, from Greek to Chinese to Italian to Middle Eastern to Indian- and even American. I've been urged to let the chef prepare a dessert for me, but, except for an occasional baked apple, I prefer to end my meal with fresh fruit.

 

I know I sound like a cheerleader, but what I'm really trying to say is that with some pre-cruise preparation, and a bit of creativity (and ingenuity) during the cruise, you'll find that the maitre d and the chefs really want to see that you are contentedly well fed - and they are happy to make sure you are.

 

HTH!

 

Ruth

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  • 2 weeks later...

Easy, sail on HAL. In addition two the two (really good) vegetarian options on each dinner menu, they have come up with an entire vegetarian menu. You can request both the regular and the vegetarian menu the evening before and choose what you want for the next day. The vegetarian menu does not change.

 

VEGETARIAN MENU

Select one option from each section to be served the following evening.

 

Appetizers

Lemon and Spinach Ricotta Dip

Vegetarian Mezza Plate (vegan) - Baba Ghanousch, hummus, tabbouleh

Vegetable Terrine - broccoli, carrot, zucchini, tarragon sour cream

Strawberry and Bucatini Bruschetta

Vegetarian Sushi Roll (vegan) - avocado, cucumber, red pimento

Portabello Mushroom and Chipotle Quesadilla

Vietnamese Vegetable Spring Roll (vegan)

Curried Vegetable Empanadas

 

Soups

Asian Noodle Soup (vegan)

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup (vegan)

Pasta Fagioli (vegan)

 

Salads

Tossed Fresh Garden Greens (vegan)

Spicy Lentil and Garbanzo Salad (vegan)

 

Entrees

Baked Cheese Polenta with Mushrooms Artichoke Hearts

Asparagus, Carrot and Zucchini Tart

Baked Vegetable Lasagna

Vegetable and Bean Chili - with sour cream

Pad Thai Noodles (vegan)

Vegetable Jambalaya (vegan)

Spinach Palak Curry

Sweet and Sour Vegetable Tempura (vegan)

Grilled Vegetable and Tofu Kabob (vegan)

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This is a nice menu. I think the main probem with vegetarian dishes, that cooks have no imaginations, so you have a lot of dough/pastry. I am not big on pastry and dough, so pastas, chibattas and such are not for me. It's like they don't know what to do and bake you some stuff. Certainly one can eat vegetarian without that much dough.

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  • 1 month later...

For the cruise lines, VARIETY is the biggest challenge with vegetarians -at least when it comes to the VARIETY OF Vegetarians.

 

One eats no red meat, but eats fish or poultry.

Some will not eat red meat or poultry, but fish is OK.

The next one eats no red or white meat, but eats sauces made with meat and fish stocks.

The next one eats no meat or fish, but loves chicken, butter, and eggs.

One eats pasta but no fish, and will not eat cream sauces - but eats butter and drinks milk.

The next one will eat fish but not shellfish. No milk, but butter is OK.

Some will eat chicken, but will not eat a soup made with chicken stock.

Some will eat chicken stock, but not beef stock.

One insists on vegetarian pasta, and then requests extra cheese on top of it.

One insists on soy milk at every meal, but loves a latte with plenty of steamed cow's milk.

 

The next one is a strict vegetarian who eats no animal products, but does not want the same old boring vegetables, mushrooms, fruits, and salads. "Make me something different", they say. Unfortunately, they rarely have any suggestions as to exactly what those different foods might be. We are currently trying to import vegetables from the planet Mars to make them happy.

 

Nearly all of you want ice cream. ICE CREAM IS NOT A VEGETABLE.

 

The variations are endless - and they drive cruise ship chefs crazy.

My favourite vegetarians are the ones who force the staff to jump through many hoops for the entire cruise and then we catch them eating a steak on the final night.

 

Their explanation? They were just experimenting with a fad diet and just couldn't pass on that great looking steak.

 

If you claim to be a vegetarian and we do not seem to be taking you very seriously, at least you will know why.

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I realize you are exaggerating (I hope you are exaggerating) to make your point. But, a vegetarian eats no meat (that includes fish and chicken). A vegan eats no animal products, including milk, eggs, cheese, etc.

 

Except for a couple of your examples, NONE of those people are vegetarians. Also, vegetarians, don't just eat vegetables. There are fruits, legumes, grains, beans, lots of ways to mix it up. As I've pointed out, take a look at the HAL vegetarian menu, which includes several vegan dishes, and you will see how it can be done, creatively and with variety.

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I realize you are exaggerating (I hope you are exaggerating) to make your point. But, a vegetarian eats no meat (that includes fish and chicken). A vegan eats no animal products, including milk, eggs, cheese, etc.

