A Walk Through the Battleship's Main Galley 

Of personal note, it paid off to become friends with the night baker. All bread and pastries were prepared by the night baker for the following day. If you were working late and you knew the night baker, you could get yourself some fresh bread or the like. Our night baker was a huge sports fan, so as a communicator, I could get all of the latest ball scores and trade them for cinnamon rolls.

As I told my son, the Navy gave you two choices at every meal. You could either eat what they gave you or you could not eat it.

Are we just going to ignore the stand mixer that's about as tall as Ryan? One of the small details that fascinated me about WWII is the bakery ships (USS Abatan) and the ice cream barge that followed the Pacific fleet to Ulithi.

This was a really nice one. Seeing the galley though it raises more questions than it answers as far as the layout (and the smaller steam kettle). And yeah, that lone refrigerator near the counter (what am I saying, it's ALL counters). I don't think it would have held enough Jell-O™ for 2000 sailors. This is one of the areas I would have loved to see you accompanied by someone who used to work in that space because I'm sure that galley was laid out for efficient operation. I know money is always tight and I emphasize you did a great job but I would have liked to see a recently retired US Navy Culinary specialist (like from an Aircraft Carrier) walk through there with you and compare the layout and equipment with what they're familiar with.

I have never spent over night on a ship but I have spent many nights in an underground nuclear command and control facility and the galley is very similar to a ship's mess.

One of the stranger items on my bucket list is that I've always wanted to make soup in one of those giant kettles.

In my 20+ years in the Navy, I served on many types of ships. Every ship had at least one extended deployment of six months or more. Seeing your “coppers” (kettles) brought back many fond memories.

During my time in the Navy, the food was one of the best perks. Especially loved mid-rats, short order cook would make just about anything you wanted. I felt sorry for the ground pounders, Jar-heads and fly- boys (Army, Marine Corps and Airforce). Of all the bases I've been to, we always had the best food.

07:44 yeah I know back in the 1960s a fire broke out in the petty officer's mess aboard the HMS Victorious, 1 crew member died and 2 were hospitalised and it used as a reason to retire the carrier even though she was going to retire in 1970 as she was getting to the end of her service life

my best guess on why the galley is not allowed to be activated is because of the fire hazard that any galley poses to a ship. on a ship that is still active its not a problem because the damage control crew is always at hand to deal with it but on a museum ship there is no damage control and your local fire department is not trained to fight fires on a battleship.

Informative. I've been aboard a Liberty ship while she was steaming at the dock. They use a coal burning galley not steam as I would have guessed. That was a surprise. I've spent the night on a number of museum ships. All at San Francisco Maritime National Historic Park. Balcutha, C.A. Thayer, and on a number of voyages on Alma, the until recently, still actively sailed Hay Scow. One night I forgot to bring my sleeping bag so I just made a cozy hammock out of the furled foresail. We slept through and earthquake that night. We had no clue because we were on a boat. Would like to sleep on a bigger ship. There are three near me but I don't know if they are doing overnights at this time.

Actually i have stayed on the battleship Massachusetts 3 times when i was in boy scouts. Those where fun times as a kid!

I spent the night on the Lexington when I was 8 or 9. Then when I was 28 I spent a whole bunch of nights on the Carl Vinson. I'll let you guess which one I enjoyed more.

My scout troop was Not happy when they found out they had to help serve dinner. But when they finished up they talked about it for hours. Thanks so much to the staff that made it such a great experience for the boys both times that we have been there. And I didn’t even notice that the barbet was in the kitchen. I love these videos for little things like that you don’t notice when you are there and have so much to look at.

I made fantastic ginger potroast when I cooked on ships. In my last ship, the crew wouldn't eat when the other watch cooked because my cooking was so much better. I actually cared about how the crew liked the food. Often times I ate cup o noodles when I was off. When I was night baker, I also prepared midrats. Some one the crew would get up at night just to eat the soups I made for midrats depending who cooked during the day.

