I cooked my own breakfast on a cruise!

On our Juneau port day where we weren't scheduled to arrive until 1PM, I spent the bulk of the morning cooking my own breakfast! No, it wasn't that I spent too much money in the shops and they were making me work off my bill. I actually paid Oceania to do this!

Oceania Cruises has a program onboard that allows you to book a cooking class held in The Culinary Center. It is located on Deck 12 across the hall from the Artist Loft. Around 120 days before our cruise, I logged in to our account on the Oceania website at midnight refreshing the page for the cooking classes. Given that this was an Alaska itinerary, many of the class themes offered were seafood based. Another option was dessert based but the description listed it as more about pairing dessert wines with various sweets so I skipped that choice. This left a class called Snowy Day Brunch. Each of the classes were held a few different dates during the cruise so there was more than one opportunity. All the classes sold out fairly quickly but I noticed in the last couple weeks before the cruise, one or two of them showed open slots. Keep checking back if the one you wanted to book was full.

Note - you will have to be able to stand at your station so be advised if you have an issue with standing for long periods of time. My station neighbor had concerns with being able to stand that long so she took seating breaks on the ledge where everyone stowed their stuff.

The description for Snowy Day Brunch:

Duration: 1 hr and 30 minutes

Is there any better feeling than the first snowfall of the season? It makes us want to bake our favorite cinnamon scones or egg casserole. Join us for a celebration of those leisurely days when it is snowy outside and we share favorite recipes with loved ones as we warm our toes by the fire. No snowy day brunch is complete without bubbly cocktails, so we'll share some of our mixologists' favorite recipes for taking the chill off.

Cost: $129 per person with a class max of around 12 people. Disclaimer: I did cover the extra cost of this class with on board credit received as a result of booking the cruise. Neither the OBC nor the cost of this class was gifted by the cruise line. This new experience for me was worth the money more than a ship excursion to a port I'd already visited or a spa appointment. It was raining rather than snowing most of this day and the only fire was on our induction cooktops but the food warmed us all the same.

The main rule for the class other than of course to wash our hands routinely and to be safe was that we could invite anyone we wished to come try the food but none of the food could leave the room. We also were only allowed to take still photographs, no videoing was allowed. 

The doors stayed locked until we were officially welcomed to come into The Culinary Center by Chef Miles Beard. Another class attendee and I both arrived super early so we chatted about past cooking experiences, picky eater traveling companions, and our favorite cruises. It was cool also watching Chef Miles and his crew of sous chefs, as he introduced them during class, sing while they set up all of the cooking stations.

By the time we were let inside, nearly all of the participants had joined us to wait outside the doors. We were checked off the official list and handed over our tickets. The tickets look just like Oceania's excursion tickets so make sure you keep all of your tickets organized. Being there so early, I was able to select the center station in the front row. All stations had a great view of Chef Miles' demonstrations at the front counter, especially with the use of overhead cameras and his microphone headset. 

Each station had an apron, a dishtowel, a large knife, a two burner stove, a cutting board, a container full of all the utensils we'd need, our measured out ingredients, and two waste bins so we can use the dry one for food waste and the wet for used cooking utensils. We also each had a glass of water at our stations so we could stay hydrated while we worked. The sous chefs team came around routinely clearing the dirty dishes and offering any help. Chef Miles also wandered around after his demonstration to answer questions and remind us of the steps. Each time we gathered in front of the Chef's counter to watch the next dish's demonstration, the sous chefs ran around behind us cleaning our stations and setting up the next set of fresh ingredients.

All of our portioned ingredients that could sit out of the fridge

Our two burner stovetop with the fry pan to be used during the main course and the baking pan to be used on the first recipe we made.

Styling this morning with my provided Oceania Cruises Culinary Center apron. I took such care, perhaps ironically, not to get it messy thinking I'd save it for a souvenir. As it turns out, you don't get to keep the apron you wore during class but you're welcome to purchase a new one, the dish towel, or a full cookbook published by Oceania's culinary program. We did at least get to keep a booklet showing the recipes we used today for the price of admission.

Our first offered cocktail - some fizzy version of a rum punch

First dish we made was our own pair of scones. First each step is talked through and shown as Chef Miles makes the dish himself in front of us.

During this first presentation, Chef Miles describes a step that gets one of the class participants upset with him. She starts insisting that this isn't how you work the dough to make the scones. At first you're thinking wow this lady must have the drink package. Then you think about how well Chef Miles is responding to this woman, going so far as to call her up to finish the demonstration. As she picks up where he left off, she starts talking about how the recipe we're making is her grandmother's scone recipe. It is soon revealed that our classmate is actually Chef Kathryn Kelly, the Director of Culinary Enrichment for Oceania Cruises and the founder of The Culinary Center. Chef Miles stood nearby with a huge grin on his face as he reveals that he goaded Chef Kelly into taking over because he likes to watch her cook and demonstrate the recipes.

