Cruise Myth-Busting: Small Ships That Go Beyond a Buffet

We’re redefining everything you thought you knew about cruise food as we take you into the incredible world of small ship cruise dining – we’ll show you that cruise food goes way beyond buffets!

You'll learn about the completely different culinary experiences waiting for you across river cruises, yacht cruises, expedition cruises, and barge cruises – from the elevated presentations and multiple dining venues on river ships to the hearty, fuel-for-adventure style meals on expeditions and the truly phenomenal, tailored cuisine on intimate barge cruises. 

Hear our personal stories and honest insights about food quality, dining styles, and unique offerings on each type of vessel, including why "buffet" isn't a dirty word in small ship cruising and what "lobster night" really means when it's done right. 

Whether you've been hesitant about cruise food based on big ship experiences or you're curious about how dining differs across small ship options, you'll understand precisely what culinary adventures await you and why the food can be one of the most memorable parts of your small ship journey.

Check out the articles on our site for food photos & more info:

• AmaWaterways Food Review (with Drinks) on AmaKristina
• Windstar’s “All-Inclusive” Explained: Drinks, WiFi, Dining & More 
• Outstanding Emerald Destiny River Cruise Food (with Photos!)
• Extensive Emerald Azzurra Food and Drinks Review
• Cruising with Maine Windjammer Aboard American Eagle

Transcript

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Dan (00:35)

Hello and welcome. When you think cruise food, you probably picture endless buffets and endless lines, soft serve ice cream, flat pizza, maybe underdone French fries. Anyways, so what if I told you that there's a whole 'nother world of cruise food out there? And today we're going to talk about what to expect on various different size ships and different experiences and what the food is like from our firsthand experience. Obviously we're not food critics, but we think we are, so.

Mikkel (01:17)

Yeah, exactly. We do consider ourselves foodies or bit of gourmands, I would say. So small ship cruising offers completely different culinary experiences, and we are going to talk about several types, including rivers, yachts, expeditions, even small barge cruises, which is one of our favorite culinary experiences. So be sure to listen all the way through for that.

And we're even going to talk about some ships with sails that we've been on as small as 24 passengers. We actually had less passengers on that ship when we were on it. So we're going to tell you about that. This also corresponds to some articles on our website that we are going to link to in the show description because what is food without some visuals? So if you click those links, you will be able to see some of these culinary delights.

Dan (02:10)

Let's jump in and bust some buffet myths. Buffet myths? 

Mikkel (02:13)

Ooh, buffet myths. I like it. Busting the buffet. Bust the buffet myth. I love it. So let's... buff it up. Let's start with small sailing ships. I think this is one of the most interesting because I think in the world of cruising, sometimes they're often forgotten until maybe you're on the coast and you see an incredible ship with sails in the distance.

Dan (02:19)

Buff it up.

When you think of small ship, you almost always go to river and then all of a sudden you're on the coast and you see something with tall sails and you're like, what is that? I want to be involved in that.

Mikkel (02:40)

Yes.

Yeah, and I think people automatically assume it's somebody's schooner, which could very well be, but it also could be a passenger ship without you even realizing it, which I don't want to insert my biased opinion here, but I'm going to say it, which is why I love that we do this podcast because we bring these sailing opportunities and these cruise experiences to your attention.

Dan (03:10)

Let's talk about the meals we've had on small sailing ships. Of course, some of them do have buffets.

Mikkel (03:17)

Yes, some of them do, but it's not a four-letter word, buff, buffet. It's literally not a four-letter word, but it's not a dirty word buffet because they do it differently. So for example, we were on a Maine Windjammer cruise. We were particularly on American Eagle and we are looking forward to going back on a Maine Windjammer cruise next year because we loved it so much. And they do have a buffet for some of the meals.

Dan (03:23)

It's not.

Mikkel (03:45)

Actually... yeah, it's some of them. The lobster we'll talk about in a minute, but there is a teeny tiny galley that I would say is so petite and small, it's a wonder that the incredible chef on our ship could get anything out because he literally is burning wood in there and has to really familiarize himself with how hot the top stove burners get and how he can maneuver that wood in there. So that was a feat in itself. 

