Chris Staines becomes Lufthansa’s first UK star chef
Foliage head chef Chris Staines has been invited by aviation group Lufthansa to be the first British chef and the latest in a line of star chefs to create speciality menus for its passengers.
In an attempt to overthrow the European preconception that British food is bland and stodgy, Staines has created a menu to showcase some of the best dishes the UK has to offer.
Both First and Business Class passengers on long-haul flights in January and February will be able to sample his rabbit terrine with English mustard sauce and cucumber relish as a starter, and choose, for example, between fish & chips (fried cod with sauce remoulade, mushy peas and potatoes), and fillet of beef Wellington with truffle jus, carrots and broccoli as a main dish.
Karsten Benz, Luftansa’s vice president of sales and services for Europe, said: “I am very happy that Chris Staines is to become the first UK chef to join the growing number of Lufthansa’s Star Chefs. He will be showcasing the best of British cuisine to our long-haul passengers every day as they cross the oceans and mountains of the world. It is fitting that food from the home country of our European headquarters is now being recognised in this way.”
Staines was considered by Lufthansa to have led a new generation of young, talented British chefs to alter the negative image of British cuisine. Having previously trained under Marco Pierre White, he became one of the youngest Michelin-star chefs in the UK at the age of 27, and has managed to retain Foliage at the Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park Hotel’s star for six years.
