Tell us about the crew.
There’s one thing Wind and the Willows about the uniforms of sage and butter-yellow vests and salmon-pink ties, and their wearers are simply as charming – irrespective of what number of instances we cross one another in the slender corridors every day, I marvel at the cheeriness with which I’m greeted and the fixed patter they sustain on excursions. Everyone feels as excited as we are to be right here for the debut voyage, and different company inform me that the workers have made their journey really feel particular. I’m additionally ceaselessly impressed with the smoothness with which suitcases are whisked away and reappear when wanted, beds are flipped and rooms reset throughout breakfast, and umbrellas and jackets materialise out of skinny air when the climate throws a tantrum.
What meals and drink choices can be found on board?
The farm-to-fork menus have been created by pioneering chef Simon Rogan, identified for his three Michelin-starred restaurant L’Enclume – lots of the components come from his farm in Cartmel, and future company on the Lake District route could have the alternative to go behind the scenes there. Eighty per cent of the menu is already domestically sourced, with the relaxation coming from trusted suppliers, and it’s all impressed by the vacation spot (for coastal Cornwall, which means a number of seafood).
Breakfast is a continental unfold of sourdough crumpets, yoghurt with currants and granola, farmhouse cheeses and eggs any which method. For lunch, we have John Dory with crispy kale someday, and a full Sunday lunch of both beef fillet or a mushroom and squash mini wellington the subsequent (all scrumptious, however future plans to host some lunches off board, comparable to Cornish seashore barbecues or Welsh nation picnics, would possibly add some welcome selection). A seven-course tasting menu takes in blue lobster atop a hedgerow-green hogweed puree, brill filled with hazelnuts, and a fairly crab and seaweed savoury custard studded with sweetcorn and garlanded with tiny flowers.