I spent a night in the USS Hornet with my kids with their Boy Scout troop. Must have been 16-17 years ago. I don't remember what exactly we ate but there was a lot of left-over corn.

When I mess cranked I worked that beverage bar that he briefly pointed out. Bug juice was 5 gallons of water, 5lbs of sugar, 1 pack of concentrated powder flavoring(Boatswain mates would ask for packets and soak the lifeline turnbuckles to clean them)

Two things. I would love to see you walk through the galley of Alabama/Massachusetts/North Carolina and compare the WWII US Galley design to the modern one you have on New Jersey. Second, Have you thought of petitioning the Navy for an addendum to let you use more of the Galley since the Iowas have been pulled from all the "must maintain in reactivatable conditions" clauses? When they were first pulled it made sense to preserve everything since the ships had been reactivated many times before, but now reactivation seems a far distant possibility.

Another possible reason for not reactivating the galley is local health codes. To serve people, you'd have to have an inspected commercial kitchen. That means the ventilation system has to be up to snuff. The navy may have wanted to avoid getting caught up in that, especially since the museum aspect would have limited what mods they could do.

WESTPAC '85. On board USS OGDEN LPD-5 for about 11 months. I do miss navy chow especially morning chow. I dearly miss powdered eggs! Had regular eggs on weekends. Also had excellent "steel beach" days on missions of steaks n lobsters. Ah memories😎

My perspective includes eight months of overnight stays on the LPH-10/USS Tripoli and land based dining facilities during my 27-year military career (due to taking a break for school and to be an overseas contractor, this took 35 years). Part of my "real-world" experience included using mess halls that dated back to the 19th Century but updated. As a member of the Army National Guard in the early 21st Century some of the places I stayed for various schools dated from the First World War and even with updates there were placards warning "don't eat the lead based paint chips." I think that the curator covered the many reasons why the mess deck equipment couldn't be reactivated. Safety is a biggie--during the Seventies asbestos removal began, some of the chemicals used on the ship are now prohibited, and some of the equipment used high temperature steam at pressure--are those fittings and pipes still safe to use at high temperatures and high pressures? That reminds me--I'll have to find someone who is authorized to tell me if secondary steam off of nuclear-powered warships such as CVN-65/USS Enterprise was used in the galley. When that nuclear-powered aircraft carrier was commissioned, there were different radiation safety standards, and even though secondary steam shouldn't be a radiation hazard, I'm not fully read on with the current nuclear safety standards. That brings up engineering and the need to run the oil-fired boilers on BB-62/USS New Jersey in order to run some of the equipment. Not only would there be a problem with those 80-year-old boilers and the bunker oil used, but there'd be EPA issues with burning bunker oil, with spills while transferring oil into the fuel bunkers, with the fact that sea water was used in the fuel bunkers, and then we can get back into the safety issue with running the engineering plant. Oil-fired steam ships used to run at least one boiler even with shore power due to the use of their on-board equipment requiring both electricity and live steam. Finally there's food sanitation standards. Some military museums have old field kitchens dating back more than 100 years. I've had experience with field kitchens up through the first decade of the 21st Century (not a cook or baker!) through being on mess duty, eating at field messes, NCO duties to maintain sanitation and safety in field kitchens, and I spent a decade working as a logistician (National Guard day job, lucky me--my M-Day unit was communications). I got to see old equipment dating from as far back as World War Two (still current when I joined the Corps in 1974) to the 21st Century mobile field kitchens rated to feed 800 people three meals per day. In the National Guard, those field kitchens form part of their state's disaster relief stores and if deployed (along with a LOT of canvas and folding tables and chairs) those field kitchens would have been very welcome. The presenter said that the New Jersey enlisted galleys fed 2000 men per day during World War Two and a smaller crew during Vietnam and the Gulf War. Warships never sleep. The enlisted galley would have provided at least four meals per day--mid rats, breakfast lunch (or dinner) and dinner (or supper) and would have had someone on duty around the clock. If at battle stations when it wasn't practical to run regular chow--or when riding out hurricanes--the mess crew would have prepared sandwiches with soup or coffee so that the crew could still eat--sometimes at their battle station. Note that due to a very hard limit on crew size (the people you left the dock with was all you had during General Quarters) many ship's services personnel such as barbers and tailors and laundry and cooks and bakers would have had a damage control assignment, possibly a battle station, and would have been required to wear something other than their mess duty uniform at General Quarters. Where did the mess crew go during General Quarters? Speaking of battle stations, that would be a good video if there isn't already one or two--being at battle stations changes everything. Sometimes the crew could be authorized to have some sleep time while at general quarters, I just mentioned feeding the crew while at general quarters, moving around at Condition X-Ray inside the ship would have been difficult because of the need to get authorization before opening the water-tight hatches, and personnel accountability would have been tight--tighter than in elementary schools were the kids have to ask permission to take a bathroom break during class. The crew would have been wearing whatever their battle station equipment was.

