Cruising With Honey

Twas the night before Christmas - Christmas Edition Part 1

By Cruising With Honey - 13:40

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Christmas Extravaganza

Spending Christmas without my family was always going to be tough.

In actual fact, I had to prepare my mum and dad - weeks in advance - who were both happy we were having a holiday but also terribly sad we wouldn’t be gorging ourselves on both food and love with the whole clan.

The other challenge I had was to have all my Christmas shopping done, presents wrapped and somehow hidden ten days before the big event. I’m a Christmas Eve shopper, so having all this done was no mean feat. The three little misses all had their individual concerns.

Miss 11: “Mum, is there going to be Mass? We can’t miss Mass, we have to go to Mass. Can you find out? If not, we have to our own Mass. Mum, Christmas is about Jesus, we can’t miss MASS!!!”

Miss 10: “I know there’s no Santa, so just give me my presents now. Actually, I don’t need anything, the cruise is more than enough."

Miss 8: “How will Santa find us? Are Reindeers afraid of water? How will Santa get into our cabin? Will I be able to get a carrot from the kitchen? Where will the sleigh land? Can we take a mini-Christmas tree? I need to leave Santa a treat…..” and on and on for hours. I zoned out and just nodded.

Anyway, I successfully had all the very badly wrapped presents hidden in the garage (I am the worst wrapper, ever) and, as the kids were carrying their luggage out to our shuttle, I dumped the pile under our Christmas tree and shut the door behind me.

Mission completed. As I was unsure what type of festivities the Eden had in store for the kids, I reassured Miss 8 that if Santa couldn’t deliver on the cruise, he’d probably leave them at our house. I was happy to go along with this ruse, she’s a child and this might be the last year she believes in the magic of Santa.

I hope I haven’t lost you after that long-winded intro, but it sets the scene, expectations and hopes my family had for our Christmas cruise. All I wanted was a relaxing day and hopefully my kids would not be missing their grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins. Many people asked why we didn’t book a holiday after Christmas. The simple fact is that both my husband and I work for ourselves, so this was the only time we could take a break and not let our clients down. School holidays are hard to manage at the best of times, so this cruise ticked all the boxes for our family, and I’m sure for many other families.

N.B I will be elaborating on all the different festivities organised for Christmas in other posts otherwise this one will be way too long, so this post will focus on Christmas Eve.

I must point out here, that when we embarked, we noticed all the Christmas decorations around the ship. Christmas trees, baubles, wreaths, tinsel… it was lovely and really set the mood for the cruise we were about to depart on. To the disappointment of Miss 8, there wasn’t a Christmas tree in our cabin, but she came prepared with her little trinkets. I also saw other cabins (remember, I’m a sticky beak) were decorated with Christmas cheer.

Gingerbread display at the Waterfront

I was pretty much still in the dark as to what was organised for the kids for Christmas, but one thing we had organised was Christmas dinner at Angelo’s at 5:30pm. I thought I was pretty clever booking the first sitting and I’m SO glad we did. More about that later.

However, come Christmas Eve and the Pacific Daily revealed there were two religious events organised, a Ministry of the Word and Holy Communion in Torquay (the theatre room) and Catholic Mass in the Marquee at midnight (much to the relief of Miss 11).

Speckled throughout the day were various Christmas themed events and also the Christmas Extravaganza Show (6:30pm and 8:45pm). While we were waiting, Miss 11 and I decided to try our hand at Bingo. As we took our seats, the gorgeous Marius asked who were first-timers. I put my hand up and stated quite arrogantly that I was going to win. The crowd laughed and booed (in good fun) and the first game started.

“BINGO” I squealed and the crowd groaned. As I made my way up to collect my $53 – I danced around the stage just to embarrass my daughter – and my glow stick “All the way from China” I felt rather smug. Beginner's luck though as I didn’t win ever again!

As Miss 8 and Miss 10 were off at Kids Club and hubby was at the gym, I thought I’d get a couple of pressies and sneak them into the cabins. Miss 11 and I bought a few tins of M&Ms, wrapped them and hid them under the beds. Mummy points gained! I was feeling pretty chuffed at my ingenuity. This was soon to unravel though, I’d fail miserably as a spy.

After dinner, we headed to the Marquee for the Christmas Extravaganza. Glow sticks were handed out and young and old waved them along to the beat. A sweet choir made up of passengers kicked off the night, which I thought was a lovely addition. The show was exactly what I expected it to be, full of clichéd carols, witty jokes, a few sombre moments and kitschy backdrops. Don’t misunderstand me, it was the perfect family show and it was thoroughly enjoyed by one and all. The entertainers were bubbly and Alun was the perfect host. The night culminated in a grand old sing-a-long in probably the most depressing way possible; Band Aid’s 1984 Do they know it’s Christmas? I’m old enough to remember the horrendous pictures of starving children in Ethiopia, so my mind automatically replayed these for me in bright technicolour. I’d suggest a more upbeat song for next year!

