Qantas Business Class meals & menus

[blackcat20]

The meals on the NZ flights used to be decent but have really gone downhill.

 

[Katie]

We had disappointing experiences flying to and from Adelaide this past weekend.

Flight down, Fri night, QF665 leaving at 7pm. Didn't eat too much in the J Lounge. Should have. Our choices were Fish #1, Fish #2 (the tech crew's meal, the CSM said), and a vegetarian salad. The fist was decent, but the four of us travelling together were surprised that only fish was available for protein. Maybe on Good Friday, but we've got a ways to go to get there!!

Flight back was QF656 leaving at 7:30pm Sunday night. Snacked a bit in the lounge, but the three of us travelling back expected more. Silly us. Our choices were fish (NZ Ling) with potatoes and tomatoes - same overall as Fish option #1 on Fri night on the way down, but perhaps a different type of fish. Second choice was a lentil, chickpea and feta salad.

Mr Katie and I stopped at Maccas on the way home.
At least he was able to drink red wine to hide his disappointment (I was driving home).

 

[Berlin]

Our choices were Fish #1, Fish #2 (the tech crew's meal, the CSM said), and a vegetarian salad. .

I HATE when this happens! I’m allergic to fish and seafood and unfortunately this happens far too often on Qantas. And as a business class passenger often pays proper cash for my tickets, some bland salad is just not doing it as a meal. Not at all.

 

[RichardMEL]

Pretty neat you were offered a meal for the tech crew!

 

[Fergo747]

Current menu for QF127. Will take photos of meals (if I remember).

Tomato, saffron and chickpea soup with coriander yoghurt. (small plate)
Made from a rich vegetable stock with tomato, chickpeas, coriander and saffron, this soup is blended to a smooth, consistent texture then garnished with natural yoghurt that is combined with lemon juice, garlic and fresh coriander. This dish is best enjoyed with a glass of Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Noir.

Salad of duck with cucumber, herbs, cashews, chilli and lime dressing. (small plate)
Confit duck is roughly shredded and topped with toasted coconut and cashew nuts, served with a light salad of young leaves, pomelo segments, cucumber and pear. Dressed with a fragrant combination of coriander, mint, red chilli, fish sauce, lemongrass and lime. This dish is best enjoyed with a glass of aromatic white ie Semillon or Pinot Gris.

Tasting Mediterranean mezze plate with dukkah spiced labne, sweet potato hummus and pita. (small plate)
A selection of lightly smoked, roasted eggplant dip, creamy labne coated in dukkah, braised butter bean and chickpea salad, marinated red capsicum and zucchini accompanied by za'atar spiced pita bread. This dish is best enjoyed with a glass of Chardonnay or Pinot Noir.

Udon noodle soup with shiitake broth, roast carrots, tofu, bok choy and edamame beans.(main plate)
A Japanese inspired, vegetarian dish of firm tofu with bok choy, roasted carrot, edamame and thick udon noodles in a broth of shiitake mushrooms, soy and konbu. This dish is best enjoyed with a glass of Sake or Pinot Noir.

Chicken biriyani with roasted pumpkin and raita. (main plate)
Diced chicken is marinated in lemon and spice then baked until golden brown. Served with a fragrant combination of biriyani rice with sultanas, cashews, tomato and green herbs along with a cooling cucumber and yoghurt raita. This dish is best enjoyed with a glass of aromatic white ie Pinot Gris or Sauvignon Blanc.

Seared Humpty Doo barramundi with pan fried polenta, broccoli and almond romesco.(main plate)
Seared Humpty Doo barramundi is served with a rough blend of almonds, red capsicum, tomato, garlic and sherry vinegar. Accompanied by blanched broccoli and polenta cooked with chicken stock and parmesan then fried for a crisp exterior. This dish is best enjoyed with a glass of aromatic white ie Sauvignon Blanc or Chardonnay.

