Michelin-Starred Delights: Air France Redefines First and Business Class Dining

Air France is revamping its menu for Business and La Première customers this summer. The airline has partnered with a group of acclaimed chefs to create exquisite meals inspired by the essence of French fine dining.

The revamped summer menu will be available to premium customers on long-haul flights departing Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG) between July and October.

Business Class customers will sample the fruits of the airline’s newest collaboration with Parisian chef Thierry Marx.

Photo: T. Marx Business Class. Courtesy of Air France

Awarded two Michelin stars for his restaurant at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel and now also at the helm of Madame Brasserie—an eatery on the first floor of the Eiffel Tower—Marx is known for infusing traditional French cuisine with cutting-edge techniques from molecular gastronomy.

Photo: T. Marx Business Class. Courtesy of Air France

For Air France’s Business Class passengers, he’s crafted eight dishes focusing on plant-based ingredients to align with a flexitarian diet. They are:

• Cream of spelt soup, black olive crumble, and sautéed courgettes
• Cod, prawns, saffron rice, and piquillo pepper coulis (sauce)
• Guinea fowl, carrot, andbutternut purée
• Pork loin, langoustine coulis (Norway lobster sauce), cauliflower purée, and chanterelle mushrooms
• Pasta conchiglie, pear, Fourme d’Ambert cheese, and walnuts
• Prawns, risoni pasta with squid ink, and crunchy vegetables
• Chicken, boulangère potatoes, mushrooms, and Jura wine sauce
• Beef chuck, Bordeaux sauce, and celery ravioli

“Just like traveling, cuisine brings people together. These are values that I share with Air France for its customers’ pleasure,” Marx said.

For Business Class travelers, it is possible to choose their hot dish up to 24 hours before their departure. By doing so, they can ensure they receive their preferred meal and minimize food waste.

Photo: T. Marx Business Class. Courtesy of Air France

Meanwhile, the much-lauded menu in the prestigious La Prèmiere (First Class) cabin has also been refined. Recently named the World’s Best First Class Onboard Catering in the 2023 Skytrax World Airline Awards, Air France’s First Class menu replicates the experience of the finest French restaurants.

Photo: R. Marcon, La Première. Courtesy of Air France

Triple Michelin-starred chef Régis Marcon, Air France’s partner on La Prèmiere meals since 2021, has designed eight new dishes for travelers this summer, inspired by France’s Ardèche and Auvergne regions. They are:

• Fillet of beef with cherries, mashed potatoes with smoked salt
• Royale of courgettes with oyster mushrooms and truffle, strawberry tomato coulis
• Pigeon fillet with apricot sauce, lemon bulgur, mushrooms, and butternut
• Fillet of sea bass and prawns with chanterelle mushrooms, bouillabaisse style
• Guinea fowl fillet with blueberries, roast potatoes, and baby carrots;
• Fillet of seabream with verbena, sautéed baby spinach, and chanterelle mushrooms
• Braised veal shank, sage sauce, potato gratin with porcini mushrooms
• Cream of red bean soup with root vegetables

Air France has also partnered with Philippe Urraca, a renowned pastry chef and recipient of the prestigious Meilleur Ouvrier de France award, to create their in-flight dessert menu.

Photo: P. Urraca La Première. Courtesy of Air France

The menu will feature four delectable desserts, which will be rotated every four months for passengers to enjoy.

• Délice du sud
• Tea, orange and Kalamansi
• Le méditerranéen
• Le Moka

The premium cabin’s dishes will be meticulously crafted by Servair caterers, using locally-sourced seasonal produce such as meat, poultry, dairy, and eggs from France and sustainable fish from fisheries.

Photo: T. Marx Business Class. Courtesy of Air France

Air France’s commitment to high-altitude cuisine is reaffirmed through its new summer menus. The airline will collaborate with seventeen renowned chefs, including many with Michelin stars, to provide exceptional dishes for passengers in-flight and at airport lounges in Paris throughout the year.