We headed off to walk around the ship in an attempt to keep the kids up for Midnight Mass and happened to stumble upon Karaoke. Wannabe singers dressed in elves costumes and $2 Shop Christmas t-shirts blasted our eardrums – it was pretty funny and something I’ll soon not forget. There was the young lady who was utterly tone deaf ploughing though a song I did not recognise while her husband stood beaming with encouragement clapping on the 1 and 3. This explained to me quite clearly why these two were a perfect match. Then there was our new friend Phil who sang What a wonderful world to a standing ovation.

By 11:30 the kids were virtually asleep standing up, but we successfully kept them awake for Midnight Mass. I was surprised how many people were actually there: families, teenagers and older passengers. The priest was friendly and there was a beautiful, peaceful feeling around the Marquee. Mass at sea was a first for me and a memory I will always treasure. I got lost in the moment but then was dragged back to the reality of being aboard a ship when, as Father was consecrating the Host, announced to us all that he’ll be wearing a glove to distribute Eucharist, due to Red Alert. That was a first for me AND him! Passengers wished each other a Happy Christmas and we carried our little ones to the cabins.

Now, remember how clever I thought I was buying sweets and hiding them under the beds? Well, I had to find a way to get into Miss 8 and hubby's cabin once they were sound asleep to leave them under her makeshift Christmas tree. She had left a can of ginger beer (just in case Santa suffered from sea sickness) and some crackers. By 2:30am I snuck out of my cabin carrying the brown paper gift shop bag filled with the goodies. I was half asleep and not wearing my glasses. Hubby had left his cabin card so I entered the room as quietly as possible, knocking into the table and falling over. As I was already on the floor, I crawled over to Miss 8 who was still soundly sleeping. I took out the presents, placed them on the bedside table, took a glug of ginger beer and shoved the crackers down my gob. I then reversed out and went back to my room. Mission completed.

The next morning, Miss 8 comes bounding in with the chocolates. Her first words were not “Merry Christmas” rather:

“Mummy, Santa used your Cruise Card to pay for these chocolates. He’s really lazy and a thief. He copied your signature!”

I was confused? What was she going on about?

Apparently, while I was congratulating myself on being super awesome, I left the brown paper gift bag WITH the receipt on the floor of her cabin.

Yeah, good one Honey.

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dining

Dragon Lady - but there's no tattoo

By Cruising With Honey - 13:43

HERE'S a little known fact, I'm actually the Dragon Lady.

Yup, I was born under the Chinese Horoscope of the Dragon, and I'm a lady, so yeah, it makes sense to you all now, right? Anyway...

I LOVE Asian cuisine and slurped my way through the bowls of ramen in Chatswood, inhaled pork buns at Tim Ho Wan, eaten my weight in Korean bbq and had litres of pho in Marrickville. Our family has set the record in devouring plates at various Sushi Trains around Sydney, and nothing beats great Pad Thai from our local favourite.

Dragon Lady doesn't quite fit any specific country of regional cuisine. It's a little bit Malaysian, a little Chinese with a sprinkling of Japanese.

Nevertheless, we were excited to have an 'Asian inspired' dinner - and I was a little relieved that there would hopefully be something for everyone in my family.

First Impression

Absolutely blown away by the decor. It was beautiful - but much like the menu, a little confused. There was a Balinese-style statue at the entry, Japanese inspired artworks of, I'm guessing, the actual Dragon Lady, complete with sword. The room was decorated with screens, orchids, a huge gong.

The tables were beautifully set with bamboo mats, chopsticks and tasteful bowl. The blue theme was nuanced with the lighting, furnishings and menus.

Also, it was very quiet and subdued. A hushed ambiance. If the aim was to create an atmosphere of relaxation, it was achieved. As always, the staff was attentive, courteous and extremely helpful.

The Menu

We were presented with a folded menu, that once opened, presented four different options. It gave the impression that you were going to have an 'experience' rather than a meal.

To start we were offered veggie chips (which the kids thought were potpourri) and a little ginger shooter. The kids didn't like the amuse–bouche so I threw back four of them. The lovely waitress then explained we could order 2 - 3 items from each section (basically entree and main) to share and a dessert each.

Entree: The standout for me were the rice paper rolls. Very fragrant and full of crunchy goodness. Bowls of edamame were soon gobbled and Miss 8 wolfed down the salmon sushi. The pan-fried dumplings were nice, but far from the best I've had.