As a Machinist Mate "A Gang" I used to maintain all of this equipment back in the 80's.

Man...fryers seem like a really bad idea on a ship...lol And, yea...to bring the galley up to code, you'd have to install dividers between/around the fryers, install three-compartment sinks...all kinds of modern code type stuff like that that we have now that probably didn't exist back in the 80s. It'd be a TON of work.

Having worked in commercial kitchens, one of the things that jumps out at me is the lack of (visible) fire suppression nozzles. Probably another contributing factor for the galley being inactive. Also the sheer amount of man-hours that go into keeping a kitchen (properly) clean is staggering.

I spend the night on New Jersey about 15 years ago now as a boy scout. I also remember getting picked to serve food from that very galley. LOL, and i also remember that huge mixer.

I’m guessing the reason for not wanting the equipment reactivated is liability. Imagine if someone gets hurt by equipment provided by the Navy. Lawyers go after whomever has the most money.

I was an assistant scout master for troop 76 in Sea Isle City. We did several overnights aboard the ship in my time. The kids always seemed to love it.

As always. Thanks Ryan. I enjoy your tours and videos. I always learn something.

on our carriers there is a fwd galley which was used for quick meals and mid rats the aft galley which was used for normal meals

The steam jacketed kettles are “coppers” in navy parlance. What call ranges are actually griddles. In my day navy CSs began their career as a grill cook, the worker their way up to the oven king, then the copper king.

I've spent many nights on the New Jersey with the scouts and I have great memories. I want to come back and just crawl all over the ship you've got my dream job Ryan!

I remember staying overnight on New Jersey YEARS ago with the Boy Scouts. I wish I could remember more of the trip since I became obsessed with American warships about a year ago lol

I was a marine and never cooked aboard ship, but those griddles would have been cooking eggs to order, and the bacon would come out of the ovens baked on pans. For lunch yes burgers would have been cooked there although you could use the ovens as well to mass produce them. The steam jacket kettles would make the sausage gravy by the gallons, and soups, beef stroganoff, beef tips, etc for lunch and dinner. I am surprised by the scarcity of steam jacket kettles bc we used them almost exclusively. Is there a separate bakery?

I spent the night on the NJ as a cub scout some 15 years ago, its amazing how much more of the ship is available and restored now. If I'm ever back up that way I may just have to stop by.

the biggest internal area on the ship fires can easily start

The galley on Massachusetts includes menus of the time, like special Thanksgiving and Christmas meals. The amount of provisions it took to feed a crew of over two thousand is staggering.

I was lucky enough to be on the adults only overnight on July 16-17, 2022 and eat from the chow line as well as touring around the ship and checking out the bunks. It was a great experience and I’d highly recommend it for any fan of the battleship!

Now I know where the design of my elementary school cafeteria came from. I had flashbacks when you showed the serving line. Thanks

After watching his performance on the deck with an egg I think it’s fairly obvious why the navy won’t let Symanski anywhere near the galley.

