Vegetarian & vegan food on HAL Amsterdam

[Alder]

We were on the Amsterdam for a two week Alaska cruise a couple of weeks ago – one strict vegan and one less strict vegetarian. We hate the formality of a cruise – the itinerary is everything to us – so you’ll certainly find us in the buffet on formal nights…

HAL have a separate vegetarian/vegan menu in the Main Dining Room.

We were booked on the dine as you please option, but didn’t bother with the MDR until day three. We went to the main dining room during breakfast to inquire about the special menu – they happily went and found a copy and we were invited to order off it for that night – they also invited us to keep the menu in our cabin for the whole of the two weeks. The menu consisted of a comprehensive list of veggie & vegan meals - plenty of choice for everyone.

That evening the food arrived with no problem and we were invited to order off the menu for the following night. However we declined this offer preferring to use the informal Lido buffet. It did strike me that ordering in the morning (rather than the previous evening) may be a better option as you could easily check what the veggie option is on the main menu as an alternative?

Lido Buffet. With the exception of the night discussed above this is the venue we used. On the positive side there are lots of options, but a couple of things could be improved?

For the first 48 hours of the cruise everything on the buffet was served by staff as a way to minimise the novo virus risk – so no problem – they said this is standard on all HAL ships.

However once self-service was opened, the main course was still served by staff. The central part of this was a meat carving station – only after you had chosen meat were you then offered veggies. This meant you had to queue with the meat eaters even if all you wanted was some of the vegetables. While the queues were never too long, it was still annoying to be delayed by having to queue with the meat eaters (calving can be a slow process!) – as well as noting a number of occasions when meat serving implements were used to serve other items as well. They really need to decouple the carvery from the rest of the buffet which could be made self-service (like the rest of the buffet) – this would speed everyone through. There was also some confusion over which items had butter, egg or milk as an ingredient and I’m not sure we always got the correct answer!

In general the buffet served the same meals as the main dining room, but the vegetarian option was often not obvious to see. The buffet is laid out so that each item has ‘name plaque’ somewhere nearby – so it’s a little cluttered – roast chicken next to the actual roast chicken is a bit overstated and means you don’t look at the name plaques. Because the veggie option is normally stored out of sight you have to ask for it - the only reason you know it’s there is if you notice the name plaque mixed in with all the others.

We had a free meal at one of the additional restaurants (Canaletto)but when we asked about a vegan option with the receptionist we got a puzzled and confused response – not being overly-concerned we simply cancelled the reservation. In one of those over and above customer service issues the food service manager tracked us down in the buffet (I guess by checking where we had just bought a drink?) to ask if everything was OK and why we had cancelled the reservation!

On the positive side they had good quality soya/almond milk in the buffet, also at the speciality coffee bar but you had to ask (try a soya latte with an almond liquor shot!) – as well as a vegan sorbet as an ice cream alternative. Also the Dive-In burger bar (by the covered pool) does a grilled mushroom burger. The first time I ordered it, they brought it to my table, the 2nd time I watched them cook it on the griddle alongside the burgers, so wouldn’t eat it. There are fries and salad at the Dive-in bar though.

We never asked, but I wonder if you could order from the MDR for collection in the buffet? I’d guess not, because any confusion at the buffet tying up a staff member would risk the whole thing grinding to a halt… Also wonder if they had vegan cheese at the sandwich making station – also I think I saw reference to an egg substitute somewhere connected with breakfast – but we never asked…

All in all a great trip and very impressed with the general space on the ship and the quality of the staff – but the over-riding priority for us is still the itinerary and not too many sea days.

[PathfinderEss]

Thanks Alder, it is a very informative review on Vegetarian & vegan foods and ofcourse your cruise on the Amsterdam. Glad you bought it to the forfront.

[Alder]

Whoops, how do I edit my post? Spelling error - *calving instead of carving*!! I'm a touch typist and sometimes, my fingers type faster than my brain can work! :-)

[POA1]

Whoops, how do I edit my post? Spelling error - *calving instead of carving*!! I'm a touch typist and sometimes, my fingers type faster than my brain can work! :-)

No harm. No foul. :)

[Cologal50]

Thank you for the great information. We will be on the Amsterdam in August - and we are both vegans. I know that we have had pretty good luck with HAL in the past - but this is our first time ordering our menu item the night before.