So not only did he pump out the most delicious meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner, but he also did some snacks in between and hors d'oeuvres when we were noshy. And I think the most incredible thing was that was some of the best tasting food we've had on ships. So that was a buffet and it was it was lined up, you know, on the top deck when the weather was nice enough, which luckily it was pretty much every day. What do you recall from that experience?

Dan (04:45)

I recall always being asked to do the dishes because...

Mikkel (04:48)

They do appreciate when people help because you do have to hand-wash them and dry them. There's no machinery on there like a dishwasher.

Dan (04:56)

Right, so that was an interesting aspect where you were asked to pitch in, you know, and like bring food up to the top deck or do the dishes or things like that. I enjoyed that. And then lobster night was a whole new... like a whole new definition of lobster night on Maine Windjammer.

Mikkel (04:59)

Yeah. Yeah, you didn't have to.

Yeah, yeah. We are not... I would say, correct me if I'm wrong or please add your two cents, but we're not "lobster people."

Dan (05:25)

Yeah, I would agree. It's good, but I'm not gonna lose my mind over lobster. Until lobster night on Maine Windjammer.

Mikkel (05:35)

Yeah.

Dan (05:36)

The reason lobster night was so different on this particular ship is because they literally pulled them out of the ocean hours before, cook them on the top deck, and it was just so fresh, so incredibly. You felt so connected to the food and you could really just it was a different taste.

Mikkel (05:57)

And the captain had connections obviously to local lobstermen. So he just messages them to see who has what. And we experienced a lobster we had never had before. It was a soft shell lobster. And the reason that people don't really get soft shell lobsters is because the time to ship them is too much for the lobster to survive because of that soft shell. They're in between shells when they have the soft shell.

And it was just easier to open the meat once they cook them. They cook them right on the deck, which was incredible. Sometimes your lobster dinner on a Maine Windjammer cruise is a cookout on the beach if the weather is nice. But our crew pivoted because it was a little rainy, so we weren't able to do that. But I think we could do an entire episode about how incredible this lobster dinner was. Lobstah! Lobstah, if you're from Maine, which we're not. 

But we'll leave it there for now and perhaps leave that for an episode in the future really focused on Maine Windjammer cruises. I also want to mention that the beverages for Maine Windjammer was totally BYO. You could bring beer on board, you could bring a rum, whatever you wanted. They had a cooler and you're able to bring that on board, which I have to say is very different from another sailing experience we had. So our Maine Windjammer cruise was 24 passengers max.

We had 21 on our sailing. We've also been on the Star Clipper ship with Star Clippers, is the cruise line, which has 170 passengers. So another sailing ship with manually operated sails, which was incredible. And they had seated dinners, seated meals. I recall the lunch, there was a little buffet.

Dan (07:41)

The thing that was interesting about that is: tall ship, it had the sails. ⁓ I was not invited to help out, which I was almost, almost thankful. Right. Right. ⁓ But they do have a formal dining room and I remember being told no shorts to the dining room. ⁓ And there, there was a dress code.

Mikkel (07:49)

Right, with 170 passengers, you don't have to clean your way to get your meal.

Mm-hmm, mm-hmm.

Dan (08:06)

So it was a elevated experience and the food was also served in an elevated way.

Mikkel (08:14)

classy. It very much felt like sailing days with those dark wood finishes on Star Clipper ship. It is not BYO. They have a pay-per-drink bar. You could buy a bottle of wine. And it really was a lovely experience. The crew was amazing on both cruise lines. And for in between meal offerings, I do recall we were on Star Clipper out of Costa Rica. So we'd get back from

Dan (08:24)

You

Mikkel (08:39)

an excursion and there would be some noshes like, like sternos with some hot things or you know, mix of hot and cold things. So just some little snacks in between. And I recall every night there was, um on Star Clipper, the display of food so you could see what was going to be ordered.

Dan (08:43)

Yeah, one of the cruise lines that do that where it's almost like a Japanese window display of the, of the food that you're about to eat.

