Decisions. Decisions. There are so many restaurant options on Holland America‘s Koningsdam that every evening of a week on board can be a different dining experience curated by seven internally known master chefs on its Culinary Council. Fortunately, our Koningsdam Caribbean cruise is a leisurely 10 days long and so we have the luxury of dining a second time if we choose.
Several of the specialty restaurants do come at premium to the cruise fare, and that’s a trend on cruises everywhere. But here, the extra fees bring premium dining that’s worth every cent and restaurants that are elegant and intimate. Here’s a free taste of the award-winning lineup:
Soaring cuisine in the Dining Room
Koningsdam’s complimentary main dining room features sea views to the sides and rear of the ship. Gracefully curved arches in the walls and ceilings make the atmosphere elegant and break the large room on two levels into a number of small spaces accentuated by multi-colored blown-glass chandeliers. A centerpiece of the room is a two-story glass and copper wine tower holding 700 bottles.
The two-level space feels much more intimate than its actual capacity of over 1,000 guests. A downside of the soaring architecture and solid surfaces is that the decibel level rises when the room is full, especially if you’re seated near the center.
The menu is a little different than you may be used to at sea. Rather than separate appetizer and soup sections, all the pre-entrée choices are listed as starters and you can select as many as you wish.
Entrées feature chefs’ suggestions from Holland America’s Culinary Council, along with classic cruise favorites, vegetarian options, and regionally inspired dishes. The dessert menu including Holland America’s classic bread pudding is definitely worth saving room for.
Guests can choose whether to arrange a pre-assigned seating and dining time for the complimentary dinners, or to select As You Wish and dine at any time they choose. Tables for two on gala nights for that option in the popular 7 to 8 p.m. time slot might require a wait and guests are given pagers, but they seem to be seated quickly. Dinner is complimentary, with some menu items such as lobster at an extra charge.
Sel de Mer, not to be missed
It’s a cozy brasserie that seats little more than 30, decorated with murals of classical Parisian scenes on the walls and whimsical plates featuring foods arranged to resemble faces on the tables. This is the splurge restaurant of choice to celebrate a special event on your cruise. On our Caribbean cruise, we actually booked twice for no particular reason, other than that it’s one of the finest gourmet experiences at sea, inspired by Holland America Culinary Council Master Chef Rudi Sodamin.
A glass case at the entrance showcases the fresh fish and specialties from the sea that are centerpieces of the menu, but the carte also features Chef Rudi’s inventive coq au vin and tournedos Rossini and a whole duck a l’orange for two.
Starters include fois gras, marinated lobster and classic escargots, served with breads fresh from the oven. I’ve had Dover sole around the world and the way it’s prepared and served here beats the best I’ve had anywhere else. And you can’t go wrong with Rudi’s interpretation of French bistro favorites like steak frites or bouillabaisse. Desserts including profiteroles or Salzberger Nockerl are accompanied by a tree-like stand of heavenly fresh-made chocolate truffles and Turkish delight. Delightful.
The good news is that a recent pricing shift from a la carte to a set cover charge of $40 a person has made this ultra-premium restaurant a relative bargain. The meal and the service will be a highlight of your cruise.
Pinnacle Grill reaches for the top
This is the classic steak house on Holland America and the largest specialty restaurant on Koningsdam because of its popularity as well as its menu. Specialty dishes created by famed New York Chef David Burke include a signature braised short ribs with wild mushrooms and truffle mousse. The familiar lobster bisque, crab cakes and Caesar salad are among the starters but there are also Burke’s appetizers include Pastrami Salmon and a humorous candied bacon clothesline, in which the strips are hung on a string over the plate.
Are you hungry enough to order the President’s Cut Tomahawk 36-ounce bone in rib eye steak, billed as the largest steak at sea? Of course, it’s designed to be shared around the table, but there are many more manageable portions of prime steak on the menu of sustainably raised beef. Seafood specialties include Alaskan king salmon or king crab, as well as halibut, which doesn’t have a regal title but is crowned with morel mushrooms and champagne vinaigrette.
Desserts include chocolate soufflé and cheesecake lollipops designed by another Culinary Council member, award-winning pastry chef Jacques Torres. The supplement is $29 a guest.
