Hot dogs in first class? Fast food classic goes gourmet on Swiss First’s in-flight menu

The ‘bastardo’ hot dog will be available in SWISS First on all flights departing Switzerland until 1 September. Forget the caviar, there’s a new must-have dish for first-class passengers on Swiss International Air Lines. This summer, the carrier has added a gourmet hot dog to its premium in-flight dining menu. But before you picture a burnt frankfurter drowning in ketchup and mustard, think again – this hot dog created by Swiss chefs shows that comfort food can be just as luxurious as fine dining. Available in SWISS First on all flights departing from Switzerland until 1 September 2026, the "Bastardo" hot dog comes from Winterthur-based gourmet takeaway Frau Hund, which was founded by chefs Chris Maurer and Alex Prack. Reinventing one of the world's classic fast foods, it features a Swiss-made sausage topped with coleslaw, apple chutney, sour cream, and roasted walnuts, all tucked inside a Swiss multigrain roll. The collaboration came after SWISS approached the pair with an unusual request: could a premium hot dog work at 35,000 feet? "We were very proud to be on SWISS's radar," said Prack. "One of our goals has always been to have a presence all across Switzerland. With the SWISS partnership, that ambition expanded into an entirely different dimension. Now we can scatter our hot dogs across the whole world, so to speak." While the sausage, bun and toppings are all prepared to the original recipe, the bun had to be redesigned after early test versions refused to stay upright on SWISS First's porcelain tableware. The solution was simple: a different cut in the bread so the hot dog could stand neatly without toppling over. "If the hot dog is smeared and things are falling out, that's not our standard," Maurer explained. For the chefs, the partnership is about more than serving premium passengers. It's also an opportunity to challenge perceptions of what a hot dog can be. "Many people have a cheap kiosk hot dog in mind," Maurer added. "We want to show there is another way." With the humble hot dog now earning a place at the first-class fine dining table, we’re now hungry to find out what comes next on the in-flight menu...