Thanks to the unrelenting ash of Iceland, I will miss inaugural festivities in Southampton, England, this weekend when godmother and yachtswoman Emma Pontin will do the naming honors for the new Celebrity Eclipse.
What I really will miss is a chance to taste cruising’s newest restaurant, Qsine.
While the Eclipse is Celebrity’s third in the Solstice series -- following the Solstice of 2008 and the Equinox of 2009 -- this is the first ship where Chef Jacques Van Staden, Celebrity's culinary chief, has been deeply involved in the design of the galley, and the first ship with his own restaurant, Qsine. (His brother will be head chef).
Physically, Qsine will take the place of Silk Harvest, a specialty restaurant on Solstice and Equinox.
The style will be unlike anything from Celebrity’s past.
I will have the Chintini
Van Staden promises a playful experience with his take on memorable dishes from around the world. Food -- from lobster escargot and rectangular tacos to chinese favorites in a martini glass -- will be served European style. Each item will arrive at the table as it is ready, instead of in waves of courses.
The wine list is presented on a personal touch screen, the dessert menu on a magic cube. Waiters? Of course not. Passengers will be served by "culinary tour guides."
"Our food is artfully presented, without courses, or pretense, and intended to be shared," said Van Staden, during an interview in March. "You are encouraged to experiment and try new things, choose from many concoctions." The fee will be $30 for all you can eat.
Qsine was designed with Europeans in mind. Passengers from the United Kingdom will command a majority of the cabins on the new ship this summer -- cruising to the Mediterranean, Canary Islands, Scandinavia and Russia -- before the Eclipse heads across the Atlantic next fall, for winter cruising in the Caribbean out of Miami.
That may be my first opportunity to nibble from the imagination of Jacques Van Staden.
Where the ash comes from
Great video of the volcano in Iceland from a braver man than I, at Independent Television News in the U.K.
