Far Beyond Tokyo: ANA’s ‘Tastes of Japan’
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- Fukushima Wine Jelly
Beyond the bright lights of Tokyo, there’s a whole other side to Japan that most travelers don’t get to see… or taste. ANA, Japan’s largest airline, is out to change that with their “Tastes of Japan” program. Launched in September 2013, ANA is shining a delicious spotlight on the lesser-known prefectures of Japan via entrees, drinks and desserts both on their planes and in their lounges. You may never have heard of Shizuoka, Ishikawa, or Oita, but with “Tastes of Japan,” ANA is out to prove they really are All Nippon Airways.
The program highlights different regions every three months and beginning in March, the focus turns to Fukushima, Osaka, and Tottori – Japan’s smallest prefecture. At the ANA Suite Lounge in both of Tokyo’s airports, Haneda and Narita, passengers can expect to see baby green peaches from Fukushima in a wine-flavored jelly or Osakan satsuma tangerines turned into the classic pastry cream, crème Chiboust. At “DINING h,” their full-service lounge restaurant in Haneda, travelers can opt for heartier monthly specials: thick-cut Kozumi bamboo shoots accented with a sweet-and-sour soy sauce in April or prime wagyu steaks flown in from Fukushima in May.
In the air, business-class flyers can indulge in Koura-yaki, a traditional crab and egg dish from Tottori while first-class passengers on flights from Japan to the US get to enjoy an exclusive dish of grilled Tottori wagyu beef with potatoes and shiitake mushrooms.
Enticing passengers with food is nothing new for ANA. While they aim to expose flyers to authentic regional Japanese cuisine in Japan, flights out of their other major markets connect their premium cabin flyers to their flight’s departure city. In December, they created route-specific partnerships with top chefs from Singapore, China, Hong Kong, Thailand and the United States, including multi-course meals from one of Los Angeles’ finest chefs, Joachim Splichal of fine-dining mecca, Patina. It all goes to show that on ANA, your taste buds are traveling just as much as the rest of your body.