Mains: Beef cheeks were Miss 10's favourite - probably because they were so succulent and easy to eat. I found them too oily. I did try the soft shell crab, but again, very oily and I personally can't stomach eating this crustaceans. I suppose they are an acquired dish. Satay stick were very tender, but lacked the peanut factor - maybe they were cooked in a recipe my palate isn't use to, but I love getting that big nutty flavour whenever I eat a satay. The vegetarian stirfry was delicious and aromatic.

Desserts: Very rarely would I enjoy a dessert after an Asian meal, but when in Eden...

I suppose the main reason is due to the bad memory of deep-fried ice cream as a child and then as an adult, not really moved by Asian desserts. I don't mean to stereotype as I know there are many different styles of Asian desserts - just my opinion. You'll find that the dessert menu, isn't quite Asian-inspired - unless you count the mango pudding as it has tapioca as its base, a common ingredient in south-east Asian sweets. Having said that, the pudding IS very nice, but quite filling so easily one to share between two. The chocolate option was the most dense and chocolatey thing I've ever eaten. Eden, Miss 10, is the world's biggest chocaholic and she barely made a dent in it! Milkshakes in Mason jars were frothy, sweet and again, very filling.

My general overview of Dragon Lady is that the concept is great, but definitely needs refinement.

For me, it's too confused. I understand that the cruise wants to appeal to a large cross section of people and introduce a pan-Asian inspired menu, but I think having a little more clarity and order would improve the eatery. Trying to please everyone with everything is never a success. That's what the Pantry is for.

It's hard to give just one score, so I'll break it down:

Decor - 10

Staff and Service - 10

Food - 6

One more thing, the servings are VERY generous so please be specific or clarify how much you're getting when you order. When we went the second time, the staff brought us TWO of everything. The two plates of sushi, edamame and veggies were very welcome, but we could not get through the mains and I felt absolutely terrible having to waste the food.

A BIG shout out to Gay who was the most amazing waitress at Dragon Lady - my kids and I loved her to bits!

P.S Sorry again for the pictures - it's quite dark in there and I didn't want to use a flash.

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dining

Salt - of the Earth (and Sea)

By Cruising With Honey - 21:02

-->MUCH like many of my peers, I am not immune to the current trend of celebrity chef fandom.

With the explosion in mainstream media in recent times of cooking shows, competitions, books etc, the names of top-class chefs are now peppered in every day vernacular (see what I did there?).

While I’ve never met Luke Mangan, I know his name and have seen him on the tele. I know of his influence on modern Australian cuisine and I’ve dined at Glass Brasserie, at Hilton Sydney – only once though. Fine dining is usually reserved for birthdays and anniversaries in my household, so it was a real treat. But, I’m not here to talk about Glass.

To tell you the truth, I had to prepare the little monkeys for daddy and mummy’s alone time i.e our ‘date’ at Salt Grill a few weeks before departure. It was strictly an adults-only dinner, and they’d have to deal with being in Kids Club for two hours. Yes, there were protests, and now I feel a little guilty I didn’t organise it better as they completely missed dinner that night. They did however join us at the very end to share (devour) our desserts, so the mummy-guilt isn’t weighing too heavily. And they got burgers and pizza at the Grill on the Lido deck close to midnight.

It was quite exciting getting ready, to be honest. I got dolled up and strapped on the heels – I know it sounds silly as we weren’t actually going anywhere, but the room looked so beautiful, I wanted to fit my surroundings. I had heard so much about Salt, and I didn’t want to be disappointed. The room next door, which I call the Red Room, (I think it was supposed to be the Salt’s bar but was more of a lounge area) was my favourite spot on the Eden, so I had stolen my fair share of peeks walking past.

The first impression you get is the quiet ambiance. A ship is quite a noisy place, not complaining as I like the bustle, but you are immediately transported to a little retreat. I felt as I was in a little secret, secluded, member’s-only hideaway, something to savour for just long enough to enjoy a special meal – in peace!

Next, the decor. Red soft furnishings, black-and-white chequered tiles, trendy bird cages. Crisp linen and subdued lighting completed the look. And, very comfy chairs. We were seated at a two-person table near the heavily-curtained window (a slight panic washed over me, then I remembered we were a twosome tonight, not a quintet). The waiter and maitre’d knew our names and beautifully introduced themselves, ensured we were comfy, and glided away to get our menus.

