Delta Air Lines Announces New Partnership With James Beard Outstanding Chef

Delta Air Lines this week announced a new partnership with James Beard Foundation’s “Outstanding American Chef” award winner Mashama Bailey. The Executive Chef and co-founder of The Grey in downtown Savannah, Georgia will be curating a selection of Southern-inspired meals for Delta customers departing Atlanta.

“Delta’s roots in Georgia’s rich culture are a signature part of our own history, so partnering with the team at The Grey felt like the right fit from the start,” Kristen Manion Taylor, S.V.P. – In-Flight Service, explained in a press release. “The innovative, Southern culinary experience Chef Bailey has propelled into the spotlight is something our culinary teams have admired for some time, and we know our customers are going to be wowed by the menu she’ll be delivering on board.”

Customers can expect dishes similar to those served at The Grey. Think: flounder and oysters with fumé blanc, green apple, potato, bok choy and turnips or short ribs with kanni sauce and smoked collard greens. Plant-based travelers will particularly enjoy the vegan vegetable tagine with roasted sweet potato topped with a chermoula sauce while those with a sweet tooth have the buttermilk cornmeal tres leches with candied kumquats and mandarin oranges to look forward to.

“It’s an honor to partner with Delta to bring the foods I grew up on in my mother and grandmother’s kitchen to the skies,” Chef Mashama Bailey shared. “At The Grey, we work to keep Southern, African-American food alive and well by melding those rich flavors with new techniques and cuisines from around the world. The menu for Delta customers takes local, in-season ingredients from the Low Country to new heights.”

Chef Bailey’s meals will be served exclusively on exit-Atlanta flights for lunch and dinner service in domestic First Class (on flights when hot food is served). International Delta One customers departing Atlanta will also have the option to pre-order special menu items conceptualized by Bailey in advance of their flights.