 

Except for a couple of your examples, NONE of those people are vegetarians. Also, vegetarians, don't just eat vegetables. There are fruits, legumes, grains, beans, lots of ways to mix it up. As I've pointed out, take a look at the HAL vegetarian menu, which includes several vegan dishes, and you will see how it can be done, creatively and with variety.

 

Sadly I am not exaggerating even in the slightest.

I could have typed a few dozen more goofy "Vegetarian" varieties we encounter every week of the year, but I ran out of time.

 

Most of the so-called "Vegetarians" I meet every week on ships have all sorts of silly ideas and excuses about what is animal and what is vegetable.

So they call themselves Lacto-vegetarians, Ovo-vegetarians, or Pescatarian-vegetarians or some other ridiculous name. And in the end, many of them are just playing with us so they can get a bit of extra attention. Offer them a free steak or a free lobster tail and you need to jump out of the way to avoid being bitten.

 

As I posted earlier, if you show up on a ship, claiming to be a vegetarian, the staff will probably not take you entirely seriously unless you can convince them you are not just pretending to be on a reality TV show.

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DW is a lacto-ovo vegetarian, who has also encountered wannabees and those who are poorly informed duringn her efforts to explore her dietary limitations. Our nephew's wife has cycled through various shades of self-proclaimed eating ethic. Not, as DW has, evolving gradually from just chicken, to pescatarian, to lacto/ovo vegetarian, but in and out and all over the map. :confused:

One benefit of her vegetarianism and her love of Indian food has been that she has found that the combination of legumes, vegetable oils, and certain spices used in Indian cooking has served to lower her blood sugar levels.:D

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  • 4 weeks later...

Hoping to have a great time on my cruise. Plan on telling the cruise line before hand. Last time I cruised I ate everything but now I don't eat meat,fish or dairy. I find so many vegetarian meals have cheese, cream or butter in or on them. I plan on bringing a few backup items for snacks when off the ship incase I can't find anything on our outings to eat. Not worried about on the ship. I am sure I can find lots to eat that is healthy.

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Sadly I am not exaggerating even in the slightest.

I could have typed a few dozen more goofy "Vegetarian" varieties we encounter every week of the year, but I ran out of time.

 

Most of the so-called "Vegetarians" I meet every week on ships have all sorts of silly ideas and excuses about what is animal and what is vegetable.

So they call themselves Lacto-vegetarians, Ovo-vegetarians, or Pescatarian-vegetarians or some other ridiculous name. And in the end, many of them are just playing with us so they can get a bit of extra attention. Offer them a free steak or a free lobster tail and you need to jump out of the way to avoid being bitten.

 

As I posted earlier, if you show up on a ship, claiming to be a vegetarian, the staff will probably not take you entirely seriously unless you can convince them you are not just pretending to be on a reality TV show.

 

I don't see the terms as being "goofy" at all, and find it rather offensive that you would demean someone for their choices in the foods they eat--keeping in mind that some of these diets are dictated by health concerns.

 

Personally I find it appalling that dietary requirements aren't taken seriously. I have multiple food allergies, and if they aren't taken seriously, I could die. That would make my husband a very wealthy man after he got the lawsuit settlement. I take all reasonable precautions--notify the line in advance, notify my waiter, have allergy cards in a variety of languages, speak to the Maitre De and/or chef directly, and err on the side of caution--if I suspect something isn't going to be safe to eat, I won't take the word of a server who might not have the best comprehension of English, and just don't eat it. To think that you and your employer/coworkers are so dismissive makes me cringe to put it mildly.

 

By the way, because you obviously don't have a good understanding:

 

Vegan eats NO animal flesh or by-products, including honey and gelatin.

 

Ovo-lacto vegetarian eats by products (eggs, dairy, honey, etc.), but no flesh.

 

Lacto vegetarian won't eat eggs or (usually) gelatin, but will consume milk based products and usually honey.

 

The following are not vegetarians, and I've never met one who claimed to be:

 

A pescatarian eats fish but not animal flesh. Most pescatarians will eat eggs and dairy as well as honey, but not gelatin.

 

A stricter version of pescatarian doesn't really have a name that I've ever found, but is described as eating nothing with eyes. So they will usually eat ovo-lacto vegetarian but add mollusks although no fish or other seafood or gelatin.

 

Pollotarians eat no mammal flesh but will eat chicken/poultry--not a mammal.

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being a lifelong vegetarian i get constantly frustrated with the 'others' i.e those that claim to be vegetarian and then say 'oh i eat a bit of fish/chicken' they make life so much more complicated for those of us who really are vegetarians.

 

it really should be so much easier than it is ...i hate it when people say well what do you eat? like a meal can only be made of meat. and no i don't just eat a plate of vegetables. growing up in the 70's and 80's life as a vegetarian was tough ..quiche or vegetable lasagne was your lot. nowadays with so much more awareness it should be easier but when you get remarks like the previous poster about ice cream ..well ...*** ...should we only have deserts made from lettuce?????

