Virgin Voyages To Rival Food Scene of World-Famous Cities
The newly launched Virgin Voyages has unveiled details of its onboard eateries, which include an expansive array of restaurants ranging from haute cuisine to casual fare, and designed to rival the food scene of the world’s most famous cities.
With a total of 20-plus food choices onboard Virgin Voyages’ first ship, Scarlet Lady, the company released new designs for its restaurants, seaside lounges and casual eateries by their Creative Collective, which includes world-renowned designers from Roman and Williams, Tom Dixon, Concrete Amsterdam and Soft Room, amongst others.
According to officials, Virgin Voyages does not believe in paying more for great food and ditched the traditional surcharges levied when dining in speciality restaurants at sea. Virgin has designed all eateries on board to offer exceptional made-to-order eats and opted to include all restaurant food in the voyage fare.
“We want our eateries to delight and ignite serendipitous experiences for our sailors, so have set out on a mission to capture the spirit of dining in the best cities of the world and bring it to sea,” said Tom McAlpin, president and chief executive officer for Virgin Voyages. “Because food is the fuel for our bodies and souls, and we’re Virgin Voyages, naturally it all had to be included within your ticket price.”
Virgin Voyages will offer cruisers a uniquely elevated and boutique Adult-by-Design experience for the 18-plus traveller. It aims to be one of the cleanest fleets at sea, with a ban on single-use plastics and no buffet on board the ship the company will significantly reduce waste and reinvest savings into clean technology and quality products. The 2,770-passenger Scarlet Lady is designed to reflect a yacht’s sleek luxury and will set sail from Miami for the 2020 season.
“There’s a Virgin twist on everything you’ll see aboard the Scarlet Lady, which means there will be no stuffy formalities, boring buffets and no main dining rooms. Sailors are not going to want to leave our ship after they experience how we’ve designed our restaurants and tasted the dishes we are going to be serving up in 2020,” said Sir Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group.
Virgin Voyages will bring city-like eating to sea and throw out the traditional cruise dining rule book, with no buffet, no main dining room, no forced formal wear, no assigned seating, no assigned dining times and enhanced the choice for guests to grab a bite by keeping restaurant doors open until well into the night and in some cases the early hours of the morning.
Sample venues include:
Wake: Situated in a 5,866-square-foot restaurant at the aft of the ship, designed by Roman and Williams, Wake offers guests a dramatic view of the ship’s wake. Serving a theatrical take on steak and seafood, Wake is the most glamorous restaurant on the ship with an experience inspired by The Wolseley – London and The Grill – New York. Offerings include a raw bar (design inspired by the bow of a speedboat), land and sea classics, a table-side cocktail cart and a Sommelier led Magnum program.
Razzle Dazzle: With an interior scheme that nods to the namesake, the bold camouflaging of ships from WWI using patterns of black and white paint, Razzle Dazzle was designed by Concrete Amsterdam. The “nice” menu offers plant-based vegetarian and vegan dishes, while the “naughty” side enables passengers to order meat “add-ons” and offers to spike their healthy smoothies with boozy shots.
The Test Kitchen will offer guests innovative and avant-garde cuisine in a clean and modern space designed by Concrete Amsterdam. Inspired by Escoffier’s Ma Cuisine, this laboratory-like eatery is part cooking school and part restaurant, making it the ultimate place for discovery through cuisine with an atmosphere that is educational, experiential and social all in one.
Geonbae, the equivalent of the expression bottoms up in Korean, is a Korean BBQ restaurant designed by Soft Room. Hosted by the loudest servers at sea, each meal will begin with a complimentary round of soju for the table and throughout the evening sailors are encouraged to take part in lively Korean drinking games. A social, hands on, interactive, fun dining experience, Geonbae features specially engineered flameless grills built into each table and invites guests to literally play with their food as they cook their perfect BBQ.
An elevated Mexican restaurant designed by Tom Dixon, Pink Agave transports sailors to the vibrant streets of Mexico City through immersive void lighting. Offering a wide variety of Mexican specialties that inspire sailors to discover authentic Mexican flavours including tlayudas, memelas, sopes, tortas, esquites, and tamales.
Extra Virgin is the ship’s trattoria serving regionally inspired and approachable food, deeply rooted in Italian culinary traditions with handmade fresh pasta made daily.
The dock is a perfect place to hang day and night. Set in the ship’s sun-dappled lounging area at the aft of the ship on deck 7, The Dock is a beach club-inspired space designed by Roman and Williams. Carts of Mediterranean small plates, salads, dips and mezzes provide perfect graving options throughout the day.
Modeled on popular food halls where visitors can taste a cornucopia from different restaurants, The Galley will be the main space for the quick and casual meal throughout the day. The food hall will feature a mix of more than eight shops and food carts, each offering a unique concept with irresistible signature dishes that changes to suit the time of day.
No pre-cooked pizza slices sitting under warming lamps will be found on Scarlet Lady. Guests can choose from the classic menu or design their very own bespoke pizza.
