Holland America to Host 65 Culinary Experts in 2010
Holland America to Host 65 Culinary Experts in 2010
Published on: February 9, 2010
Holland America Line ships this year will host more than 65 guest culinary experts in its Culinary Arts Center, presented by Food & Wine Magazine. Culinary notables this season include Bravo-TV’s “Top Chef” contender, Nikki Cascone; Mark Bittman, food columnist for The New York Times and cookbook author; and Keith Coburn, television personality of the hit series “Deadliest Catch.”
“Because the Culinary Arts Center is such a hit, we will continue to expand the program and provide our guests with the enriching culinary experiences that have made it so successful,” said Richard D. Meadows, executive vice president-marketing, sales and guest programs. “For those who love to cook and cruise, there is no more enjoyable vacation experience than taking over a fully stocked and equipped professional kitchen with an expert chef as guide.”
The 2010 season lineup includes Dean James Max, executive chef of 3030 Ocean in Florida aboard Westerdam, March 28 to April 4; Marisol Koczal Simon, culinary educator, author and chef aboard Prinsendam, April 9 to 26; Lon Symensa, executive chef, Buddakan in New York City, winner of the 1996 U.S. Culinary Olympic team, on Eurodam, May 9 to 19; Martin Blunos, U.K. television personality and chef sailing on Eurodam, May 29 to June 8; Lars Kronmark, executive chef instructor at The Culinary Institute of America in California, aboard the inaugural sailing of Nieuw Amsterdam, July 4 to 14; Tre Wilcox, executive chef, culinary educator and “Top Chef” contender, aboard Statendam, July 25 to Aug. 1; Bryan Caswell, chef/owner, Reef and Little Bigs in Houston, Prinsendam, Aug. 8 to 18; Barbara Lynch, James Beard award winner, recipient of Food & Wine Magazine’s “Ten Best New Chefs” award, executive chef and owner of Number 9 Park in Boston, Noordam, Sept. 18 to 28; Paul McCabe, executive chef, L’Auberge in Del Mar, Calif., named “rising star of American Cuisine” by the James Beard Foundation, Amsterdam, Oct.20 to 29; and Joey Campanaro, chef/owner, The Little Owl in New York City, aboard Amsterdam, Oct. 29 to Nov.12.
The line’s complimentary demonstration classes are one element of the culinary enrichment program. The program also features one-hour food-and-mixology demonstrations, wine tastings, party-planning sessions, ice carving, floral arranging workshops and hands-on cooking classes for kids. A new feature in the line’s culinary program is “Dine with the Chef” held in the Culinary Arts Center. A combination of a cooking demonstration and a fine-dining experience, guests sit at elegantly set tables and interact with the chef as he or she prepares a five-course dinner in which each course is paired with an appropriate wine.
A permanently installed, state-of-the-art “show kitchen at sea,” the Culinary Arts Centers resemble the show kitchens used by celebrity chefs on television cooking programs. Each facility features a theater-style venue, with two large video screens to display overhead and close-up video views of food preparation, and a large cooking display counter. Culinary demonstrations are also filmed and aired on in-stateroom televisions.