Mikkel (09:04)

Yeah.

Yeah. So again, for Star Clipper, there was a buffet, but very classy, very little. And for dinner, there was definitely not any sort of buffet.

Dan (09:16)

All let's jump into kind of what everybody thinks of when they think of small and that is river cruises. So we've been on quite a few different ones. We're gonna touch on Riverside Luxury Cruises, AmaWaterways, Emerald, Viking, American Cruise Lines. But really, it's a small and intimate experience, but each cruise line has their own take on it.

Mikkel (09:40)

Yeah, so we're just going to generalize. We're not going to go through every single river cruise line we've been on. This could go on for hours if we did. But we want to make you aware of the offerings and the variety that you may or may not have, depending on the river cruise line you choose. 

And I would say that if you are interested in the food, and most people are, and that's something that's important to you, simply ask your travel agent or travel advisor. We have our recommended one linked in the show description, who is fantastic. You're always welcome to reach out to us. But just be aware of the options that you can get on your particular choice of river cruise line, because they are different. It's a little bit of is like they're all the same in terms of, you know, they all serve wine and beer with lunch and dinner, but some, like Riverside, has various specialty dining that we'll talk about in a minute. And some do not have that option. So what can we expect for breakfast with meals?

Dan (10:36)

With breakfast, a lot of these cruise lines have a form of buffet, but then also you can order off the menu. There's a breakfast menu, but you can also kind of fill in with some buffet items, usually fresh fruit, some sort of egg, bacon, you know, yogurts.

Mikkel (10:53)

That's important to note is that, yes, it's a buffet in the definition of the word, but never once really is there a line for a buffet on a river cruise line. For breakfast in particular, there is a block of time that it's open, but you don't need to go at 8:00 am if breakfast starts at 8:00 am or at 6:30 am.

Also, with that being said, there's usually an early riser's option. That's some pastries and such in the lounge area if you are an early riser. And then the main dining room opens, let's say, an hour later for those seated a la carte options that you can order. Those omelets — an omelet station you can order from that the server will get you. You can get lattes and such on river cruise lines. There's also that coffee station 24/7 on all river cruise lines we've been on. But the buffet I like in the morning because sometimes I don't really want to talk to anyone that early. I'm not a morning person. And it's nice to be able to just keep quiet, keep to myself, and get what I want, and then go back to the room to get ready for that excursion. What about lunch?

Dan (12:06)

Lunch, some of them have a version a buffet, but mostly you're going to be ordering off the menu. And always have, I'm generalizing, but a lot of them lunch specials and then that kind of like that "always on" section on the menu. So maybe it's a hamburger or a salad or Caesar salad or something like that, that if you don't like the options then you can order that.

Mikkel (12:32)

Yes, and for lunch, I recall just as an example to your point about there being some sort of a buffet option sort of on AmaWaterways when we were on AmaMagna on the Danube. I remember being delightfully surprised one day they had a pho noodle soup option. So they had plenty of Austrian options the day we were in Austria and schnitzel. And I remember like a hearty beef stew as an option on the menu.

Dan (12:49)

Yep. 

Mikkel (12:59)

And then we also could have a little pho soup. So the "buffet," was to put your options of your vegetables in the bowl. Then you brought it to the chef. She cooked it. And then she added the noodles. You wanted egg noodles or rice noodles. And then you could bring that back to your seat. So again, very civilized, very elevated, very much optional.

So that's kind of a little form of buffet. You know, we use the term buffet lightly because a buffet is kind of just like a serve yourself situation, right? Yeah. And also, AmaWaterways has those canapes. As soon as you sit down for lunch, they have those little like hors d'oeuvres servings ready for you. They vary every day. Usually like it's an olive tapenade or a hummus or just like a little finger food, ⁓ you know, a little

Dan (13:32)

Right. Yeah.

Mm-hmm.

Mikkel (13:51)

bruschetta, you know, whatever it is for the day. Another favorite I love is Riverside Luxury Cruises. Some of the best food we've ever had, if not the best food on any river cruise line.

Their buffet is so phenomenal, and so high-class and so delicious. I could eat that on every cruise line and just you know, I like variety. So I want a little of this a little of that. I kind of live my life like tapas style. So just a little taste of everything when possible.

Dan (14:24)

Yeah, that's such an interesting point because Riverside does buffet-style for breakfast and lunch. And going into it, it's a little bit jarring because of the elevated experience throughout the rest of the ship and you're not expecting a buffet. But they really do carry the elevated experience right through into the buffet.

The crew members are there to help you. You don't have to serve yourself on everything. They're there and explaining what the dishes are. And there's such a great variety and really a level above what we were talking about, floppy pizza and French fries.

Mikkel (14:58)

Floppy pizza and French fries. 

To clarify, Dan is referring to ocean cruises. I think the most disappointing part of the buffet on Riverside Luxury Cruises is that you cannot possibly fit it all in your stomach.

Dan (15:04)

But there's always the next day to go back and explore more.

Mikkel (15:13)

That's true too. And just to add to what you said, you have the menu for breakfast, especially on Riverside Luxury Cruises as well. Also, Riverside has another option that I want to point out. So they so Debussy, Revel. And they have a double-wide ship: Mozart. And on Mozart, what's really nice is their specialty dining. They also have an additional restaurant, called Blue.

When we were on the ship, was a kind of the interior restaurant. It's not the main one... this is on Riverside Mozart… that turned into a seated restaurant at night. But it's really nice that it's another option.

Another option is their elevated dining experience with wine pairings, and that is called the Vintage Room. We've had the honor of experiencing that twice, which is really special. And then on top of that, Riverside offers room service, which we love because... I was craving a burger and fries one day. So I had a really light lunch

Dan (16:13)

Mm-hmm.

Mikkel (16:20)

and then decided a couple hours later to get a burger and fries to the room and that was delicious.

Dan (16:27)

Such an interesting point because I was working one night I had a couple meetings and I couldn't go to Maine dining for dinner and so you can just text your butler via Whatsapp and then, poof! Your meal appears.

Mikkel (16:38)

Mm-hmm.

Yeah, it's great. And on the note of room service with river cruise lines, it depends on the river cruise line. Not every river cruise line has it. For example, we didn't experience that on Viking or Emerald. American Cruise Lines, same thing. Sometimes, like with Uniworld, I believe, they include it with a certain category, stateroom and above. So that might be a reason that you want to book a certain stateroom. This might not be important to you. 

Unlike a big ocean ship on a river cruise ship, the dining room is never far from you. So it's not like it's a chore to get up and go to deck 14 and you're on deck five and you have to go to the aft of the ship and you’re far away. It’s not like that. It's really just steps away from your room no matter where your cabin is on a river cruise line. But sometimes, like we just said, the room service is nice.

Other specialty dining we've experienced on AmaMagna because they have that space with AmaWaterways, the double-wide ship. It was so nice to experience Al Fresco, which is another Mediterranean dining option that's included in your cruise fare for everybody. There's also Jimmy's named after Jimmy Murphy, who was one of the three co-founders of AmaWaterways who passed away years ago.

So Jimmy's serves family style, the same menu as the main dining room that night, but it is family style and a different ambiance for the meal for dinner. And Chef's Table is really special on AmaWaterways.

And that's on every ship, it's included. Everybody gets to eat their once during their cruise if they want to. It's a multi-course menu with wine pairings, all included. Such a nice experience. And I think a great reason with Amawaterways. I would say for food, AmaWaterways and Riverside Luxury Cruises really stands out in my mind.

Dan (18:28)

have to mention though, the one thing that really stands out on a Viking cruise in Bordeaux was we had an off-site dinner that was fantastic. It was at a chateau and the wine pairing, or maybe it was a castle. It was magical. A magical night. The wine pairing was great and it was the entire kitchen crew from the ship came and cooked at this chateau and it was a surprise. It was it was really a special evening.

Mikkel (18:52)

Mm-hmm.

You're right, it was a chateau, a vineyard chateau. We walked into the room and it looked like it was set up for just a beautiful wedding. You know, with those round tables for 12, the multiple glasses for different types of wine throughout the evening. I remember it was July, it was very close to Bastille Day, which is July 14th. And it was just like, the weather was ideal. It was like we were all living in heaven, you know, it was just so phenomenal.

Dan (19:24)

Yeah.

Mikkel (19:25)

And that was included, as you said. I just think that was really special. I know AmaWaterways does an optional dinner at a castle that you pay a little extra for on one of their itineraries. So again, just things to look out for if that is important to you.

Riverside has this buffet, if I might use that word again, that is out by their kind of like cafe bar in their ships. It varies depending on the ship. But it is a nice thing throughout the day that if you get hungry... and they replenish it, it's not like it's sitting out there.

They have cold cuts and they have cheeses. They have pretzels, soft pretzels that are really nice. They have cakes. So I really like that because you do get noshy. And on some of these ships, you just feel like there's really nothing to eat in between. So that's something to note.

And then in terms of other things, there's the coffee station I briefly mentioned before, which also has tea that's available 24/7 on river cruise lines. It's all self serve. There's usually cookies that accompany that station just for a little sweet with your beverage. Some lines have an in-room mini bar, but it really, really depends. That's all I'm going to say about that. And then in terms of beverages, it really depends on the cruise line. AmaWaterways includes a Sip and Sail every day. That's kind of like a happy hour that you can get complimentary drinks, including cocktails, including mocktails. They have a really good mocktail menu. 

Same thing with Riverside. They have incredible botanicals that they make for their drinks that you can use in a mocktail or a cocktail. Really great stuff. Viking has a Silver Spirits package that I would say you have to do the math. If you don't drink three drinks a day,

Mikkel (21:13)

aside from the included wine and beer with lunch and dinner, I would just recommend paying a la carte for a martini or a Manhattan or whatever your poison is here and there.

I don't think the Silver Spirits package is worth it. You have to add that on for two people in the room if you have a double occupancy room. So just keep that in mind. A line like Scenic, I know, includes all the alcohol. Emerald, you can pay a la carte. And the costs are usually really low. It's like €7, for example.

The last thing I want to say about river cruising is that the lunch and dinner times, while there is a block of time that you can eat your meal, most people don't really go after a certain time. So let's say dinner starts at 7. People generally get there between 7 and 7:30. Nobody really shows up at like 8 o'clock, mostly because not only are you hungry, but the crew wants to also go to bed at a certain point because they're just waking up to do it again the next day. So,

it's not that you can't show up later, but most people don't. And it is open seating. A lot of the time, river cruises have tables for four, maybe up to six or eight. There's usually like one table that can fit eight or 10, because they know that people meet or people go in groups and they want to sit together. There's very few tables for two. So most people, if they want to get that table of two, they show up right when the door is open for lunch or dinner, because they know that there's only, you know, let's say four tables of two.

So I just want to kind of mention that. And for turndown service, a little nice sweet treat at the end of the day. Some river cruise lines like AmaWaterways put chocolate on our pillow and then a river cruise line like Riverside Luxury Cruises had really great... It varied every day. It was always from the pastry chef and it was, you know, a truffle or a little cookie with a glass dome on it, a cloche on it for a little something sweet for sweet dreams.

Dan (23:10)

So as you can see, there's a lot to dive into with river cruises. Probably the most options you're gonna have are on your river cruises, but there are a couple other cruise types that we want to jump into briefly just to give you an idea of what else is available out there.

So let's move on to yacht cruises.

Mikkel (23:30)

One of my favorites. We have been on Windstar Star Pride that is over 300 passengers. We've been on Emerald Azzurra that's 100 passengers. And then we've even been on a ship with Kontiki that sails off the coast of Ecuador. They sail Costa Rica.

And that was 18 passengers. So yacht cruises can very much vary in size and experience. Let's talk about the meals briefly. For Kontiki, all very local. But nothing out of the ordinary too much. They had eggs, they had local fruit. I remember they kind of had like a plantain mixture that was really good.

Dan (24:05)

Right.

