FOOD ON CARGO SHIPS | STEWARD DEPARTMENT | GALLEY OPERATIONS | LIFE AT SEA

I’m a cook on the Great Lakes and it’s amazing how from one boat to the next the differences in what the crew wants to eat. I replaced a steward who was all about heart healthy and the crew was begging me for bacon cheeseburgers at lunch. So they got them every day if they wanted. Another crew was all about wraps at lunch. Except for one guy who wanted Mac and cheese and hot dogs all the time. Some crews eat lots of soup and others won’t touch it. And contrary to Gordon Lightfoot, it’s never too rough to feed the crew. Although I’ve had to tell an officer that onion rings were out of the question. We were rolling 20-30 degrees that day.

Im a cook on a Norwegian fishing vessel. 16 to 20 people, and usually 6 weeks at sea. Saturday at 20.00 hours its always Steak. The whole Norwegian fleet. That is how we count the weeks!

Over 30 years ago, I worked for a security company in Florida, one of my first jobs ever. I'd stand watch on ships like this while they were in a shipyard. Once at dinner time aboard some foreign ship, they called me into their dining room or mess hall (as you all call it) and invited me to eat. I could hardly understand their language but they were very polite and friendly. They told me to sit down at the table, then brought me a plate of food. I don't remember what it all was but i remember that food was so good.

Mate just the way you open this piece says it all "We always see big ships in the distance but completely ignore the fact that people are on board", was class. I'm amazed by how well stocked the larder on board that ship was. Bloody interesting!

At my age (66), I'm way past the time of life where I might have considered the merchant marine as a career, so Joe's video's are my chance to see what my life might have been like had I made a few different choices when I was in my twenties. Great video, Joe!

I really enjoyed this episode. I've attended professional cooking school and always wondered what it would be like to work on ship. Food service is a difficult and demanding job, and onboard a ship raises that to another level. Glad to hear about some of those great departments that really understand how important their responsibility is.

Hello from indian ocean. Capt Rashid Sukhera here, i gotta show this to my chief cook😂.

I love the warm and inviting voice of Joe. His words are carefully chosen and with his tone, it's soothing and easy to listen to. The music and editing he has chosen brings a fair amount of "romance of the sea" to the over-all vibe of his videos, and I honestly enjoy his videos. I wish him all the best. I hope he makes a good amount of money to fund the next chapter in his life. My favorite parts of the video were showing the cooks that were dancing, laughing and enjoying their tasks of cooking. I love cooking for others and the compliments I receive.

I'm fascinated by cargo ship food and most YTube videos just show the food, galley and steward. This was in depth. Logically thought out and well paced. I never considered the 3 main factors. I paused at each food spread. I like how the steward wrote 'Honey Mustard' in yellow for Super Bowl menu. He cares and has pride. //Fishing scenes were my favorite part. Shout out to Arsenio, his Marlin was the most cool/neat/interesting highlight of the video. //Happy to see Grey Poupon as one of the condiments.

Truly enjoy your content! Multitudes of us will never experience this, many will not even know this life exists. Thanks for sharing.

I was a deckhand on a towboat. Illinois Waterway and Upper Mississippi. We ate GOOOOOD! Fridays was fish...Saturdays steak...Sundays was fried chicken. Without fail. When Joe mentioned cheeseburgers being a time stamp I immediately thought of our Saturday steak. We were also allowed free access to food in the galley at all hours of the night. If you have a favorite cereal or something like that our cook did their best to accommodate. Our regular cook was an awesome lady. Us regulars called her Mom.

Hi Joe I worked in the galley for a lot of years, we used to look forward to loading stores when we got to the States. It was always very difficult when we loaded at foreign ports especially Africa and some places in the far east. The quality really varied when we went to some of these places,especially when there was no English writing on the labels or packets. I'm now retired, I enjoyed every single day at sea,sure there were challenges but life's full of them. Can't beat a happy crew on a ship , it sure makes life a lot easier. Keep the great videos buddy. I'm glad to say that I've been there. It's a life like no other.

Food and ships... two great things that go great together.

Joe - I love that you are a regular hard working guy sharing what your life at sea is like. It's stuff like this video that is most compelling for us that don't get to see what it's like on a day-to-day basis. As always, really well done video. Thanks so much for sharing, brother!

I don’t know why your videos fascinate me because I am petrified of large bodies of water…the ocean…a lake…a reservoir or large river. I’m sure you all work very hard and need large meals to keep your energy up. Great video!

My Uncle was a merchant Sailor in the 70-80s (Spanish). He always said that contrary to most of the stereotypes the food in the ship was always good and the cook always had as a pride doing new things and making the crew happy.

Thanks Joe! As always, your videos are informative and insightful, and the production values are just amazing. You are a great presenter. I think I could listen to you talk about pretty much anything! Wishing you safe travels, wherever you are, and thanks again.

Fantastic video Joe! Keep’em coming! May you have fair winds and following seas.

Gordon Ramsay should do a 30 day run as the chef on a cargo ship. That would be interesting.

Great video Joe I agree food can make or brake the attitude of people after extended times of work Thanks for taking us along have a great day be safe.