Explore Inuit Culture and Cuisine with Arctic Expedition Cruises

1. Introduction

Beginning in August, Quark Expeditions will bring local Inuit chefs on board its new ship, the 199-passenger Ultramarine, for select sailings around Greenland and Arctic Canada.

2. Unique Culinary Experience

Through Tundra to Table, a first-of-its-kind culinary program, passengers can enjoy small-group four-course meals focusing on the region’s Indigenous history and modern cuisine. Menus adapt based on what is fresh and available, featuring dishes such as:

• Dry-salted caribou
• Beer-braised musk ox
• Greenland herring with pickled angelica and juniper cream

Fish will come from Inuit cooperatives, while meat is sourced from local hunters. Moreover, guests may have collected some of the ingredients themselves, as chefs lead hikes to forage for berries, mushrooms, and herbs.

3. Cultural Insights

“We want people to feel they’ve gotten more than a dinner,” says chef Salik Parbst Frederiksen, founder of a Greenlandic collective of chefs working with local hunters and food producers who crafted the program. “The Indigenous peoples of the Arctic have been managing their resources for thousands of years, and that history is really something to learn from.” Cultural commentary is also included; for instance, while seal won’t be served on the ship, its significance in the cuisine will be discussed.

4. Supporting Local Communities

Frederiksen emphasizes that the best Greenlandic Inuit chefs typically work in mining camps or on fishing trawlers; for many, cooking on the ship will be their first opportunity to reach a broader audience. Profits generated from the program will support grassroots, food-focused initiatives in Greenland and Nunavut.