Team C&J
Embark on a culinary journey aboard the Island Princess Cruise Ship, where the dining experiences are a journey in and of themselves. This mid-sized marvel, designed to navigate the intricate Panama Canal, offers a variety of specialty restaurants, where guests are invited to explore tastes from around the globe, from the elegant Provence and Bordeaux dining areas, included with your cruise fare, to the traditional flavors of Sabatini’s Italian Trattoria, and the rich, New Orleans-inspired Bayou Café & Steakhouse. The unparalleled Chef’s Table Experience promises an intimate peek into the culinary artistry that sets this ship apart.
Coupling these restaurants with exceptional service that attends every meal and every guest, dining on the Island Princess is an experience crafted to impress. As you sail through the historic Panama Canal, discover a world where exquisite cuisine meets impeccable service, making your voyage truly unforgettable. Prepare to tantalize your taste buds while exploring new horizons aboard the Island Princess.
The Island Princess is a specially designed, mid-sized cruise ship from Princess Cruises that was built to take travelers through the Panama Canal. Due to the massive size of many cruise ships, most are unable to make this narrow journey.
This liner made its inaugural voyage over 20 years ago, in 2003, and was modernized and refurbished in 2017. The Island Princess Cruise Ship carries about 2,200 guests (not including the 900-person crew), while the average cruise ship carries roughly 3,000 guests.
With a whopping 16 decks on board, and just under 1,000 cabins, there are ample opportunities to take in the spectacular ocean views from a variety of heights and locations aboard the ship.
When you dine on the Island Princess, you have a few different options. As you may already know, when you purchase your ticket for the cruise, some food is already included.
Meals in the main dining areas like Provence and Bordeaux are included in the cost of your ticket. You can also take advantage of grab-and-go snacks and meals in the International Cafe.
The number of chefs on a Princess cruise ship is astonishing, and they put so much effort into what is provided on-board. Provence, located on Deck 6, and Bordeaux, located on Deck 5, are designed to reflect a similar aesthetic and daily changing menu. As far as the decor, think polished wood, white table clothes, and calming neutral and brown tones.
It’s also worth mentioning that Bordeaux is open for breakfast, lunch (on sea days only), afternoon tea, and dinner. This space welcomes everyone for breakfast, lunch, and afternoon tea with a relaxed, open seating arrangement. Provence is only open for dinner.
For those seeking an exclusive experience, priority seating and a private dining area are available to qualifying Princess Cruise Line guests and those staying in select rooms.
Sabatini’s Italian Trattoria serves a traditional Italian menu with items like Fritto Misto, Burrata Caprese, Lobster Tortellini, Bolognese, Osso Bucco, and Veal Scallopini. The decor is Tuscan-inspired, with painted “al frescos” throughout the dining room.
We found the food to be very good, but Sabatini’s offers the same menu every night. It’s a restaurant we think you should visit just once, but unless you really love the food, there are other options.
Bayou Cafe & Steakhouse is another popular specialty restaurant on the Island Princess Cruise Ship. This classic steakhouse has a New Orleans theme, with a dark wood interior, coffered ceiling and mahogany tables.
Menu options include big Tiger Prawns, Beef Tartare, Spiny Lobster Cakes, Chilean Sea Bass, and several cuts of steak.
The vibe here is similar to that in Sabatini’s in that the food is very good, but the menu doesn’t change. So if you like steak, that’s great, but if you want more variety during your stay, you don’t need to dine here more than once.
We’ve enjoyed the Chef’s Table Experience on several Princess Cruises, and this one was by far the best. The five-course tasting menu and wine pairing consisted of a Salmon Gravlax and Caviar starter, a Seafood Bisque with Brandy Cream, a palate cleanser of sorbet, the choice of Roasted Salmon or Beef Tenderloin, and a Lemon Mousse for dessert.
The Chef’s Table is a unique dining experience because this menu is only offered here, and you actually get to meet the Executive Chef, Raggie Raphael Saldanha, and go into the kitchen!
Everything was outstanding, from the service, to the wine pairing (really nice Livio Feluga Sauvignon Blanc), to the food and the presentation. Hats off to the entire team.
The Island Princess Cruise Ship allows guests to bring ONE bottle of wine or champagne per person, with each additional bottle charged a corkage fee of $15 per bottle. It’s also worth noting that bottles enjoyed within your room are not charged a corkage fee. You are only charged a corkage fee for bottles enjoyed outside of your room.
Our biggest take away from our experience dining on the Island Princess cruise ship was that the food was good, but it was the service that truly set the entire experience apart from other cruises we’ve taken. All of the restaurants we dined in had impeccable staff and services. Everything was intuitive and we were never left waiting for anything.
It’s incredible what the Executive Chef team of Raggie Raphael Saldanha, pull off day in and day out. It really is quite a feat to execute such quality cuisine in such large quantities, but they do it with ease.
We have to give a big shout out to Daniele Rosafio, the Director of Restaurant Operations on the Island Princess, to Mario, the head of our section in the Bordeaux Room, and our waiters, Ley, Jonel, Tyrone!
And a special shout out to the new Sommelier on the Island Princess: Sydney, he was outstanding as well.
When was the Island Princess last refurbished?
Princess Cruise Lines is pretty good about modernizing their fleet, and the Island Princess received a top to bottom refurbishment in December 2017.
Is Island Princess adult only?
While the Island Princess Cruise Ship is open to all ages, you tend to see fewer children on this cruise in the spring, fall, and winter months. Summer tends to bring more families, so if you are interested in an experience with a more grown-up atmosphere, shoot for those seasons.
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