Mikkel (24:07)

very small dining room, because it's only 18 passengers.

The service was phenomenal. I remember Jaime being a standout. He had moved from an ocean ship down to small ship cruising. He was fantastic. Emerald Azzurra. It was a gorgeous buffet for breakfast. And again, kind of like their river cruise line, you could order off the menu a la carte. And then Windstar was also a delicious, gorgeous buffet. I will say out of any cruise line we've ever been on, if you are a vegan,

Dan (24:15)

Thank

Mikkel (24:39)

Windstar is really the way to go because they really cater towards vegans and have a plant-based menu that really impressed us. We are carnivores, but it's worth saying that.

Dan (24:50)

Another thing to note, Windstar had room service, which we got after we got back late one day, missed lunch, and it was phenomenal and it came pretty quickly.

Mikkel (24:53)

Yes.

Yes, and I'm not one to miss a meal. So I will say that we did plan ahead and we checked what time we could get the room service. And that was a phenomenal experience in getting that. Also, you know, one of the things that I really love about Windstar is that you can get popcorn at any time via room service. So if you want to pop on a movie at night, I remember we had a popcorn, like throw it up and catch your mouth contest between the two of us. I should post that video on our Instagram @SometimesSailing.

Mikkel (25:30)

And for yacht cruises, lunch and dinner are seated and a really nice menu. I would say this is kind of a more of an elevated fine dining experience.

Dan (25:43)

Transitioning into dinner, with Windstar they had multiple options as far as for restaurants on board. Now, Kontiki did not. But Kontiki only had one dining room anyways.

Mikkel (25:46)

Yes.

But they had multiple options on the menu, of course. And you could talk to the chef if you had any dietary restrictions, as you can on any of these cruise lines. Another really nice thing about Star Pride was that... and this confused us when we first got on, and we had never sailed with them before and it looked like they were almost advertising, like, make your reservations at this specialty restaurant. And I was confused because I didn't really see a price for it.

Dan (25:57)

Right.

Mikkel (26:17)

They were all included. They just recommend reservations because there's limited seating in those additional restaurants. There's also a grill on Windstar that if the weather is nice, they open up the outdoor dining. And I thought that was a really nice option. We went to Iceland with Windstar. We have an episode about that. So please check our podcast for our Around Iceland experience.

And one of the really nice things is that it was a gorgeous day when we were sailing into Seydisfjordur and we could enjoy the views of the fjords and the waterfalls as we were having a fantastic lunch at the grill. So some of the in-between meal options, I would say there weren't much on these yacht cruises. I do recall being a little peckish in between.

Dan (27:03)

I would say Windstar was probably the best having the room service available.

Mikkel (27:07)

And then in terms of beverages, if you include that premium drink package on Windstar, again, we have a dedicated article about this on our site we'll link to in the show description. But those drinks are included, cocktails, beer, bottles of wine you got a little bit of a discount with the premium package if you wanted a special bottle of wine. And there was a sommelier on board with Windstar that we could talk to — she was great. She was really nice. 

And then on Kontiki, whatever you wanted, they would serve to you. And also with Emerald Azzurra we could order what we want. Actually, it just came to mind, Emerald Azzurra also had that kind of pool grill that had a display case of options and little salads and little wraps or sandwiches, and they even had those pizzas you could order. And that was a really nice option by the pool. 

They had an espresso machine up there. And then also, one of my favorite things on Windstar is the library area, where they also have something similar for beverages and snacks if you get hungry. So I take that back about the snacks, actually. Kontiki was the only one that we were hungry sometimes. But we were very often not on the ship because we were doing excursions.

Dan (28:27)

Yeah, Kontiki was interesting because it was a yacht cruise, some points it felt like an expedition cruise.

Mikkel (28:33)

Great segue into expedition cruises.

Dan (28:37)

So Kontiki was a yacht cruise that sort of was an expedition cruise, but we've been two cruises that are specifically expedition, and that is Alaskan Dream Cruises, and that was in Alaska, and then we did UnCruise, and that was in Hawaii.

