TAP Air Portugal Introduces New Cuisine in Business Class
Refreshing food on the plane
TAP’s new partnership will run for two years, from this month to April 2025. local Stars, Dishes from various local chefs will be served to business class passengers. The aim is to highlight dishes from different Portuguese regions on TAP flights. Every two months, a new menu created by each chef in the program will be introduced.
Photo: TAP
Alongside the new menus, TAP has produced a series of videos highlighting the region each menu/dish comes from and showing the chef preparing the dishes served on board. The business class menu highlights Lisbon this month and the next and highlights Henrique Sá Pessoa. Pessoa is a famous chef and chef in a restaurant with two Michelin stars in Portugal. Taking. Pessoa’s menu revolves around grouper, a popular fish in Lisbon. Fish is loved for its mild flavor and grouper stew is a famous Portuguese dish.
“TAP is Portugal’s largest showcase in the world and our aircraft is one of the most powerful tools to support Portugal. “The Local Stars project takes the gastronomy we offer on board to new heights, allowing TAP to work with some of the most respected Portuguese chefs in the development of Business Class menus.” – Silvia Mosquera, Trade and Revenue Officer, TAP
Patricia Dias, co-founder Portuguese Tasting ArtAdditional,
“Promoting Portugal as a gastronomic destination with its diversity and quality is a goal presented by The Art of Tasting Portugal.
With TAP Air Portugal. This partnership we are proud of reinforces this strategy to strengthen the national territory and the community that values it.”
Azores, Algarve, Madeira, Viseu and Bragança will be highlighted later this year. The famous São Jorge cheese of the Azores will be the focus of the next menu, available from May to June, and octopus from the Algarve in July and August will be the focus of the menu.
American carrier JetBlue announced changes to its in-flight meal offering in early February. Like TAP, JetBlue has partnered with a local catering project to provide in-flight meals. In 2020, New York’s Delicious Hospitality Group (DHG) signed a two-year deal with JetBlue. The meals served were so successful that the new menu includes a selection of dishes from DHG restaurant Charlie Bird.
Photo: JetBlue
Passengers flying with JetBlue’s Mint (premium) product on transatlantic flights are offered new flavors such as Mushroom Lasagna, Italian Clam Soup, Baby Beats and Breadcrumbs and Burrata for lunch and dinner. On the Core, passengers are also offered meals from DHG, including self-catering concepts. JetBlue has been widely known for its in-flight catering service over the years, gaining more recognition than most mainline carriers in the US.
What do you think about TAP’s new partnership and menus? What was the best meal you had on the plane? Let us know in the comments below.