How to Keep Food Interesting During Your Contract
Cruises are known for their food. The all you can eat buffets, fancy dining room, and increasingly specialty restaurants. What is it like when you are onboard for months at a time though? Does it get boring? The short answer to that is – it can. Here are some Lido Hacks and tips on how to keep food interesting during your contract.
Cruise ship food follows pretty logical and standard patterns. We’ll use a one week cruise as an example. Say that the ships embarkation day is on a Sunday. Most likely every Sunday, or embarkation day, the passenger buffet will serve the same food. The next day it will likely serve pretty much the same food, and so on and so forth in a one week repeating pattern. If you’re onboard for awhile even delicious food can start to seem kind of dull. Crew can eat in various places on the ship, but this post is focused on those crew that can eat in passenger areas and specifically the buffet area. Want to know more about where crew can eat? Take a look at this post that does a deep dive into cruise ship crew food. Today we’re going to share how to keep food interesting during your contract with some Lido hacks by some very seasoned crew.
Fun fact: Most crew members don’t think in “days of the week”. Saturday doesn’t matter that it’s Saturday, it’s embark day, or Ensenada day or Victoria Day. Places like Puerto Vallarta get shortened to PV and that is the life.
The Buffet Area Typically Has Different “Stations” Within It
The passenger buffet on cruise lines will differ, certainly from cruise line to cruise line but sometimes even between cruise ships within the same company. There are pretty consistent stations between most cruise lines. There will typically be a “hot” food line with more homestyle foods (think where the carving station might be, stuffing, potatoes), a salad bar, maybe a sandwich station, a burger place of some sort (though with some lines this might just be at lunch time), there might be a “distant lands” station that rotates between Asian, Italian, or other types of foods. Traditionally, there is also a dessert station and bread/pastry station as well.
You’ll find with the hacks that many crew have come up with it involves combining foods from different stations. Fries from one station, chili from another, and some nacho cheese in another and voila – chili cheese fries!
You Can’t Always Get What You Want
For the crew that are allowed to eat in the passenger buffet areas there are sometimes additional rules that follow it. They may only be able to eat at certain stations at certain times and other restrictions. These restrictions exist to ensure that the passengers are getting the best experience possible.
You might also not be able to eat at a specific station because the line is too long and you just plain don’t have time.
I’ve had plenty of times when I’ve had the mental debate of: “I can wait in line for the food I want or I can figure something else out and get a nap…” Most of the time I made the choice to find something else and get a nap. This is when your Lido hack mental rolodex comes into play.
Some Creative Buffet Combinations from Past Crew Members:
“I would make Huevos Rancheros for breakfast, but it would have to be the crossover between brekkie and when they set up the nacho bar…like 1025a. Chips/salsa/guac/taco meat from nacho bar and eggs from the breakfast line!”
This comes from a lead singer from the cast. Not only did she hit the high notes in “Seasons of Love” like a badass, she clearly has a sophisticated palate. This combination required knowing what time the buffet switched between breakfast and lunch and then getting different things not just from different stations, but from the different meal services! Pro level!
“I used to make quesadillas – shells, cheese, and chicken from taco bar then get it grilled at the sandwich bar!”
This is making me hungry for quesadillas right now…
“Taco salad! Going to the salad bar first, then hit up the taco bar.”
Not all hero’s wear capes… This idea comes from a past Event Manager extraordinaire.
“Bringing your own sauces or condiments that might not be offered on ship.”
Oh dang, you know you’ve gone A-game when you bring your own condiments – Brown Sauce, Vegemite, A-1!
This is a great idea though. If there’s something that you enjoy from home that’s small that you can bring to the ship, this is a great way to get a taste of home onboard!
“Embark Day Buffalo Chicken wraps. Fried chicken from the hot line, ranch & fillings from salad/taco and hot sauce from whoever could find it for me.”
Buffalo chicken wraps. Really just any wrap for me sounds good.
“When the pasta line claimed they had no chicken, I’d get some from the salad bar and then mix it in myself. Not terribly inventive, but it was my first thought answer”
I like this! It’s problem solving and adding some protein to energize yourself through the day.
“Soft serve chocolate ice cream and fries!!!”
This is apparently a thing? Ice cream and french fries? Who knew. She swears by it though.
“Any flavour ice cream from the dessert station, transfer to cup, add milk from the coffee station, mix, and you’ve got yourself a milkshake”
– This dear friend is Canadian, hence the spelling of “flavour”. Also, milkshake anyone?
This Also Explains Why You See Crew Eating Ashore
Have you ever cruised as a passenger and seen crew members going out to eat? It confused me a bit at first, too. If I’m onboard to make money and the food is included, why would I go spend money ashore to buy food? Well, it wasn’t long before I realized that doing that every once in awhile kept things interesting and it gave you something fun to look forward to. Plus, food is a big part of the culture of a place! And, part of the reason a lot of crew is onboard is to see the world and experience culture.