Canaletto, for a taste of Italy
With a reservation you can dine in an elegantly decorated specialty area that by day is part of the Lido Market but in the evening is transformed to Canaletto, where the menu is Italian and plates of fresh pasta, meat or fish are served in a style that encourages “Spartire,” Italian for sharing.
Rather than first and second courses, the menu includes small plates which include antipasto selection or calamari and large plates of things like lasagne, ravioli or braised short ribs. Each day has a special, which may be chicken parmigiana, osso bucco or jumbo shrimps. The fee is $19 a guest.
Tamarind and Nami Sushi, Asian flair
The Pan-Asian restaurant is a quiet and expansive hideaway tucked into an almost secret area on Koningsdam’s top deck, with a view overlooking a pool. Its design and menu emphasize nature’s basic elements: water, wood, fire and earth.
The starters served on elegant Asian plates include tempuras, spring rolls and Thai soups. I was delighted with the succulent Chinese five-spice baby back ribs. Crispy duck or crusted barramundi are among the standout entrées. The dessert choices span a separate menu of eastern and western goodies. There’s a supplement of $25 per guest. A special Indonesian rijsttafel dinner is offered at the restaurant once a cruise by reservation, priced at $30.
The adjoining Nami sushi bar’s menu offers a la carte signature sushi rolls and sashimi developed by Chef Andy Matsuda, who heads the Sushi Chef Institute in Los Angeles.
Lido Market and the pool zone eateries
Through the day Koningsdam features a marketplace-style series of serving stations rather than the typical buffet. Zones include the Roasting Pan for hand carved meats and fish, Distant Lands for sushi and exotic fare from India and China, Wild Harvest for made to order salads and Homestead for “comfort classics” like mac and cheese. There’s a big station devoted entirely to gourmet breads, another to sandwiches and others to extensive selections of desserts and ice creams.
The complimentary Market serves breakfast and lunch and some stations stay open through the afternoon. In the evening, it’s an early-birds’ dinner area, but service shuts down at 8.
Options that are also complimentary include: Dive-In, a take-out burger window adjacent to the pool and the New York Deli & Pizza on the upper pool deck. At both, you place your order and get a pager that buzzes when it’s time to go pick up the meal. By the way, there’s generally no waiting if all you want is fries at Dive-In—and they are really good.
Grand Dutch Café, for tastes of Holland
It’s all very Amsterdam (but sorry, no hash brownies). This café that wraps around the third deck atrium not only has an authentic (and complimentary) Dutch menu, its staff hails from Holland as well. Everything from Kroket (breaded snacks) to poffertjes and pannekoek (pancakes) to herring and Gouda cheeses are served on Royal Delft ware. (Believe it or not, amid all the tempting noshes here’s something called a Healthy sandwich). Dutch beer’s on draft and it’s got the best coffee and Dutch hot chocolate on the ship as well, although the drinks come at extra charge.
For a souvenir to take home, there are authentic bags of not often exported Dutch candies and liquorices you can buy.
Blend your own vino
Love full bodied red wines? Then you’ll love this hands-on opportunity to create your own blend and find out what creates the tang of your favorite pour.
It’s a partnership with Washington State winery Chateau Ste. Michelle. Guests pay a rather steep $129 each to join a small group for a seminar in the art of blending red wine varieties from the chateau’s vineyards into a custom mix that suits the guests’ individual tastes. It’s remarkable how even a 5 percent difference in the amount of cabernet sauvignon, merlot or cabernet franc in a wine can radically change not only the taste and mouth feel of a blend but even its fragrance.
Then the chemistry begins, as you actually tap big wine kegs to blend an elixir to your personal tastes in big beakers, pour it into a bottle, cap it and create a label. You can take it to dinner (or find a way to take it home) and regale your friends about your own personal vintage (and how maybe there’s a future for you as a wine taster).
G Gelato is too tempting
And then there’s the indulgence that calls to you every time you go near the pool on Koningsdam. The gelato at this bar is home-made by staff who have trained in Italy and it’s decadently rich and infinitely tasty. A small cup is priced at $2 and believe me, it’s so rich and satisfying, you won’t need anything larger. There are Gelato popsicles as well.
Pick any flavour. Enough said.
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