Mau food. Air kitchen: review of paid in-flight meals on UIA flights. Ukraine International Airlines

Russians, I think, are fed the same way. So, we read the material from avianews.com:

Airplane food has always been a staple of air travel, although industry folks like to say, “A plane is not a restaurant.” However, airlines often boast of business class meals prepared by famous chefs.

The road to the airport and pre-flight formalities can take more than one hour. It's not always possible to have a snack at the airport, but on board an airplane you find yourself in a confined space in which there is often nothing to do. And in this case, in-flight meals become not only a way to fill your stomach, but also a means of entertainment.

avianews.com I learned how leading airlines feed passengers on flights from and to Ukraine.

Ukraine International Airlines

On international flights lasting up to three hours, UIA provides economy class passengers with sandwiches, on flights from three to four hours - light hot meals (hot dish, bun, butter), and if the flight lasts more than four hours, the passenger receives a full ration with salad and dessert .

^^ standard sandwich

Business class is provided with hot meals on all flights, even domestic ones, where economy class has not been served for two years, but the size of the portions depends on the duration of the flight. Business class passengers always have a choice of several dishes, but this option will be offered to economy class passengers in the future. The airline says they are working on it.

^^

Economy class drinks include juices, water, coffee, and tea. For alcoholic drinks or carbonated drinks (for example, Coca-Cola), you must pay. Business class is provided with alcoholic drinks free of charge.

UIA says that on flights from Boryspil, food rations change every week, and at other airports - once a month. Twice a year (spring and autumn) all diets are changed.

In Kyiv, food suppliers are Aerocatering companies (belongs to LSG Sky Chefs) and Do&Co Kyiv (Kyiv Catering). Abroad, UIA passengers are provided with food by Gate Gourmet, LSG Sky Chefs, Newrest and others.

Note to passengers: UIA airline allows you to order kosher and vegetarian meals for free on its flights. And if on short flights, when ordering a vegetarian meal, a passenger will receive a standard sandwich, albeit without meat, then when ordering a kosher meal, he will receive a full hot meal.

^^ kosher special food

The passenger usually receives special meals first, regardless of what part of the cabin he is in. However, apparently, the airline realized that the loophole with kosher meals was being used by ordinary passengers, which is why on a number of flights, instead of a hot set, passengers are now given a “kosher sandwich.”

^^ business class meals on medium-haul flights

UTair Ukraine

In 2012, UTair Ukraine Airlines became one of the main players in the domestic flights market. The air carrier flies from Kyiv to Kharkov, Lviv, Donetsk and Odessa.

During the expansion of its domestic network, the airline offered economy class passengers coffee or tea, juice, and snacks, such as a small biscuit or sandwich.

Now the company's customers have to be content with only drinks. Snacks, according to passengers, are no longer provided. The airline explained this by the lack of demand for this type of food on short flights. "However, sandwiches in economy class are provided on our international flights"- noted a representative of the air carrier.

In premium economy, UTair Ukraine, as before, serves cold meals and offers hot, cold and alcoholic drinks.

^^

Lufthansa

Lufthansa airline operates flights from Kyiv, Lviv and Donetsk to Munich, Frankfurt or Dusseldorf. Meals on these routes depend on the time of day, the company told avianews.com. For example, in the morning it could be cereal or a sandwich, at lunch it could be a muffin, and in the evening it could be a cold dinner. On some flights, passengers receive hot meals.

Sandwich and muffin on the Munich-Kyiv flight, hot meals on the Frankfurt-Kyiv flight

As free drinks in economy, you can order tea, juice (tomato, orange or apple), Coca-Cola, Sprite, water, beer, including non-alcoholic, white and red wine, as well as champagne. In addition, business class passengers are served liqueurs (Gin, Whiskey, Baileys) or alcoholic cocktails.

On flights from Ukraine, Lufthansa passengers are fed by Aerocatering (LSG Sky Chefs), which is the carrier's main supplier worldwide.

Austrian Airlines

Austrian Airlines flies from Kyiv, Kharkov, Dnepropetrovsk and Lvov to Vienna. Business class passengers receive a full hot meal, but economy class passengers are content with sandwiches, waffles, or a small package of crackers. Sometimes Austrian Airlines organizes apple days - instead of a snack, passengers receive fresh fruit.

^^ standard economy class meals on flights to Ukraine

Free drinks include juices, water, tea, coffee, beer or wine.

