Local & Familiar favorites
Avalon shares the flavors of the world with the freshest local ingredients prepared by our talented chefs and served in your choice of venues on board. Our Avalon FlexDining® approach to onboard dining experiences has tossed out the idea of restrictive seating times in limited settings. We’ve brought back the question, “Where should we eat?” to the cruise experience. Choose from options like a breezy al fresco lunch at the Sky Grill, an elegant four-course dinner in the glass-walled Panorama Dining Room, or a more casual culinary setting in the Panorama Bistro. Whichever table setting you choose, you’ll savor local flavors as well as the familiar favorites you love. On an Avalon river cruise, great food is all part of the journey.
Local. Healthy. Avalon Fresh®
Who says healthy food can’t be inspiring? On an Avalon river cruise, you can take an indulgent vacation without drifting from your healthy habits. Our Avalon Fresh selections are exclusively created in collaboration with Austrian brothers Leo and Karl Wrenkh, leading chefs in the healthy-dining movement. Using the freshest ingredients from local farms and suppliers, our chefs create flavorful dishes with a dash of innovation. These creative yet wholesome options are available at every meal we serve on board. Whether you’re looking for an energizing juice at breakfast, an artfully crafted salad at lunch, or a satisfying plate at dinner, Avalon Fresh steps up to the plate with the perfect ingredients to fuel your day.
Bringing Amazing to Your Plate
Chefs Karl & Leo Wrenkh
The Brothers Wrenkh were raised in the first (and up until recently, only) high-quality vegetarian restaurant in Austria. With a family motto, “Eating is Life!” they take cooking very seriously. While Leo attended a classic culinary school, Karl’s cooking background has been more casual. Their styles merge using healthy, quality and locally grown ingredients to create foods with international flair.
These Viennese brothers opened the Wrenkh Vienna Culinary School 2.0 in 2009. Classes include everything from Indian cuisine to forest harvest; team cooking to herb hikes.
Karl and Leo share a lifelong love of good food and a strong desire to provide their guests – in the restaurant and at the culinary school – an unforgettable dining experience. For more information, visit www.wiener-kochsalon.com.
The Dining Options You Crave
Let's eat! Those are two of our favorite words. So pull up a chair and dig in to delicious dining options on an Avalon cruise—from sumptuous à la carte four-course dinners to complimentary room service delivering Continental breakfast, lunch, and dinner to your door. Or dine outside the box with al fresco lunch at the Sky Grill, and try a little of everything from a tempting tasting menu served with a view in the Panorama Bistro. No matter where you choose to dine on board, we set the perfect table with fresh, quality ingredients prepared by passionate chefs who create each culinary experience—from familiar favorites to regional specialties—with gusto!
The Libations You'll Love
Linger over signature cocktails and standard concoctions with a twist. Toast your adventures with the original Espresso Martini or Easy Stinger — just two of our craft cocktails designed by Avalon’s award-winning mixologist, Martin Hudák. Raise your glass and lift your spirits with your choice of remarkable refreshments in our Panorama Lounge.
Regional. Authentic. Local Wines Picked Just for You!
Avalon knows why you travel. To experience the true heritage, tradition, and tastes of your destinations. This is especially true of the wines we serve on board our Avalon Suite Ships®, which is why we proudly pour local wines produced by the best local vineyards in the regions through which we sail.
From the Rieslings of the Moselle that fill your glass to the robust vintages of Germany’s Rhine Valley that warm your heart, you’ll find happiness flowing from vine to table to taste the exquisite flavors from local cellars.
One such example of regional wines you can sip, swirl, and savor on board our Danube River cruises is produced in the Hungarian wine region of Eger by master vintner, Nimród Kovács. Once a young refugee from Communist Hungary, this scholar-turned-entrepreneur studied winemaking with U.S. growers in California before returning to his native Hungary to reclaim the Eger regional vineyards that rival the climate and soil of French Burgundy —home to the award-winning Kovács Nimród Winery. Here, local varietals of Kékfrankos and Furmintwines as well as world-class Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Syrah are recognized worldwide.
So, we invite you to sit back and raise a glass on the Danube with a heartfelt “Egészségedre!” or other local vintages on our Avalon Suite Ships® in Europe to taste the true traditions of European winemakers for an unforgettable vine-to-table experience onboard your Avalon Suite Ship®.
Eco-Friendly Water Stations
Avalon takes a refreshing approach to reducing plastic use and promoting hydration for you with state-of-the-art beWell water stations, conveniently located in both the Club Lounge and at the Dining Room entrance. Fill your favorite water bottle with a selection of still, sparkling, or flavored water infused with natural essences. No water bottle? No problem! Guest Services is happy to provide you with one, or you can purchase a specialty Avalon souvenir water bottle at the onboard gift shop!
