Qsine restaurant onboard Celebrity Cruises Eclipse
Phil: There is a new restaurant opening soon....but you won't be able to drive to it, or take a taxi ride there, neither can you go by train or tube or bus....why? Because it moves around..!! It is in fact, onboard Celebrity Cruises new Solstice class ship - ECLIPSE - due to launch in April 2010.
Qsine
Here's the press release.
The brainchild of Celebrity’s Vice President of Culinary Operations, Chef Jacques Van Staden, Qsine presents guests with an unexpected, modern approach to familiar dishes from around the world.
“Our guests love new and different dining experiences, and we’ve designed Qsine to deliver that in a big way,” said Van Staden. “Qsine is designed to offer a globally-influenced blend of nostalgic and contemporary favorites, artfully presented with elements of surprise.”
Van Staden says Qsine also will further validate Celebrity’s leadership position in offering world-class dining experiences, as evidenced in the brand’s stunningly designed, guest-inspired Solstice Class specialty restaurants including Tuscan Grille, Blu, Murano and Silk Harvest, not to mention the series of intimate venues on Celebrity’s Millennium Class foursome.
Qsine’s menu design alone – a large, backlit square filled with words and phrases designed to engage guests in the experience – implies that Qsine is an unusual place. And the cuisine makes it abundantly clear, with most of the selections so unique that nearly all of the dishes and plating have been designed exclusively for Celebrity.
Among the selections are spring rolls nestled in vertical springs, “Sushi Lollipops” (Nigiri sushi with soy center, wasabi mayonnaise and pickled ginger-radish salad), “Meatball Trilogy” (Kobe beef with cheddar and marinara sauce; veal with mushrooms and marsala sauce; and turkey with cranberry and sage gravy), “Chitinis” (Chinese selections served in martini glasses), “Tresviche” (tiger shrimp and bay scallops with lemon juice, tequila, cilantro, tomatoes and jalapeno oil), “Popcorn Fish & Chips” (Boddington’s-battered codfish and chips served with malt vinegar or aioli), “Slider Party” (mini-grilled Kobe beef patties with aged Wisconsin cheddar served on brioche buns with “Qsine’s original slider sauce” and garnishes), “Taco Royale” (Black Angus sirloin steak, homemade taco shells, caramelized onion-poblano, and
And, for the first time on a Celebrity ship – just one week after announcing the hip, new “Celebrity iLounge” – Celebrity has designed a means for guests to capitalize on technology to easily review and order wines via the latest touch-screen devices.
Even the uniforms of the wait staff illustrate the venue’s unique nature. Designed by Van Staden and custom-made exclusively for Celebrity, the jackets are decidedly asymmetrical and sport square buttons, and are intended to illustrate that the wait staff also are considered chefs, offering guests a highly interactive and personalized dining experience. Capping the Qsine experience is a series of desserts whose menu is as sweet and surprising as its selections: A hinged, twistable cube presents options ranging from candied apples to popcorn to individual cookie jars.
“Qsine is designed to surprise our guests with uniquely unordinary dishes, innovative presentations and engaging experiences,” said Van Staden. “It’s designed to allow them to share with each other, sample several different selections, and simply experience both new and favorite foods in an entirely fun and unexpected way.”
Qsine will be open nightly on Celebrity
Guests booked to sail on Celebrity
Phil's comment: I just love where Solstice Class is heading. Their distinct dining options really are bringing a new exciting cullinary edge to big ship cruising. What I really like on the Solstice class ships is the superb design that allows all the speciality restaurants to be accommodated in one area of the ship. It really does work...I hope I have the chance to report back about Qsine at some point....
For great deals on Celebrity Cruises Solstice class ships visit my CelebrityCruiseDeals website.
This is a cruise blog entry by Phil
