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nz1

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Everything posted by nz1

  1. Thanks, @boxkite! I’m glad you enjoyed following along. She’s certainly a wonderful ship! 😊
  2. Thank you for following along @asnaleah! I hope you really enjoy the Eclipse too 😊
  3. Thanks, Jim! Glad you enjoyed the posts - even the questionable orange gianduja 🤣 I’ve just been using my iPhone SE - not a fancy camera at all but does the job and quick to discreetly snap some pics 😄
  4. Thank you! I’m glad you enjoyed it 😊 We’ve really enjoyed the Eclipse and I hope you will, too! Overall I was pretty impressed with the items I had from the MDR menu, so even without Luminae, I am sure you will have a delicious experience too!
  5. So nice to meet you onboard - I really enjoyed our chats! Safe travels for your next adventures! 😊🌏🛳️
  6. Hello everyone, My previous post wraps up this live food thread from the Eclipse. We arrive back in Auckland, New Zealand tomorrow, after a wonderful cruise onboard Celebrity. I really enjoy reading other people’s experiences on cruises (particularly when it comes to food!) so I’m glad I’ve been able to contribute to this on Cruise Critic. Thanks for following, and wishing you all well and happy cruising! 🛳️🌏🥂🍲 Cheers, Brendan / NZ1
  7. Day 12: Our final dinner of the cruise arrived and of course, we went to Luminae! To start, the amuse bouche which was layered beef carpaccio and cheese. So tender and a surprisingly subtle flavour. So many layers! Followed by the arugula and melon salad with fried goats cheese, lime pickled pear, balsamic reduction, and prosciutto. I’m not a fan of melon but everything went so well together that I really enjoyed it! A really well-composed salad. For my main I chose the rack of pork with olive oil crushed potatoes and salsa verde. Overall the pork was pretty moist and had a good mild flavour. The potatoes were delicious with the olive oil flavour coming through nicely but not overpowering. For dessert, I had the orange gianduja. Now, I must admit that I giggled (or snickered) a little when it was placed on the table 😂 It looked worse in person than in this photo! It tasted really nice and the orange flavour came through really well. My partner had the vanilla baba which was basically a rum baba with vanilla icecream on top, surrounded with a citrus custard type of thing. It looked great and apparently tasted amazing! We left feeling very stuffed between all of those dishes plus plenty of bread, wine, and coffee! A great final night dinner for this cruise! ☺️
  8. Day 12: Our final sea day before arriving back in Auckland, New Zealand! We were back to our day 1 menu though I changed up my selection a little. Starting with the mozzarella sticks from the MDR menu along with some champagne and bread rolls. Followed by the grilled NY steak frites with some pinot noir. Again, so flavoursome and anyone that can make spinach taste wonderful gets a 10/10 in my book! And to finish, the pear and yoghurt clafoutis with vanilla icecream. So warming and the right amount of fruitiness and sweetness to cap off the meal, alongside some black coffee. A lovely way to spend the final sea day at lunch. The only downside being given the standard survey spiel and how important the ratings are. It is sad that the crew need to emphasise this but I understand. We can’t fault the service we’ve had this cruise as we have been very well looked after, so we will be glowing in our feedback!
  9. Yeah, sadly it’s incredibly expensive in NZ - our best lamb is exported so what remains for the local market is often sold for many $$$!
  10. I would have been excited to try the lamb burger if it was still offered. I love beef but it is nice to have some variety.
  11. Day 11: Lunch in Luminae was thankfully much better than breakfast! Starting with some champagne and a fresh herby roll. Followed by burrata salad with heirloom tomatoes, basil, and crispy parmesan. This was very refreshing and the flavours well-balanced - nothing too overpowering. Followed by the wheat fettuccine with salsa di noci. I was particularly intrigued to try this to see how the walnut flavour would work! This did not disappoint but it was surprisingly rich - so I didn’t quite finish it! I might have managed to if I had skipped the burrata salad. To finish I had the bittersweet chocolate fondant with caramelised banana and coffee gelato. While it wasn’t quite the typical fondant I had pictured, it was delicious and well-paired with the banana and gelato. Finished perfectly with some black coffee ☕️ My partner had the berry pavlova with coconut meringue and rated it as the best dessert all cruise!! High praise indeed! Feeling so full (still!) from lunch that we might have to go for an ultra-light dinner tonight instead of the traditional three courses!
