Qantas Food

[bigjobs]

yeah i reckon that we are not too badly off for food on our flights in OZ. most of them are short anyway so i find i can last it out if things are no good.

the thing that i find amazing is the prices that the little cafe at the airport can charge for a can of coke and bag of chips ... that's the criminal stuff.

 

[Kiwi Flyer]

By the way the buy on board prices on QF's NZ domestic flights are $2 soft drink or juice, $5 beer and $6 wine.

 

[JohnK]

At least you get meals in Australia. Here we get one small cookie/muffin/sickly slice even on the main business flights. A case of paying more than australia (comparing red-edeal with red-edeal) and get less (food, drink, points & SCs).

Yes and on the dinner flight ADL-SYD there was complimentary beer and wine. I was also offered a second beer. Very good for heavily discounted red e-deal.

 

[JohnK]

By the way the buy on board prices on QF's NZ domestic flights are $2 soft drink or juice, $5 beer and $6 wine.

Soft drinks are always complimentary in Australia. The flights after lunch you can purchase beer and wine for $5 and spirits for $6 so again good value.

 

[ksthommo]

By the way the buy on board prices on QF's NZ domestic flights are $2 soft drink or juice, $5 beer and $6 wine.

Must be due for a fuel excuse price rise?

 

[Groundfeeder]

The choices of food at lunchtime in the DRW QP was more than I expected, but at dinnertime in the ADL QP, even though it is very big, was disappointing in comparison. You win some and lose some.

I thought I was on a winner in the CNS QP last Friday when the cheesey pastries emerged at 3pm!

I always think the cold meat(?) selection is a disaster waiting to happen in your stomach after being followed by the palmolive cheese selection. In BNE QP last week I got some weird warmed chicken chip-type things as well as the cheesey pastries before the scrum got violent!

 

[Skyring]

Snacks on the SYD-CBR run are often a matter of "The Cabin Service Olympics" in the brief interval between takeoff and landing. Sometimes they are still serving when the captain orders "Prepare the cabin for landing", especially if the wind is from the south on a SYD-CBR leg where the runways are aimed more or less at each other and there's no need to make a circling approach.

I mentioned this to one FA and she smiled and said, 'Sometimes it's "here's your indigestion - hope you enjoy it"'.

Cabin service and food has always been pretty good on Qantas, in my experience. What bugs me is the trend to "buy your own" on Freedom, American Airlines domestic and Aer Lingus, among others. They might as well install a vending machine, because that's the sort of tucker you get.

J on CX in April was exquisite. I wonder how Y will compare on Tuesday?

 

[rhjames]

I've never had a problem with 1st class or business meals. I'd say 1st class is excellent, but so it should be for the price. I first flew 1st class Qantas 30 years ago to LA.(there was no business class then) A trolley came out with a large leg of beef, and I could select my favourite cut. I thought it was a bit over the top. It's particularly nice to be the only person in 1st class - (best was Cathay with 3 maidens of the orient looking after me only)

In first class long haul you normally get to eat when you want to. Business long haul make excellent toasted sandwiches with a choice of content at any time.

 

[beardoc]

I'm a whY customer but travel usually every couple of weeks at the moment, usually SYD-BNE/MEL/ADL. I've travelled mid-morning, at lunchtime and in the early evening, and have tried combinations of the standard meals and the low fat/low cholesterol meals (I am conscious of my intake at the moment).

I have to say, I'm not entirely sure why I'm preferring QANTAS over Virgin at the moment, as the food I'm getting on QANTAS isn't worth more than something I could pick up for about $5-6 on the ground. I had a chicken sandwich and a box of sultanas the other day, and that was it on a SYD-MEL flight - even a McDonald's delichoices menu sandwich would have been nicer!

I suspect I will look at Virgin again now.

 

[aus_flyer]

J on CX in April was exquisite. I wonder how Y will compare on Tuesday?

Skyring, I would be keen to hear your thoughts!

 

[parsonstrish]

I've been following this topic for a little while. I'm a vegetarian and always happy with my meals EXCEPT when I see the person next to me with a yummy desert and I get an apple, etc. Oh, well, seeing as I always I say I'm on a diet, the apple at least keeps me honest. Being vegetarian I always get my meal first so no worries of food running out.
trish

 

[kevinwong]

I personally find the hot food is usually good but small servings , and the salad quite OK. But the two choices offered are usually very similar and themed depending on destination if travelling overseas (i think).

