Speciality restaurants - a brief guide to some of the best.

Eating well at great restaurants is one of life's guilty pleasures, whether it's leave-you-speechless haute cuisine or roll-up-your-sleeves grazing. And there's good news for true gourmands. Some of the world's stellar chefs/proprietors of those so-hot-you-can't-get-a-table citadels are jumping onboard.


What's fresh and enticing is that cruise lines are raising the food bar by developing partnerships with such storied chefs as Jacques Pepin, Wolfgang Puck, Nobu, Todd English and Charlie Palmer. While you may rarely find these chefs in a cruise ship kitchen -- er, galley -- they do create menus, train chefs, and consult on front-of-the-house operations ranging from wait staff training to ambience.



Check out a few of our favourites
Celebrity Cruises


Venue: The continental-themed, uber-formal alternative restaurants on most ships in the fleet (save for Galaxy and Mercury) offer a traditional European dining experience.


At the Helm: At this point, Celebrity is one of the few cruise lines that doesn't have a celebrity chef partnership (its longtime relationship with Michelin-starred chef Michel Roux ended a few years ago).


Palate Pleasers: Fantastic wine list, superb cheese course, goat cheese starter, lamb, lobster and steaks.

Crystal Cruises
Venue: Silk Road and the Sushi Bar

At the Helm: Nobu, creator of the world renowned Matsuhisa in Los Angeles, has now developed restaurants around the world. Silk Road and the Sushi Bar are his only sea-going ventures.

Sea for Yourself: Silk Road and the Sushi Bar are on both Crystal Symphony and Crystal Serenity. There's a $7 per person recommended service charge for the restaurant. There's no cover fee for dining at the sushi bar.

Seabourn Cruise Line
At the Helm: Chef-restaurateur Charlie Palmer, known for his progressive American cuisine, oversees recipe creation and menu planning at all the eateries on Seabourn's ships. Palmer's claim to fame? New York's Aureole, California's Dry Creek Kitchen, and Charlie Palmer Steak (numerous locales from Las Vegas to Washington, D.C.).

Sea for Yourself: Tastings@2 is on Seabourn Legend, Seabourn Pride and Seabourn Spirit. There is no cover charge.
Cunard Line

Venue: Todd English offers Mediterranean-influenced cooking in a funky, contemporary atmosphere.

At the Helm: Todd English, celebrated for his Olives restaurants in Boston, Washington D.C., New York and Las Vegas, oversees the eateries.
Sea for Yourself: Todd English is on Queen Mary 2 and Queen Victoria. There's a $20 cover charge for lunch; it's $30 for dinner.

P&O Cruises

Venue: The White Room

At the Helm: Marco Pierre White, the youngest British chef to be awarded three Michelin stars and head chef in the U.K.'s ITV show, "Hell's Kitchen," takes his creative cuisine to sea.

Sea for Yourself: The White Room is found on P&O's Ventura. The cost to dine there is £20 per person on two-week voyages, £25 per person on seven-day holidays and £30 per person on short-break cruises. Or for £100 per couple, you can order from The White Room's full menu and dine on your balcony; the dinner comes with a bottle of champagne, a butler and flowers.


Which restaurant has been your favourite ? Let me know.