Mikkel (28:54)

Alaskan Dream Cruises: So there's one dining room and all the meals are in there. It's a very small area because we had about 36 passengers on that ship. As you can imagine, mayb there's eight tables that you, you know, sit with other guests. And they had breakfast, lunch and dinner served all off of a menu.

Dan (29:19)

So overall, I would say the meals are hearty, fuel for adventure style dining, right? It is a more of a casual feel, the dining experience, but it's about getting together, sitting around a table, talking about your adventures, fueling up, and then getting back out there to explore.

Mikkel (29:24)

Mm-hmm.

And I would say in terms of the timing of the meals, you really just want to turn to your cruise director. It's not really a director, but almost like your expedition leader for those announcements, whether they're in person before you go to bed or on a schedule that you get every day, just because the times can change a little bit and fluctuate based on your sailing. And on these expedition cruises, because you're often looking for that wildlife and doing landings for that kind of adventure, they do change. 

Maybe one day your meal is at seven o'clock in the morning, but the next day it's at 7:45 for whatever reason. And dinner can fluctuate ever so slightly as well. For us with Alaskan Dream Cruises, we wanted to see the whales or try to spot the whales a little more or in Misty Fjords National Park we wanted to go on the top deck. So the meals were a little bit flexible and the captain could talk to the chef and change them a little bit based off of that. And then also, don't be scared to say to the crew, "Oh, we're going to have dessert on the top deck because we want to see the scenery." I mean, you're paying for the cruise. You want to maximize the experience. As far as in between meal offerings, the only thing I really recall besides a little bit of a happy hour snack, like canapes, hour or two before dinner was that they had a bowl of some fruit like apples and oranges, bananas, and then chips, and also granola bars.

Dan (31:03)

Right. And that was nice that you could grab and throw in your bag before you left for an expedition.

Mikkel (31:07)

Yeah, I mean, I don't like going hangry. So I never want to be hangry. Hangry = hungry and angry. Yeah. And then sometimes there was a cookie hour on Alaskan Dream Cruises. UnCruise had a little bit of a cocktail hour set out, too. That was really nice. So cheeses, fruit, that kind of thing. There was coffee and tea set up early because they know people are waking up, they're excited to get their binoculars and go to the top deck with a hot beverage.

Basic beer and wine usually included, but it really depends on the cruise line. Something like Scenic with Scenic Eclipse, it's all inclusive. But something like Alaskan Dream Cruises, it really depended on if you were in a certain category, stateroom or higher, with included beverages. Otherwise, you just paid a la carte.

And last but certainly not least...

Dan (31:56)

Right, this is an interesting one because it's truly in a category of its own but yet it was such an important dining experience for us that we just have to mention and that was European Waterways Barge Cruise.

Mikkel (32:12)

Mm hmm. I mean, even you saying those words, I'm just like picturing the quarter-wheel cheeses melting in our mouths, the aperitifs before dinner, the digestif on the top deck after dinner, the conversation, the incredible elevated meals and plates that came out of that tiny galley that Chef Toby was cooking.

Dan (32:39)

That galley was absolutely teeny tiny. The dining room was tiny.

Mikkel (32:46)

Yeah. So the barge cruises really vary in terms of passenger capacity, depending on what ship. But in general, what you can expect is anywhere from six passengers. Yes, you heard me correctly. One, two, three, four, five, six, up to on average 12 to 18. But there is one ship that I believe has just around 20 to 24 passengers. But really, that sweet spot is 12 and below. So we were on a cruise that could hold six passengers, there were five of us on this ship and four crew members. 

So the crew — even the captain — really does a little bit of everything. When we got on the barge cruise, we were welcomed with this gorgeous plate of hors d'oeuvres, champagne, and that really just set the tone for the rest of the cruise. It felt so elevated. Intimate dining room. It's like sitting down in your own dining room at one long table with all the guests.

Dan (33:41)

Mm-hmm.

