Cathay Pacific airways today hosted the closing ceremony of its first Chinese Chef Workshop - with over 40 inflight catering experts gathering in Hong Kong from all over the airline`s worldwide network. During their visit the chefs toured markets and restaurants and discussed new trends in Chinese cuisine, and the latest techniques and ideas for preparing and serving the freshest and tastiest food in the unique and rather challenging environment of aircraft.

To cap the event the chefs cooked a mouth-watering banquet of Chinese food, and were presented with certificates to mark their participation in the three-day event.

A short video of their food-filled trip to Hong Kong can be seen with this release on the internet - simply follow this link:
http://downloads.cathaypacific.com/press/webcast1.htm

The chefs attending came from Paris, London, Frankfurt, Rome, Amsterdam, Dubai, Riyadh, Bahrain, Nagoya, Tokyo, Osaka, Fukuoka, Seoul, Colombo, Kuala Lumpur, Karachi, Bangkok, Singapore, Bombay, Delhi, Melbourne, Perth, Sydney, Brisbane, Auckland, Cairns, Los Angeles, Vancouver, San Francisco, Toronto, New York, Taipei, Surabaya, Cebu, Saigon, Manila, Jakarta, Denpasar and Johannesburg.

Cathay Pacific Manager Chinese Food Development Thomas Chung said: “Our guest chefs shared some great ideas and really enjoyed sampling gourmet Hong Kong. Flying over for this event they`ll clock up over a quarter of a million miles in total - 284,184 miles in fact - equivalent to about twelve times right around the world! But everyone agrees it has been well worth it, and is another good example of Cathay Pacific`s commitment to offering top Chinese food.”

The chefs` itinerary included: A traditional “Poon Choi”(big bowl feast) lunch in Tai Po—Tours of the Wan Chai wet market and the Sai Ying Poon dried foods market—Seafood dinner on Lamma Island—Dim Sum breakfasts in Tung Chung and at the Luk Yu Tea House in Central—Roast Goose dinner at the Yung Kee restaurant—Tai Chi lessons in Tsim Sha Tsui overlooking picturesque Victoria Harbour.

Cathay Pacific Airways is known for serving a delicious selection of Chinese food to its passengers. Its recent “Best Chinese Food in the Air” promotions have won much acclaim. The promotion features specially selected dishes from some of Hong Kong`s most famous Chinese restaurants. Cathay Pacific has also recently enhanced its food facilities onboard with new steam-type ovens - particularly well suited for preparing noodle dishes - as well as rice cookers to prepare fresh rice any time in First Class.

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