Michelin-Starred chef, Tom Kerridge, will design gourmet food choices for British Airways new Speedbird Café menu (credit mediacentre.britishairways)

By Gary Raynaldo     DIPLOMATIC TIMES

BRITISH AIRWAYS is adding a delicious taste of Michelin-Starred gourmet food to its flights this year. BA announced Friday that it will be partnering with celebrated, British Michelin-starred chef, Tom Kerridge, who has designed a number of gourmet food items, which include signature pies and sandwiches, to pre-purchase for the airline’s Euro Traveller (short haul economy) customers.  BA said customers wanting to order from the Speedbird Café must pre-purchase their meal before flying.  The move marks a renewed focus on the short haul customer experience, which also includes the completion of a full WiFi rollout across its airbus short haul fleet and the ability to pre-order duty free items directly to customers’ seats through its inflight retail site, Highlifeshop.com, according to BA.   Mr.  Kerridge is undeniably one of the UK’s most popular chefs who has seen his own personal star skyrocket to the top of the British culinary and dining scene. Chef Kerridge’s TV shows have made  him become a household name. Holder of three Michelin stars, Kerridge owns  multiple restaurants, has  written a number of cookbooks. 

 The dishes designed by Tom Kerridge have been created with a special focus on British provenance.  These include:

-Warm Steak & Ale Pie

-The Ham Hock & Smoked Cheddar Sandwich

-The Spiced Cauliflower Tortilla Wrap (Vegan)

-The Chicken, Bacon and Celery Brioche

-The Brie Ploughman’s Sandwich (Vegetarian)

Speedbird Café Gourmet Sandwich  Collection by  Chef  Tom Kerridge ( credit: BA media)

The airline will also continue to offer complimentary refreshments in Euro Traveller on all fights comprising a bottle of water and a snack, such as a breakfast bar or crisps. Those wishing to purchase more substantial food options, designed by Tom Kerridge, as well as other food and drink items can do so through the airline’s the new online Speedbird Café hosted on British Airways’ inflight retail site www.highlifeshop.com.

Speedbird Café will launch as a pre-order proposition, which will allow customers to customise their journey by purchasing food, drink and inflight retail items up to 12 hours before departure. It also helps the airline in its efforts to reduce onboard waste as part of its commitment to net zero emissions by 2050.

Speedbird Café Gourmet Sandwich   by  Chef  Tom Kerridge ( credit: BA media)

Carolina Martinoli, British Airways’ Director of Brand and Customer Experience, said:

“Over the last few months we know that our customers have valued the complimentary refreshments offered, so they’re here to stay. But in addition, we also wanted to offer more choice and the ability to buy something more substantial. After a successful partnership with M&S, we have teamed up with another British favourite, chef Tom Kerridge.

“Our expert teams have worked closely with Tom to create delicious British staples for our short haul menu. We know how popular the menus that Tom designed for our centenary were with our customers, so we are delighted to be working with him again and can’t wait for our customers to experience his fantastic new food at 35,000ft.”

Tom Kerridge, Michelin starred chef, said:

“I am truly happy to be working with British Airways again, and to have the opportunity to champion the best of British to so many people.  A sandwich, made with care and great flavours, can be a perfect meal and I hope the passengers enjoy my short haul menu.”

Delicious Steak and Ale Pie  is part of Chef  Tom Kerridge  Gourmet Menu. Watch here  as the chef explains  why he carefully selected these items for British Airways and the thought process that went into ensuring that the flavours would work at altitude.

Speedbird Café Gourmet Sandwich   by  Chef  Tom Kerridge with  BrewDog IPA   ( credit: BA media)

Speedbird Café Gourmet  Steak and Ale Pies  with ale from local London brewery and quality British beef,  by  Chef  Tom Kerridge     ( credit: BA media)

The airline will also be introducing another BrewDog IPA, exclusively available for British Airways’ customers. The Scottish craft brewery has developed another exciting blend for the airline called JetSteam, following on from the popular limited edition Speedbird 100.

Elsewhere, the airline will also be moving to the next phase of its on-board catering experience in Club Europe and on all long haul flights from 20 January 2021, following the temporary introduction of minimum-contact meal boxes to keep customers safe during the Covid-19 pandemic. The airline’s culinary teams have been working with world class caterers, Do&Co, to develop exciting new menus in its Club Europe and all other long haul cabins, as well as adapting the meal service to reintroduce china and glassware

Safety is at the heart of British Airways’ customer experience proposition and the airline has introduced a range of protective measures on the ground and in the sky to keep its customers and crew safe.

Tom Kerridge food items available for pre-purchase: