Happy meals in the air

DYING to sink your teeth into a bowl of Ippudo ramen as it's served in Tokyo rather than in Mandarin Gallery? You don't even need to wait until your plane touches down in the Land of the Rising Sun. Not if you fly ANA, which not only serves the real thing on board, it prides itself on providing an authentic washoku (Japanese cuisine) experience in its in-flight cuisine.

"As traditional Japanese cuisine enjoys a higher profile around the world, including recognition by Unesco, we are eager to share this with the world," says Willa To of All Nippon Airways Co Ltd, referring to when washoku was added to Unesco's Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2013.

That's why ANA was the first to apply the kaiseki style - a traditional multi- course meal that balances taste, texture, appearance and colour - to its in-flight meals, she says, adding that most passengers tend to pick the Japanese cuisine option on ANA flights.