"Your two best tools in the kitchen are at the ends of your arms"

Next step was to take the rounded mound of dough we'd made from scratch and flatten it out like a thick burger patty.

Next we divided our dough patty into fours and were instructed to only pick our best two pieces to bake in the pan. The other two pieces went into the waste bucket.

Each of our baking pans were numbered to correspond with our station number. Once we'd chosen our two best pieces to put in the pan, the sous chefs came around and put them in a big multi level oven at the front of the room. I used to bake cookies, brownies, and cakes all the time but I'd say this is pretty darn good for my first scone baking.

While the scones baked, Chef Miles resumed leading the class to teach us next how to make a salmon egg scramble.

First up is explaining how to properly hold a knife and not get any of that extra chopped finger protein in your dish.

Quick lesson on how to cut ingredients with different thicknesses and textures as Chef Miles made quick but patient work of a white mushroom, a spring onion, and how to microplane some garlic.

For the small handful of spinach leaves, Chef Miles showed us how to roll them up like a cigar so that they'll stay in place while you cut the entire group into strips known as a chiffonade or ribbon cut.

Lastly, he cracked an egg into its own small bowl and whisked it a little with a fork.

Now that all of the ingredients were ready, Chef Miles showed us when to add what ingredients to the pan. He also gave us tips on when to pull the pan off the heat before adding certain ingredients like the shredded salmon.

While we were watching Chef Miles, our stations were set up with the new set of tiny bowls full of ingredients to make the main dish.

I'm not usually one who thinks of salmon for breakfast but I found this salmon egg scramble to be tasty.

We were encouraged to start eating our scramble so we could taste it while it was still warm. And look what was ready by now to join our meal, the scones were done in the oven. They appeared at our stations with little dishes of jelly and cream. We discussed the ongoing debate of jelly or cream goes first on the scones while we ate. 

My attempt to add the cream and jelly on top of the scone went a lot better than trying to make a scone sandwich.

Our last course was a soaked French Toast with a spicy kick and berries on top. This French Toast was also prepared in the skillet until both the top and the bottom took on a dark brown color.

Then with a triangular cut of the square to create two slices, we topped the dish with berries from the Northwest, a berry flavored fruit juice, and sprinkles of powdered sugar from a new to me kitchen tool that looked like a baby rattle with holes on one side. This dish was tasty until the heat from the spices kicks in at the back of your throat.

All of the dishes presented together at the end of class

Polo Grill - not to be confused with Pollo Loco

The Polo Grill, the steakhouse themed restaurant onboard Oceania Riviera, is one of four themed specialty restaurants. For some reason throughout the rest of the cruise, I had to think twice while talking with someone because my brain wanted to call it Pollo Loco. All specialty restaurants are included but do require reservations.  To view the menu for this restaurant on Oceania Cruises' official website, click here.

Steakhouse restaurants are always at the top of our list for trying on cruises. We always try a specialty dinner in the steakhouse restaurants on every cruise, even if it costs extra. However, aside from the wonderful show that Mother Nature put on with dolphins/dall's porpoises jumping in and out of the water outside our window, this restaurant's experience left a less than stellar impression. 

We were seated at a two top table along a back corner with a large circular table taking up the bulk of the corner. For most of the meal, it seems like we were forgotten by the wait staff. Long waits for courses and drink refills. We had the unfortunate luck of being seated next to a table behind us with a woman who decided that her chair couldn't be in the same zip code as her table when the crew member tried to help her push in her chair. I was in the chair directly behind hers so the solution by the crew member was to have me shove into my table so far I had to twist each time I wanted to bring my arms up in order to let her sit as far back as she wanted. Not sure if this is the new diet plan - making it so the passenger can't use her arms to lift the knife and fork. We also had the pleasure of hearing her conversations loud enough to be heard from across the restaurant. Maybe if you sat a little closer to your table, you wouldn't have to yell at your dining companion! I'm betting she's related to the couple having a loud speakerphone conversation on their balcony yelling as if they were trying to be heard back home without the phone on a previous cruise.

From the Starters menu:

Escargot in Casserole with chive sauce and garlic vegetable julienne with Fleuron. I was quite surprised to see escargot in this preparation. Perhaps due to that, this version seemed like it was missing a lot of the flavor that normally comes in the escargot dish presentation.

