Meet the Chefs Bringing Local Flavours to Plaza Premium Lounges Worldwide
One of the best parts of travelling is the food, and it doesn't have to wait until you land.
Ask any seasoned traveller what they remember most about a trip, and food will usually come high on the list. It might be a bowl of noodles from a street stall, a dish your host insisted you try or a flavour you've been chasing ever since. Food has a way of creating a deep connection to a destination and anchoring it in your memory long after the trip ends.
Bringing its core ethos, Your Destination Before Departure, to life, Plaza Premium Group is redefining the airport dining experience. Across five Plaza Premium Lounges located in Vancouver, Istanbul, London, Taipei, and Dammam, we’ll be meeting five incredible homegrown chefs who are bringing their personal histories, local culinary traditions and years of experience straight to the terminal for Chef Series Season Two Flavours in Transit: From Our Roots to Your Plate.
From Taiwanese-style beef noodles and Anatolian fire-roasted lamb to a refined British comfort-food classic, each dish serves as a passport into local culture – reflecting both the chef who created it and the destination in which it is served.
Let’s meet the chefs cooking this season and a glimpse into the story behind each dish:
Chef Debojyoti Mondal (Sorshe Salmon Bowl) - Vancouver, Canada
For Chef Debojyoti Mondal, food provides a connection between the place he comes from and the place he now calls home.
His signature Sorshe Salmon Bowl, served at Plaza Premium Lounge Vancouver, brings together ingredients and flavours from Canada and India. Wild salmon from British Columbia is paired with locally sourced beetroot and potatoes, then served in a rich, tangy mustard gravy inspired by Chef Debojyoti’s Eastern Indian heritage.
The result is a deeply personal dish that reflects both sides of his story. For travellers, it offers an opportunity to experience two distinct culinary traditions brought together on one plate.
Chef Ahmet Ersoy (Alinazik) - Istanbul, Turkey
To understand Chef Ahmet's kitchen is to understand Bolu, a forested province in northern Türkiye renowned for training the imperial chefs of the Ottoman palaces.
Leading the kitchens at Plaza Premium Lounge in Istanbul since its early days, he has helped define its culinary identity, offering travellers a grounding, authentic taste of Turkish flavours.
His signature dish, Alinazik, reflects both his roots and philosophy: simple, locally inspired ingredients cooked with care. Every plate served to guests is a genuine gesture of Anatolian hospitality, rooted in the enduring belief that a guest should always be fed like family.
Chef Humayu Tajak (Beef Cottage Pie) - London Gatwick, United Kingdom
Sometimes, the food we remember most is the food that makes us feel at home.
Born in Baroda, India, Chef Humayu Tajak discovered his interest in cooking in his mother's kitchen and followed in his brother’s footsteps. He has since spent over three decades working across different cuisines and has called the UK home for more than 25 years.
Executive Chef Humayu Tajak takes on a British classic at the Plaza Premium Lounge in London Gatwick with his Beef Cottage Pie. Slow-cooked British beef is layered beneath smooth, buttery mashed potatoes and served with colourful local vegetables. Comforting and familiar, it is the kind of dish designed to help travellers pause, settle in and enjoy a satisfying meal they’ll remember long after departure.
Chef Russ Wang (Taiwanese Sha Cha Beef Noodles) - Taipei, Taiwan
Over at the Plaza Premium Lounge in Taipei, Executive Chef Russ Wang finds meaning in the quiet comfort of a steaming bowl of noodles.
His Taiwanese-style Sha Cha Beef Noodles offer travellers a dish deeply tied to local heritage and food culture.
Tender beef paired with a savoury house-made sha cha sauce embodies his vision of offering a familiar and comforting taste of home that feels grounding while travelling.
Chef Nadir Ali (Lamb Jareesh) - Dammam, Saudi Arabia
Chef Nadir Ali’s journey into food began with an unexpected source of inspiration.
As a young boy in India, he watched his favourite actor, Shah Rukh Khan, portray a chef who brought people together through cooking. The story sparked a dream that would eventually take Chef Nadir across borders and lead him to oversee culinary operations across Plaza Premium Lounges in Saudi Arabia.
That childhood dream is stirred into every pot of his Lamb Jareesh, a gentle nod to the slow-cooked Haleem his mother made, deeply rooted in Saudi cuisine. It's a creamy, comforting bowl of cracked wheat and tender, pull-apart spiced lamb.
Experience the stories behind the dishes
Every dish in the Chef Series begins with a personal story. Childhood memories, regional traditions and years spent working across different kitchens have all influenced what these chefs serve today. Bringing those experiences into the lounge gives travellers a meaningful introduction to the people and cultures behind the food.
This series shows what thoughtful airport dining can offer. A meal before a flight can be more than a convenient part of the journey. It can introduce you to an unfamiliar local flavour, tell you something about the city you are visiting and give you a reason to slow down before departure.
Visit the Plaza Premium Lounge Chef Series to hear more from the five chefs and discover the recipes behind their signature dishes. If one of the featured lounges is part of your next journey, follow the location links to find out more and check your access options before travelling.