 

That is ok - because we can think about what we want and not hold up the whole table trying to make a decision.

 

Thanks again for sharing.

[SightCRR]

One of us can not have dairy, butter, or dairy products. We choose fixed early dining so that we would have the same table and servers for the two weeks and not have to explain everything every night. After the second night they all understood and did not offer dairy products ie sour cream etc. Meals were ordered the night before to be made with no dairy. Out of 11 dinners only one resulted in symptoms similar to having eaten dairy products. The best deserts were ones that included sorbet (not sherbet) and fruit plates.

One thing we could have handled better was the Mariner lunch and contacted someone about ordering a dairy free lunch.

We knew that we would have issues on shore so we brought sealed prepackaged lunches and rented cars in ports to be able to go to more dining options or stores.

Sightcrr

[PathfinderEss]

Whoops, how do I edit my post? Spelling error - *calving instead of carving*!! I'm a touch typist and sometimes, my fingers type faster than my brain can work! :-)

 

Don't worry, we all have those nasty spelling error's.:D I usually find mine after the edit time is up. Oh well...:)

[Krazy Kruizers]

Very informative thread about the Vegan and Vegetable menus.

Can you post the menu?

[Alder]

VEGETARIAN/VEGAN 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 Tofo Kabob (vegan)

[Nghthawke]

The daily menu is posted at the entrance to the Lido just as it is for the MDR and you can see at a glance what the vegetarian option is without having to read all the little name plates.

[Lemur]

That evening the food arrived with no problem and we were invited to order off the menu for the following night. However we declined this offer preferring to use the informal Lido buffet. It did strike me that ordering in the morning (rather than the previous evening) may be a better option as you could easily check what the veggie option is on the main menu as an alternative?

 

 

Also the Dive-In burger bar (by the covered pool) does a grilled mushroom burger. The first time I ordered it, they brought it to my table, the 2nd time I watched them cook it on the griddle alongside the burgers, so wouldn’t eat it. There are fries and salad at the Dive-in bar though.

 

Hi Alder,

 

I'm a vegetarian who sails with a serious meat eater. We take as many meals as we can in the MDR, preferring the service and also the warmer food there. I asked for the vegetarian menu on the first night and also for the regular menu for the following evening as well. I did this every night and it was not a problem. If there was nothing particularly alluring for the next night, we just told our server that we would not be there. You can do this whether you have fixed seating or not, the order is tied to your cabin number.

 

As for the veggie burgers at the pool grill, I asked for the chef to cook it with fresh tools on a clean part of the grill. It took a bit longer, but was worth it.

 

Kind regards,

Lemur

Edited July 19, 2014 by Lemur

[Alder]

Hiya Lemur,

Yes, we did eat in the MDR, but to be honest, we must be one of the few couples for whom food on a cruise isn't important. On our first day, they did let us take the Veggie/vegan menu and keep it in our cabin for the duration of the cruise, but we preferred the casual self-service option. We spend every moment possible on shore, disembarking as soon as possible, getting back just in time to re-board. We travel on foot, public transport or hire a self-drive car and see as much as we can when on land. Having such a busy days, we just eat to re-fuel, which means a quick shower and then more often than not, head to the self service restaurants on any cruise line we're on. We tend to be up early (5am some days on our last cruise), have a very busy active day, eat then find a quiet corner to read, then early to bed.

It's safe to say, we never starve and I'm vegan and my husband is veggie and there's always a great selection if you’re not fussy - vegetables, fries, salad, bread, fruit, sorbet etc. Even without the selection of veggie/vegan foods we have at home, we still managed to gain weight!

Best Wishes

[Krazy Kruizers]

VEGETARIAN/VEGAN 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 Tofo Kabob (vegan)

 

 

Thank you

That is the same menu that I have posted several times here on CC.

[mor mor]

Whoops, how do I edit my post? Spelling error - *calving instead of carving*!! I'm a touch typist and sometimes, my fingers type faster than my brain can work! :-)

Well I thought it was a cute way to express it and that you did it on purpose!