Economy class passengers can order meals for 15 euros, which are the same as business class. There are about a dozen dishes to choose from: both hot and cold, as well as baby food.

^^ business class meals

Alitalia

For several years now, on the only Alitalia flight to Ukraine from Rome to Kyiv, one has to be content with crackers or other types of cookies. Drinks include tea, coffee, juice or beer.

^^ Alitalia meals on flights within Europe

Transaero

Transaero airline previously flew to Ukraine only from Moscow. Now the air carrier is actively expanding in the Ukrainian market, operating flights to Kyiv, Donetsk, Dnepropetrovsk, Odessa and Simferopol from Moscow, St. Petersburg, Yekaterinburg and Ufa.

Passengers on all Ukrainian routes in business class are offered a choice of hot meals. In economy class - cold meals. True, Moscow-Odessa flights are an exception, here even economy class receives hot meals (two hot dishes to choose from).

The menu is completely updated twice a year. In the summer it becomes lighter, and by autumn-winter it gains additional calories to compensate for the lack of heat and sun in nature, Transaero notes.

The menu is consistent in several options, which change with a certain cyclicity. For business class, two menu options are agreed upon, which change every month. In each meal plan, passengers are offered a choice of three options for hot dishes, and porridge is additionally offered for breakfast. For economy class, the menu is developed taking into account four cycles.

Transaero offers up to 30 types of special meals depending on the departure airport and route. The service is provided free of charge. It can be ordered when booking your flight ticket or later, but no later than 24 hours before departure.

Passengers in business class are offered a range of alcoholic, hot and cold drinks. In economy class: soft drinks, tea and coffee.

Aeroflot

Aeroflot flies from Moscow to Kyiv, Dnepropetrovsk, Kharkov, Donetsk and Odessa. These flights can rightfully be called sandwich flights. The standard package for an air tourist includes a sandwich, a carton of apple juice and a refreshing napkin. In addition, flight attendants serve water, tea or coffee.

Special foods are unlikely to diversify your diet. By ordering it (for free) you will receive a standard sandwich diet. The only difference is in the filling.

Aeroflot-controlled airline Russia also feeds Ukrainian passengers on the flight St. Petersburg - Kyiv with sandwiches, or rather filled croissants.

What and how to feed the Egyptian Mau?

Egyptian Mau belong to a kind of cat elite, so you shouldn’t feed them anyhow. An unbalanced diet will not only have a bad effect on the appearance of the Mau, but will also weaken your health and may even cause various diseases.

The food can be dry or canned and only super-premium and premium class. Among the foods available today, you can choose a food specifically formulated for this breed, or for cats with a similar coat type, or choose a food based on your pet's health (after consultation with your veterinarian). The amount of food is determined by the manufacturer and indicated on the packaging.


Photo by Nickolas Titkov

What foods should not be given to Egyptian Mau?

The list of dangerous foods for cats of this breed is the same as for other cats:
- onions (in any form) and garlic (contain the substance N-propyl disulfide, which destroys red blood cells, causing anemia),
- green tomatoes, potato tops and greened tubers (contain a dangerous alkaloid - solanine), ripe tomatoes are not dangerous for cats,
- chocolate (contains theobromine, which is dangerous for all animals, especially cats),
- grapes and raisins (causes increased fermentation in the intestines and, as a result, increased gas formation),
- avocado (leaves, seeds, tree bark and the fruit itself contain persin, a fungicidal toxin that can cause vomiting and diarrhea),
- cow's milk (adult cats lack enzymes that break down lactose, which can cause gastrointestinal upset, diarrhea and even cramps), if you really want to give milk, give goat milk, lactose-free milk or a small amount of cream, but not more than 2 -3 times a week (the higher the fat content of the milk, the less lactose it contains),
- sweeteners, or xylitol (although its danger has not been proven, it is better not to give it),
- tuna (a small amount of tuna will not harm, but constant feeding of it can lead to mercury poisoning, which is contained in the muscles of the fish),
- river fish (it contains a large number of helminths and bones; the enzyme contained in raw fish heads destroys vitamin B1), if the cat loves fish, then give sea fish, lightly boiled, without bones and no more than twice a week,
- alcohol (beer, wine, liquor, etc. - have a detrimental effect on the liver and brain of cats, for example, just two teaspoons of whiskey can cause a coma in a cat weighing 1.5 kg),
- enough caffeine large quantities can be fatal to cats (found in tea, coffee, cocoa, Coca-Cola, stimulant drinks like Red Bull, medications and painkillers),
- bones and fatty trimmings (fat, whether cooked or uncooked, can cause intestinal upset with vomiting and diarrhea; a cat may choke on a bone; bones can splinter and cause intestinal obstructions or ruptures),
- raw chicken eggs (possibility of poisoning coli or salmonella; The protein avidin, found in raw egg whites, interferes with the absorption of biotin, which can cause problems with the cat's skin and coat).
- dog food (this food contains a large amount of carbohydrates and lacks fatty acids and taurine),
- raw liver (with frequent feeding of raw liver, vitamin A poisoning can occur, which sometimes leads to the death of the cat),
- sweets (sweets, cookies, etc.), leads to obesity with all the ensuing health consequences,
- yeast dough (before baking, the dough is allowed to rise, the same can happen in the stomach of a cat that has eaten it - swelling, the dough can stretch the stomach and cause severe pain),
- pork (in any form),
- fatty (cheese, chips, popcorn, etc.), sour and spicy foods,
- mushrooms and nuts (not digested).

