Did I have an unbelievable time at the recent Chefs Making Waves cruise aboard the gorgeous and well laid out NCL Gem from May 5-9? To say so is an understatement! I could not believe the amazing lineup which included Richard Blais, Maneet Chauhan, Tom Colicchio, Scott Conant, Robert Irvine, Antonia Lofaso, Jonathan Waxman, Geoffrey Zakarian, Claudette Zepeda, Michael Schwartz, Nyesha Arrington, Giorgio Rapicavoli and Lindsay Autry. So many of these people rose through the ranks on Top Chef and/or are successful resto owners!
Veteran restauranteur and chef Tom Colicchio was arguably the superstar of the cruise and popped into other chefs’ events—he even made the scene at Robert Irvine’s improvisational group cooking sho extra difficult by placing him in a straightjacket! He members of the audience collaborate on a pork loin dinner and the straightjacket made him less than “hands on” (although he did get to verbally supervise them, LOL)! Speaking of improvisation, the most unusual and off the cuff cooking demo was called Blais-D And Confused: The Sushi Pizza Experience with Richard Blais. This Top Chef All-Star is always an amusing, high energy speaker but still clear and concise when explaining recipes and supervising audience members who join him onstage.
There was indeed a great Cinco De Mayo party since the first day of the cruise and there were even Deal Or No Deal and bingo games involving the food talent. There were incredible autograph sessions and cooking demos, and you could find chefs just walking around the ship taking pics and conversing with guests. The Chef Takeovers of each resto aboard the Gem were meals no one would soon forget and even the Garden Cafe (the ship’s buffet) had four items at each meal prepared by the food superstars on deck, some during their cooking demos!
I just had to ask Sixthman CEO Jeff Cuellar (pictured above) about what highlights of the cruise were for him as the person behind the scenes running the show. He responded, “A front row seat to sushi pizza with Richard Blais, getting to taste a 1971 Old Taylor in the Secret Sauce Speakeasy, dancing the night away with Maneet as the DJ…there were so many once in a lifetime moments from over 75 unique events that I am still trying to process everything. The hardest part was picking what to do because there was more than anyone could handle. Oh, the dinners were amazing, too.”
I also probed Cuellar regarding if a big undertaking on the sea created any “blooper” moments and he revealed, “While it might not be a blooper in the traditional sense, the spontaneity of the chefs on board always leads to unforgettable moments. During the headphone dance party, Chef Richard Blais and Chef Claudette Zepeda (pictured above) unexpectedly joined Chef Antonia Lofaso for a surprise DJ-off that had everyone on the dance floor. Throughout the cruise, chefs also popped into each other’s cooking demos to taste dishes and share their thoughts. This is not scripted TV–we are on a moving ship and these chefs love to have fun so anything is possible.”
How was this great list of culinary personalities chosen for the CMW cruise? (Giorgio Rapicavoli, a cruise guest favorite, is pictured above during an autograph session.) Cuellar explained to me, “We are fans, too and with our expert partners a21 and EBG, we make it a collaborative effort to not only invite some of the world’s best chefs but to also ensure that they have the personality that embodies engagement. While food is the inspiration, the fun and willingness to create genuine interactions is what makes it special. We also look at all of the guest feedbac, from the post event survey to our event Facebook group; we are paying attention and bring that guest feedback into the process.”
One odd thing that I noticed was that the CMW guests clearly overlapped with the rock fans who take Sixthman cruises like The Rock Boat, Little Steven’s Underground Garage and Keeping The Blues Alive At Sea. I saw more than a few people who were Keith Richards doppelgangers and even classic punks with spikey haircuts. I asked Cuellar about this odd foodie and rocker cruiser mix on board and he explained that Chefs Making Waves “is not just about the chefs on stage — it’s really about the community that naturally forms around food. Almost everyone has a kitchen, and most of us cook at least a little, so there’s this built-in sense of familiarity and intimacy. It’s not quite like music, where there’s a clear performer and audience–it’s more about shared conversations and meaningful connections, all centered around the communal joy of cooking and eating together. Just like music, food touches the soul and creates emotions, combine that with an extremely passionate community and you have the recipe for an amazing event.”
I thank Jeff for his commentary and hope to be aboard the next Chefs Making Waves cruise coming up in October–this time it’s a cool weather cruise rather than a tropical one! Guests will be visiting Boston, Halifax and other places with world class seafood. For more details on this sure to be mindblowing foodie event, go to https://boston.chefsmakingwaves.com. All Sixthman’s themed cruises (many of which focus retro popular culture themes like the sold out ’80s throwback cruise) can be viewed at www.sixthman.net.
