Shanghai - Part 2

In one of my recent posts, I mentioned & described the “Dinner in the Galley” experience we booked with two other couples. Known as “Chef’s Table”, the dinner was scheduled for the evening of our arrival in Shanghai. We reserved this event NOT because we’re culinary connoisseurs – quite the contrary. We eat basic meat & potatoes – Big Macs & Fish Filets – Spaghetti – good ‘ol Mac & Cheese. We booked this dinner because we wanted to see what it’s like to be in the galley when all the cooks are busy preparing dinner for a thousand passengers – we wanted to experience the hustle & bustle of all the waiters delivering & retrieving dinner orders for a thousand passengers in the main dining room.

Several of our friends who follow this blog are “foodies” and would appreciate the menu I’m about to share & photos of some of the dishes served. I’ll be very candid with you – neither of us recognized all the food varieties or descriptions – the ONE item that caught my attention, and the one course I comprehended was CHOCOLATE! The photos aren’t good quality – lighting was a challenge.

So here’s the menu for the evening:

On Arrival: Cantine Maschio Prosecco – Italy

Amuse: Vodka Beetroot Cured Hamachi, Radish, Green Apple

Introduction: Mushrooms – Espuma, Tart, Natural

Secondi: Lobster Sausage, Watercress Puree, Citrus Gelee, Housemade Chorizo, Tarragon

Intermezzo: Wild Berry Sorbet, Canadian Ice Cream Foam

Fruite De Mare: Paperdelle, Prawns, Scallop, Mussels, Clams, Fennel, Saffron Veloute

Carne Di Maiale: Braised Pork Belly, Red Cabbage Crème, Pickled Apple, Chicaron

Sweet Ending: Chocolate & Nougat Duo, Raspberry, Vahlrona

All the course presentations were beautiful & very tasty – job well done by Holland America! Each course was paired with wine, either white or red, and superb. Cheryl’s not much for wine, so I enjoyed two glasses with each course because, after all, we couldn’t let it go to waste! Again, both of us are very basic – we’d never go to a restaurant and order food like this. While the dinner was a special experience for us, what we enjoyed more than anything was just meeting the many hardworking folks behind the scenes & observing what goes on, & what they go through do day-in & day-out to keep everyone fed. Truly amazing. I take my hat off to each & every one of them!

Dinner was wrapped up by 9:15. We went upstairs to deck #8 for the Shanghai sail-in party as we were scheduled to dock at 10pm. Many night photos were shared with you yesterday – I’ll provide more general pictures tomorrow (a few dozen) and get into some commentary.

Shanghai – the largest city in the world. Amazing place, my friends. I love America & wouldn’t trade her, but we could learn & benefit so much from this society. Stay tuned.