Japan’s All Nippon Airways (ANA) is introducing a special Economy Class menu for passengers flying from Tokyo to Honolulu.
Economy Class passengers traveling on this flight are set to experience a new standard of in-flight dining, following the unveiling of an all-new menu exclusive to ANA’s inaugural Airbus A380 “FLYING HONU” flight. The special menu was created through collaboration with “bills,” an Australian all day dining founded by Bill Granger, a self-taught Aussie cook and restaurateur.
As one of the many in-flight services of the Tokyo Narita to Honolulu Route, the new menu will feature two different meal options that will be rotated every three months. The menu incorporates various cooking techniques such as pickling and marinating, each carefully prepared using ANA’s advanced culinary equipment and technique. The collaboration menu will run for one year, starting May 24, 2019. Passengers will also receive a special card for one free drink at bills Waikiki as part of the menu collaboration with the restaurant*1.
“We are excited to be working with bills to introduce new menu offerings to Economy Class passengers,” said Hideki Kunugi, Executive Vice President of ANA. “ANA has worked with bills to create a healthy, high quality menu in tune with the demands of modern airline passengers. It perfectly complements our Japanese-style offerings, which we hope will cater to all tastes and preferences. The dishes were designed by bills specifically for ANA, and combine bills’ signature sunny style with ANA’s food technique, and incorporate the flavors of Japanese, Australian and Middle Eastern cuisine.”
The first meal option available from May 24, 2019, to Aug. 31, 2019, as well as from Dec. 1, 2019, to Feb. 29, 2020, features a classic Australian inspired dish like pork schnitzel with mashed potato, green beans, poached egg, and parsley and caper butter as a main. Keeping things a little closer to home, the side dishes – jasmine tea smoked salmon, edamame and pickled cucumber salad, and sticky miso aubergine, shredded kale and lettuce, tomato and tofu salad – are tweaked with Japanese flavors, to create a varied menu whereby passengers can enjoy both classic bills’ dishes as well as Japanese comfort flavors. Each dish was specially designed to harness the latest in-flight food preparation technology and to create flavors that resonate even at altitudes as high as 35,000 feet.
The second meal option will be featured on flights from Sept. 1, 2019, to Nov. 30, 2019, with a second run occurring from Mar. 1, 2020 to May 31, 2020. This meal includes grilled chicken and steamed bok choy served with a curry sauce based on bills “yellow fish curry,” a popular dish among customers at the restaurant. The sides include roast pumpkin, olive labneh and toasted spiced sunflower seeds which combines seasonal Japanese pumpkin with classic Middle Eastern flavors, and marinated prawns, pickled carrot and white radish, which adds a healthy and light element to the entire menu.
The collaboration menu with bills illustrates ANA’s dedication to providing premium in-flight dining options and services to all passengers across different levels. These new additions to Economy Class are a testament to the dedication ANA has in creating an excellent traveling experience. By pairing the latest culinary innovations and cutting-edge in-flight food preparation techniques, ANA is again raising the bar for airline cuisine. Furthermore, this collaboration gives passengers the opportunity to experience quality cuisine with roots in different cultures, a small part of the increased global connectivity that ANA seeks to embody.
*1 Available until June 30, 2020