Incredible Dining Choices
- Welcome & farewell cocktails with sparkling wine & canapés
- Daily choices of regional recipes, familiar favorites, and Avalon Fresh vegetarian and healthy cuisine including fresh, local ingredients at every meal
- Daily buffet breakfast with full range of classic breakfast items, healthy Avalon Fresh® options and daily specials
- Daily lunch buffet featuring regional specialties, classic dishes, healthy Avalon Fresh® options, and rotating chef’s features including carving & pasta stations. Alternatively, you may dine al fresco at our Sky Grill on the Sky Deck (weather and itinerary permitting) or enjoy a light lunch in the Panorama Lounge.
- Linger over several selections from the Panorama Bistro’s tasting menu for a less formal “sit-down” atmosphere while mingling over several satisfying selections
- Daily Afternoon Tea featuring tea, coffee, sweet treats & sandwiches
- Daily four-course à la carte dinners in the Panorama Dining Room with choice of appetizers, soups, salads, entrées, desserts or cheese, after-dinner premium coffees or tea, and complimentary wine (including from the region), beer, and soft drinks
- Complimentary room service available for Continental breakfast, lunch, and dinner
- Avalon FlexDining® with flexible seating-times to better accommodate your schedule, and more options for menu items and venues, including our Panorama Dining Room, Panorama Bistro for a less formal tasting menu, Sky Grill for al fresco favorites, complimentary continental breakfast via room service, and made-to-order picnic lunch boxes for independent on-shore excursions
Meal Schedule
- Breakfast, 7 a.m. – 9 a.m.
Enjoy a tempting selection of breads, cereals, fruits, cold cuts and cheeses, smoked salmon, pastries, yogurts, and juices. Hot items such as eggs, sausage, and bacon vary daily.*
*Healthy Corner options including low calorie, low fat, high fiber, low cholesterol, and high energy choices.
- Lunch, 12:30 p.m.
Daily lunch buffet featuring regional specialties, classic dishes, healthy Avalon Fresh® options and rotating chef’s features including carving & pasta stations. Alternatively, you may dine al fresco at our Sky Grill on the Sky Deck (weather and itinerary permitting) or enjoy a light lunch in the Panorama Lounge.
- Afternoon Tea, 4 p.m.
Take a mid-day break with coffee or tea and cake or cookies served in the lounge or on the top deck.
- Dinner, 7 p.m.
Dine elegantly at a sit-down meal. The chef will delight you with gourmet selections and the perfect, complimentary wines (complimentary beer or soft drinks also available). Menus typically feature an appetizer, soup, entrée, dessert, and coffee or tea.
Note: Meal times may vary depending on cruise schedule.
Executive Chef Krisztián Restás
Executive Chef
Executive chef, Krisztián Restás studied the Culinary Arts in Hungary, where he honed and contributed his epicurean talents in a variety of Hungarian and Italian kitchens. In 2002, he began searching for a new gastronomic challenge — and he found it as a traveling executive chef in the exciting world of European river cruising.
After several years of working for different river cruise lines, Chef Restás joined Avalon Waterways in 2013. In support of Avalon’s culinary team, he worked first as a traveling chef and then as a corporate chef. Since then, he has been named Avalon Executive Chef, and his quarter of a century of expertise will continue the ongoing process of innovating and elevating the Avalon dining experience.
In addition to setting up galleys and crews, and establishing culinary standards, Restás diligently crafts creative daily menus for every cruise itinerary. He researches and finds each destination’s most representative recipes, and procures the freshest and highest-quality local ingredients. Then, with a support team preparing every dish to perfection, each meal on an Avalon Waterways cruise becomes an enriching and delectable introduction to the region’s culinary authenticity.
Avalon Mixologist Martin Hudák
Mixologist
Born in Prešov, Slovakia, Martin Hudák began his career behind the bar early in life, and discovered a passion for cocktails, coffee—and for combining the two! He eventually moved to London, where he honed his skills at the Savoy Hotel’s iconic American Bar as senior bartender.
He has repeatedly shaken, stirred, and innovated his way into champion titles at Tales of the Cocktail, World’s 50 Best Bars, World Coffee in Good Spirits, and other international competitions, and has traveled to more than 50 countries, educating thousands of coffee and cocktail aficionados on the future of coffee cocktails.
Hudák is currently based in Sydney, Australia, where he is CEO/Founder of the hospitality industry’s Slovak Bar Show; a Global Coffee Ambassador for Mr. Black Spirits; founder of Spiritual Coffee, the Ginger Mania ginger beer microbrewery, and Sydney’s newly opened Maybe Sammy cocktail bar.
In 2019, Hudák partnered with Avalon Waterways, part of the Globus family of brands, and has crafted an outstanding collection of signature cocktails served exclusively throughout the Avalon fleet.