There are so many options for food onboard Arvia, we are sure that everyone will find something they like. There was food available from 6am until 1am so you won’t ever go hungry.
Onboard this ship you have a large variety of included and speciality dining options. All food onboard was of a good quality and for first time ever on a cruise we did visit two of the speciality dining restaurants. They were both well worth the money in our eyes.
Food onboard Arvia the Horizon buffet
The horizon buffet offered food all day long from 6am to 1am. We ate here at various times of the day and because of the location of our room it was easy for us to grab some food and take it back to eat. Both water, tea and coffee are available all day at the buffet for free.
Breakfast
The breakfast comprised of full continental and hot buffet breakfast. Drinks like tea, coffee and fruit juices are all available for you to help yourself to. On most cruises we usually skip breakfast and have a lay in. On some days where we went on shore excursions we visited the breakfast buffet. When we did have breakfast we usually opted for porridge with honey, dried fruit or syrup, boiled or fried eggs and fresh fruit just to keep us going. The buffet gets extremely busy for breakfast and can feel a little chaotic sometimes so bare that in mind.
Lunch
As soon as we board the ship our first stop is always to get some lunch in the buffet. The times that we went to the buffet at lunchtime there was always a carved meat available with vegetable sides, freshly made salad bowls which included egg salad, colslaw and potato salad as well as a variety of other options such as a curry. The lunchtime buffet always had a selection of deserts and fresh fruit bowls on offer. We did find the lunchtime buffet could be a bit repetitive day to day and we aren’t the type of people that go for carved meat and prefer to be a bit more adventurous with our options but the food quality was still of a good standard.
Dinner
On previous cruises we haven’t visited the buffet for dinner as preferred to go to the main dining room when we had a set dinner table and time each night however on this cruise with freedom dining we decided to give it a go. On some nights in the buffet they had a theme night and luckily enough we went on Indian night which we both loved, there was a variety of different curry’s with varying spice levels and meats and lots of accompaniments such as naan bread, poddadoms and samosas. We really enjoyed the food here and it was nice to have a more relaxed evening as usually we would get dressed up for dinner each night.
Food onboard Arvia the Main dining room
There are two main dining rooms onboard Arvia the meridian and the zenith both offer freedom dining, at least one of the dining rooms was open for breakfast and lunch with both being open for dinner. For breakfast and lunch we just turned up and waited to be seated and in the evening you can join a virtual queue or visit the restaurant to get a pager, you will then be notified once your table is ready. This system worked really well for us as we would join the queue as we left our room and most of the time, probably because we were a party of six and usually ate around 8/8.30, we didn’t have to wait very long, the longest wait was 40 minutes so be prepared, there is a bar right near the meridian where you can grab a drink while you wait.
Breakfast
We only visited the dining room for breakfast on our last day, it’s an a la carte menu and you can order what you like. They had a good selection of offerings here such as eggs Benedict, omelettes and pancakes. The food was really nice and it was a lot more relaxed than the buffet. Both Dan and I opted for eggs Benedict we prefer eggs royal which uses smoked salmon instead of ham but that wasn’t available this day, this is our favourite breakfast dish and it didn’t disappoint. We also ordered fresh fruit, an apple juice each and toast for the table.
Lunch
On this cruise we visited the dining room a few times for lunch and we always opted for an early lunch at 12 which is why we often don’t eat breakfast. The lunch menus in the dining room had a range of offerings from light bites to a full three course meal.
We opted for filled baguettes and burgers as this was different to the type of food on the menu in the evening. Other options available were soups, curries and sharing platters.
Dinner
The main dining rooms have menus that change daily. There are dishes that appear every night such as steak and roast chicken breast, so you can always fall back to these if you don’t like any of the other dishes available.
We found the main dining room dinner choices a bit limited compared to previous cruises we have taken with P&O. The food however was of good quality and well presented. We would have liked to see more international dishes such as curries and pasta dishes. There is a good selection of starters including ceaser salad, tomato soup and fried calamari. The desserts include classics like sticky toffee pudding, carrot cake and there is always ice cream to fall back on.
