The Best In-Flight Culinary Experiences

James Beard Award-winning chefs Jon Shook and Vinny Dotolo—known for their Los Angeles restaurants including Trois Mec, Animal, and Jon & Vinny’s—are bringing their farm-fresh cooking to the skies in a new partnership with Delta that launched in December. Currently, you can find the chefs’ food in Delta One cabins on three routes originating in L.A.: to New York (JFK), Washington, D.C. (DCA), and starting this month, Sydney (SYD). Shook and Dotolo prepare each meal at their own facility, located near Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), incorporating fruits, vegetables, and dairy products from local providers. Meal options include a gem lettuce salad with a green goddess dressing, meatballs braised in marinara sauce, and a “build your own” BLT with caramelized onion dip. delta.com

In 2018, Air France will partner with six Michelin-starred chefs for meals in its Business and La Premiere cabins. Through March, the chefs will be Joël Robuchon (La Premiere) and Olivier Bellin (Business); April through June will be Anne-Sophie Pic (La Premiere) and Guy Martin (Business); Regis Marcon (La Premiere) and Michel Roth (Business) from July to September; and October through December will feature Guy Martin (La Premiere) and Regis Marcon (Business). Start off your flight with a cocktail creation from Ritz Bar Hemingway’s Colin Peter Field, a drink that combines Armagnac, apple juice, and champagne. Then enjoy a well-executed starter, and dinner options like foie gras, steamed lobster, or a pan-seared fillet of bass with lemongrass cream. Of course, you’ll find an excellent wine list featuring some of the best French varietals available in the skies, such as a fruity 2015 Pouilly Fume Terres Blanches and a well balanced 2012 Medoc Château Haut-Maurac. airfrance.us

Since 1998, Singapore Airlines has enlisted an eight-member international “culinary panel” to design the meals for the company’s first and business class cabins. Currently, the panel includes Italian chef Carlo Cracco, known for his recently opened Ristorante Cracco in Milan; James Beard Award winner Suzanne Goin, owner of Tavern and several other high-profile LA restaurants; and Yoshihiro Murata, the chef behind Kikunoi, a Michelin-starred restaurant with locations in Tokyo and Kyoto. The airline offers a “Book the Cook” feature, where first, business and premium economy passengers can choose their menu online up to 24 hours before flying, with options like prime beef fillet with balsamic onion sauce, Lobster Thermidor with saffron rice, and seafood congee. Offerings vary by route, but each menu draws from an eclectic array of cuisines from Asia, Europe, and America. singaporeair.com

When flying first class with Lufthansa, take advantage of the caviar service, complete with toast points, crème fraiche, and chopped onion, that starts off meals on long-haul flights, along with a glass of high-end 2003 Cuvee Louise champagne. This is a popular feature; the airline claims that it serves five percent of the world’s caviar supply on its flights, with options ranging from China’s “Kaluga Queen” to Calvisius’ Italian offerings. From there, choose from diverse entrée options, like Chilean sea bass with mustard-caper butter or spring chicken tikka masala, before finishing off with a well-curated cheese platter. To design its menus, the airline works with regional chefs that vary depending on the route. First class passengers flying to and from China can enjoy food from chef Sam Gao of the luxury Shangri-La Pudong hotel in Shanghai. And those traveling between the U.S. and Germany are offered different menus based on where their flight originates; cioppino from the West Coast, grilled fillet of beef from the Midwest and Texas, and fresh pasta with artichokes from the Northeast. lufthansa.com

ANA’s first class menu centers on thoughtfully-prepared and delicious Japanese cuisine, designed by a curated panel of highly regarded chefs like Masayoshi Nishikawa, the owner of the Michelin-starred Gion Nishikawa in Kyoto. Though other cuisine types are also available, the Japanese dishes (like grilled eel over steamed rice, miso ramen, and bamboo shoot steak) are clear highlights. To go along with your food, enjoy a glass of wine from the airline’s list, which is selected from 2,400 labels from at least 15 countries, such as New Zealand Veltliner or a German Riesling produced by Japanese winemaker Hideki Asano. Or go for some sake from Japanese brewery Akane Sasu Junmai-Daiginjo or a dram of expensive Hibiki Japanese whiskey, before enjoying a nice cup of matcha tea. ana.co.jp

When an airline’s home country is known for having such high-quality ingredients like fresh mussels, grass-fed lamb, and excellent cheese, why not take advantage of that first class in-flight dining? Air New Zealand follows this model, working with New Zealand chefs like Peter Gordon and Michael Meredith, both of whom run popular restaurants in Auckland. In business premier (the airline’s first class designation), passengers can enjoy dishes like salmon dusted with lemon kelp, masala chicken breast with Indian kachumber salad, and salted chocolate dulce de leche tart for dessert. Add to that a wine menu focusing on local New Zealand selections, from pinot noir to chardonnay to dessert wines, curated by a panel of native wine experts from Fine Wines of New Zealand, including masters of wine Alastair Maling and Simon Nash. airnewzealand.com

American is another airline that has taken the initiative to partner with some James Beard Award-winning and Michelin-starred chefs for its first class dining menu. There are four chefs that provide the food for different routes: James Beard award winner and TV personality Maneet Chauhan (U.S. to Europe, South America, China), Australian celebrity chef Sean Connolly (Australia to the U.S.), James Beard award winner and author Sam Choy (Hawaii and transcontinental flights), Dallas restaurateur Julian Barsotti (U.S. domestic flights), and owner of Tokyo’s Kurogi Shiba Daimon, Jun Kurogi (Japan to the U.S.). Each brings something different to the table, from Chauhan’s Indian take on American food (like a slow-braised lamb osso buco), to Choy’s Asian and Pacific Rim style of cooking focusing on Hawaiian-inspired food to Barsotti’s Italian-influenced dishes like lasagna with sweet and hot pepper crema. aa.com

Flying first class on Cathay Pacific includes many luxury amenities, not the least of which is the ability to book a private suite and royals-grade service once onboard. The food follows suit, with dishes created by partner chefs like Pino Lavarra of the Michelin-starred Tosca at the Ritz-Carlton Hong Kong. Enjoy some Krug champagne and Calvisius caviar to start your meal service on long-haul flights, then choose from international menu options like Angus beef strip loin, pasta with artichokes and zucchini cream sauce, or pan-fried king prawns. There is also a Chinese menu available on long-haul flights that includes dishes like marinated abalone, Peking duck salad with truffle, and sea conch soup. cathaypacific.com