Photo by Erik Dunham

What food should I choose for my Egyptian Mau?

The food should contain a large amount of protein (26-30%), an average amount of fat (no more than 15%) and a small amount of carbohydrates (up to 10%). The food should not contain artificial colors or preservatives, no processed meat products (only high-quality animal protein obtained from muscle meat and offal), grain and legume content should be minimal (unlike dogs, cats’ intestines are not designed to digest large amounts of fiber ). It would be optimal to feed your cat both dry food and canned food, as this reduces the likelihood of urolithiasis.

In addition to meat, vegetables and fruits, the food should contain vitamins, minerals, taurine, fatty acids (omega 3 and 6), probiotics and chelating minerals.

Some breeders recommend exclusively a raw food diet for Egyptian Mau, that is, natural frozen or fresh food. Now such food can be bought in pet stores or ordered home delivery (“Naturally meat+”, “Hati Food”, “Superpet”, “NATUREDA”, “Pafnuty Kotletych”, “Buy a cat”, “Mnyams”, etc.).

Free meals in economy class on all medium-haul flights of Ukraine International Airlines were provided until the spring of 2014. The only exception was domestic flights

^^

- here passengers could only get a glass of water and a hot drink for free, there was no food even for a fee. WITH summer schedule

flights in 2014, free meals disappeared on most medium-haul international flights. Passengers could only receive a glass of water for free.

For a fee, it was possible to purchase snacks, tea, coffee, sandwiches and Mivina instant noodles, which caused a flurry of criticism from passengers. A few months later, in August 2014, it became possible to order hot meals for a fee, but only one type, and then Mivina disappeared from the menu. Later, the number of available food options was expanded, but in 2016, hot meals began to be provided on board only by reservation.

Peculiarities

Each set of paid meals is provided to passengers at the very beginning of the service. The food is placed on ceramic dishes and supplied with metal utensils and a wet napkin.

Ukrainian lunch - 7 euros

The main course consists of banosh, which includes corn porridge and bacon. Very salty. Lunch includes a rye bun, butter, tomato salad with spicy sauce, and poppy seed pie. The lunch is filling, but I don’t recommend ordering it because the main dish is too salty.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Meal without pork - 6 euros

This type of food is used as a special food or Muslim food, because... does not contain pork. Available on flights from Ukraine, i.e. If you order this type of meal on flights to Ukraine, a different menu will be provided.

The main dish of this meal on flights from Ukraine consists of a beef chop, boiled rice, and underneath is a vegetable stew of zucchini, eggplant and pepper. Served with a wheat bun with butter, balyk, pickled cucumber and pickled champignon.

One of the best UIA paid menu sets to taste and has, perhaps, one of the best price-quality ratios. The only thing that spoils the experience is the dessert. The strawberry cake smells strongly of flavoring.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Italian lunch - 7 euros

The main course of an Italian lunch consists of pasta carbonara (noodles with bacon). Very greasy and oversalted. Supplemented with a salad of mozzarella, cherry tomatoes and Chinese cabbage, served with dressing - French sauce. Also includes a bun, butter and dessert - tiramisu. The sight of a dried orange slice on the dessert spoils the impression, but the taste is very tasty. I would not recommend ordering this lunch to passengers who do not like highly salty dishes.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Continental lunch - 7 euros

The continental lunch consists of a main course of chicken fillet, vegetable stew of zucchini, eggplant, peppers and onions. Contains rye bun, butter, boiled broccoli salad, feta cheese, served with French dressing. For dessert - honey cake.

