The latest culinary collaboration by Cathay Pacific is a partnership with Pirata, a popular Italian restaurant in its hometown Hong Kong, to offer passengers a taste of the restaurant’s home-style cuisine. The menu is now available in the premium economy cabins onboard selected medium- and long-haul flights departing from Hong Kong.
Opened in the Wan Chai district in 2014, Pirata specialises in familial regional specialties served up in large sharing plates. The airline and restaurant have worked together to translate that feeling of familiarity and comfort into the inflight catering domain.
Wherever they are flying to, passengers will be able to enjoy a culinary tour of Italy, with vegetable-laden starters like the Caprese with tomato and bread salad, which combines two well-loved classics from the Campania and Tuscany regions.
For starters with a taste of the land and sea, try Cathay Pacific’s take on Vitello tonnato, a popular summer dish made of roast beef with tuna and caper sauce, or the tuna and saffron orzo salad, which draws inspiration from the traditional Sicilian dish featuring short-cut orzo pasta shaped like a grain of rice. Another option, the baby octopus and crushed potato salad, is a traditional dish served with tomatoes, black olives and a dash of chilli.
The menu of main course options includes pork saltimbocca with mushroom jus, an adaptation of the Roman classic of pork loin wrapped in Parma ham and layered with provolone and sage. Or try the chicken pizzaiola, which is chicken pieces topped with an oregano-infused tomato sauce and melted mozzarella, served with roasted zucchini and saffron rice.
Another main course option is the Calabrian-style orecchiette pasta tossed in a creamy sauce with Italian sausage, spicy ‘nduja and cherry tomatoes. Meanwhile, the classic Italian meatloaf with marinara sauce is a nod to Pirata’s signature M.M.M ground beef and pork meatballs, paired with sautéed spinach and creamy mashed potatoes.
Passengers can wash down their meals with a glass of Astoria Lounge Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore from the hillside vineyards of Italy’s Veneto region (classified DOCG under the Denomination of Controlled and Guaranteed Origin – the highest level of quality for Italian wines).
