The extensive and diverse breakfast menu is one of the things I love most about Holland America. In fact, when a friend of mine recently asked me what I was most excited for on my upcoming 16-day bucket list cruise to New Zealand on the Noordam, I answered by saying, “honestly, I could eat breakfast and then nap for the rest of the day and be perfectly happy. Although I’d probably have skipped the 16-hour flight.” Sweeping landscapes, kiwi, sheep farms, Māori history and culture, wine, Lord of the Rings sights, glow worm caves, fjords? Lunch? Dinner? Walking the promenade deck? Reading while gazing at the ocean? All fine and good. But only after a hearty and delicious breakfast!
And in my opinion, no line does breakfast better than Holland America for both vegetarians (like my son and I) and non-vegetarians (like the rest of my family) alike. So for those who haven’t experienced it yet (or for those, like me, who like to experience it again and again through pics between cruises), here’s the menu, food pics, and some recommendations of can’t miss items you’ll definitely want to try.
While I have no shame in admitting that on land I celebrate all my special occasions at Olive Garden trying to break my standing record for breadstick consumption and can be found there multiple times a week during “Never Ending Pasta Bowl” season, I enjoy branching out a bit on cruises and discovering “new” (to me, even though they probably won “Top Chef” like 20 seasons ago) celebrity chefs. I even met Guy Fieri once on a Carnival Cruise (true story)!
But while I had to confess to being a vegetarian when Guy asked me which of his burgers was my favorite (also a true story and one of my more embarrassing cruise moments), I could honestly report to celebrity chef Kristen Kish, that I tried and LOVED all her breakfast items on Holland America, my favorite being the Croissant and Bread Pudding (followed by the Passion Fruit Yogurt, which is also delicious if slightly less decadent).
I also love the extensive international selections available on Holland America. While many other lines have dramatically cut back their “less popular” breakfast selections (which often end up being vegetarian and international offerings – looking at you Carnival), the international section on the HAL breakfast menu still has a pulse, for now (please continue ordering from and praising it on your post-cruise survey to avoid a similar fate).
As a huge fan of Indian food, my favorite item from the international section is the Aloo Masala and Egg Bhurji. Other members of my family have enjoyed the Full English Breakfast, the Kippered Herring, and the European Cold Breakfast Plate.
Other favorites of ours have included the Dungeness Benedict, Smoked Salmon Omelette, and Banana Bread French Toast. Are you starving yet? Meet you at the Olive Garden (only to tide us over until we meet onboard a HAL ship to eat ALL the breakfast)! And with that…
Class Dismissed!
Homework (10 points): Read about the 20 things I love about Holland America and then share to the comments YOUR favorite features of the line.
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