Uniworld River Cruises Farm-to-ship cuisine is in Uniworld’s DNA, according to Ellen Bettridge, president and CEO of Uniworld Boutique River Cruise Collection.
“We bring the very best local dishes and ingredients onboard, with [ingredients] sourced from just miles away, allowing attendees to fully immerse themselves in the culture of each destination they visit.” In short, meetings at sea and on the river are now oozing with flavor.
In Paris, this could mean homemade French onion soup; in Vienna, homemade apple strudel. Attendees will undoubtedly appreciate the sense of occasion that envelops each meal, whether progressive dine-arounds on cruise ships that have them flitting restaurant-to-restaurant for each course, a new three-course dine-in theatre experience aboard the S.S. Antoinette and S.S. Maria Theresa, or regional wine from family-operated vineyards and craft cocktails like the sassy Bordeaux, said to evoke the region with its signature aperitif, Lillet Blanc, and local tarragon. A partnership with EatWith gives attendees a taste the city via a shared meal in the home of a Uniworld River Cruises host, while Uniworld’s European voyages offer 24-hour room service, creating possibility for attendees to experience the region’s most culturally reflective culinary in their own time.
In short, meetings at sea and on the river are now oozing with flavor.
Uniworld River Cruises Culinary team building is also front and center. Groups sailing with the S.S. Joie de Vivre can dart into local markets with onboard chefs and later prepare a seven-course meal with them that includes French wine pairings from a sommelier. The River Royale offers a wine tasting and dinner combo that captures the essence of the Bordeaux region, and groups dining at Max’s Restaurant on the recently renovated S.S Beatrice have the opportunity for chef-led cooking classes that recreate local European cuisines.
Uniworld’s farm-to-ship F&B goals have their challenges, Bettridge says, especially when “local businesses close or weather affects supply.” But that’s where the river cruise line’s other specialty, local relationship building, kicks in. “We have been in business with these communities for so long that we have multiple local sources we can work with and will always work together to find a solution.”
