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INSIDE VIEW:
A CONVERSATION WITH MASTER CHEF ALFREDO MARZI OF PRINCESS CRUISES by Richard H. Wagner page one |
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Princess Cruises has a reputation for consistently good dining. One of the driving forces behind Princess' dining operation is Master Chef Alfredo Marzi. Based at Princess' head office, Chef Marzi is the line's top chef and culinary visionary. He is a dynamic individual who speaks with enthusiasm as his mind moves from idea to idea.
“I was born in Italy and was educated in Paris, Ecole Culinaire Francais August Escoffier.” Early in his career, Chef Marzi put this prestigious training to work as a chef on some of the last of the great ocean liners. “The Italian Line - - Michelangelo, Raffaello, Leonardo. My first ship was Cristoforo Columbo. I worked there 1969 to 74 and then the Italian Line closed the passenger division.” Chef Marzi thought this was “the end of my life at sea.” However, a few days after the Italian Line ended its passenger operation, a fellow chef called to tell him about a new cruise line. At first, Chef Marzi was not interested. Then his friend pointed out: “You have a girl in New York and the ship is out of New York. On April 8, 1974 I joined Princess.” “I joined this company 41 years ago when this company was really two small ships. It was less than 500 people in the entire fleet including the office. Today, it is 18 ships plus four in Australia and it is over 30,000 employees. At that time, it was only two nationalities. Today, 78 nationalities work for Princess.” Today, Chef Marzi wears several hats for Princess. “The master chef is the person, based in our office in Santa Clarita [California], who goes around from ship to ship making sure our product is up to the standard.” “I am also the Director of Menu Planning. There is a team of people in the office that put this menu together. In hospitality, you need to work as a team to create something.” Finally, “I am the Culinary Ambassador. I do shows on TV sometimes, I do shows onboard. When it is the world cruise, I go onboard and I do 10 or 12 culinary classes.” Dining on Princess Dining on Princess Cruises has evolved as the cruise line has grown and become more of a worldwide operation. “We used to use a continental cuisine, primarily Italian. Now, our cuisine is international cuisine. Princess Cruises, until 20 years ago, 98 percent of the customers were [from] the United States, Canada and the UK. Two percent were the rest of the world. Today, some 60 percent are American, Canadian and UK.” “From the first of January [2015], all the ships, no matter where the cruise is, [the menus in the main dining rooms will] have a new layout and include regional cuisine. When a ship is in the Mediterranean, you get the Mediterranean flavor. When the ship moves to Alaska, you have Alaskan flavors - - fresh fish: salmon halibut, rock fish - - all fresh daily.” |
Above: Chef Marzi giving a culinary demonstration aboard a Princess ship.
This does not mean that every item on the menu will be a regional dish. Rather, each night one or more of the items will have a regional connection. These items are identified on the menu. “You have a little sign for New Zealand - - the leaves [that are] the emblem of New Zealand. When it is Australia, you have the kangaroo. In the Caribbean, it is palm trees. Underneath, it says this sign is to focus [the guest's attention on] the regional cuisine.”
Developing a new set of menus for a cruise line is an involved process. “I do a lot of research. My hobby is to eat all over the world. When I am in Cape Town, Sydney, London or New York, I try to visit the restaurants that are ala mode [i.e. of the moment]. When I am in Lisbon, I don't want to go and have a dish of pasta or curry, I want to get the local cuisine. I want to go where the local people go. I get there, I take pictures, I ask for a copy of the menu. Then I go back to the office [and work] with the team.” Just because Chef Marzi likes a particular dish, does not mean that it will appear as an item on a Princess menu. “You need to know who is your customer. I need to find out what my customer likes. Food is very personal. For example, I do not like tomato. For me, tomato is not good. I hate cinamon but that does not mean that everything with cinamon is not good. It is very personal food.” There are also logistics to consider. “I cannot decide tomorrow, put an expresso on the menu. I have to call the purchasing department and say how much is the cost of the coffee, what is the availabilty of the coffee worldwide 365 days a year. You need all these things.” Even if a new menu item or concept appears viable, it is not immediately rolled out fleetwide. “You do it in one ship, maybe two and you take the feedback from the passengers. Maybe you adjust, change or add something.” For example, the regional cuisine menus were tested first on the new Regal Princess. “The feedback on the Regal Princess was fantastic.” |
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Cruise ship interview - - Princess Cruises - - Master Chef and Culinary Ambassador Alfredo Marzi - - page 1