Food for a month

The team of steward Harry Burnett, mess attendant Derek Greenidge, and cook Brian Keenan (left to right) keep us well fed and happy during the cruise.
Credit: Heather Furey©WHOI

Feeding a ship’s worth of people three meals per day (plus snacks), planning meals, cleaning, and organizing stores, is constant work. Running the kitchen, or “galley” on the R/V Neil Armstrong takes approximately 35 total person-hours per day, which is typically divided between three people. On the Irminger 9 cruise the galley was staffed by steward Harry Burnett, cook Brian Keenan and mess attendant Derek Greenidge.

Contents of food stores are planned and purchased based on the personal preferences of what each chef prefers to cook while they are on board, and how long foods will last between ports.

Initial dry stores purchases, like rice, pasta and cereals will last approximately three to three and a half months. Meat stores will last approximately two and a half months at sea. The ship goes through approximately ten pounds of bacon every five to six days – bacon is served every day for breakfast.

Avoiding strict thirty-day meal plans allows space for creativity in the galley, prevents long-term ship residents from a formulaic or repetitive menu, and allows the day-to-day menu to change with the sea state. On rough days, meals are more likely to be sandwiches and other dishes that are easier to prepare and eat. Harry and Brian also work to accommodate dietary preferences and food allergy issues.

While in port in Reykjavik after the Irminger Sea 9 cruise is complete, provisions of two to three months’ worth of produce, milk, and eggs will be restocked for the next legs of the R/V Neil Armstrong’s cruise.

Fruit offerings at breakfast. The cruise usually starts with berries (blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, strawberries), then shifts to melons, pineapple and other longer lasting fruits. Credit: Heather Furey©WHOI.

Every afternoon on the R/V Neil Armstrong we have “Cheese:30” – a nice selection of meats, cheeses, crackers and sometimes fresh bread or soft pretzels. Cheese thirty is a daily at-sea tradition that started on the RV Armstrong’s predecessor, the RV Knorr at least 25 years ago. Credit: Sheri N. White©WHOI

Dinner the other night was pork chops, red snapper, Brussels sprouts, and crushed garlic potatoes. Brian often posts his creations on Instagram @briankeenan_ships_cook. Credit: Sheri N. White©WHOI