Skift Travel News Blog

Qatar Airways is introducing a range of new onboard menu items that have been sourced from organic farms in Qatar, in celebration of EXPO 2023 taking place in Doha.

Expo 2023 Doha, which is running through March 2024, celebrates the theme of ‘Green Desert, Better Environment,’ and aims to promote sustainable innovations.

As part of the new food and drink offering, passengers flying Business Class will now be greeted with bespoke beverages curated by food expert Ghanim Al Sulaiti – one of the founders of Qatar’s first entirely plant-based café – and will have access to an exclusive à la carte menu, featuring meals made from organic ingredients sourced from Safwa, a Qatari farm.

Continuing the horticultural theme, the inflight entertainment on Qatar Airways flights will also receive an update, providing passengers with the opportunity to watch a range of gardening-related shows, including Martha Knows Best, Homegrown, Vegetable Garden and more.

The new food and beverage offerings are available for passengers traveling from Doha until March 2024.

Conceived by Mark and Jonnie Houston, in collaboration with Mitchell Hochberg of Lightstone, Level 8 is a multi-layered hospitality concept spread across 30,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor space at the Moxy & AC Hotel Downtown LA.

The new concept encompasses eight distinct maze-like destinations that offer a range of dining, drinking and entertainment experiences.

As you can see from the video above, Level 8 is very design-focused, with a number of themed rooms that have taken inspiration from global experiences, that according to a release, are all ‘held together by their link to Downtown LA’.

The Level 8 experience is told through the eyes of its fictional founder, ‘Mr. Wanderlust’, and boasts a range of experiential elements including a 40-foot harp, a speakeasy which is entered through a waterfall, a rotating carousel bar, and a space that has been modeled on a 19th-century cathedral. 

You can see the full list of spaces on offer below:

• Mr. Wanderlust: A lively piano bar and jazz lounge
• Lucky Mizu by Chef Hisae Stuck: An experience inspired by the Japanese art of cooking with water.
• Maison Kasai by Chef Joshua Gil:  A French-Teppanyaki experience.
• Qué Bárbaro by Chef Ray Garcia: A South American live fire grill.
• Golden Hour: A rooftop pool deck.
• The Brown Sheep: A food truck serving Mexican street food. 
• Mother of Pearl: An al fresco oyster and ceviche bar.
• Sinners y Santos: A bar modeled around a 19th-century cathedral.

More information on Level 8 can be found here.

Emirates has expanded its inflight meal pre-order initiative across Europe, following the successful launch of the initiative on London to Dubair routes and the positive feedback received from passengers.

The inflight pre-ordering service is available to Business Class passengers, and allows them to reserve their main course up to 24 hours prior to their departure through the Emirates website and app. Onboard the aircraft, cabin crew will then use digital devices to view customer preorders.

According to a release from Emirates, the new initiative forms part of an existing suite of AI-enabled customer preference tracking data and cabin crew reports onboard Emirates, which ‘facilitate menu planning, optimal food loading and waste minimization’.

Emirates joins a growing list of airlines developing initiatives that are designed to minimize food wastage and enhance the customer experience, including Virgin Atlantic, United and Lufthansa, among others.

The Royal Mansour Marrakech has launched a new culinary school for guests who are looking to elevate their cooking knowledge under the expert guidance of the hotel’s chefs.

Located just a five minute walk from the famous Djemaa El Fna square, The Royal Mansour Marrakech – hotel, which is widely regarded for its culinary offering – is extending its passion for food to guests through immersive two-hour cooking classes, focusing on three main culinary themes: Moroccan, Italian, and Pastry.

Taking place around a large central island, the classes have been designed to allow guests to cook alongside the chef, with the experience culminating in a tasting at the end.

The culinary school is open to hotel guests and also food enthusiasts staying outside of the hotel, with the classes taking place throughout the week between the hours of 10AM and 12PM. 

To learn more about the cooking experiences, visit the website.

At Skift, we are looking to unearth the most creative and forward-thinking innovations in travel through our Skift Ideas Franchise, which includes the Skift IDEA Awards, Skift Editorial Hub and the Skift Ideas Podcast.

You can listen and subscribe to the Skift Ideas Podcast through your favorite podcast app here.

‘Dinner’ by Heston Blumenthal, which recently opened in Dubai at Atlantis The Royal, offers guests a “relaxed” dining experience driven by spectacle and storytelling. As consumer expectations rise, chefs are constantly upping the ante for not just their cuisine, but also the dining experience in order to stand out to guests.

The menu explores “the tastes and flavors of Britain dating back as far as the 13th century, from the farmers’ table to the royal courts of England,” according to the restaurant. Similar to the elaborate feasts of middle ages in Britain, Blumenthal uses the element of surprise to delight and entertain guests.

As guests enter, a giant pineapple rotisserie ‘escapement’ (clock) greets diners and features an intricate spit pulley system that also turns the roasting fruit. It was based on a 16th century clockwork design used for the British Royal Court. “Pineapples, historically, were unbelievably expensive, they were seen as unbelievable luxury… and so ours will signify adventure, exploration and discovery,” Blumenthal notes.

Dinner’s Meat Fruit is an example of edible history that employs surprise to turn a traditional medieval dish from the 1500’s called Pome Dorres, or “apples of gold,” into contemporary cuisine. One of the Blumenthal’s most iconic dishes, it is essentially chicken liver parfait disguised as a mandarin, and requires three cooks to work five hours every day to construct. No one ever said fine-dining was easy.

The restaurant has already received a Michelin Star “Special Award”, which was also bestowed to two other restaurants at Dubai’s Atlantis The Royal.

At the Skift IDEA Awards, we are looking for the projects defining the future of hotels and the guest experience, including in-person experiences and activations that utilize a physical environment to impact an end user. 

If you have an exciting project to share, head over to the Skift IDEA Awards and submit your entry today.