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Pollotarians eat no mammal flesh but will eat chicken/poultry--not a mammal.

Thanks, I was never sure what poultry-only diets would be called.

DW is always having me check the labels for glycerine, gelatine, and animal rennet (in cheeses). One hidden use of animal products is the use of animal bone charcoal to purify white sugar.

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Thanks, I was never sure what poultry-only diets would be called.

DW is always having me check the labels for glycerine, gelatine, and animal rennet (in cheeses). One hidden use of animal products is the use of animal bone charcoal to purify white sugar.

 

One of the biggest hidden uses of animal products is in wine making. Egg whites are used to "fine" the wine--yet vegans drink it. Strict vegans will only drink unfined wine, although I suspect many don't know to look for that on the label and assume that there are no animal products or by-products in wine.

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As others have said, the trick is really identifying yourself ahead of time when booking and (more importantly) to the Maitre d' when you first come onboard, to ensure that you pre-order at least your dinners.

 

If you just stick with what is offered, you're going to be disappointed about half the time. With pre-ordering, if the available option sucks, you can ask them to do something else entirely. It beats adjusting one of the standard entrees to the point you end up with some tasteless, unpalatable lump of something as your meal, because all they did is removed things.

 

Plus, as also noted, there is considerable variation in vegetarian (and semi-vegetarian) diets, so as to often make the officially available choice(s) unsuitable.

 

We've done a number of different lines, and didn't find that the cruise line made nearly as much difference as the people onboard who you worked with to specify and prepare your meals.

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Sadly I am not exaggerating even in the slightest.

I could have typed a few dozen more goofy "Vegetarian" varieties we encounter every week of the year, but I ran out of time.

 

Most of the so-called "Vegetarians" I meet every week on ships have all sorts of silly ideas and excuses about what is animal and what is vegetable.

So they call themselves Lacto-vegetarians, Ovo-vegetarians, or Pescatarian-vegetarians or some other ridiculous name. And in the end, many of them are just playing with us so they can get a bit of extra attention. Offer them a free steak or a free lobster tail and you need to jump out of the way to avoid being bitten.

 

As I posted earlier, if you show up on a ship, claiming to be a vegetarian, the staff will probably not take you entirely seriously unless you can convince them you are not just pretending to be on a reality TV show.

 

Wow, thats rude. What line do you work for? I wouldn't and I shouldn't have to convince anyone about anything. I want to try and not book your line. Thank you.

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Thanks for the info Ruth, good to know therre are so many of us. I travel on RCI and the only trouble I've had is at dinner, but I've lived on baked potato etc. and have large lunch in the buffet.

:o

 

I've had great success as a vegan on Celebrity, Royal, and Carnival.

 

Here's what you need to do, in order to be very well fed on any cruise line:

 

- Before your cruise, contact your cruise line's special needs department, and let them know you are a vegetarian (or vegan). Most lines ask that you notify them 30-60 days in advance, but I've given less notice for a last-minute booking. If you used a travel agent, then they can make this contact for you.

 

- On the day of embarkation, meet with the maitre d'. He or she should have your name on a special list, and will let you know how they will be taking care of you. On Celebrity, I was told that they had already selected the first night's meal for me, and that I would be brought a vegetarian menu to order the next night's dinner for each subsequent night; on Carnival I was brought the regular menu for the next night and the asst maitre d reviewed it with me, letting me know which items could be prepared vegan; Royal kind of winged it- the maitre d asked me what kind of food I liked, and they prepared a special dinner each night based on my preferences. (I like Carnival's method best, because I ate similar food to my table mate's each night, and I felt I had a nice set of choices for each course. Carnival also offered to show me lunch menus in case I wanted to have lunch in the dining room.)

 

- Anytime you eat at the buffets- for any meal- identify yourself as a vegan to either the maitre d on duty or to any of the station chefs, and ask what you can eat. On every line, I found the chefs practically tripping over themselves to make me something special! Between that and the salad bar (where there is usually at least one bean dish) and fruit selections (where you can also find nuts), I had more than plenty to eat. I was on the Carnival Breeze Trans Atlantic in November, and found the chefs at almost all the stations vegan knowledgeable and friendly, and they usually took out clean cutting boards and knives before I had a chance to ask them to. (Note that at the Mongolian grill, you should ask them to sauté your selection in water, as otherwise they use broth; also only the soy sauce is vegetarian.)

 

Also- don't assume that a station will have nothing that matches your diet. I had a great sandwich prepared for me at Carnival's deli: a thick giabatta stuffed with all sorts of fresh and pickled vegetables. And, of course, the pizzeria will be happy to prepare a cheeseless pizza topped with vegetables.