Very good coverage and explanation, thank you. Had the opportunity to sleep over with a Cub Scout Den on Silverside, when she was at Navy Pier in Chicago. I even was the "cook' for Breakfast and used the onboard stove and other equipment. The kids were tasked with the "cleanup", which was supervised by the onboard caretaker. This was in the '80s and was winter time. Cold night on Lake Michigan !!!

I had the opportunity to eat in the galley of the Kitty Hawk when I was in the USCG Bicentennial Marching Band. We played at a citizenship ceremony for several of their crew. The food was decent. I remember how wild it was to have so many food choices. We didn’t even have that at the USCG TRACEN Cape May where we were stationed! Great video as always!

I slept on the USS Dale CG19 a few times through my former step father's time in the Navy.

Now THAT'S a Ladell!!!

Ryan, have you ever done a video about fancywork around the ship? I noticed the rope closing off the galley door was a pretty involved piece of work...

I spent 2 years aboard ships in the 1960s

One of the big reasons for having stuff other than the "real food" was so watchstanders could grab a burger or some other portable meal and stuff it into their faces in their machine space or wherever they had watch. I know I ate plenty of meals down in aux1, which is so conveniently located right under the enlisted mess.

Could you possibly do a video on what the crewing requirements were? Something like "this many people per 5" battery, this many in communications, this many in medical" and so on? It would be interesting to see how that changes over the years as her equipment changed.

Quite a galley tour

More needed on this, this was a fascinating video.

Hey Ryan At 7:44 it looks like a couple of the missing ventalition covers you walked by are on top of that large duct overhead the deep fryers.

The B&W video from the ship's early years showing the chow line without the sneeze guard and the sailors sitting down eating was a nice touch. People tend to forget that when the Iowas were designed they were designed to hold up to 5,000 sailors, so space was at a premium. As the ship was modernized it took less crew to serve it, so the size of the crew shrunk and not as much space was needed for areas like berthing and eating. I am curious, though - how did they get those big ovens below deck like that? And how did they get the old ones out? No way they fit them through the crew hatches.

Another great video from the battleship. Thanks

This galley is like 6 times the size of a DDG's galley. At the same time, being a cook in this galley would be a very daunting duty, let alone, being the watch captain.

One of biggest restaurant fires occur in the exhaust duct vents above the fire, if you were to use the fryers , you would have to have them cleaned at least once a year, it’s not an hotel kitchen that’s easier to do

In the '80's, the meal of the day would have been Adobo. Most of the cooks were Filipino.

On an LST the galley was on the main deck at the aft end of the superstructure. After getting our food we had to go down a ladder to get to the mess deck one level below. The food was very good usually. That may have been because the officers' meals came from the same galley. I am sure they some extras in the ward room, but the stewards got the food for meals from the galley. They also had china instead of stainless steel trays.

Hearing you talk about the meals of the day and different options got be wondering about the menus on board. Does the museum have a set of menus from the ship? A cookbook of Navy recipes from throughout the ship's commissioning periods could make a great souvenir to sell, too!

Spent years of overnighters on the USS Dixie AD-14 and a couple weeks worth on the USS Meyercord FF 1058 while on TAD. The Dixie was nice after the yards in 1978-79, all new metal racks only 3 high instead of those canvas ones we had before.

"The hot dog roller, that's not original equipment." I can imagine one of those wouldn't work spectacularly well in rough sea conditions. Then again, I wouldn't want to try operating a Fryolator on a rough day either.

My dad was R.C.N. ww2, and he only ever mentioned the meal that was always served was "Red Lead" and Bacon ( stewed tomatoes and bacon).

That blue mixer is a beauty

Spent the night on New Jersey with Troop 9 from Upperco Md. Great experience

Very interesting to see the galley from the other side of the serving line. I recently did a tour of the USS Iowa (BB-61) in Los Angeles. They've got a display in the galley with mannequins serving fake food. It's a little creepy when you walk in because you see these figures standing there and suddenly realize they're fake.

