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Michael Schwartz’s new 150 Central Park restaurant on Royal Caribbean’s mega-ship Oasis of the Seas opened for dinner this past Saturday.
The only catch is that in order to dine at the restaurant, which features fresh produce from Swank Farms, you must buy a week-long voyage with rack rate cabin prices ranging from about $1,400 – $9,000 per person, based on double occupancy.
Short Order sampled the restaurant’s canapes and toasted to the new endeavor with chef Schwartz and 150 Central Park’s chef de cuisine, Jamie Seyba.
150 Central Park is Oasis of the Seas’ premium restaurant, with an
upcharge of $40 per person. In a ship that holds over 5,000 passengers,
150 Central Park provides an intimate dining experience, with only
about 60 covers a night served. The restaurant features a
multi-course tasting menu and the chef will explain the courses to diners during the service.
When asked about any specific
challenges cooking on the ship, Schwartz named one blazing difference –
fire. For obvious reasons, open flames aren’t allowed on ships and
Schwartz had to re-imagine his style of cooking, “I’m a fire guy, so
working without flame was really hard at first,” he told Short Order.
Seyba, who is now employed by Royal Caribbean told us how he was chosen for
the position, “Chef Michael asked a few of us at Michael’s Genuine Food
& Drink to participate in a mini competition. We were asked to
create a multi-course tasting menu for him and the other managers at
the restaurant. I’m sure there were other factors involved, but after a
couple weeks, he brought me into the office and told me that I had
received the position.”
The next sailing of Oasis of the Seas is Saturday, November 5 out of Port Everglades.The ship sails weekly to the Caribbean.
Here’s a video featuring the making of the restaurant:
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