KUALA LUMPUR: Fans of Pak Nasser’s nasi lemak and other popular AirAsia inflight meals can now head over to MidValley Megamall to get their fix at the airline’s first flagship fast food joint, Santan Restaurant and T&CO Cafe.
Offering meals from AirAsia’s menu brand, Santan and T&CO, the outlet opens its doors to the public today as part of the company’s expansion beyond the airline business.
AirAsia Group chief executive officer Tan Sri Tony Fernandes said the airline has plans to open its fast food restaurant in global culinary hotpots such as London and New York, besides other Asean countries.
“We wanted to be a lifestyle brand, and not just an airline brand. (But) we can’t be a lifestyle brand without food. Our airline food has been successful and we are the first airline ever to commercialise our food”, he said after the launch here yesterday.
A franchise will also be opened in China soon, said Fernandes, without elaborating.
While AirAsia meals are currently not yet available on food delivery apps, plans were underway to make this happen, said Fernandes.
Santan Restaurant and T&CO Cafe general manager Catherine Goh said the aim was to have five Santan-owned restaurants by the end of 2020, and 100 franchisee-operated restaurants and cafes within the next three to five years, with expansions in global markets.
“We have seen a significant appetite for our inflight menu offerings beyond our flights across the region and this is our answer to that demand.
“We are very proud to extend what started out as an inflight menu into new markets and reiterate our support for local and Asean producers and suppliers, apart from creating new job opportunities with affordable franchising,” she said.
Earlier, Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail, who launched the outlet, expressed confidence in AirAsia’s latest initiative and praised its adoption of technology to maximise customer satisfaction.
“I was interested in the fact that the restaurant and cafe have leveraged upon IT, allowing orders to be made faster and customers spend more time enjoying food than waiting for it to arrive,” he said in his speech.
Besides allowing customers to pre-order online at santan.com.my and the T&CO mobile app before collecting their orders at the outlet, the restaurant and cafe also features a smart menu based on artificial intelligence and machine learning.
This allows Santan Restaurant and T&CO Cafe to have the ability to recommend dishes based on time, past ordering patterns, as well as demographics.
Also present were AirAsia group executive chairman Datuk Kamarudin Meranun and AirAsia Group president (RedBeat Ventures) Aireen Omar.
To celebrate the opening of the flagship restaurant, Santan is offering customers a limited-time promotion online to enjoy Pak Nasser’s nasi lemak with chicken rendang for only RM5.
More details are available at santan.com.my.
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