  12. Day 11: Breakfast in Luminae this morning but unfortunately it wasn’t a very successful one! Started off with some pineapple juice and an apple turnover - delicious as usual. For my main I ordered the whole wheat wrap with egg whites, spinach, tomato, and swiss cheese. Accompanied by some hashbrowns and kielbasa sausage. There seemed to be quite a delay for the mains to arrive (to the point we were wondering if there was some holdup in the kitchen as it had been around 30 minutes waiting). Though with nowhere else we needed to be, we weren’t in a rush. Finally the food arrived. The wrap itself was ok but it, and the kielbasa sausage were rather cold. My partner’s breakfast was also pretty cold. Our waiter was apologetic and the maître d’ offered to get us something else but we had already got through about half of the mains so were happy to head off after we’d finished our coffees.
  13. Yeah, as a New Zealander, I couldn’t imagine eating our national icon (and I’m sure that would be illegal anyway!) But Australia has a very different relationship to their national icon 🤷‍♂️
  14. It is a bit gamey - comparable to venison, in my opinion. Definitely worth trying if you get the chance!
  15. Of course! Feel free 😊 You’re so right that the desserts often don’t really match the menu description! Sort of a leap of faith when ordering 😂
  16. 🤣 Sadly not! Though I’d be tempted to try an ostrich burger if that turned up on the menu… I’ve seen it available a bit in Aussie but never quite ‘felt’ like it! Glad you’re enjoying my food pics! I’ve always enjoyed your live threads, too! 😊
  17. You’re right, @Jim_Iain - this isn’t fleet wide. I asked our waiter about it when we were looking at the menu and he said they’d specially added Kangaroo to this particular menu due to the Eclipse being in the NZ-Australia-South Pacific. On our first cruise with Celebrity in this area, I remember both kangaroo and crocodile being available in the MDR! Both were delicious and rather exotic options!
  18. I’ll try take some photos if I go back up there during dinner time. The problem when there during dinner is that it’s difficult to take photos without getting in people’s way or getting lots of people in the photos (and I don’t want to breach anyone’s privacy!).
  19. Thank you! You are so right - the rib-eye was definitely a good size to be a main! It would be the perfect lunch time main.
  20. Unfortunately the amuse bouche is frequently fish or seafood so this is their alternative, but I know what you mean 😂
  21. Day 10: After another busy day in port, I was glad to be back in Luminae for dinner. Starting with fruit as our amuse bouche. Admiring the gorgeous smooth sea view with my syrah. For my starter, I chose the chargrilled ribeye salad with charred tomato chermoula, lime dressing, bibb lettuce, and feta. This was incredible - everything was so perfect - definitely the best starter we’ve had on the cruise so far. The steak was juicy and flavourful and balanced so nicely with the tomatoes and salad. For my main, I chose the kangaroo loin which, I was a little hesitant about as the one previous time I’ve had it, it’s been a bit dry. But, it was nicely done with braised red cabbage and potato mash, with small cocktail onions and carrots. To finish, it was hard to make a choice! So between my partner and I, we tried the three desserts on offer: The cherry cremeux with pistachio sponge, and yoghurt icecream: The strawberry soup with lemon shortbread and caramel gelato: The creme brûlée dome with lemongrass creme and berries. All three were delicious and refreshing in their own way - it was truly the right choice to get all three! Capped off once again with some decaf coffee - heaven! 🥰
  22. Day 9: Dinner in Luminae. I was excited for the main menu tonight as there were three options I was trying to decide between. Starting with refreshing fruit as our amuse bouche. I chose the BBQ pork spring roll from the MDR menu which came with chipotle coleslaw and white truffle BBQ sauce. It was a tough decision between the carbonara, the duck breast, and the Kim Chi udon. The carbonara won! This was everything I had hoped for! Such perfect balance of flavours and all-round delicious. Now for dessert… To finish I had the apple tart tatin which wasn’t quite what I expected as it was rather deconstructed! Still delightful though - especially the juicy apple. Topped off with some decaf coffee and that was that dinner accomplished! Very satisfied ☺️
  23. Day 9: By 12:00pm we were ready for lunch so it was off to Luminae to finally try their burger that I’ve heard so much about! But first, a lovely fresh, soft, and warm roll (or two!) The famous burger: This was so juicy and flavourful with a particular spice in the meat I couldn’t quite work out. Definitely a knife and fork affair - I think trying to eat it by hand would no doubt be messy! And how could I resist a chocolate lava cake for dessert - I was glad it was small! This was the perfect finish to the meal though as it was so small, it didn’t quite “lava” everywhere! But the taste was spot on. Yet another delightful sea day lunch experience ☺️
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