Princess Cruises announced today its fourth Culinary Cruise featuring noted food journalist Bill Esparza. The culinary cruise sails the west coast departing out of Los Angeles on Ruby Princess March 22 – 26, 2018. Esparza brings along notable chefs Sabina Bandera and Carlos Salgado to collaborate with the award-winning Princess Cruises culinary team for a week of unique gastronomy experiences including chef-led cooking demonstrations, tequila tastings and cocktail making tutorials, custom shore excursions and Q+A sessions.
“I am honored to work with Princess Cruises to bring Mexican flavors and culture to life through authentic culinary programming,” said Bill Esparza. “Princess has a thoughtful approach to immersing guests in its destinations and connecting them to the culture and local food.”
Bill Esparza is recent winner of a James Beard award for his coverage of the L.A. taco scene in Los Angeles Magazine and is considered one of the country’s leading experts on Mexican food. A noted saxophone player, Esparza has traveled and eaten extensively throughout Mexico, Latin America, and, of course, Southern California.
Guests onboard will have the opportunity to experience special menus throughout the ship’s restaurant and bars and learn valuable cuisine skills to bring home with them from our guest chefs who have a varied but traditional background:
Sabina Bandera is the Queen of the Cart, La Guerrerense, whose tostadas de mariscos have been proclaimed among the best in the world by the “Sultan of Street Food” himself, Anthony Bourdain. Plain, simple, humble and delicious have been La Guerrerense’s trademarks since she arrived at her food cart in Ensenada when she was 21 years old.
Named Food & Wine Best New Chef in 2015, Chef Carlos Salgado opened Taco María in 2013. He decided to honor his family’s culture and legacy by making Mexican-inspired food with a reverence for its origin and roots. Using the best ingredients available and applying the techniques and values he learned in Michelin-starred restaurants, Salgado works to create a syncretic Alta California cuisine that represents Mexican food by putting real corn at the foundation.
“Bill Esparza has been lauded as the ‘go to’ expert of Latin American food and culture in the United States,” said Gordon Ho, Princess Cruises senior vice president, global marketing. “As we sail down the coast to Mexico, our guests will enjoy hearing about his food experiences and stories of learning about Mexican food in his grandmother’s kitchen. It’s these types of authentic connections that unite and enrich us when we travel.”
Guests will experience the best of the west coast with Princess Cruises on this four-day, four-port California-Mexico cruise.
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