Short answer: yes, Virgin Voyages rebuilt every single menu for the Alaska season. The way you find the new dishes is a tiny bear icon printed next to them.
I sailed 14 nights back to back in Alaska and tried to eat my way through all of it. I did not finish. That should tell you how much they added.
If you’re new here, ahoy. I’m Christine Lozada, and these were sailings 36 and 37 for me.
I’m going to tell you which dishes I ordered more than once, which one I would not order again, and the one thing everybody thinks is an Alaska exclusive that has been on the menu the whole time. Let’s get into it.
Look for the bear icon
The bear icon is the whole trick. It’s printed on menus all over the ship, not just in the restaurants, and it marks every Alaska exclusive item.
The bars. The coffee counters. The afternoon menus at The Dock.
Once you know to look for it, you see it everywhere. It honestly felt like a food and drink festival running alongside the sailing.
One thing worth saying up front: they did not strip the regular menus to make room.
The steak is still at Pink Agave. The salt baked dorade is still at The Wake. The Alaska items are additions, with one exception I’ll get to.
Pink Agave: order the salmon, and order it medium
Pink Agave has two Alaska dishes and they could not be more different.
The Achiote Spiced Salmon is the one I kept coming back to. Jicama citrus salad, pickled red onion, chipotle almond mole.
I’m genuinely picky about fish, and I ate this dish more than once across 14 nights. Ask for it medium. That’s my preference and it’s how the texture works best.
The Treat Yourself item is the Chorizo Crusted Black Cod at $40, with red rice, mole poblano, and Alaskan king crab.
My honest take: it’s a good dish, and I wouldn’t order it again. The mole is intense.
That’s Mexico City style cooking and it’s supposed to be bold, but it’s a strong flavor and it isn’t for everybody. If you like your fish on the plainer side, get the salmon.
On the drink side, look for the Fresa Ruibarbo Sangria, a strawberry rhubarb chardonnay from Bear Creek Winery. That’s a local Alaskan berry winery, and you’ll see their wine on menus all over the ship.
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The Wake: the halibut is great, and yes, the tomahawk is gone
Let me start with the part people are upset about, because I have gotten a lot of messages about it.
For the Alaska season, the $45 Pan Roasted Alaskan Halibut has temporarily replaced the tomahawk as the Treat Yourself item at The Wake.
If the tomahawk was your plan, I’m sorry. It will be back. You’ll just have to come sail again, which, let’s be honest, we all do anyway.
Now the dish itself: fondant potato, spinach, and a champagne caviar sauce. It is on the salty side, and I love salty food, so I loved it.
If you already know you don’t like the salt baked dorade at The Wake, you probably won’t love this one either. Same family.
The other Alaska exclusive here is the Grilled Loin of Venison with yams, mushrooms, and a pickled huckleberry jus.
Venison is gamey and a little heavier, so it’s genuinely not for everyone. My boyfriend wasn’t into it, but that’s because he wants beef.
I thought it was one of the best plates of the sailing.
Don’t forget to pack THIS!
Virgin Voyages has reimagined sailing and what you need to pack on for this trip is DIFFERENT than a normal cruise line. There are many items I wish I knew to bring (that I didn’t have with me on my first sailing).
Get a free printable pack list and save yourself the headache!
OR if you’re just looking for some inspo! See the curated list of Amazon items I’ve put together (and use!) for Virgin Voyages.
Golden Hour at The Dock replaces Opa Hour
If you sailed the Greece season you’ll remember Opa Hour.
For Alaska, that afternoon slot at The Dock and Dock House becomes Golden Hour, and everything on it is Alaska only.
It’s a small tasting plate, and it’s excellent:
- Duck with a berry glaze, pickled onion, and smoked salt
- Lightly smoked Alaskan salmon with mustard seeds, a cracker, and flying fish roe
- Beet tartare with dill and a potato crisp, which is vegan and gluten free
- A juniper carrot with whipped chevre and spruce tip oil
- A lemon tartlet with lemon curd, torched meringue, and lemon balm
Save room for the lemon tartlet. That’s the one.
Don’t skip the drink list here either. There’s a special Alaskan gin they’re building cocktails around, plus the Alaskan Brewing Company beers and the Bear Creek wines.
And to be clear, the regular afternoon menu at The Dock with the shrimp and beef bites is still there. Golden Hour runs in addition to it, for part of the afternoon.
Rojo by Razzle Dazzle has the best value item on the ship
The Grilled Squid is a Treat Yourself item at $12. Twelve dollars.
It comes with king crab, almond, shiso, and a shellfish sauce, and the portion is generous. Of everything I ate across 14 nights, this is the best price to payoff ratio on the ship.
JC tried it too and we actually agreed on it, which for the two of us is rare.
The other Alaska item at Rojo is a Roasted Cod with chickpeas, roasted peppers, and manzanilla. I was neither here nor there on it. It’s fine, but I’d rather have the paella.
On drinks, the blueberry sangria is worth a try, and Rojo carries the Bear Creek blueberry wine and both Alaskan Brewing pours.
