Best. Airplane food. Ever.

by Annie Scott on


So, remember the Airplane Food vs. Army Food Gadling challenge, where you had to try and guess which photos were of airplane food and which were of army food? I totally failed. It was 50/50 and I totally failed.

Well, on a related note, Lufthansa has teamed up with The Ritz-Carlton to bring you the best airplane food ever. How do I know this? I tried it at their party on Monday.

The Ritz-Carlton and Lufthansa held a fete in downtown NYC on Monday, just hours after the outrageous Air Force One photo op disaster. Everyone had calmed down and was ready to tuck into a glass of wine and, surprisingly, airplane food.

The night was catered by none other than the Ritz-Carlton chefs who were called upon to create Lufthansa’s new First and Business Class menus. I spoke with chef Andres Jimenez (above, center, photo by Atom Lark), the executive chef from the Ritz-Carlton Denver, about how much like a cooking show challenge the assignment was! Keeping the ingredients fresh, making sure they taste right at high altitudes, being able to mass produce them well, and staying in budget were all concerns. And what to serve? “It’s not really the place to take a risk,” he said. “They want something that will appeal to everyone.”

Presentation is a difficult issue on an airplane, too. Senior Vice President of Product and Brand Management for the Ritz-Carlton added that there’s the whole problem of gravity. “You could arrange these dishes perfectly, but then when the airplane takes off, they’re all sliding to the back of the cooler at 45 degrees.” I asked Chef Jimenez if they train the staff on presentation. “We trained the staff who trains the staff,” he said and smiled.

Everyone seemed quite proud of what the chefs had come up with, and as they recreated it for us there in the Financial District at the three level loft home of Barry Appelman (who I understand is the father of AOL Instant Messenger and the buddy list — and thusly the grandfather of Facebook and Twitter) and Ildiko Sragli, I think we were all very, very impressed.

Wolfgang Mayrhuber, Chairman of the Executive Board and Chief Executive Officer of Lufthansa German Airlines was one of the first to take the microphone from the cool post-mod cover band and welcome the guests. “Life is too short to eat bad food, and life is too short to drink bad wine.”

For pictures of Mayrhuber and also Simon Cooper, President and Chief Operating Officef of The Ritz-Carlton, as well as pictures of the food, the guests, and one amazing apartment, click through the gallery (photos by Atom Lark).
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Galley Gossip: Boeing Boeing grounded

by Heather Poole on

January 4, 2009 was a very sad day on Broadway in New York City. While it is said that all good things must come to an end, does that really have to include the critically acclaimed Broadway show, Boeing Boeing? I mean this was one trip I didn’t want to end. Ever! But when the doors finally closed and the lights went to black, I was there (along with a full house) to say Buh-bye to an era of glamour and excitement so many people love to recall.

In the comedy, which is based on the movie of the same name (staring Tony Curtis and Jerry Lewis), an American architect living in Paris is juggling three flight attendants – I mean air hostesses – all of whom are his fiancee. How can one man juggle three different women? Easy. You make sure each woman is a stewardess from a different airline – Lufthansa, Alitalia, and TWA. Then you consult a timetable as if it were a bible, marking down each woman’s scheduled layover. Of course to make it run smoothly you must employ an overworked and disgruntled housekeeper who acts more like an air traffic controller. But when an old school chum comes into town things are turned upside down. As most of you know, schedules change and flights get delayed, resulting in turbulent chaos. That’s where the fun began.

While the simple set never changed, the talented cast took the audience on a fun filled ride. In fact, it was so much fun that I was barely conscious of the guy rustling a paper bag full of who knows what in my ear, or that my knees were practically under my chin, and that I could barely move my feet because the seating was so tight – much like a cramped middle seat in coach. Not to mention I purchased the cheap tickets that put me near the ceiling of the intimate, but ornate, Longacre theater, a beautiful theater that was built in 1913.

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The talented cast gave an excellent performance. I wonder if they could imagine the impact they had on the audience that night, the night they took their very last bow. As I looked around at all the people standing and clapping enthusiastically, I couldn’t help but wonder how many actually had a connection to a particular airline. Or were they aviation enthusiasts? Or were they just there to see a good show? Probably all of the above. And like that the show was over, the lights went to bright, and we all slowly filed out of the building, Playbill in hand, and onto the cold dark streets of New York.

“Boeing Boeing is done? Over? NOOOO! ” wrote our own Gadling writer, and pilot, Kent Wien when I mentioned I had seen the very last show. “I didn’t get a chance to see it! Is it going to pop up anywhere else?”

Pop up again, it will. Boeing Boeing will be back, touring in the fall of 2009.

Lufthansa to purchase bmi

by Grant Martin on

Lufthansa (LH) finally decided to pull the trigger today and purchase British Midland Airways, or bmi. The German carrier, who already has a 20% stake in the company will be taking over a majority share and absorbing the airline through the beginning of next year.

The merger had several strategic purposes. Primarily, as we’ve been seeing all this past summer, airlines have been keen to hook up to save on crazy fuel prices, operations and labor costs. Delta and Northwest are pulling the same hijinks in the States, and we’ve been hearing all sorts of crazy rumors about Continental and United and American. So in a way, it’s sort of a natural progression for the industry.

The other big advantage of to the acquisition is that now LH will have a larger share in landing slots at Heathrow, one of the world’s most sought after airports. This greater share will leverage the airline better against British Airways, who have the lion’s share of spots, and hopefully increase transatlantic revenue.

Conversely, from a miles perspective, many are considering this merger as the unfortunate loss of another great frequent flyer program. bmi’s Diamond club has always been one of the most generous, easy to qualify for programs, and as it gets usurped into Lufthansa’s Miles & More program, many are mourning the loss of their easy upgrades and lounge access around the globe. I suppose all good things have to come to an end.

From the New Europe: Drunk passenger causes emergency landing

by Iva Skoch on

You would think that crews would generally know how to handle a drunk passenger without having to land the plane first. Apparently, some drunks are harder to handle than others. Especially when they use the T word repeatedly.

A Lufthansa passenger jet had to make an emergency landing in the southern Polish city of Katowice earlier today after a drunk, unruly passenger began shouting that he was a terrorist, Reuters reports. The middle-aged, Russian-speaking passenger offered no resistance when an anti-terrorist squad boarded the plane to remove him. He is supposed to be questioned “once he sobers up.”

After a one-hour terrorist break, the Lufthansa Airbus A320 with 118 people on board peacefully continued its journey.