For those planning a European tour based on gastronomy, two highlights must surely be the delicacies offered by the master chocolatiers of France and the tantalising tastes of Spanish tapas. Both are served up in elegant spaces provided by YSA Design on board the latest MSC Cruises ship MSC Bellissima.
MSC Bellissima is the second ship in MSC Cruises’ innovative Meraviglia-class and, once more, the luxury vessel provides a treat for connoisseurs of good food served up in surroundings created by YSA Design.
The Hola! restaurant and bar on the ship’s Mediterranean Promenade on Deck 6 is already delighting diners, courtesy of renowned chef Ramón Freixa: part Spanish tapas bar and part modern Spanish restaurant, The Hola! is believed to provide the first shipboard example of contemporary industrial restaurant design. It offers guests the option to choose bitesize appetisers and fine Spanish wines in an informal setting or more formal dining with a master of Spanish cuisine. A two Michelin Star chef, Freixa describes his approach as “produce, technique and feeling, plus a search for magic”.
To support this principle, YSA Design has created a sleek and minimalist setting, where high quality materials, design excellence and utility deliver a truly authentic and ‘on-trend’ Spanish dining experience. The metallic structure on the ceiling and the chandelier of copper pots that hang from it are particularly striking and completely change the perception of the area, while the rough brick surfaces achieve a warm, tactile and inviting ambience.
Also on Deck 6 is a re-envisioned version of the French chocolaterie that proved such a hit on Bellissima’s predecessor, MSC Meraviglia Once more, the area is occupied by the Jean-Philippe Maury Chocolaterie, although on this occasion YSA Design has delivered an open space with a trio of uses: chocolate shop; Italian coffee bar; and a ‘Chocolate factory’ where guests can create personalised chocolate mementoes or gifts at a pad stand kiosk.
Bellissima includes a new leitmotiv of the exclusive designer jewellery outlet, reinforced by Maury’s signature ‘hero’ chocolate sculptures in a slowly revolving, eye-catching display case that protrudes into the promenade. Meanwhile, the café section has been organised into intimate booths that we nicknamed the ‘Orient Express’ during the design process.
