Virgin Voyages for Vegetarians

Pre-cruise:

For any cruise, I always recommend arriving at the port city at least a day in advance as flight delays could cause you to kiss your vegetarian Virgin Voyage goodbye. We stayed at the InterContinental Miami, an extremely convenient pre-cruise stay just 10 minutes from Terminal V where Virgin Voyages set sail out of Miami. When booking through a Fora advisor (a la yours truly), perks include a $100 hotel credit, complimentary breakfast in the restaurant and guaranteed 2pm checkout. With these perks, we were able to enjoy complimentary dinner, breakfast AND drinks during our one night pre-cruise stay. Now that's a steal! Although there are plenty of restaurants within walking distance, room service is available until midnight – a perfect perk for those arriving on late flights. Guaranteed late checkout gave us the freedom to kick back and relax in our room, complimentary cocktails in hand, all the way up until embarkation time.

My go-to breakfast was the avocado burrito from Let's Taco Bout It at the Galley, and is best enjoyed with a side of hot sauce. For snacks, grabbing a mushroom bao from Sun Club is a must, but if you prefer a meal, you may want to grab a hearty handful of them as they are on the smaller side. If you're planning on hitting the Beach Club at Bimini, the vegetable curry with rice and beans has you covered. Now onto some of the onboard restaurants:

The Wake

For starters, the savory, pull-apart bread served in a pot is melt-in-your-mouth delicious. The crispy polenta is fried to perfection and topped with slow roasted red pepper, spinach and crème fraiche. It is the best polenta I have ever tasted, bar none. Surprisingly, The Wake's twice baked potatoes are pleasantly prepared vegetarian, served smothered in mouthwatering melty cheese and topped with caramelized onions.

The Test Kitchen

It seems The Test Kitchen is one of those places people either absolutely love or indelibly loathe, but I can safely say I fall into the former category. The five-course prix fixe meal here held the title as my favorite onboard. It's been more than a month and I still can’t shut up about it, which is one reason I felt compelled to write this guide. While the food is incredible, the best part about dining at The Test Kitchen is the exceptionally unique dining experience. Each dish and drink is explained in detail after being presented in front of you via a beautifully prepared presentation. To give you an idea of the in-house fare, their menu lists one main ingredient for each course. For example, the vegetarian menu reads "Gazpacho, Olive Oil Caviar, Asparagus/Hazelnuts, Vegetable Tart and Coconut/Strawberry”. This increased the intrigue of the experience as the dishes themselves became somewhat of a surprise upon arrival. For my starter – full disclosure – I'm not typically a fan of cold soup, but the tomato gazpacho came bursting with so much flavor I nearly asked for a second serving. My husband – who is not a vegetarian, but he tries so let’s not hold that against him – let me try some of his first course, teased as "Mushroom" and was (obviously) also vegetarian. The dish arrived looking deceivingly like a large whole mushroom, but was interestingly a savory mushroom mousse. I would have gladly eaten a plate of it myself but was happy enough to live with my tiny taste. The Olive Oil Caviar dish was not quite my style flavor-wise, but the plating itself was a delight. This showstopper is served in a smoky dome and theatrically opened up upon arrival for eaters to enjoy the steamy presentation. However, this was the only dish I did not finish as it was simply too green pea heavy for my liking. The “Asparagus/Hazelnuts” entree was a warm, delicious mousse with roasted asparagus ribbons on top and is easily one of the most flavorful mousses I‘ve tasted. My main dish was the “Vegetable Tart” which was packed full of a plethora of veggies. The tart was reminiscent of a pot pie – but better! Finally for dessert, I had a chocolate coconut square topped with fresh strawberries. I could eat an entire tray of those if they'd let me! Even my husband was jealous of my dessert, which is a rarity. The Test Kitchen also offers drink pairings for each of the five courses. I went with wine, while my husband opted for the cocktail selection so each of us could get a taste of every accompaniment available. The drinks are prepared smaller than usual, so don’t let the idea of five drinks in such a short amount of time scare you off. Although we enjoyed most of the drinks, they are on the sweeter side, and I wouldn't say they pair as well with each course as intended. In the future we will simply order drinks a la carte.

Extra Virgin

I highly recommend Extra Virgin's potato gnocchi served with mushroom and truffle. I was pleasantly surprised to have such fresh and delectable pasta while sailing the seven seas. Another unexpected yet delicious dish, the eggplant parmesan, comes stuffed with olives, garlic and cherry tomatoes then topped with gooey vegan mozzarella, basil and crunchy croutons.

Razzle Dazzle

While they do offer a modest selection of meat-based dishes, most of the meals at Razzle Dazzle are either vegan or vegetarian. We didn't have enough time to make it for dinner, which has a menu perfect for vegans, but we did enjoy their brunch. The brunch menu features a large selection of egg-based dishes, along with some unique pastry options. My meal, the avocado toast, came topped with a drizzle of sriracha to add a needed, but not overpowering, kick. My husband enjoyed the impossible burger and fries, with toppings served on the side to allow for full burger customization. Last but not least, the jalapeno cheddar croissant is the perfect balance of spicy, flakey deliciousness!

There are many more mouth-watering options on board that we ran out of time to taste, so I guess I'll just have to sail again in order to finish trying them all myself.

Pro tip: Restaurant reservations open 45 days prior to embarkation. I highly recommend reserving as early as possible to ensure your preferred dining times as they fill up fast. More reservations open once you're onboard and there may be last minute openings or walk-in spots available as well, but they are obviously not guaranteed.