Princess Cruises has received official endorsement from the Italian government for its on-board gelato offering.
Princess’ gelato shops on its Discovery Princess, Enchanted Princess and Sky Princess ships have all been designated as Ospitalità Italiana – the official quality endorsement mark handed out to restaurants in Italy by the Italian government and Italian Chamber of Commerce.
What’s more, Princess Cruises’ ships are the only locations – outside of Italy – to offer an authentic Italian gelato experience.
Princess Cruises handcrafts its fresh gelato with Italian-certified ingredients and equipment each day in the pastry kitchens onboard the cruise line’s three newest ships – Discovery Princess, Enchanted Princess and Sky Princess.
Corporate pastry chef Eric Le Rouzic trained with the best Italian chefs at the Gelato Carpigiani University in Bologna and the Gelato Comprital Atheneum in Milan to master the art of making gelato.
Princess uses top-of-line machines by renowned manufacturer Carpigiani and the gelato display cases were produced in Italy by expert craftsmen.
“The Ospitalità Italiana is a tremendous extension of our Italian heritage and gives us the opportunity to immerse our guests into the unique Italian culture found throughout Italy in our very own piazza,” said John Padgett, Princess Cruises president.
“The designation also recognises the incredible dedication of our pastry chefs and their passion to offer truly authentic experiences and the very best ingredients to our guests.”
Princess guests can choose from a variety of flavours – favourites like fior di latte (vanilla) and cioccolato (chocolate), to tiramisu, Nutella and caramello salato (salted carmel).
The menu even offers dairy-free, fat-free sorbets and sugar-free gelato.
Guests can add toppings or create combinations such as “affogato” (with liqueur) or “coppe,” including indulgent creations like nutellone (Nutella gelato, Nutella and whipped cream) or amaretto and peaches (amaretto gelato, fresh sliced peaches and meringue drops).