Chesapeake Bay Lump Crab Cake with Pommery Mustard Sauce - not sure why the pommery mustard sauce came looking like a melted lime popsicle?

From the Soups menu:

Honestly, I'm not sure whether I ordered the New England Clam Chowder or the Lobster Bisque topped with morsels of sauteed lobster. Judging by the picture I'd have said this was the chowder but the dishes before this would have me second guessing if this was what they considered bisque.

From the Salads menu - Dad ordered the Classic Caesar salad that is supposed to come with a tableside preparation from a wheeled cart. A crew member that looked to be a manager came over and asked what Dad wanted on his Caesar salad because they wouldn't be able to fit the cart up next to our table. They did bring the cart easily over to the large circular table in the corner behind us.

Dad is trying a lot more foods he previously vowed never to eat but alas, anchovies on his Caesar salads are still a no go!

I asked our waiter for his recommendation between The Polo Grill Surf and Turf - Florida Lobster Tail and Filet Mignon and the Whole Maine Lobster steamed with drawn butter or gratinated with bread crumbs, olive oil, garlic, and parsley. He wholeheartedly encouraged me to go for the Surf and Turf, talking as if the Whole Maine Lobster choice would be like risking my life or at least my digestive tract to choose it.

This Florida Lobster Tail served on my way to Alaska looked like it had just flown in on the red eye today to get to my plate. The filet mignon was only about 2 inches wide looking like someone had cooked one steak and split it between several dishes. It had such a hard salty crust on top I would have thought it was hanging out in the ocean with the lobster. Never saw any of the sauce choices arrive that we ordered. Someone did come by offering to take the lobster out of the shell when I was nearly done eating it.

Lobster Mac n Cheese from the Sides menu - I  must say, I've never been on a cruise where lobster was used so frequently in so many dishes. Especially without charging extra. This dish though must have had a criminal lobster who needed to go into the witness protection program. All traces of it from this dish seemed to have disappeared.

Chocolate Layer Cake for dessert - I miss the days when steakhouse desserts used to be large servings with plenty to share. The whipped cream piping down the side to cover up the chopped off end where the rest of the piece would have at least come to a point gets an honorable mention for ingenuity. 

Dining onboard without needing a reservation

One of the nice features of Oceania Cruises is that while they have four specialty restaurants centered around cuisine from various countries, none of them are an extra cost. However, the specialty restaurants do require making a reservation. You can choose when you reserve whether you're willing to share a table or want a private table for just your traveling party. The length of the cruise and your cabin category dictate when and how many specialty dining reservations you can make pre-cruise. For our nine day cruise in a Penthouse Suite, we were able to make four dining reservations (only one per restaurant was allowed to be reserved pre-cruise) starting at 75 days out from the cruise. We chose to try them all and made a single reservation for a private table in each of them. Another perk of a PH and above suite is that you can arrange to have your specialty dinner served course by course in your cabin. We chose not to do that.

This post, however, will start to show you the dishes we experienced in the venues that need no reservation. We spent a lot of our meals dining in The Grand Dining Room. While it's called The Grand Dining Room on Oceania, it is the same as the typical Main Dining Room (MDR) you'd find on other lines. At least those with freestyle, my time, or anytime dining versus a set time in traditional dining. You simply walk up to the host station any time during serving hours and give your cabin number and the amount of people in your party. You will then be led to an available table that fits your group. It doesn't matter whether you are dining as a party of two one evening and a party of four the next like we had the pleasure of doing when we invited some friends on board to have dinner together. The Grand Dining Room, also much like other cruise lines, will always be open for breakfast and dinner every day but will not be open for lunch on a port day.

Unlike the specialty restaurants with a set menu, the menu changes here daily. There are some dishes in each course that are always available. We found that being asked about allergies and dietary restrictions was hit and miss so be sure to mention it yourself to your waiter if needed. The waiters are very helpful and knowledgeable to answer questions about what is in dishes or how it's prepared. Remember, these crew members are on board for months at a time seeing these same menus and most likely even sampling the dishes so they can answer guests' questions. Don't be afraid to ask for their opinions and recommendations!

Embarkation night dinner:

Appetizer Course

The Chilled Shrimp with horseradish spiked cocktail sauce

(Always Available option)

Also the dish Dad tried on one of the last days and literally said "I'm kicking myself. I've been avoiding this when I could have been enjoying this all along!" 

