SANTA CLARITA, Calif.,
Jan. 24, 2022 /PRNewswire/ --
Princess Cruises, the world's leading international premium cruise
line, today announced Chef Rudi
Sodamin will become its first head of culinary arts,
effective immediately. Sodamin is currently the master chef for
Holland America Line, a position he will retain as he takes on his
new role as head of culinary arts for Princess.
"Chef Rudi is a hands-on leader with proven ability to motivate
teams to achieve new levels of creativity and inspiration," said
Jan Swartz, group president serving
Princess Cruises, Holland America Line, Seabourn and P&O
Cruises Australia brands. "Princess is already well-known for its
strong culinary culture. We are bringing in Chef Rudi to build the
kind of excitement and dining experiences that will impress our
guests. He is the perfect person to bring an entirely new level of
excellence and innovation to our culinary product, environmental
dining experience, and service delivery."
Throughout his career, Sodamin has been the driving force behind
revolutionizing culinary practices and elevating the perception of
fine dining in the cruise industry. An internationally-respected
food authority, Sodamin is the most highly-decorated chef working
on the world's oceans and is widely considered one of the most
innovative, energetic, and influential chefs in the hospitality
industry. Among his most recent accomplishments has been the
highly successful launch of Rudi's Sel de
Mer restaurant onboard three Holland America Line's ships.
Carnival Cruise Line was so impressed by the restaurant concept,
leadership commissioned Sodamin to create Rudi's Seagrill for its
new Excel class ship Mardi
Gras, which had its inaugural cruise in August 2021.
Sodamin began his career at the age of 14 with a kitchen
apprenticeship in Kurhotel Heilbrunn in Bad Mitterndorf,
Austria. By 23, Sodamin was
appointed Chef de Cuisine on the luxury line Vistafjord with
Norwegian American Cruise Line—he was the youngest chef in the
cruise line world to have responsibility on that scale. By 26, he
was named corporate executive chef onboard the legendary
Queen Elizabeth 2 (QE2)—again, the
youngest chef at sea to attain such a title. Under his stewardship
in the 1990s, the food served by the historic Cunard Line was
widely acclaimed as the best in the world. After a dozen years at
Cunard Line as vice president of food and beverage and corporate
executive chef, Sodamin joined Royal Caribbean Cruise Line as
director of corporate food and beverage operations and culinary
spokesperson. During his tenure, he built an international culinary
team from across 50 nations and launched the brand's first test
kitchen. Sodamin has continued his impactful tradition of
innovation with Holland America Line, instituting the line's first
Culinary Council (of which he is Chairman) as well as spearheading
the Holland America Line Culinary Art Center. Additionally, Sodamin
championed professional development of all Holland America Line
culinary staff and led the development and launch of a residential
Culinary Training Center in Manilla, the
Philippines, working with the Culinary
Institute of America to develop curriculum.
"I see food as the way to our guests' hearts, and the
individuals on the Princess Cruise culinary team bring great heart
to what they do and take tremendous pride in their work," said
Sodamin "My goal is to grow that pride and lead the culinary
workforce to new performance heights through innovative approaches
to teamwork and creativity, collaboratively creating new signature
interactive dining experiences, and motivating this talented team
to new levels of culinary artistry."
John Padgett, president of
Princess Cruises, particularly appreciates Sodamin's extensive
track record for engaging with culinary crews to provide the best
possible guest experiences.
"A food experience is about human passion, energy, excitement,
and expertise all channeled together to create an emotional,
multisensory experience with a true human connection," said
Padgett. "Chef Rudi is one of the few who truly understands this
and how to consistently create culinary magic for guests, and we
are fortunate to be able to tap his extensive know-how and
leadership to further elevate the Princess on-board dining
experience and inspire our culinary teammates throughout the
fleet."
Sodamin's many accolades include a rating of 17 (out of 20) and
Three Toques from the prestigious Gault-Millau Guide (1998)—the
first for an onboard restaurant and the only such award presented
at sea. Sodamin has also authored 14 cookbooks, the most recent of
which is Rudi's Sel de Mer: For
the Love of Seafood (2021).
Editor's Note: Chef Rudi
Sodamin's bio is available here.
About Princess Cruises:
One of the best-known names in cruising, Princess Cruises is the
world's leading international premium cruise line and tour company
operating a fleet of 14 modern cruise ships, carrying two million
guests each year to 380 destinations around the globe, including
the Caribbean, Alaska, Panama Canal, Mexican Riviera,
Europe, South America, Australia/New
Zealand, the South Pacific, Hawaii, Asia,
Canada/New England, Antarctica, and World Cruises. A team of
professional destination experts have curated 170 itineraries,
ranging in length from three to 111 days and Princess Cruises
is continuously recognized as "Best Cruise Line for
Itineraries." In 2017 Princess Cruises, with parent
company Carnival Corporation,
introduced MedallionClass Vacations enabled by
the OceanMedallion, the vacation industry's most advanced
wearable device, provided free to each guest sailing on
a MedallionClass ship. The award-winning innovation
offers the fastest way to an effortless personalized vacation,
giving guests more time to do the things they love most. The
company is part of Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE:
CCL; NYSE:CUK).
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SOURCE Princess Cruises