ANA adds to lineup of THE CONNOISSEURS and creates new menu with NAGAYA starred restaurant for Germany and Belgium departures

All Nippon Airways (ANA), Japan’s largest and 5-star airline for six consecutive years, today revealed it has signed four more culinary masters to its acclaimed in-flight lineup THE CONNOISSEURS and will also be launching its first collaboration menu for Business Class flights departing Frankfurt, Dusseldorf, Munich and Brussels.

The new additions to THE CONNOISSEURS program, launched by ANA in September 2013, bring the total number of members to 18. They comprise renowned chefs and beverage specialists from both inside and outside Japan; each works closely with ANA’s own chefs to demonstrate their craft and create 5-star gastronomy for passengers on board international and domestic flights. Each in-flight meal is created to represent the area from which THE CONNOISSEURS are from, providing passengers with a truly unique and authentic culinary experience on-board.

The four new masters include one French cuisine chef, two Japanese cuisine chefs, and a Japanese sake advisor:

• Alexandre Gauthier, chef owner of the renowned La Grenouillère in northern France
• Hiroyuki Kurosu, owner of Kagurazaka KUROSU restaurant in Shinjuku, Japan
• Tomiya Hirota, owner chef of Ginza Hyakuraku
• Yasuyuki Kitahara, restaurant manager of Cerise and Collage in Conrad Tokyo

The award-winning airline has also announced it will for the first time be offering a collaboration menu for Business Class flights departing Frankfurt, Dusseldorf, Munich and Brussels. The new menu, available from December 2018 until February 2019, will be curated in partnership with NAGAYA, the only Michelin-starred Japanese restaurant in Dusseldorf, Germany.

ANA already has collaboration menus in Business Class on flights from Singapore (with Regent Singapore, A Four Seasons Hotel), Taiwan (with Regent Taipei), Los Angeles (Patina) and India (Taj Mahal Palace Mumbai). Each represents the area from which the flight departs.

The New Connoisseurs

Alexandre Gauthier

Alexander Gauthier is chef owner of the renowned La Grenouillère restaurant, near Montreuil-sur-Mer in northern France. He is internationally recognised for his contemporary French cuisine, featured by the Omnivore guide in 2006 and earning a Michelin star in 2008.

Gauthier will be producing a French cuisine menu for Business Class passengers for ANA flights departing to Europe and North America, served from December 2018 until May 2019. Passengers will also be able to access an in-flight video about his fascinating background and culinary story.
Dishes from his menu include Braised beef cheek meat and carrot confit with its braised sauce, Steamed monkfish with courge sauce, and Pumpkin gnocchi and mimolette. All dishes will also be served with French beer Grand Cru, of Brasserie Castelain.

Hiroyuki Kurosu

Hiroyuki Kurosu is the owner of Kagurazaka KUROSU restaurant in Shinjuku. Kurosu is from the Niigata prefecture and began his culinary journey at a young age, with his family running a local sushi restaurant.
Having refined his skills at restaurants and hotels, he became head chef of Japanese cuisine at the RitzCarlton, Tokyo in 2007, before opening Kagurazaka KUROSU in 2012.
Kurosu will be producing the domestic flight’s Premium Class Japanese cuisine for evening flights departing from New Chitose (Sapporo), Fukuoka, Itami and Okinawa Airport to Haneda Airport. His dishes are inspired by his passion for combing modern and traditional cooking methods. Dishes from his in-flight menu include Pork kakuni, served with rice and minced sea bream.

Tomiya Hirota

Tomiya Hirota is owner chef of Ginza Hyakuraku. He will be producing the international flight’s Business Class Japanese cuisine for flights departing to Asia, available from March until May 2019. Hirota is from Tokushima prefecture and his dishes are inspired by his local region, incorporating seasonal ingredients from the area. (Details of his menu will be available on ANA SKY WEB in early February 2019).

Yasuyuki Kitahara

Yasuyuki Kitahara is restaurant manager of Cerise and Collage in Conrad Tokyo. He will be the Japanese sake advisor for ANA lounges, international and domestic flights. Along with expertise in sake, Kitahara is a connoisseur in champagne and wine, winning the 4th World Kikisake-shi (Japanese sommelier) competition.

New collaboration menu for flights from Germany and Belgium

Courses on the new menu created in collaboration with NAGAYA include Poached sliced beef, simmered beef and brussels sprouts roll with wasabi butter and turnip. This menu will also offer Hide’s Wine 639 Black Gutsriesling 2016, a white wine from winemaker Hideki Asano who specializes in German wines which perfectly complement Japanese cuisine.