Dad's BLT Salad - smoked bacon, lettuce, tomato, cheddar, and ranch dressing

Lobster Bisque with armagnac cream

Entree Course

(The Jacques Pepin Signature Dishes listed at the bottom are all included and always available)

Oceania features a list of always available side dishes so you can mix and match with your entree

Traditional Beef Bourguignon served with tagliatelle. The beef was definitely the focal point of this dish as there was just barely enough tagliatelle to hold up the large hunks of beef. Then again, I'm an Italian girl so I'm always wanting more pasta!

I don't have a picture of tonight's dessert menu but I recall this (Dad's choice) was pistachio based

Dinner Menu from Night 3

Frituras de bacalao - salted codfish fritters, salsa criolla

Bottom two choices under Soup & Salad were always available

Creamy potato bacon soup with cheddar and scallion

New York Strip Steak Diane - potato gratin and almond broccoli. This steak filled the entire plate so that the sides had to literally come in another dish on the side. I only could finish about half of the steak.

Herb Crusted Rotisserie Chicken - mashed potatoes and jus de roti. This is the size of the slices the gentleman before me received in the buffet.

(From the Jacques Pepin section of the menu)

Slight variation on the side dish choices for tonight:

I remembered to take a picture of the dessert menu this time. It was nice to see options for a healthy choice (Aquamar Vitality Cuisine), a dairy free/vegan option, and a no sugar added option. Oceania Cruises has the unique partnership with the Humphry Slocombe ice cream line featuring unusual flavor combinations.

As if you couldn't guess what I picked off this list - The New York Cheesecake:

I was glad to see no inclusion of fruit compote. The top layer being torched with sugar becoming crusty like a creme brulee shell was a bit odd however.

Breakfast menu stayed the same every day:

Eggs Benedict with pork sausage - I'm not sure this even had any meat under those poached eggs.

Banana pancakes with crispy bacon:

Two over medium fried eggs and apparently you had to specifically request if you want more than one hash brown. Once I ordered it as "and two hash browns, please" I always got two. Never saw only one slice of bacon or sausage though. 

The two other no reservation options onboard that do stay open on port days is The Terrace Cafe (buffet) and Waves Grill (similar to the poolside grill on most other cruise lines). The Waves Grill turns into The Pizzeria in the evenings. 

The Waves Grill menu - this stayed the same every day:

The Surf and Turf Wagyu Burger - Wagyu beef patty, lobster medallions, and truffle mayonnaise. The fries served at the Waves Grill are these nice thick cut steak fries. Much better than the matchstick ones at the grill section in The Terrace Cafe.

The Waves Club - Roast beef, turkey, smoked bacon, swiss, hard boiled egg, lettuce, tomato, and mayonnaise on white toast

The Grilled Reuben - corned beef brisket, swiss, sauerkraut, thousand island dressing, rye toast

Philly Cheesesteak - shredded striploin steak, provolone, sauteed onion, bell peppers, mushroom, and a toasted bun. Dad said he had to eat this like an open faced bunless sandwich because the bun was soaked through and too soggy to pick up.

My lunch from The Terrace Cafe on embarkation day. Such a zoo of people that I grabbed the quickest things I could and got out of the crowd. Table service with drink offerings was quick and plentiful throughout the cruise especially with water refills which I always appreciate. Another thing I would like to commend Oceania on is the multiple crew members who would step up and offer to carry the plate for you while you direct what and how much of anything you'd like to eat. I've seen crew members on other lines do that when asked or take the initiative to offer when they see someone who has mobility challenges but I've never been on a cruise where the crew members offered to help everyone they saw go by.

The only complaint I have from this meal is the odd service experience when I asked the crew member behind the counter to cut me some roast chicken. I waited for my turn behind a gentleman who was given whole slices like you would see laid out on a dining room plate that were as big as these slices of pizza. I stepped up next to request a few slices and was given these little chopped up end pieces. I tried asking for some more thinking it was just a small piece of meat he was cutting from but then he again only gave me the chopped up end pieces. Hence why I grabbed so much pizza to fill the plate.

Not included in the price of the cruise was the local treats I enjoyed in port like this variety box of truffles I brought back onboard from the Alaskan Fudge Company in Juneau - milk chocolate, dark chocolate, birthday cake, kahlua, tiramisu, and mint chocolate were the flavors I picked to fill the 9 box size. Dad and I split these enjoying a treat now and then throughout the cruise. 

Or the Klondike Doughboy from Skagway - a plate sized piece of fried dough coated in cinnamon sugar. The bees that will follow you after you get this are not included in the price.

And lastly, one of my two favorite things to enjoy in a Canadian port - this Coco Vanil flavored BeaverTail from our stop in Victoria, British Columbia.