 

- My usual breakfast is fruit and nuts, but on a cruise I treat myself to bread and sometimes peanut butter or jelly. The chefs were happy to tell me which breads were vegan.

 

In addition to being vegan, I also prefer to avoid sugar and excess fats, and those needs have always been met. I have a standing request to start each meal with a plate of cut vegetables -I ask for tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, and olives, but you could ask for any favorites (this is in addition to my appetizer), and to end it with melon and berries.

 

I've been served all sorts of great appetizers and entrees, from Greek to Chinese to Italian to Middle Eastern to Indian- and even American. I've been urged to let the chef prepare a dessert for me, but, except for an occasional baked apple, I prefer to end my meal with fresh fruit.

 

I know I sound like a cheerleader, but what I'm really trying to say is that with some pre-cruise preparation, and a bit of creativity (and ingenuity) during the cruise, you'll find that the maitre d and the chefs really want to see that you are contentedly well fed - and they are happy to make sure you are.

 

HTH!

 

Ruth

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  • 2 months later...
For the cruise lines, VARIETY is the biggest challenge with vegetarians -at least when it comes to the VARIETY OF Vegetarians.

 

One eats no red meat, but eats fish or poultry.

Some will not eat red meat or poultry, but fish is OK.

The next one eats no red or white meat, but eats sauces made with meat and fish stocks.

The next one eats no meat or fish, but loves chicken, butter, and eggs.

One eats pasta but no fish, and will not eat cream sauces - but eats butter and drinks milk.

The next one will eat fish but not shellfish. No milk, but butter is OK.

Some will eat chicken, but will not eat a soup made with chicken stock.

Some will eat chicken stock, but not beef stock.

One insists on vegetarian pasta, and then requests extra cheese on top of it.

One insists on soy milk at every meal, but loves a latte with plenty of steamed cow's milk.

 

The next one is a strict vegetarian who eats no animal products, but does not want the same old boring vegetables, mushrooms, fruits, and salads. "Make me something different", they say. Unfortunately, they rarely have any suggestions as to exactly what those different foods might be. We are currently trying to import vegetables from the planet Mars to make them happy.

 

Nearly all of you want ice cream. ICE CREAM IS NOT A VEGETABLE.

 

The variations are endless - and they drive cruise ship chefs crazy.

My favourite vegetarians are the ones who force the staff to jump through many hoops for the entire cruise and then we catch them eating a steak on the final night.

 

Their explanation? They were just experimenting with a fad diet and just couldn't pass on that great looking steak.

 

If you claim to be a vegetarian and we do not seem to be taking you very seriously, at least you will know why.

 

Your attitude is shocking. To clarify a vegetarian does not eat anything which has resulted in the death of a sentient being, so no animal stocks, gelatine, or and please make a note of this no cheese which is made with non vegetarian rennet; (Parmesan). To prepare good vegetarian food requires care and genuine culinary flair; unfortunately many chefs appear not to possess these attributes. We are customers too it would be nice if we could be treated with respect.

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I wouldn't expect to see a menu for vegetarians that rivals the normal ships one. I would suggest that this segment of the market is less than 1% and it just doesn't make economic sense for any line to go much further than they have now to satisfy such a small percentage of the passengers.

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I wouldn't expect to see a menu for vegetarians that rivals the normal ships one. I would suggest that this segment of the market is less than 1% and it just doesn't make economic sense for any line to go much further than they have now to satisfy such a small percentage of the passengers.

 

I don't think vegetarians are asking for a large multi-selection menu, but rather some common sense, creativity, and understanding of how various foods are created.

 

On Windstar they took all special dietary needs of guests quite seriously. On the kitchen tour we saw a couple dozen sheets of paper hung on a board representing each person who had dietary needs that ranged from vegan to low-sodium to allergies. With 182 passengers that week which included six vegans and a dozen ovo-lacto vegetarians, that was 10%, not the 1% figure you guessed at.

 

 

Autocorrect responsible for most typos...

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I wouldn't expect to see a menu for vegetarians that rivals the normal ships one. I would suggest that this segment of the market is less than 1% and it just doesn't make economic sense for any line to go much further than they have now to satisfy such a small percentage of the passengers.

 

A fair point, however I holiday with my family two of us are vegetarians and two are not. If a particular cruise line caters particularly well to vegetarians we would be more inclined to cruise with them. So though vegetarians may not represent a huge proportion of the cruise lines custom failing to provide decent provision for them may well impact on a larger percentage of the cruise lines potential passengers. :)

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  • 1 month later...

I really hope we don't end up eating from the kitchen where Bruce works! We are both strict vegans and don't eat any animal products. I really hope we are taken seriously on our cruise. As a lifelong vegetarian, you won't catch me eating a steak - in fact, I doubt I would be able to digest it properly! Consuming dairy also makes me quite ill!

 

Sent from my SM-N900W8 using Tapatalk

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