Extra Virgin: the Alaskan Seven Fish surprised me
When I read “Alaskan Seven Fish” on the menu, I had no idea what was coming. What arrived was not what I pictured, and I ordered it multiple times anyway.
Scallops, cod, shrimp, smoked bacon, and a chowder sauce. It’s creamy and rich and it eats like a main, not a soup.
Do this: hold on to the focaccia they bring you at the start, put a little olive oil on it, and dip it in that sauce.
The Treat Yourself here is the Squash Wrapped Halibut at $45, stuffed with Alaskan king crab, with cherry tomato and basil seeds.
Totally honest? It was prettier than it tasted. Gorgeous plate, much lighter flavor than I wanted.
Two more Extra Virgin things worth knowing, and the first one is separate from Alaska. Each Lady ship now carries a few items unique to that ship, so what you find at Extra Virgin depends on which one you’re sailing.
Second, you can order half portions of pasta, which is how you try more than one thing. I get hate comments about this. I’m telling you anyway.
If you’re on a longer sailing, they add extras that shorter itineraries don’t get. On my back to back they ran a pork chop and a white bean soup.
A four night Miami sailing isn’t going to see that. A seven night Alaska very well might.
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The Last Light Gathering has its own menu
This one is easy to miss. Last Light Gathering is a Happenings Cast event out on The Dock, where you hang around with the cast and watch the last of the light go.
It has its own Alaska specific menu, and that’s where the hot drinks are.
Bring something to put a hot drink in. I wished I’d had my own insulated cup out there, and that is exactly the kind of thing that ends up on my Alaska pack list.
The drinks are half the Alaska menu
At Grounds Club and Grounds Club 2 there are two Alaska exclusives, and my boyfriend got one of them literally every single day:
- Salty Sea Otter Mocha. Espresso, salted caramel, house chocolate, steamed milk. The suggested add is dark rum, though Baileys works too.
- Denali Latte. Local birch syrup, vanilla, and a dust of cocoa powder. Baileys is the suggested add here.
Both come with or without alcohol. The Salty Sea Otter Mocha is the one I’d order.
Across the rest of the ship, the Alaska drink program leans on local producers: an Alaskan distillery, the Alaskan Brewing Company, and Bear Creek Winery.
Once you spot the bear icon on a drink menu, it’s usually one of those.
About the hot chocolate
Fair warning, because I get this complaint a lot. There is no free hot chocolate on Virgin Voyages, in Alaska or anywhere else.
Coffee and tea are free. Hot chocolate is a purchase.
There’s a workaround, sort of. The shop onboard sells powdered hot chocolate as a souvenir item, and you can put your Sailor Loot toward it.
The one everybody thinks is an Alaska exclusive
The baked Alaska at The Wake.
It isn’t. It has been on that menu forever.
But on these sailings the whole ship was ordering it thinking it was seasonal, and honestly, good, because it’s delicious. That pistachio is tasty.
Personal note: I had never actually tried it until these sailings.
I brought my mom on Virgin Voyages once, she ordered the baked Alaska, and I said “hold on, let me grab my camera and my light.” I turned around and the entire thing was gone.
She is about four foot ten. I have never seen anyone eat like that.
Don’t forget the food that isn’t Alaska specific
Some of the best things to eat in Alaska aren’t on the Alaska menu at all.
The rotating soup in The Galley. The Tuscan farro soup at Extra Virgin. The Alaska roll in The Galley.
When it’s cold and gray outside, a soup you hadn’t planned on is the right call.
Frequently asked questions
Does Virgin Voyages have Alaska specific food?
Yes. Virgin Voyages rebuilt the menus for the Alaska season. Alaska exclusive items are marked with a small bear icon, and they show up in the restaurants, at the bars, at the coffee counters, and on the afternoon menus.
Is food included on Virgin Voyages Alaska sailings?
Yes, all the restaurants are included. The exceptions are the Treat Yourself items, which carry an extra charge, and drinks.
How much are the Alaska Treat Yourself items?
On my sailings the Chorizo Crusted Black Cod at Pink Agave was $40, the Pan Roasted Alaskan Halibut at The Wake was $45, the Squash Wrapped Halibut at Extra Virgin was $45, and the Grilled Squid at Rojo was $12.
Is the tomahawk still at The Wake on Alaska sailings?
No. For the Alaska season it has been temporarily replaced by the $45 Pan Roasted Alaskan Halibut.
What is Golden Hour on Virgin Voyages?
Golden Hour is the Alaska version of Opa Hour: an afternoon tasting menu at The Dock and Dock House with small bites and local Alaskan drinks. Alaska sailings only.
Is hot chocolate free on Virgin Voyages?
No. Coffee and tea are included, hot chocolate is not. The onboard shop does sell powdered hot chocolate as a souvenir.
Virgin Voyages did not just tack a couple of salmon dishes onto the Alaska season. They rebuilt the menus across the whole ship, and after 14 nights I still hadn’t tried everything.
If you only remember three things: look for the bear icon, get the Achiote Spiced Salmon at Pink Agave and ask for it medium, and order the $12 Grilled Squid at Rojo.
And if you’ve sailed Virgin Voyages in Alaska and found something I missed, tell me in the comments. I want to know too.