Perhaps the most delicious UIA meal kit, which also has a pretty good appearance, which, given the price of 7 euros, allows you to get the best price/quality ratio for a continental lunch.

Rating: 5 out of 5

Lunch "Cosmopolitan" - 10 euros

This type of in-flight meal consists of a main course, Caesar salad served with dressing, and a bun. The main course consists of rice, a stewed piece of apple, cherry sauce and a few pieces of duck breast. The portions are very large and filling, the salad is delicious, and the rice is not dry.

However, a serious disadvantage of this meal kit is the type of duck meat. It has many veins, uncleaned skin and fat, which is why most of the meat went into the trash bag taken from the pocket in front of the chair. I previously ordered a dish with duck breast on an airberlin flight - then the meat was cooked perfectly and was very soft, without any fatty layers.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Lunch "around the world" - 8 euros

Previously, this type of food was called “sea food” and was served as a special meal. The main course consists of boneless hake fillet, sprinkled with nuts, and a side dish of white and wild rice.

Served with rye bun, butter, salad of tomato slices, cucumbers and peppers, dressed with French sauce. For dessert there is apple pie.

Everything is edible, but without the wow effect of a continental lunch. You can order it for variety.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Lunch "Viva Italia" - 8 euros

The main course consists of lasagne and stewed peppers and is complemented by a salad of tomato, mozzarella and arugula. I can’t call this type of lunch filling: the piece of lasagna is small, and the main component of the salad is greens, mostly bitter arugula. There is no dessert.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Meals for children from 2 to 10 years old on flights to Ukraine - 6 euros

Although this type of food is positioned as for children, adults can also order it. The ingredients are very simple - the main dish consists of chicken fillet with pineapple and a side dish of pasta and canned corn. As a snack - lettuce, a slice of fresh cucumber, peeled carrots and turkey fillet. For dessert - a sweet bun with butter and a cherry pie. Simple, but tasty and satisfying. The only thing missing was pasta sauce.

Rating 4.5 out of 5

conclusions

Now UIA offers quite large menu for pre-ordering food and reasonable prices that are comparable to prices at the airport or even less.

Of the eight paid meal options that I was able to try, I can say that the continental lunch, pork-free meals on flights from Ukraine, meals for children from 2 to 10 years old on flights to Ukraine, and the “around the world” lunch were very good or good.

The first three food options have the best taste and best price/quality ratio. The impression of the Ukrainian and Italian lunches was spoiled by the oversaltness of the main course. I wish UIA would allow you to add tea or coffee to lunches at a special price when ordering in advance. For example, UIA now allows you to order a sandwich and tea/coffee in advance, and the price of a hot drink in this set is 1 euro instead of 2 euros. In the meantime, when ordering hot food in advance, tea must be paid for standard price

2 euros in cash or by card on board.

14.11.16

On this topic And see with your own eyes how food for aviation is prepared. Of course, I saw reports from catering companies of the most different airports

, but visiting the in-flight catering shop yourself is much more interesting. Sky Food

Services is a very young company. It has been operating for a little over a year, but is already actively cooperating with the national air carrier of Ukraine -.

1. The office of the catering company Sky Food Services greets us with a stand with “delicious” books. 2. A small welcome snack for journalists and guests. Opening speech from Natalia Yampolskaya - general director

Sky Food Services.

3. On the stand is a model of the legendary Boeing 737-300 “Mowgli”.

I already wrote about it once, but now I’ll briefly remind you. Now this is one of the oldest aircraft in the UIA fleet. But this was the first aircraft ever built by Boeing taking into account the wishes of the airline. The name of the aircraft was chosen through a competition in which only children under 14 years old could participate. The prize for the winner is a trip to Disneyland in France. It was this plane that was chosen by the Vatican to support the visit of Pope John Paul II to Ukraine. Together with the Vatican cardinals, accompanying persons and journalists, he visited our country in 2001.

4. Finally, having put on gowns and shoe covers, filled out sanitary forms and disinfected our hands, we find ourselves in the workshop where the very same food is prepared for passengers and pilots.

5. The cleanliness is simply cosmic! Aviation is a very responsible area. Everything is done strictly according to the recipe; there are clear instructions and standards for any actions of the cooks.

7. Let's start with drinks. Lemonade.

8. Sandwiches.

10. The summer menu will consist of 108 different items. These include light snacks, fresh salads, a variety of hot dishes and delicious desserts.