Food onboard Arvia other included dining options
The Olive grove
The Olive grove is another restaurant which was included in the cruise fare. It’s a Mediterranean themed restaurant which offers two different menus during the two week cruise. This restaurant had a really nice atmosphere and was well themed. Some of the options we enjoyed for starters included chilli tomato prawns, Italian salad and empanadas. There are main options like lamb tagine, beef kofta and lasagna which all hit the spot and for dessert rose cheesecake and lemon tart.
We really enjoyed this restaurant and out of the included options this ranked at number one for dinner. Make sure you visit at least once during your cruise.
6th Street Diner
The sixth street diner is an American themed restaurant open for both brunch and dinner. We ate here once during our cruise for brunch, the food was ok. It does get very busy so there was a bit of a wait for food. For starters we tried the nachos, for mains the ribs and dessert we tried the the Mississippi mud pie. We also ordered a side of loaded fries and some corn ribs. The nachos were ok but if you want to try some better nachos we suggest heading to the beach house.
Taste 360
Taste 360 is a small pool side fast food based area located in the sky dome. Its offerings include burgers, hot dogs and pizza. Each day they offered a standard burger such as a cheeseburger and a speciality burger like a blue cheese burger. There are tables located right next to the food pick up so you can eat there. We chose to take ours back to our room. The food was good here and we chose to eat here a few times during our cruise.
The Quays
The quays is a multi cuisine dining venue offering fish and chips and roast dinner both British staples. As well as options like Thai green and Katsu curries. This was a large area located on deck 8. Its a new concept onboard P&O’s sister ships Iona and Arvia. The food here was cooked fresh and tasted really great, we tried a few of the options over our holiday. Dan’s favourite was the Katsu curry which he had multiple times while onboard. There was also a tea and coffee station, and a small offering of salads and desserts.
The chefs table
The chefs table is a pre-bookable, dining experience, on-board Arvia. There is limited availability, so make sure you book prior to sailing as it is only offered on celebration nights. Our chefs table menu consisted of offerings, such as lobster and beef Wellington. The chefs table is located in the horizon buffet and the tables are laid in a formal fashion. This experience offered a variety of different dishes not available in the main dining room. It is offered in two sittings, 6:30 pm and 8:30 pm. To start the meal you are given a small gazpacho soup it’s an acquired taste, not something that we enjoyed.
Food onboard Arvia Speciality dining
This is the first time on any cruise that we have visited a speciality dining venue and honestly we felt it was worth the money we paid. We are looking to trying some more speciality restaurants on our next cruise.
Keel and Cow
The Keel and Cow is a gastro pub located in the atrium, we ate here one lunch time and didn’t have to wait to be seated. The food here is cooked to order so be prepared to wait for your food. We all went for the duck boa buns to start and it was one of the best things we ate during our time onboard. For mains Dan had the prime minster burger and I opted for fillet steak both were really good. The other couple in our party ordered a sharing tomahawk steaks which came with sides, they also ordered a lobster tail. We all really enjoyed the food here and will definitely be returning when we are next on board.
Beach house
The beach house is another of P&O’s speciality dining options, this is priced at £9.50 per person with the option of paying an up charge for some menu options, this price included three courses. The food here was very nice and offered dishes not found elsewhere on board such as fajitas, seafood hanging kebab and chocolate fondue.
We both opted for nachos, chicken fajitas and shared a chocolate fondue for dessert this was an up charge of £4. Someone in our party ordered the speciality hanging kebab which included lobster tail and squid this was an up charge of £5.95. All the food we ate here was delicious, the portions were big so be prepared. We will be going back when we are next onboard.
There are so many other food options on Arvia that we didn’t get to try on this cruise such as the glass house, Sindhu and the Epicurean.
Overall we really enjoyed the food onboard Arvia there is so much to chose from and it’s of good quality. We noticed that the offerings for vegetarians and vegans had greatly increased to prior sailings we had taken with P&O, it’s good to see that there is something for every one.
If you would like to read about our time on Arvia please read our experience onboard Arvia blog.