Mikkel (33:45)

Breakfast was a little bit flexible. It started at 7 am. One of the crew member got off, went to the local boulangerie, and brought back on. We were on a barge cruise in France. Usually, they're in Europe, these barge cruises. And the bread was out. And then she asked what you wanted to have cooked for breakfast. And she communicated that to the chef. So you could get eggs, for example. You can get a plate of fruit, some cheese, whatever you wanted. So that really was customized.

Local to the region sometimes. We had a duo of foie gras, one fake and one real, because the chef kind of specialized in making plant-based foie gras that was really interesting and that was very French.

Dan (34:22)

In between meals, especially when you get back from the excursions, there's usually some sort of little bite that's available to hold you over until lunch or hold you over until dinner.

Mikkel (34:40)

For dessert, I want to note for dinner especially was just a plate of cheese. They would go to the local market. And when I say a plate of cheese, it was usually two to three huge hunks, like that quarter of a wheel, I was saying. Maybe it was a six of the wheel, but it felt like a huge chunk of cheese times two or three.

Mikkel (35:03)

The conversation was great and not a care in the world. And we would just sit around. And there was really no time to end. The chef was cleaning dishes behind the scenes in the teeny tiny galley. And we would just pour a digestif and continue the conversation up on the top deck with that cheese. But the cheese was really, really outstanding.

Dan (35:26)

The other fun thing about that was after the crew went to bed, the bar was just open. You just helped yourself.

Mikkel (35:32)

Mm-hmm, yeah,

Which they made clear from the moment we got on the ship. Also, because it's so customized, if they didn't have a spirit that you wanted, you could tell them, and they would try to find it in town the next day for you. Now, these are very small towns, so it really depended on where we were to get that. But I'm sure they have their connections after cruising there for so long. And even our captain was from that area, Captain Laurent, so that was really interesting.

Dan (35:50)

Right.

Mikkel (36:00)

In terms of snacks, I never really recall needing a snack because as soon as we got back from an excursion, there was always something waiting for us that was nice. We have friends that cruised on European Waterways, barge cruises, and one of them is vegan. And they were really accommodating, even getting vegan cheese for her for dessert. So that's really nice.

And again, this is some of the best food we've ever had. If any cruise they go to the local market and actually get the ingredients for the meal and can really just go for it with whatever they want, it is a barge cruise. They are truly doing that. Even the menu, they simply wrote on this little small blackboard, really small, like a five by seven card. And that would clue us into what might be the meal for the day or the cheese or even the excursions for the day that we were doing.

I’ve heard people ask on river cruise lines, like in the Q &A with the Captain if they have that on the ship, “How much are you inspired by the itinerary for your menu?" And I always think it's funny because you don't know what you don't know, but these chefs are not setting the menu on that ship. Corporate is setting the menu. So it's agreed to, and they really don't have that much flexibility. 

Dan (37:12)

Right.

Mikkel (37:17)

So I would be cautious if they say they do, because that's not really true. They might say the cruise line is inspired by the region for the menu, which is true, but they don't have flexibility really for several reasons. They have to provision the ship for almost 200 people, including the crew. But barge cruising is truly phenomenal and really tailored.

And then the other thing I remember about our cruise: Barge cruises, very typically, they'll include one incredible meal at a restaurant on land.

Dan (37:50)

Right, so we did a Michelin-starred restaurant, all piled in the van, went out to dinner. It was a great night out, a great experience, and so incredibly local and authentic and quite a memorable meal.

Mikkel (37:55)

Mm-hmm.

Absolutely the best foie gras we've ever had in our lives. Yeah, yeah.

So that is a great overview of what to expect. As you have heard, buffets really are not the focus. And if they are on these small ships, they are outstanding and something you do want to try.

Dan (38:29)

So are you saying buffet is not a four-letter word? Have we come to that conclusion?

Mikkel (38:34)

Buffet, fact, is not a four-letter word on each ship. But "each" and "ship" are four letters. Hmm.

Dan (38:43)

Until next time.

Mikkel (38:44)

Hahaha!

Dan doesn't know what to say about that, but "until next time." So thank you so much for coming on this virtual culinary journey through our small ship cruises today. Don't forget to follow or subscribe and until next time...

Dan (39:04)

Until next time, keep cruising.