Meals in the Navy, also know as “chow”, have been a point of discussion probably as long as there have been navies. Most Sailors find navy chow an easy target for ire, often deservedly so. I have had some down right terrible food in my time in the Navy. It’s an unfortunate, and near universal fact of life that the chow is often not great in the Navy. It also doesn’t help that I am the a particularly picky eater, but that’s another matter. I try not to be too hard on our galley staff. We have some very hard working Culinary Specialists, that work long hours, every day, to ensure everyone is at least fed.
Indeed they have a thankless job most of the time. I’ve seen Sailors get rather nasty towards the galley staff. I don’t think that’s fair, usually they are doing the best they can, and some of the CSes can actually cook. When they get the chance to show off it can really make your day out at sea. There are rumors that some ships are better than others when it comes to chow. I’ve been on about 9 ships this far, and can’t say any are exactly good, but your mileage may vary. The reality is that when you are cooking for an entire ship, sometimes with 4,000 plus personnel, quality is ultimately going to take a back seat. Quantity and economy are the priorities here.
The Navy could work towards making chow better. They could billet more galley staff, improve equipment, or better train on (and enforce) quality standards. It is unrealistic that “big navy” would do any of these things any time soon. So, like many shitty things we deal with being in the Navy, “it is what it is”. You just eat to survive, and look forward to the days when chow is good. So, when you see us in port eating like it’s our last meal, try not to judge to harshly, especially just before or just after a deployment. We just want to get the food in while we can. And if the food at sea is bad, Amazon delivers (it just might take a while).
Note: This article has been edited for quality. No edits changed the tone or intent of the article.
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