Food in the Air - Emirates

In a nutshell: Less meals than in the past – credit crunch perhaps?
Score: 3/5 (economy) and 5/5 (business)

We flew on the morning flight in economy class to the UK and were lucky enough to use our miles for an upgrade to business class on our way home (afternoon flight). It goes without saying that the food in the 2 classes can’t be compared, but I remember always having 2 meals on flights from Dubai to the UK. The outward flight served breakfast and then a cold, stale sandwich and the homeward flight served only one meal – although it was spread out so it felt like 3 small meals!

Luckily for us we had eaten breakfast at Paul’s before we boarded…the mushroom omelette sounded nice but was actually a plain omelette with congealed mushroom sauce on top and the croissant was edible but very greasy. Later on there was a choice of chicken tikka sandwich or… chicken tikka sandwich and all the sandwiches were made with white rolls accompanied by a chocolate chip muffin. It would be so easy for airlines to offer healthier food in economy class rather than a constant stream of over-refined flour products. Everything was acceptable, but nothing to blow you away.

Coming back we had great food but there was no snack before landing, which I thought was strange. The duck salad was fresh and really delicious – we also had a choice of white or brown rolls! For my main I had grilled salmon with a tomato sauce and fresh vegetables and potatoes. How is it that they manage to retain the flavour of just-cooked food in business class but not economy? Simon and I shared both of the desserts – a praline & chocolate delice and a cranberry tart – yum. The perfect ending to the dinner was the Patchi chocolates offered round at the end. It can’t compare to an actual restaurant since you’re strapped into a seat and have limited choice, but for food in the air it definitely deserves 5 stars.