Fabulous Buffet Choices on The Oceania Riviera - Hong Kong to Kobe

I just finished a two week cruise on the Oceania Riviera, boarding in Hong Kong and exiting in Kobe, Japan.  The terminus of the cruise was actually in Tokyo, but having been there less than a year ago to see the cherry blossoms bloom, and also since for me any vacation in excess of two weeks quickly becomes drudgery, I got off the boat four days early.  Having heard about luxury cruises, we had decided over a year ago to give one a try.  However, as I found, while the food on the cruise excelled, the remaining overall experience trailed otherwise trailed every other cruise I had ever taken.  But this posting only looks at the wonderful buffet items on the trip, although it nowhere near covered the price differential over other cruises.  Here are the more interesting things that showed up in the buffet over a two week period.

Salmon loaf

 

 

 Five hour slow cooked lamb shoulder

 Gnoochi in pesto sauce

 

Veal cold cuts

Swedish meatballs

Chocolate mole short ribs

Roast beef cold cuts.

Sea bass

 

 

 

Taiwanese beef noodle soup

 

 

Wrapped gras

 

 

Sushi grade tuna tartare

 

Spanish seafood stew with giant shrimp

 

Spanish tortilla
 

 

 

Rare roast beef salad

 

 

Taiwanese shrimp

 

 

Runny fried cheese
 

 

 

Oxtail salad

 

 

Oysters Rockefeller

 

 

New York strip loin

 

Thai chicken

 

 

Veal scallopini

 

  Pork and duck loaf

 

Baby squid toast

 

Black cod

 

Veal stuffed with chard and pistachios

 

 

Curry giant shrimp

 

 

Noodles in duck broth

 

 

Lobster pad thai

 

 

Rack of veal

 

 

Mixed mushroom h'ors d'oeuvres

 

 

What a humongous pot of cumin fried rice!

 

Butternut, spinach and feta cheese pie

 

 

 

Single spoons of fried tofu

 

 

Tamarind salmon

 

 

Russian salad

 

 

Fancy egg rolls

 

Chinese pork belly in the carvery

 

 

Chinese desserts including tapioca and sticky rice

 

 

Giant Asian skewer bbq

 

 

Chicken dumplings

 

Mushroom tarts.

 

 

Zucchini cheese crisps

 

 

 

Always hamburgers and pizza at lunch, which were very good.  Plus rib eye, sirloin and other grilled meats available in the nightly buffet dinner.

 

 

Sardinian seafood stew with pasta balls

 

 

Probably my favorite buffet dish of all, pineapple chili red snapper

 Venison medallions