I had a similar coughpy service experience in J on the A380 QF9 MEL/DUBAI last week en route to Milan. After an OTT peppy welcome from the purser which I was fine with, myself and three colleagues had a less than stellar experience with the FA's on this flight. There was a general sense of malaise and indifference in the business cabin. One particular flight attendant asked if I wanted anything to eat. I said what was on offer. She snapped back, "It's in the men...you!" .. like, der you dingbat. Requests for bottled water were either forgotten or ignored.
The situation changed with we transferred to an Emirates 777 QF code-share from Dubai to Milan. Service was night-and-day. It was the first time I have flown business class on Emirates and it won't be the last. The food and beverage range, attentiveness, friendliness and professionalism was great. No Qantas-style PJ's but a far superior Bulgari amenities pack. On our return we flew a QF code-share Emirates A380 from Dubai. Seriously it was even better than the DXB/MXP 777 sector and the seat-back 24" Full-HD LCD screens exceeded anything I've seen on any other airline including F in Singapore and Qantas. I'll continue to fly Qantas because of the strong FF links to the US and domestically, but when I next fly to Europe it will be on QF code-share Emirates metal. No doubt at all.