The aroma of Greek cuisine will render Lufthansa flights during the next months a culinary highlight for passengers travelling from Athens to Germany. The German carrier is offering its Business and Economy Class passengers, departing from Athens International Airport “El Venizelos”, a delicate «taste of Greece», as part of the airline’s commitment to promote local products and flavours and add a local flair to its meals.
“The delicious recipes promote Greek flavours and local dishes. They are a delight not only for the palate, but also for the eye”, said Paulo Yoshikawa, Lufthansa’s Director for Greece and Cyprus, not able to hide his enthusiasm. “Breakfast, lunch or dinner are all made from fresh ingredients and come with plenty of vegetables and herbs”, he added.
Variety is the key element in Lufthansa meals, so the meals offered both in Economy and in Business class are changing every Wednesday so that a passenger flying regularly would not always been offered the same meal.
For passengers in Business Class there is always a choice between two meals. For breakfast they can choose between an egg dish (two kinds of omelettes) or a sweet dish (bread pudding with raisins, black currant pancakes with vanilla sauce and black currant, crepe with yoghurt cottage, cheese, sugar & cinnamon filling, served with raisins, apple & peach compote). For lunch and dinner one of the choices is always fish (cod, salmon, perch) while the second choice is meat (beef, veal, pork or rabbit). Characteristic recipes with Greek flair are “fish a-la-Spetsiota” – a delicious seafood dish from the island of Spetses, tagliatelle with seafood (kalamari, prawn, octopus) in tomato & ouzo sauce or spinach “sfougatto” (quiche) with potato croquette grilled tomato wedge & village sausage.
Innovative and modern, always aiming for a superior travel experience, Lufthansa is among the few European airlines that offers hot menus from the classical Greek cuisine in Economy Class, too.
Economy Class passengers will be able to taste ”Tiropitari”- a pie with cheese filling, vegetable ratatouille and cubed potatoes- as well as two omelette versions. For the main course, the meals vary from Mediterranean style penne pasta with rich sauce & parsley to “pastitsio” (a Greek baked pasta dish including ground beef and béchamel sauce) as well as meat dishes, like chicken breast in rich tomato and mushroom sauce served with skin on potatoes, broccoli and carrots or herbed meatballs with tomato eggplant & graviera sauce, served with steamed rice and parsley, carrots & green beans.
“Greek recipes are inspiring, full of freshness and health. The ingredients, the flavours, the combination of herbs and materials offer a tasteful, healthy and light meal for our air travelling”, said Mrs. Brenner, Area Manager Product Design and Caterer Management Europe and North Africa.
Through sense, natural tastes and aromas, Lufthansa passengers will virtually “travel” to the islands or the small mountainous villages of Greece. Food will be a feast to the eyes and the mouth and leave the travellers with the best last impression of the country.
One more culinary treat is Lufthansa’s surprise to its Business Class passengers, who will be tasting new and exciting menu variations from Michelin star-awarded Chef Mario Kotaska on flights departing from Germany with destination Europe from October 2011.
His menus on European mid to long-haul routes, such as Frankfurt-Paris and Munich- Athens, are modern versions of country-house cooking, which Kotaska blends with international specialities more familiar in gourmet cuisine. On German domestic and short cross-border flights, for example from Frankfurt to Basel, his imaginative creations will be served in the cabin under the motto “Streetfood“.
The cooperation with Mario Kotaska is part of the “be invited“ in-flight service concept, launched by Lufthansa in December 2010, to bring the enjoyment of creations by awardwinning chefs to Business Class passengers on German domestic and European flights.
Mario Kotaska is noted for his unusual menu combinations. He refines traditional homestyle dishes with extravagant ingredients and aromas. Mario Kotaska began his cooking career in the “Imperial“ gourmet restaurant at the Schlosshotel Bühlerhöhe in the Black Forest in 1995. His cooking as deputy chef helped the Berlin “Andermann“ restaurant win a Michelin star in 2001. As chef de cuisine from 2003 to January 2011 at “La Sociéte“ restaurant in Cologne, he entranced guests with delightful dishes inspired by French cuisine. For his creative menus at “La Sociéte“, he again landed a coveted Michelin star in 2006.
