Vegetarian and vegan options

There was a very nice article published in the Vegetarian Resource Group's newsletter about vegan and vegetarian options on HAL and how the standard MDR menus (which change daily) and the Vegetarian/Vegan menu (which stays the same-at least for 7 day cruises) can be meshed together to make a very nice dining experience.

If you're interested, here's the link: http://www.vrg.org/blog/2013/06/28/veggie-options-on-new-holland-boston-montreal-cruise/ ]

There was a very nice article published in the Vegetarian Resource Group's newsletter about vegan and vegetarian options on HAL and how the standard MDR menus (which change daily) and the Vegetarian/Vegan menu (which stays the same-at least for 7 day cruises) can be meshed together to make a very nice dining experience.

If you're interested, here's the link: http://www.vrg.org/blog/2013/06/28/veggie-options-on-new-holland-boston-montreal-cruise/ ]

I have no basis for comparison, but have read many complaints about the vegetarian and vegan options on other lines on the Cruise Foodies board. I think that HAL's handling of vegetarian dishes is outstanding. They are varied and interesting and delicious. Not the same thing every day and it's obvious some serious thought and creativity has gone into the development of the menu. I am not a vegetarian, but could be and eat like one about 75% of the time.

I love the Tofu Korma on the international night menu. Wonderful!

Thank you for posting about this! I'm leaving on my first cruise on the 28th (Seattle to Alaska) and have been wondering what the vegan options will be like. I've seen a couple other helpful threads on here, but it's good to get feedback from more folks.

I often order the vegetarian option and not even a vegetarian because they are quite creative and very good. One could do vegan, but not probably not have much variety.

This is the separate vegetarian menu. As for this each evening and make your selections for the next night's dinner. This is in addition to the regular MDR menu, that has two vegetarian entrée selections, which are very good. Ask for both menus the night before so you can decide which you want. You are not stuck with one menu or the other, you can mix and match.

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)

The vegetarian/vegan menu is the same every single day if you are on a 7 day cruise or on a 125 day cruise. One page.

There are daily specials but very often ladden with sauce, cheese and fat.

It is not easy to be vegan or vegetarian on HAL.

The vegetarian/vegan menu is the same every single day if you are on a 7 day cruise or on a 125 day cruise. One page.

 

There are daily specials but very often ladden with sauce, cheese and fat.

 

It is not easy to be vegan or vegetarian on HAL.

Portion control is quite different from items being vegetarian or not. Wish they offered smaller portion plates for everything. Nothing wrong with sauce, cheese or fats/oils. All in moderation because they are all quite wonderful taste and texture enhancers. Used to be vegetarian was nothing more than "wet vegetables" (steamed) and that was it. Those were the "yech" days for the vegetarian options.

The vegetarian/vegan menu is the same every single day if you are on a 7 day cruise or on a 125 day cruise. One page.

 

There are daily specials but very often ladden with sauce, cheese and fat.

 

It is not easy to be vegan or vegetarian on HAL.

For vegetarians, there are additional choices on the main menu every night. There is always a vegetarian dish and usually two or even three. I think HAL offers plenty of choices for vegatarian and I often order those dishes though I am not vegetarian. I think they offer quite a lot.

Thank you for the link to the article.

magandab, thanks for posting the menu! I'm not especially picky (well, aside from the vegan thing :p) and don't really mind eating the same few things for a week. Honestly, I just enjoy having someone else cook for me!

We are (perhaps unfortunately) doing open dining. Fixed dining was full by the time we booked. I'm wondering how the "select your meal the night before" works with open dining.

The vegetarian/vegan menu is the same every single day if you are on a 7 day cruise or on a 125 day cruise. One page.

 

There are daily specials but very often ladden with sauce, cheese and fat.

 

It is not easy to be vegan or vegetarian on HAL.

I respectfully disagree. I have often ordered the vegetarian entrees, and have never found them to be heavy, laden with sauces, cheese or fats. I generally feel light and satisfied and get none of the digestive side effects I would normally get if what you say is true. I don't avoid cheese, but don't care for heavy sauces at all. There are nine entrees on the separate vegetarian menu, plus at least two on the main menu each night, giving a choice of 11 different dinners each evening.

I think HAL does a great job.

magandab, thanks for posting the menu! I'm not especially picky (well, aside from the vegan thing :p) and don't really mind eating the same few things for a week. Honestly, I just enjoy having someone else cook for me!

 

We are (perhaps unfortunately) doing open dining. Fixed dining was full by the time we booked. I'm wondering how the "select your meal the night before" works with open dining.

No problem. Ask your steward for the next night's menu. You choice will be saved, linked to your cabin number. When you enter the dining room the next night, you give your cabin number, and your dinner magically appears! Same as if they are keeping a bottle of wine for you. I don't know how they do it so well, but it works.

No problem. Ask your steward for the next night's menu. You choice will be saved, linked to your cabin number. When you enter the dining room the next night, you give your cabin number, and your dinner magically appears! Same as if they are keeping a bottle of wine for you. I don't know how they do it so well, but it works.

Perfect! Thanks again - it's reassuring to have an idea ahead of time how things will work. I've only been vegan for about 4 years, but it's really been encouraging to see how much easier it's gotten in that short span of time. I thought a cruise would be more or less impossible, and was pleasantly surprised when I read the press release announcing HAL's vegetarian menu.

The vegetarian/vegan menu is the same every single day if you are on a 7 day cruise or on a 125 day cruise. One page.

 

There are daily specials but very often ladden with sauce, cheese and fat.

 

It is not easy to be vegan or vegetarian on HAL.

I concur. Ordering a day in advance is for the birds. Do you know tonight what is going to appeal to you tomorrow. What about breakfast and lunch?