I will be upfront with you all here. I’ve never really felt comfortable having waitstaff wait on me in an ultra formal manner. I didn’t grow up dining at 5-star establishments – the local Chinese buffet was our treat as kids – and even though I’ve reviewed countless meals and eaten at the best Sydney restaurants, I still feel a little awkward. Maybe it was the fact that I couldn’t see any other diners in Salt while were there, but I felt we got some extra special attention. Again, not complaining, but I felt a tad embarrassed. I had to stifle a giggle when the waiter came over with our bottle of still water (I couldn’t stomach any more wine) and presented it to us like a $200 bottle of Crystal.

But, I get it, there’s a standard to meet – the service, food and all the extra bells and whistles are meant to stand out as a notch above the rest of the eateries on the ship. And certainly Salt is at a different standard, a higher level, and well worth the extra bucks you’ll fork out for a very nice meal.

The lovely waiter explained the menu to us, and reiterated that we could order as many sides that we needed to accompany our mains. We started our meals with an appetiser of freshly baked za’tar bread, with olive oil and dukkah. I tired to make a joke to the waiter that I eat za’tar every day for breakfast, but I don’t think he got my attempt at lighthearted humour. Moving on….

N.B For those who don’t know what za’tar is, it a mix of toasted sesame seeds, thyme, sumac and other spices. Each family and country across the Middle-East has their own recipe. It has been around since time immemorial. It is eaten by dipping bread in olive oil then in the spice mix. You can’t stop at one mouthful.

Entrée

Me: I always order scallops if they’re on a menu, but my eyes spied the dukkah-crusted lamb and my tummy told me to stick with the Middle-Eastern flavoured theme kicked off at appetiser. I was not disappointed. The delicately sized lamb fillets were elegantly arranged with roasted pumpkin, feta, rocket, olive paste and harissa yoghurt dressing. The strong flavoured meat matched the more subtle pumpkin and dovetailed nicely with the salty, creamy feta and spicy rocket. Surprisingly, it was quite a substantial entree (where entrees are concerned). I enjoyed the harissa yoghurt which added a lasting impression.

Him: He loves sashimi and only slightly hesitated before ordering. I know he wanted to order the scallops so I could try them (God love him), but I told him to order for him. The kingfish sashimi was aromatically accentuated and beautifully presented. I think it took him about 23 seconds to wolf it down.

Main

Me: While I was already eating red meat (I didn’t want to confuse my stomach - yes I have issues), I decided on the Scotch fillet. I wouldn’t buy a grain-fed, marble score three steak for myself to cook at home, so this really was an extravagance. It was a large 300g cut, cooked medium and delectably tender. I struggled to finish it, but I did. I could never waste this gorgeous dish.

Him: The man lives for his pork, and he chose the pork chop with mashed swede and pears. I saw a slight eyebrow raise when it arrived (due to the pear), but he was soon won over by the surprising combination. He said it was the best pork chop he’d ever had and thoroughly enjoyed the smooth texture. We both had the red win jus on our mains (as recommended by our waiter).

Sides

Truffle mash potatoes – just get a vat of these delicious spuds and leave me alone. Every mouthful was decadent and filled my mouth with a luxurious blanket of deliciousness. I almost ordered another bowl, but that would make me a glutton.

Heirloom tomato salad with feta, onion and feta – tangy but a little too over dressed. Tomatoes were a little sad. It didn’t disappoint or excite me.

Steamed Mixed veggies with lemon olive oil – the lemon olive oil was the shining star in this.

Dessert

Me: I’d saved up all cruise for a chocolate hit, and the tart with grilled banana, caramel ice cream and honeycomb was scrumptious. As I mentioned before, I had gone to fetch the kids, and I managed to score two memorable mouthfuls of my dessert. That honeycomb was amazing! Literally dissolved as soon as it hit my tongue.

Him: We were advised to try Luke’s signature liquorice parfait with lime syrup and tuile, so that was hubby’s pick. It’s hard to imagine two strong flavours such as lime and liquorice to complement each other, but they did! I think it was that the texture and temperature of the parfait softened the liquorice flavour. The lime syrup was not too tart and had a perfectly measured sweetness.

The weirdest thing was getting up and walking out back into reality. For just under 2 hours, we had an out-of-ship culinary experience, and now we were forced back to the reality of life without truffled potatoes.

Why oh WHY didn’t I buy a bottle of the truffle oil?

Thank you Luke. I appreciate the thought you put into the menu and each dish, the creativity to deliver, the use of local produce and the expertise and care put into cooking our meal.

Do you want my score? I’d give Salt Grill by Luke Mangan 9.5/10.

P.S Sorry about the quality of the photos. It was quite dark and I didn't want to paparazzi-out on the food.

P.P.S I forgot to mention the price, $49pp

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Twas the night before Christmas - Christmas Edition Part 1