US. HMSHost chefs who are military veterans have contributed to the global restaurateur’s celebrations of Veterans Day and Military Family Month with a special addition to airport dining menus.
The chefs teamed up to create an exclusive burger to benefit military families as part of HMSHost’s Food Fight for Veterans. The programme claimed top honours in this year’s The Moodie Davitt Report’s The Moodies, as the Best CSR-Focused Campaign.
The hand-crafted Pimento Cheeseburger is available at over 70 restaurants at selected US airports during November. On Veterans Day, on 11 November, all active-duty and retired US military members can enjoy a complimentary Pimento Cheeseburger at participating locations.
The Pimento Cheeseburger is topped with fried onions, pickle chips, lettuce, tomato, and finished with pimento cheese on a brioche bun. The culinary team has paired the burger with Budweiser’s special release Copper Lager, a collaborative brew with Jim Beam celebrating the 85th anniversary since Prohibition’s repeal.
“With Food Fight for Veterans, we’re offering travellers a meaningful connection between a great meal and doing good”
A portion of the proceeds from the Pimento Cheeseburger and Copper Lager pairing sold throughout November will benefit Folds of Honor. The foundation provides educational scholarships to the children and spouses of fallen and disabled service members. The donation will be made by the HMSHost Foundation, as one of its five pillars of giving to honour veterans and their families.
“With Food Fight for Veterans, we’re offering travellers a meaningful connection between a great meal and doing good,” said HMSHost Chef Patrick Malone, who is one of the veterans who created the special burger.
“As a chef, this is a great way to combine our culinary passions while giving back to fellow veterans through food. As a veteran, I understand the immense sacrifices not only of fellow soldiers, but that of our families.
“This year, we’re honoured to partner with Folds of Honor in alignment with our foundation’s mission to support our military veterans and their families.”
As part of the Food Fight for Veterans campaign, HMSHost is also holding special veteran appreciation events at selected airports where travellers are invited to write messages of gratitude for veterans.
“A simple message of thanks can uplift others in positive ways and these events give travellers a unique opportunity to come together and share their thoughts with veterans,” HMSHost said.
The messages will be forwarded to United Service Organizations (USO) airport lounges for service members to enjoy.
HMSHost offers a year-round -15% military discount on food and non-alcoholic beverages at all HMSHost airport and travel plaza locations throughout the US.
Last year’s Food Fight for Veterans campaign raised approximately US$25,000 to support veterans in need. Apart from The Moodies award, the campaign claimed the Stevie’s American Business Award for Best Restaurant Marketing Campaign of 2018 and a Gold Adrian Award by the Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International.
NOTE: The Moodie Davitt Report also publishes FAB, the world’s only media focused on airport (and other travel-related) food & beverage. The FAB Newsletter is published every two weeks and The FAB eZine every month.
Please send all news of food & beverage outlet openings, together with images, menus, video etc to Martin@MoodieDavittReport.com to ensure unrivalled global exposure.
The company also organises the annual Airport Food & Beverage (FAB) Conference & Awards. FAB 2019 was held in June in Dallas, hosted by Dallas Fort Worth International Airport.