First couple of times the magnums were a novelty now i'm over them as they're not exactly healthy options.

But the snacks for domestic flights are quite poor - pretzels/rice crackers/nuts , or awful panini's with ham and tomato, or an apple, or spicy dip with crackers. Bananas are special request and not widely available. And occasionaly muffin bars/cakes in poppy seed or choc chip which are good.
Generally very bland and boring - really like cardboard, surely they could have something simple like fruit salad, or normal sandwich triangles.

 

[Commuter]

I just posted about an improvement in QF 'dinners' of late (domestic economy) in another thread. I felt that the last two evening flights I took had quite a bit improvement in the quality of food and was quite pleasantly surprised. It still wasn't great or anything, but it was better than a plain tomato pasta they used to serve all the time.

 

[Yada Yada]

Generally very bland and boring - really like cardboard,...

And often too damned cold!

 

[Groundfeeder]

Just check out the number of views on this thread - and we're talking about Qantas FOOD!!! Something like 5000+ views on this subject which is extraordinary for such a basic component of a QF flight.

 

[serfty]

Just check out the number of views on this thread - and we're talking about Qantas FOOD!!! Something like 5000+ views on this subject which is extraordinary for such a basic component of a QF flight.

Yeah, but the thread titles an attention Grabber!

The first time and every time since that I see this thread come up, I think of the word:

OXYMORON!

:shock:

 

[Yada Yada]

Yeah, but the thread titles an attention Grabber!

The first time and every time since that I see this thread come up, I think of the word:

OXYMORON!

:shock:

How true!

 

[acampbel]

As someone who has flown longhaul economy for over 30 years, I must protest at the almost universal condemnation of in-flight catering.

I remember staggering off 747's at Heathrow with a feeling of nausea that wouldn't leave me for days. Being young I could neither imbibe copious amounts of alcohol (my father's tactic) or refuse any of the plastic deserts that accompanied each mystery meal. It was truly horrendous!

These days it is quite possible to have a decent meal (yes - even in cattle-class) though Qantas is currently going through some internal struggle between the catering consultants and the bean-counters. It looks like the latter have the upper hand at the moment.

No - I can forgive the occasional dodgy meal, but I was quite peeved with the service on QF2 from Bangkok last weekend. They started wheeling the trolleys down to the front of economy just as I queued-up Syriana on the VOD (which worked perfectly by the way). I next looked up when the trolley appeared beside me, but they were just returning empty for another load. I was a bit peckish by then and surprised that I had missed first sitting, but then I realised that I was in an unusually rearward seat (48C) because I had picked up in Bangkok rather than come through from London.

Back to the film to try keep tabs on all the sub-plots ... really getting quite hungry now, what with the smells from the lucky diners .... now why did George think he was going to get away with that one? Oh dear - out with the pliers, and then the inevitable happens - dinner arrives.

It must have been a good 45 minutes after they started serving, and the harried FA's were just plonking down trays on empty tables without the usual "what would you like?". Obviously choice was no longer available, but when the FA blurted out "whatwouldyouliketodrink?" she misunderstood my intent when I said "What is it?" I was then given the rote apologies about lack of choice, which I had to interrupt to ask again "Yes - but what is it?" "Oh - it's beef" "Well I'll have a red then" "Shiraz or Cab/Sav?" "BOTH!"

After all that the meal was pretty good, but where they buggered off to for half an hour is what I'd like to know.


Cheers,

Andrew

P.S. Didn't find any fingernails in the gravy.

.

 

[SeatBackForward]

I think you have to read it under the guise of Mr T

"I pity the FooD..."

 

[Yada Yada]

...just as I queued-up Syriana on the VOD (which worked perfectly by the way).

<...snip...>

Back to the film to try keep tabs on all the sub-plots ... really getting quite hungry now, what with the smells from the lucky diners .... now why did George think he was going to get away with that one? Oh dear - out with the pliers, and then the inevitable happens - dinner arrives.

<...snip...>

P.S. Didn't find any fingernails in the gravy.

I watched that movie between SIN-SYD a few months back. Can't say it flowed very well and I didn't like it at all. Especially the fingernails part. Very dark movie.

Back to Comedy on Q for me.