What type of yacht dining experience you can expect on your charter?

Classifying a yacht dining experience

Depending on the length of the yacht, your yacht dining experience may vary considerably. If you book a charter with 2 crew members, you can expect a yacht dining experience limited to the size of the gally and the number of the crew.

There are exceptions to this rule, but often enough, the number of the crew corresponds with the size of the galley. Booking a yacht charter with more than two members of the crew provides a relative upgrade when you compare the former category to the latter one.

When it comes to superyacht charters that have 3 or more crew members, the stakes get higher, proportionally to the space that opens up to create a larger galley. The galleys on yachts that can house 3 crew members are considerably larger and more fitted to handle a more fine-tuned yacht dining experience. More often than not, the galley receives its own standalone space, without being incorporated into the dining area.

When it comes to three or more crew members, the chef becomes an integral part of the yacht dining experience. It has become a standard to ask the chef for snacks and meals between meals, so you can totally relax and feel at home in Croatia. This also means that the rest of the crew will have more time to tend to duties oriented toward upgrading your overall superyacht charter experience.

Upgrading even further, you can start to really feel the difference, on yachts that have 4-6 crew members. Here, things start to change. The chef is always at a Michelin level, which means unforgettable yacht dining experiences for you and your charter party. The service becomes more detailed-orientated and the hospitality factor also receives a considerable boost in manpower.

Advancing even further, we can start to really notice the difference between the category of yachts that have 6 or more crew members from the ones that measure lower. In this category, it becomes regular to expect a dining service, plating and presentation equal to that of a 5-star hotel or a Michelin restaurant.

The length of the superyacht corresponds with her logistical abilities when it comes to dining: big storage space for all the different plates used, a dishwasher big enough to provide swift cleaning and enough crew members to serve snacks and food without delays.

Sometimes, it is normal to expect a chef to employ a sues chef. This person can be a standalone employee or a member of the crew with some knowledge and experience in preparing and serving food. Of course, it is also a question of the living quarters permitting a possible extra member of the crew. This implies an overall upgrade in the number and the intricacy of the courses you can expect to appear on your superyacht dining menu.

When it comes to yachts that measure more than 8 crew members, it becomes normal to expect a culinary dining experience that easily surpasses any luxury cuisines that can be found on land. This is mainly because your Michelin-level chef will prepare dishes that will suit only your preferences in food and ingredients, also taking in account any dietary restrictions, such as allergies or intolerances.

Overall, you will enjoy ingredients suited only to your likes and dislikes. When you have a Michelin-level chef and a sues chef, operating a galley the size of a regular cabin, you can expect only the best, most glamourous and mouth-watering dishes you can imagine.

The size of the yacht galley, fridge space & countertop space

The size of the galley greatly determines what kind of dining experience guests can expect on their superyacht charter holiday in Croatia. Provisioning is always done in accordance with the size and the capacity of the fridge space and the food storage containers.

Some yachts are known to have extra fridges located throughout the main deck, but these are much rarely used for storing food, and more often as drink and wine coolers, dessert storages or cold drawers. Sometimes, depending on the guest`s appetite and the number of meals prepared, your superyacht will need to restock and provision to continue giving the best possible yacht dining experience.

This can be done by berthing in a well-supplied Croatian marina or by your crew members via tender, which will be much faster in covering bigger distances. Bare in mind, tender supply runs usually focus on luxury goods, which tend to weigh less and are more easily transported, like champagne, caviar or other exclusive foods.

These can also include some local Croatian delicacies, like prosciutto, Croatian wines or hand-made cheeses from neighbouring islands. Overall, the size of the galley determines the number of appliances and the amount of fridge space that is available for usage.

Yachts with 2 crew members or less

When it comes to yachts with 2 crew members or less, you can expect to operate a compact galley and sometimes prepare your own meals, in which you or the crew will take turns in cooking and preparing food. Usually, the size of this kind of vessel prevents any major culinary operation, but do not worry.

The appliances and the size are more than enough to handle preparing exquisite dishes. There is also an option of dining onshore in one of 9 exclusive Michelin restaurants, located on the Croatian Adriatic coast. You can also hire a full-time chef if the length of your chartered yacht allows it i.e. if there is enough room to sleep an extra member of the crew on board.

