( CNN ) -- More and more airlines are teaming up with world-class chefs , hoping to solve that ultimate # firstworldproblem : how to serve a top-rate meal in the air . The strategy seems to be to throw glamorous , big-name chefs at the problem and hope that they can recreate on planes that same gastronomic magic they do at their restaurants . Celebrity chef Heston Blumenthal helped British Airways with a special Olympic in-flight menu in 2012 ; Joel Robuchon and Air France have made headlines with their collaboration , which began in 2011 . The Ritz-Carlton Hong Kong has also been tasked with creating a first-class menu for Cathay Pacific . Their Italian restaurant , Tosca , is famous for creative Italian cooking and recently received one Michelin star after Pino Lavarra took over as executive chef . Lavarra was asked to whip up a gourmet menu that will work at 30,000 feet above sea level . He went one step further : Lavarra is serving the same in-flight meal at Tosca as a special four-course `` first class menu '' costing HK $ 1,400 ( $ 180 ) per head . Airplane food served at an expensive restaurant ? Lavarra admits it 's not the easiest sell . `` I agree that in-flight food has a bad reputation . I also find most of it terrible , '' says the chef . Lofty ambitions . He says The Ritz-Carlton 's height inspired the menu . The hotel is nearly 500 meters ( 1,640 feet ) above ground , earning it the superlative of `` world 's highest hotel , '' and bringing its guests close to a mid-air experience , without them getting on a plane . The two menus -- in-flight and on the ground -- ca n't be exactly the same however . Lavarra says the idea of recreating gourmet restaurant experiences in the air will only ever be a concept . In reality , it will never be replicated . `` The meal served on the plane , it 's cooked by somebody else , it 's prepared eight to 12 hours ahead of time , it 's mass production , '' says Lavarra . In other words , it is n't the personalized , fussy cooking of a top-notch restaurant . But the biggest problem is an airline 's concern for food safety , which trumps the customer 's desire for deliciousness . `` Everything has to be pasteurized , and you ca n't use raw tuna or raw beef , '' says Lavarra . The chef serves high-quality beef carpaccio on both his in flight and restaurant menus . The one at the restaurant is a traditional Italian appetizer of thick slices of tender raw beef paired with ricotta and a perky tomato jam . The same dish on the plane has to be tweaked to get around food safety regulations : the beef is seared first , so it is n't really a carpaccio anymore . For connoisseurs , it would be the equivalent of adding water to aged whiskey . Do n't count on the bread . `` My food costs are 45 % . I have given my food supplier list to Cathay and I believe they use the exact same ingredients as I do at Tosca , '' says Lavarra , who has had to adjust many of the other ingredients so the dishes can withstand storage and re-heating . One item that made the chef throw in the towel was the bread . `` It is quite tricky to make it crunchy and nice , you have to reheat it , on a flight that is basically impossible to do . The airline caterers have done a decent job considering it is baked 15 hours in advance , but it 's not 'wow , ' '' he says . The chef is also taking a deeper look at the overall experience for gourmets . At the restaurant , the experience is a gradual build-up to a crescendo of a main dish . The chef would temper the first few courses so the diner is not overwhelmed . `` From start to end , you have to keep the interest of the customer , '' says Lavarra . On a flight , it 's a shorter meal , with Lavarra 's special main course competing with other regular offerings . The chef makes sure to dial up the flavors of his main dish , including the tastiest , most intense ingredients . `` I only have one chance to impress the customer . I have to be spot on , '' he says . Cathay Pacific 's partnership with Pino Lavarra and Tosca runs until July 31 , 2014 , on various long-haul and regional flights departing Hong Kong .
Can fine-dining experiences really be pulled off at 30,000 feet ? Some airlines think so . Air France partners with The Ritz-Carlton 's from Hong Kong -starred Michelin restaurant Tosca . Some recipes have to be tweaked to meet food safety regulations .