Virgin Voyages does not operate a buffet style casual eatery. Instead, they have an area called The Galley with several themed food stands reminiscent of a mall food court. However, instead of lining up at the stand of your choice and receiving your food from them to take to a table, Virgin has it set up where you choose a table first and then get brought your choice. We experienced the table system of having a little stand on each table with a QR code for the menu. Those little stands now have a little flag that you lift up when you want one of The Galley servers to come take your order. The server will slip the little flag back down once they've taken your order. I've read that the flag system is fairly new having been recently added before we sailed. Several past cruisers were glad to see this new flag system in place because they felt it was tough to get crew's attention to their table. For us, it was the opposite. Some days we didn't even get the chance to put the little flag up before a crew member appeared at our table. Most of the time we got asked 2-3 times if someone had taken our order yet if they saw us sitting without food yet. Rarely did a table go uncleared for too long either. In fact, we had empty dishes cleared while still eating the rest of our order several times.
"The Classic" from Burger Bar described as "american, lettuce, tomato." The onion apparently was an extra bonus. I also ordered "Side of Fries." If I'm putting pickles on my burgers, I'd much rather have the thin ones like they use on fast food burgers versus the pickle chips sold in jars. So I was happy to see that this dish came with a true deli style pickle spear. Plus I always get double pickles because Dad acts like the one that came with his order is about to jump off the plate somehow and attack him. I have to save him by quickly consuming the evidence.
The Galley crew uses a system of table numbers and a checklist of menu items on their devices when you place your order. A few times it was the same crew member but for the most part it seemed that the person who received the order in the system and retrieved it from the appropriate stand to bring to your table was a different team entirely. I liked that aspect because it helped keep the first crew members taking care of tables with new orders so there was no one waiting too long. At one point, Dad walked up to the taco themed stand to look at the options and asked for his choice right there. The crew member working on the food prep asked for his table number encouraging him to go sit and wait for it. Dad explained that he had no table number and the gentleman had him pick from the nearby table numbers as he had to assign the order to a table. Other places like the Sweet Side did not list their sometimes changing options so you had to walk up to the stand and ask to be served.
"French Toast Burger" from Burger Bar described as "bacon, egg, american cheese." Quite the interesting assembly as the layers went 1) French Toast slice, 2) burger patty, 3) American cheese, 4) scrambled eggs, 5) second French Toast slice, 6) two slices of chewy bacon, and held together by 7) a plastic version of the toothpicks they stick in club sandwiches. I've recently gotten into eating more hash browns and these were fairly good. As far as the burger combination - I like chewier bacon in general, would have rather had a fried egg so it stayed on the burger, and the French Toast needed syrup. Ended up having to separate the layers and eat it as more of a burger patty served with a side of French Toast.
There are also paper menus that you can either request from the server or find sitting next to several food stalls. Some moments it felt a little odd to have to take a table and wait for service like when I simply wanted a snack. On a cruise I'm just as likely to grab a hodgepodge of stuff from the buffet when I want something quick and light so having to choose something from a menu that was mostly full meal options was tough. It was nice that each table had fast food style condiment dispensers for ketchup, mustard, and mayonnaise. It took me a bit to realize there were other options for various menu items like soy sauce and maple syrup if you asked one of The Galley crew.
"Tonkotsu Ramen" from Noodle Around described as "pork chashu and soy marinated egg." The dish comes with chopsticks and a small ladling spoon for the broth. There is a spicy version of the same dish but this regular version was plenty flavorful.
The All Day Breakfast options from Diner & Dash. There are omelet combinations or you can put together your own from the list of ingredients. You can also request two eggs any style, various kinds of proteins and sides, and a few versions of toast including gluten free. This picture was two eggs over medium, sausage, hash browns, and sweet potato tots. I'm not normally a sweet potato eater so I've mostly only eaten it in the form of fries. These were a nice balance of crispy and seasoned well so you had the sweet potato taste without being overly sweet. Another day I tried a cheese omelet and it was fairly goopy leaving a puddle on the plate.
"Buffalo Mozzarella" from Hot Off The Press described as "tomato, basil, balsamic reduction." Basically a caprese salad in sandwich form. I enjoy caprese salad and I enjoy sandwiches. Unfortunately, in this case the balsamic reduction stood for a reduction in the bottom slice of bread. Top half was nice and toasted with a crunch you'd expect from a panini. Bottom half was a soggy mess. I have yet to try a dish that pairs something chewy like the mozzarella with other ingredients and doesn't result in everything else sliding out while you're working on that mozzarella in the same bite.
I loved that in the Galley there was self service drink stations that included water, ice, juices, and a miniature version of a Freestyle Machine from Coca-cola. Signs encouraged everyone to refill as often as they desired but to please use a new cup each time. Crew members were routinely restocking the racks with fresh clean glasses. Only downside is that as the cruise went on, I noticed more and more issues getting a proper drink dispensed from these machines. Choices like orange juice and/or Diet Coke would come out as a fizzy version of water. There's watered down Diet Coke and then there's Diet Coke that came out so clear it looked like water. Usually a sign that the wells are nearly empty or something needs to be cleaned.
There were some peak times like any cruise such as breakfast time on a port day that made getting an available table to start the process difficult. Other times I took advantage of some grab and go pre-made boxes and took them out to a quiet spot. A moment of praise for the young female crew member who saw me walking through the galley with a pizza box, a salad box, a salad dressing cup, and a cup of hot chocolate and stopped to offer to help me carry it all. When I explained that I was simply headed out to find a quiet spot with fresh air, she insisted on running ahead to hold open the door for me. Once outside in an otherwise empty seating area at the time, I had barely put the boxes down on a table when a gentleman crew member appeared out of nowhere offering to get me anything.
The Bento Baby station changes over from sliced fruit with some granola and/or greek yogurt to holding a variety of grab and go boxes of sushi rolls. I tried a box of fruit with breakfast one morning that consisted of watermelon, cantaloupe, honeydew, and pineapple sliced relatively thin. I liked the thin cuts but several pieces were too tough to eat.
Pictured is the Cucumber Avocado sushi option. Usually I saw two to three flavor options and one section devoted to a variety box of each flavor together. I liked how each of these pre-made grab and go boxes were dated when prepared and noted of a time to discard that same day. The crew were very diligent swapping out each round of boxes when the times listed came around. They also routinely arranged the boxes so that the older ones were used first.
This is the other version of grab and go that was housed in small shelving units by the entrances to The Galley. There was usually a Caesar Salad or a Mixed Greens with Chicken option. Pro Tip- More salad containers were in the refrigerated case as you walk up to order in The Pizza Place. These little metallic screw top jars sat next to the salad boxes holding serving size amounts of different dressings. Only minor concern is that the label of what dressing was which was only on the shelf itself. If someone put the jar back wrong, it could be confusing. I liked that it was kept separate so the salad didn't get soggy. A few different types of sandwiches - I tried a turkey one with greens and a sort of beet mayo sauce that sounds odd but ended up being tasty. Other options more for small bites were available like veggie crudites and trail mix.
Those same areas by The Galley entrances also had bins of whole fruits like bananas and oranges. Easy to grab and take to your cabin for that quick pick me up or something to consume quickly before a morning excursion. I did notice that the top bin that always held bananas went from full to nearly empty to covered entirely with a matching colored lid as if a box was never there at all after the first several days of the cruise. I've been on several cruises where fresh supplies run low until we reach a port where the ship can restock. Surprising in this case that nowhere in our four Caribbean ports was a spot to take on an order of bananas?
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