Soaring flavours: Cathay Pacific and Louise bring elevated French classics to the skies

Hongkongers love exciting dining experiences, both in their hometown and on their travels. That’s why our Dining and Hospitality teams are constantly looking for new ways to ensure every journey starts on a delicious note.

To further enhance our food and beverage offerings and provide customers with a memorable dining experience, we’ve introduced several dining partnerships with some of Hong Kong’s top restaurants and food and beverage brands over the course of 2023. These include a refreshing plant-forward menu with Veda, authentic Italian eats courtesy of Pirata, and an all-new selection of ‘Hong Kong Flavours’ created in collaboration with JIA Group ’s Cantonese fine dining institution, Duddell’s. 

Encouraged by the success of these partnerships, we’ve teamed up with Hong Kong’s JIA Group once again, this time with acclaimed French restaurant, Louise . Known for its fresh take on traditional French cuisine, the popular restaurant opened its doors in PMQ's idyllic gardens in 2019. Housed in a breathtaking two-storied heritage-listed house, the restaurant earned itself a Michelin star shortly after opening and has been a leading establishment in Hong Kong’s fine dining scene ever since. Together with the restaurant, we’ve created our most elevated inflight dining offering yet: a range of classic French dishes with a twist. The menu will be available for First class and Business cabin passengers on selected long-haul flights departing from Hong Kong starting this month.

“Our partnership with JIA began with the Duddell’s collaboration, and we were impressed by the team’s impeccable quality, enthusiasm and professionalism. We’re thrilled to be working with Louise to create a bespoke menu of reimagined French classics that showcase the craftsmanship and ingenuity of Cathay Pacific and Louise,” says Vivian Lo, General Manager Customer Experience and Design at Cathay Pacific.

For the Louise team, working on these dishes was an exciting new challenge. It was something they had never done before. Their biggest challenge? Execution. Preparing inflight meals is completely different from cooking in a restaurant. But by keeping it simple and delicious, the team successfully created a range of traditional French dishes with a modern twist.  

This partnership has seen some of the world’s finest ingredients take flight with Cathay Pacific. No detail has been spared in the curation of this inflight menu, with the team at Louise opting for choices such as fleur de sel or “flower of salt”, soft and fluffy Niigata rice, Iranian saffron (often referred to as “red gold”) and the bittersweet and elegant Guanaja dark chocolate. A particular highlight is the pan-seared Chilean sea bass with saffron sauce, julienned fennel and carrots, tomato purée – a bistro classic that’s available in First class and Business cabins this month – as is the lamb shoulder confit and bulghur pilaf with dried fruits. Served with a ras el hanout-based jus and a refreshing mint and coriander salad, this hearty dish is poised to be a favourite when it debuts in First class’ and Business cabins’ inflight dining menus in February. 

The menu is also infused with Asian culinary sensibilities. In the Obsiblue prawns with herb-infused consommé, the addition of shiso leaves and ginger gives the light appetiser a bright, refreshing touch. On the sweeter end of things, there’s the mango and passion fruit rice pudding, a tropical reinterpretation of riz au lait, a classic and homey French childhood dessert.  

“Louise’s insistence on excellence through specific ingredients and techniques was met with unrelenting dedication by our team, who went above and beyond to realise the quality and integrity of each dish,” adds Vivian Lo of Cathay Pacific. 

“Our goal for this collaboration is to enhance the inflight dining experience and our reputation for culinary creativity and excellence, while strengthening our connection with the local community. Through the exchange of ideas and expertise with the Louise team, we hope to inspire and challenge ourselves to continue to innovate and improve our food and beverage offerings. We are motivated to work with more talented and passionate restaurant partners in the future, and will continue to work together to delight our passengers and promote our home city’s vibrant and diverse culinary scene.”

Learn more about Cathay Pacific’s inflight dining partnerships here