Windstar Cruises, a premium cruise line with six ships that range from 148-342 passengers, has announced that they will be rolling out a new plant based menu on all of their vessels.
These new offerings will not only be plant based, but will also be gluten-free and prepared without added salt, oil, and sugar. Windstar Cruises partnered with the National Health Association to create the new menu.
The new menu will begin rolling out in June on Windstar’s cruise ships and the cruise line has begun to train their culinary team on the new menu.
Vegetarian options, as well as the cruise line’s existing omnivore menu items, will continue to be served as usual.
Sample dishes from this new menu include the following:
- Daily Smoothies at Breakfast
- Roasted Butternut Squash Velouté with Baked Pumpkin Seeds
- Baked Cauliflower Croquettes with Salsa Verde and Sautéed Spinach
- Penne Rigate Pasta, with Crisp Vegetables and Espelette Pepper Sauce
- Veggie Enchiladas with Black Bean & Cilantro Sauce
- Chia Seed Truffles with Dates & Coconut Sauce
- Tahini Brownies with Fresh Strawberries
“The National Health Association points out that vegetarian and vegan diets are not always healthy, and for meals to be truly health-promoting, they also need to be minimally processed and prepared,” explains Windstar’s Director of Hotel Operations Peter Tobler, who oversees food and beverage operations. “We’ve seen an increased demand for whole-food, plant-based dishes from our customers, and we’re really excited to work with the NHA to bring them something that’s nutritious and delicious. As a side benefit, plant-based foods also reduce our environmental footprint – a major goal of Windstar’s – allowing us to tread more lightly on this planet.”
“The Windstar culinary team has knocked it out of the park in executing the specific requirements of our meals,” Wanda Huberman, executive director of the National Health Association, says. “Every meal is absolutely delicious and served in a beautiful presentation with so much variety that no one will leave a meal feeling hungry or less than satisfied.”
The menu evolved out of hosting several plant-based groups, which have grown significantly in popularity since the start of the pandemic. Lisa McCarl, a former open heart recovery nurse turned travel advisor, has booked several plant-based groups on Windstar and says there is a huge demand for healthy travel options.
“More people are changing the way they eat to prevent and reverse diet-related disease. Why not make it easy for them to continue that healthy lifestyle while sailing on the trip of a lifetime? Windstar is doing a phenomenal job in making healthy cruising a reality.”