Yachts that employ 3 crew members

Yachts crewed by 3 people tend to start showing some, but not all, aspects of luxury dining. The chef becomes a default member of the crew, and having a person entirely dedicated to cooking and preparing food really changes the earlier dynamic: you do not have to think about cooking, and the rest of the crew has more time to focus on their on-deck duties, rather than prepare food for the guests.

3 crew members also mean a bigger yacht, which implies that the galley is considerably larger, with bigger and better kitchen appliances. When the galley is bigger, the chef can expand his culinary options, meaning he can prepare a larger variety of dishes in less time, in turn upgrading your yacht dining experience.

Often, if not always, the galley will be located near to, or closely integrated into the salon and the dining area. This compactness can sometimes generate problems if the expectations of the charter guests are higher than the real output production of the galley.

It’s not common to sit down at a dining table on a yacht that employs 3 members of the crew and expect a 5-course meal. It can SOMETIMES happen but never expected on a regular basis. Besides the luxury dining aboard your superyacht charter, you can always arrange to go ashore and eat out in one of nine Micheline restaurants, scattered around the Croatian Adriatic coast.

Depending on the model and the age of your yacht charter, you can expect different setups and layouts of the galley, in accordance with the salon and the dining area. The galley can be placed parallel to the dining table, or be on a multi-level.

The galley can also be walled-off by a bar or an island feature, greatly increasing the output and the versatility potential of the galley. Consult with your local Superyachts Croatia broker about what you can expect to get out of a dining experience on a yacht that has 3 members of the crew.

Yachts with 4 to 6 crew members

If you are thinking of chartering a yacht that employs 4 to 6 members of the crew, you can start to understand the contrast between this category and the lesser ones mentioned earlier. Begin to grasp the difference between a luxury dining experience on these types of yachts and the ones where there is not enough personnel, space or appliances to correctly present meals consisting of more than 3 courses.

In this yacht category, the chef can sometimes employ a sues chef, thereby elevating every culinary experience to a Michelin-star level. Secondly, the galley has room to expand, which means better appliances and more fridge and storage space. This means that the chef has more room to create complex gastronomic delicacies and if he needs help in the galley with preparing or plating the dishes, a member of the crew can jump in and help on the fly.

The beginning of the Superyacht standard – Yachts with 6-8 crew members

Discover the difference between dining on yachts that have problems with creating a genuinely personalised dining experience, in comparison with the category of yachts that truly start to develop a luxury dining experience, with all the bells and whistles that go along with it.

Sit at a wonderfully decorated dining table scented with fresh flowers and accessorized with typical Mediterranean ornaments and prepare to be amazed at the taste, the appearance and the scent of fantastic dishes that will pour out of the culinary factory that is the galley of your superyacht charter. A fully immersive luxury yacht dining experience will be yours if you decide to charter a superyacht that is operated by more than 6 crew members.

Yachts with 6 to 8 crew members also have a plethora of culinary amenities that can be used to further elevate the yacht dining experience for each guest on board. There are wet bars, of which there is at least one, considering that yachts with 6 to 8 crew members measure at about 35-45 meters or more.

Usually, there are also grill stations and exterior BBQ stations, located on the flybridge or the sundeck. More often than not, fridges and cold-storage drawers can be found outside the designated galley area. These containers store supplies that are not essential in the galley, but need to be refrigerated, like alcoholic or nonalcoholic beverages, fruit, ice or cold towels.

Yachts with more than 8 crew members

Yachts that employ more than 8 crew members start incorporating features that expand the output potential of the galley. These features include pantries next to the galley, which add more storage space in general, implying fewer supply runs and more time at sea.

Bigger food storage means less provisioning is needed in general. Lastly, countertops, work surfaces and kitchen islands in the galley mean a swifter service, with fast plating and less time between each course. You can also expect dumbwaiters, which are small food elevators that connect different decks of the superyacht, enabling fast transport of snacks, drinks or food.

Levels of yacht dining experience

The smaller the yacht, the fewer crew members it has, which sets the bar for the type of dining you can expect on your yacht charter. The general rule of thumb is, when it comes to luxury dining, more crew always means better and more detailed services.

There has to be room aboard your yacht charter for all the fine cutlery, wine glasses, table decorations and table linens, to be able to produce a total formal fine dining experience.  From a single course meal to a 6-course meal, the number of the crew will set the bar for what kind of yacht dining experience you can expect to be served on your superyacht charter vacation in Croatia.