Are the vegetarian options truly meatless or do they contain gelatin or natural rennet or meat stock? Dishes without hunks of meat are not necessarily vegetarian. I have never heard Holland America address this and am surprised the Vegetarian Resource Group link did not.

HAL does an excellent job of going the extra meal for anyone needing special dietary considerations.

Portion control is quite different from items being vegetarian or not. Wish they offered smaller portion plates for everything. Nothing wrong with sauce, cheese or fats/oils. All in moderation because they are all quite wonderful taste and texture enhancers. Used to be vegetarian was nothing more than "wet vegetables" (steamed) and that was it. Those were the "yech" days for the vegetarian options.

I think the portions are generally on the small side on Hal. How small do you want them...one bite? I honestly don't know how men can get full on the dinner portions unless you snack in between meals.

I'm not a vegetarian but do enjoy vegetables & different salads..If DH didn't want his meat or chicken every night I could very happily eat only vegetables including potatoes for dinner..LOL..

I've always thought that cheese & eggs would not be on a vegetarian diet..And don't understand the difference between a vegan & a vegetarian?

Cheers...Betty

I've always thought that cheese & eggs would not be on a vegetarian diet..And don't understand the difference between a vegan & a vegetarian?

As a rule of thumb, vegetarians just exclude meat from their diets, while vegans exclude all animal products (such as dairy, eggs, & honey), as well as foods whose processing involves animal products (for example, many wines & beers are clarified with isinglass, a substance from the bladder of a fish).

There are more granular classifications of vegetarianism, and there's a lot of variation in terms of how observant people are (for example, I know a lot of "vegetarians" who consume gelatin, which can't really be considered vegetarian by any definition) and whether they also avoid animal products in non-dietary contexts (wearing leather, silk, wool, etc.)

I think the portions are generally on the small side on Hal. How small do you want them...one bite? I honestly don't know how men can get full on the dinner portions unless you snack in between meals.

Adequate portions for me would be 2-3 ounces of cooked meat - 1/4 - 1/2 cup of any side dishes. Half of what ever dessert they offer. Soup and appetizers are fine. Even this all adds up to a lot of food for the full day when you add breakfast, lunch and tea time too. Or having a special meal for lunch in port.

Appetizers, I find often make an excellent entree choice. Staff has been very accommodating when this is requested. Wish they offered these sized portions to start with, rather then sending half full plates back after the dinner is over. I have never had good luck ordering "half portions".

I confess to preferring the continental style of dining having a larger meal at mid-day and then something much lighter at night.

Adequate portions for me would be 2-3 ounces of cooked meat - 1/4 - 1/2 cup of any side dishes. Half of what ever dessert they offer. Soup and appetizers are fine. Even this all adds up to a lot of food for the full day when you add breakfast, lunch and tea time too. Or having a special meal for lunch in port.

 

Appetizers, I find often make an excellent entree choice. Staff has been very accommodating when this is requested. Wish they offered these sized portions to start with, rather then sending half full plates back after the dinner is over. I have never had good luck ordering "half portions".

 

I confess to preferring the continental style of dining having a larger meal at mid-day and then something much lighter at night.

That's a tiny meal. I guess if you are going to tea and eating there that would take the edge off. I seem to be eating my bigger meal at noon lately because I get tired of cooking dinner.

Haven't traveled on HAL with any vegans or vegetarians. DW was strict vegan for two of our cruises. RCL was terrible and made little to no attempt to accommodate her. Basically brought her broccoli every night.

Carnival, which is HAL's parent company, made much more of an effort. We talked to the waitress the first night and she was able to put something together. For every night thereafter, we saw the menu the night before and we could custom order something. They even attempted to make a soy mousse for dessert. They also have Indian vegetarian meals everyday which may or may not be vegan, but were tasty.

Soy milk is typically available at buffets and MDRs but you have to ask someone to retrieve it for you and can take awhile.

You can also find the maitre'd after you embark and discuss your diet with him.

Thank you Magandab for posting the menu. Many items sound yummy. I can't wait for our cruise in 5 weeks to check many of them out.

Appetizers, I find often make an excellent entree choice. Staff has been very accommodating when this is requested. Wish they offered these sized portions to start with, rather then sending half full plates back after the dinner is over. I have never had good luck ordering "half portions".

I am so happy to see that there are going to be so many options for my husband and myself. This is our first cruise since becoming vegetarians at the end of last year and I was a little nervous that we'd be without much variety.

Out of curiosity, does anyone know if we will have any trouble getting vegetarian meals that are well balanced while touring Alaska? We're doing a land tour from Fairbanks through Denali to Seward before sailing and I've noticed a lot of the excursions for this trip specifically state that meals are seafood or meat based.

Thanks :)

I respectfully disagree. I have often ordered the vegetarian entrees, and have never found them to be heavy, laden with sauces, cheese or fats. I generally feel light and satisfied and get none of the digestive side effects I would normally get if what you say is true. I don't avoid cheese, but don't care for heavy sauces at all. There are nine entrees on the separate vegetarian menu, plus at least two on the main menu each night, giving a choice of 11 different dinners each evening.

 

I think HAL does a great job.

I'm with you. On our May 2013 Zuiderdam cruise, my hubby and I ate vegetarian/vegan the entire time without any difficulty and felt that we ate very well -- both in terms of taste and variety and in term of healthfulness. There are some items that are more rich than others, but if you don't want that, there are plenty of other veggie options to choose from. We often let ourselves get too full, but that was our choice and was due to the often delicious nature of the food we had. It was really nice not to be limited to pasta primavera for dinner as is typically the case - so many other interesting options were available.