Spent many nights onboard the USS Independence (CV-62) and USS Kitty Hawk (CV-63) while serving active duty `97-`05

Ryan, off topic but I just watched a Korean War Movie "Retreat Hell". At the 26 minute of the film, it showed the complete loading operation and firing of the 16" mounts. Great in-depth camera work and just might be a segment that could be used on the ship for the visitors who see the mounts and want to know just how they work. Only about a minute long, but information wise, one could see it over and over and never see it all.

Yes, I have spent many nights on a few ships. On 2 heavy cruisers.

I can't imagine the logistics of planning the food needs for a meal for 2000.

I would like to learn about what the average sailor ate during the different eras of the ships service, please. Good video, thank you.

From personal experiance, it must of been a bugger to keep clean especially in high seas. At the end of serving it must have taken hours to wash all the pots/containers etc.

Two of the worst dishes served while I was on board my ship was baked lemon fish and seagull aka cornish hens...lol..still love some beanie weenies now and then...

My husband used to work for a company in Everette MA that made 40 gallon kettles used for the navy.

When you were transitioning from the ovens to the sink area at 5:48, what were the row of knobs mounted to the overhead over the prep table on the other side of the HVAC duct? Looked like control dials.

The food warmers for serving are also known as a "Bain Marie" or bain-marie.

I did an overnight in 2019 with my son's boy scout troop it was a lot of fun. I enjoyed the chow line experience. I believe If I remember correctly that you guys had an old meal schedule on the wall that stated that stewed prunes were going to be served as a meal (I could be wrong). But I can't imagine that being a popular dish.

I still have dreams about being in line for lunch on my old ship. The food wasn't great but I always hungry for some reason. Coffee was crap. Soda was crap. Milk was crap. A sailors gotta eat something

Tight.

Haven't done New Jersey but I have spent two nights on Pampanito and one on Balclutha. Never did get to do one on Hornet.

I get seasick on ships tied up at dock so never spent the night on a ship, but I did tour a navy ship once

I stayed overnight on Battleship Massachusetts. I was a great time.

I ate in a cruise ship back in 2010 on our 25th wedding anniversary on route to Bermuda. Excellent food on board. Then I found the soft serve ice cream machine. I visited that a lot on the cruise.

My first thought looking at how much food would be prepared during a mess service is this: what did they do with the leftovers? I presume there must be some amount of leftover food. Was this kept and reserved later, or was it thrown out? If the latter, how was it disposed of?

Was the red-doored unit a refrigerator or a hot box? The sinks look like prep sinks for washing veggies before prepping and cooking them. There would be a separate area for pot wash.

Hopefully the food is better than the last time we were on the battleship. we had frozen stuffed shells. It Would have been better to get cheese steaks.

The Navy does want someone to a restaurant on a Navy ship to compete with local restaurants. Also restaurants are usually regulated by the local municipality, which is another can of worms.

Nice pants Rockefeller.

From Under Siege does the chopping station with the “refer” to Steven Segal’s’ left actually exist?

Lol good video what did you lean against or sit on?

I wonder what it would cost to outfit a ship's galley like that? It doesn't look like any expense was spared to ensure everything needed was at hand. Very impressive!

How did they wash the warming kettles?

Where did they wash all the trays and silverware?

Hot dog machines are now on ships.

Do you still have the deep fryer that can flash-fry a buffalo in 40 seconds, or was it sold to Moe like they did to the Missouri?

If I recall after visiting USS IOWA I think they are using ice cream making machine. They had to get special permission since it only use electricity

Is there an episode on the Officer's galley?

What day was this filmed? I want to know how close I was to a cameo when I visited.

Mom had a Hobart mixer at work

Where is the cooler/freezer? have you done a video with that?

Whats with the overexposure?

I slept on the uss Massachusetts in the 1980 in cub scouts I would love to do the same on the new Jersey I can dream ...

What about shore steam? The odds of her being recalled to active duty are slim to none, I would think that the Navy could revise their conditions as time goes on. Granted I would love to see Our BBs sailing again but in reality, this will not happen.