11. The menu is divided into summer and winter. Moreover, dishes are updated once a month.

12. Interestingly, one of the aviation safety rules is that there are different dishes for the captain of the aircraft and the co-pilot. If one orders meat, the other will be served fish. The menu does not overlap in any way, and you cannot “swap” food during the flight.

This rule is used to avoid “incapacitating” two pilots at the same time in the event that some dish suddenly turns out to be spoiled.

13. Workshop for processing meat, fish and poultry. Moreover, not only different devices are used, but also different tables.

14. Grill station.

16. Cooking food for aviation is a very responsible business. The workshop has all the relevant certificates.

17. Data on all modes and treatments are recorded. Even after several days, you can determine what temperatures were used to create dishes for a particular flight!

19. For the thermal processing of products, the company uses Rational and Electrolux equipment.

20. 24 hours before each flight, a request for the number of portions is received from the airline. Moreover, such a request is formed based on the orders of economy class passengers and the initially included meals in business class. The in-flight catering department prepares all dishes with some reserves. On average, 27-28 are made for 25 servings. Immediately before the flight itself, an adjustment is made according to the passengers who registered for it.

Unsold portions are not returned to the workshop - they are disposed of.

21. The finished medallions are placed in a chiller and quickly cooled to a temperature of 2-5 degrees. In general, blast cooling is used in the production of many dishes in the workshop. The next step in creating a dish is its packaging.

22. This is how this dish gets on board!

Sky Food Services does not use preservatives or GMOs in production. In the summer, there is a priority on using local, local products. Suppliers are checked most carefully.

Pickles and marinated vegetables are not purchased, but are produced by the company itself.

23. The entire cycle - from the cutting shop, creating the dish, loading food on board and ending with getting to the passenger tables of the plane takes no more than 12 hours.

24. And these are cars that deliver food on board airplanes. The container is equipped with a special elevator; it rises to the height of the aircraft, after which.


In the second part we...

Surely each of us at least once in our lives wondered how and where numerous boxes of pasta, chicken fillet and vegetable stew come from in a small airliner cabin. Others asked themselves who cooks this food and creates the menu. Particular interest in this topic arose two years ago, when the national airline UIA introduced paid meals on board. A real firestorm broke out on social networks about this: some were outraged by the fact that free sandwiches were canceled as such, some complained about the choice of dishes, some complained about the price. We decided to find out what is being fed onboard UIA now, who prepares this food, and whether passengers have a choice.

The concept of paid meals “Buy on Board” has been in effect since March 2014. This means that during the flight a passenger can purchase sandwiches (for example, with eggplant sauté, pesto sauce and lettuce will cost 3 euros), desserts (Chu cake with raspberry cream - 2 euros), snacks, alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. You can look at the in-flight catering menu in advance on the website and, if you don’t like anything, take a lunch box from home (food, unlike liquids, is allowed to be brought on board).

Recently, UIA has added new service – pre-order food. You can use it and pay for your order at UIA ticket offices in Kyiv, the airline Contact Center or using the online form. Economy class passengers can prepare their breakfast, lunch or dinner no later than 72 hours before departure. The service is available on flights to London, Warsaw, Prague, Rome, Amsterdam, Tbilisi, Tel Aviv and many others.

Not everyone can prepare and serve food for flights - there are international standards that control the quality and safety of food. The multinational catering company DO&CO KYIV, which serves UIA flights, also received a certificate confirming this right. For safety reasons, all meals are prepared on the ground, where they are blast chilled, portioned, packaged and labeled. After this, the food is cooled again to +5 and sent on board by special transport. Already on the plane, it is heated in special convection ovens, which blow hot and dry air over the food (cooks take this into account when making the preparations more juicy).





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As for the price, for example, a lunch with chicken Kiev, boiled potatoes, vegetables, salad, chocolate cake and a drink will cost 9 euros. Interesting feature It is possible to order special meals: Muslim, kosher, vegetarian or children's (from 2 to 10 years). If you order Muslim, you can get beef pilaf with raisins, and for an appetizer - beef balyk with fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, cheese and olives, lettuce and parsley. As a dessert, they will offer a roll, butter, a bun and tea.

For vegetarians, the offer looks like this: fried mushrooms with onions, rice with green peas, stewed peppers and broccoli. Appetizers include fresh vegetables - peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, as well as pickled mushrooms with lettuce, olives and parsley. Instead of the traditional dessert, the passenger will receive canned peach and pineapple; bun and tea included.



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