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Princess dishes up regional menus showcasing destination specialties

Anne Kalosh
Chef Marzi's Arawak’s Caribbean-Style Pork Chop took top honors at 8th Bacardi Cruise Competition
When the new Regal Princess sails into Florida this November to begin its maiden Caribbean cruise season, the ship will debut a new Princess Cruises dining program that showcases regional culinary specialties designed to reflect the destinations visited.

The new program will enable diners to taste regional dishes created with local produce, spices and seafood. The first special menus are inspired by the Caribbean in keeping with the ship’s fall itineraries. The regional menus will eventually roll out across the fleet, and will include culinary specialties from destinations including the Mediterranean, Alaska and Hawaii.

Examples of dishes on the Caribbean menus are Arawak’s Caribbean-Style Pork Chop, prepared with traditional Jamaican jerk spice and curry, and served with red beans, rice and rum sauce. This dish earned Princess corporate executive chef Alfredo Marzi the top prize at the 8th Annual Bacardi Bartender and Chef Cruise Competition.

Red Snapper Mojito, ceviche accented with fresh mint, mango and avocado, and finished with a splash of rum, was the winning dish created by Princess executive chef Antonio Cortese at the 6th Annual Bacardi Bartender and Chef Cruise Competition.

Another dish, Island-Spiced Jerk Chicken, is a marinade of rum, molasses, lime juice and thyme, plus sweet-and-fiery Scotch bonnet peppers.

The regional focus extends to Caribbean cocktails. Examples include Caribbean Cooler, with coconut rum, melon liqueur, banana liqueur, citrus mix and pineapple juice. The West Indies Yellow Bird offers a classic taste of the region, featuring a shaken melody of rum, Galliano and banana liqueur with orange and pineapple juice. The Cool Runnings cocktail combines rum, banana liqueur, blackberry brandy and grenadine, blended with coconut and pineapple.

Regal Princess begins its Caribbean season Nov. 6 with a short preview sailing, followed by a schedule of seven-day cruises to ports in the eastern Caribbean including St. Thomas, St. Maarten and Princess Cays in the Bahamas.