Foodies will be able to set sail with celebrity chefs and wine experts who will be joining a special select number of Holland America Lines sailings.
Holland America Line has revealed details of five speciality Culinary Cruises, calling at destinations across North America and the Caribbean in 2022.
On each Culinary Cruise, passengers will be invited to attend cooking demonstrations, take home mouthwatering recipes and join chefs at exclusive dinners in the cruise line’s exquisite restaurants, including Pinnacle Grill, Rudi’s Sel de Mer and Nami Sushi, depending on which chef is onboard each sailing.
The five elite chefs who will join the cruises include Ethan Stowell, Jacques Torres, Rudi Sodamin, David Burke and Andy Matsuda, who are all a part of Holland America Line’s Culinary Council.
Launched in 2010, the Culinary Council comprises a group of esteemed chefs who engage with and influence the dining experience onboard the Holland America Line fleet.
As part of every Holland America Line cruise, one evening in the Dining Room restaurant features a special menu curated by the Culinary Council members.
Holland America Line’s culinary program is guided by some of the world’s foremost talents, and no other cruise line has this level of experience from such a team of experts.
Michael Stendebach, vice president of food, beverage and guest services, Holland America Line
It’s not every day you learn a recipe directly from the famous chef who created it and hear their secrets to success in the kitchen. We have been eager to reengage our talented Culinary Council chefs to come back on board and offer guests this exclusive level of access.
Ethan Stowell, who was born in Germany but grew up on Capitol Hill in Seattle, will be kicking off the set of Culinary Cruises sailings.
He will join passengers on a 7-day sailing onboard the Westerdam ship. The Alaskan Explorer trip will depart Seattle, Washington on 11 September and call at breathtaking ports across Canada and Alaska, including Sitka, Juneau, Ketchikan and Victora in British Columbia.
Fresh, sustainably sourced Alaskan seafood and flavours of the Pacific Northwest are the signature flair of Ethan’s cooking.
Crowned one of the Best New Chefs in America by Food & Wine Magazine, Ethan is the founder and chief executive of Ethan Stowell Restaurants, a collection of highly acclaimed eateries dotted across Washington State.
Taking part in a 9-day itinerary across the Atlantic Coast onboard the Zaandam ship, departing from Montreal on 1 October 2022, French-trained chef and artisan chocolatier Jacques Torres will delight guests with his sweet culinary knowledge.
Before opening his very own chocolate factory and retail shops in the Big Apple, Jacques was the executive pastry chef at the legendary New York-based French restaurant Le Cirque.
Aside from influencing the chocolate desserts as well as the Chocolate Suprise Dessert Parade on board the Holland America Line, Jacques is head judge and co-host on the Netflix culinary series Nailed It.
Culinary Council chairman and Holland America Line’s master chef Rudi Sodamin will join the 7-day Mexican Riviera cruise itinerary onboard the Koningsdam ship, departing from San Diego in sunny California on 12 November 2022.
Responsible for overseeing all aspects of dining onboard the Holland America Line, Austrian-born Rudi’s exemplary cooking is available to sample at Rudi’s Sel de Mer restaurant onboard the line’s cruise ships, which specialises in French seafood.
Aside from his work on the Holland America Line, Rudi has created an art table book named “Food Faces” which has more than 150 images of tasty, edible masterpieces.
David Burke, who has been featured on Iron Chef America and Top Chef Masters, will join the 7-day Eastern Caribbean itinerary on Holland America Line’s Nieuw Amsterdam ship, departing from Fort Lauderdale on 4 December 2022.
Specialising in contemporary flavours, passengers onboard Holland America Line’s ships can sample David’s cooking at Pinnacle Grill.
On land, David has opened 5 new restaurants across the Northeastern United States and during the Covid-19 pandemic, he launched the Feed the Heroes campaign which prepared and delivered more than 100,000 meals for frontline workers and charities.
Japanese-born Andy Matsuda will be onboard the final Culinary Cruises itinerary, a 10-day Southern Caribbean cruise on the Nieuw Statendam ship, sailing from Fort Lauderdale on 17 December 2022.
Andy leads the sushi offerings at Nami Sushi, Tamarind and Lido Market restaurants onboard the Holland America Line.
In California, Andy shares his extensive sushi and Japanese cuisine knowledge with aspiring young chefs enrolled at his Sushi Chef Institute in Los Angeles.
All the tasty culinary events are complimentary onboard the special cruises organised by the Holland America Lines, excluding the speciality dinner.