Red braised pork with stir fried mushrooms, sesame, bok choy and rice. (main plate)
Pork is glazed in a combination of soy, star anise, ginger and chilli; served with black fungi, enoki and shiitake mushrooms stir fried with sesame and spring onion. Accompanied by fragrant steamed rice and blanched bok choy. This dish is best enjoyed with a glass of light bodied red ie Pinot Noir or Tempranillo.

 

[Berlin]

SYD-AKL last week on 737, “lunch” flight. Luckily, I am happy to report that not all QF catering across the Tasman sucks. This was the rather nice menu which was already waiting at the seat when I got on the plane. Drinks (water, juice or Champagne) were offered prior to the safety video.

I selected the zucchini soup as I had a rather nice one on EK not long ago. Unfortunately, the QF version tasted bland and rather watery, exactly like I had originally expected a zucchini soup to taste (no idea what magic EK had done to it but that one had been full of flavour somehow).

The bread was nice and hot though and I always love that hipster butter for which my local QE market charges $10 for a full pack. No way i’m paying that for butter but if I can get it with my food on Qantas I don’t complain

The main was a more inspired meal and simply delicious. They did have this bolognaise style pasta with beef before but this new pork version is even better in my eyes. The perfect meal for a 3 hour flight, simple and tasty. The only odd thing was that green stuff on top of the Parmesan- i expected it to be either garnish or something similar to pesto. But no- it was pickled parsley. Yes- you heard that right, sour pickled parsley. What the...? Well always when you think you’ve seen it all... Anyway, it was easy enough to pick off and put to the side, uneaten.


Finally, the choice of cheese and ice cream was offered as desert. I usually am a sucker for the cheese plate but was quite full at this stage so decided to rather have the ice cream. It was still Maggie Beer branded (you know, for that cozy hand-made feeling while it comes of a big factory belt like any other brand of ice cream...) but significantly downsized. Ridiculous for Business class, looked like a “Mini” version of a standard magnum (see my fingers for comparison).

Finally, it’s worth mentioning that the staff was friendly throughout and efficient. All in all a smooth and pleasant flying experience.

 

[zig]

Referring to the menu above. Has QF really sunk to serving a bowl of leaves with balsamic dressing as a main meal, or is that menu item a side dish to the other mains?

 

[Berlin]

Referring to the menu above. Has QF really sunk to serving a bowl of leaves with balsamic dressing as a main meal, or is that menu item a side dish to the other mains?

If you’re referring to my post just above yours- no, that was just the side to go with the pasta that i had as a main.

 

[Mrmaxwell]

Had terrible food in J on QF20 this week.

Breakfast was a ciabatta bacon and egg roll; the bread and bacon was rock hard. Fruit yoghurt was soggy.

 

[QF WP]

The main was a more inspired meal and simply delicious. They did have this bolognaise style pasta with beef before but this new pork version is even better in my eyes. The perfect meal for a 3 hour flight, simple and tasty. The only odd thing was that green stuff on top of the Parmesan- i expected it to be either garnish or something similar to pesto. But no- it was pickled parsley. Yes- you heard that right, sour pickled parsley. What the...? Well always when you think you’ve seen it all... Anyway, it was easy enough to pick off and put to the side, uneaten.

We can agree with the need for acidity to balance the meal but this sounds like a failure.

 

[kermatu]

Had terrible food in J on QF20 this week.

Breakfast was a ciabatta bacon and egg roll; the bread and bacon was rock hard. Fruit yoghurt was soggy.

Looks terrible.

 

[zig]

If you’re referring to my post just above yours- no, that was just the side to go with the pasta that i had as a main.

Yes, I was referring to the menu you posted above. Good to know that the leaves were a side, not a main dish.

 

[kermatu]

Yes, I was referring to the menu you posted above. Good to know that the leaves were a side, not a main dish.

Understandable question given how poorly written the menus are and the decline in J meals of late.

 

[amaroo]

SYD-BNE - mid morning flight .... we swapped at half time. I’m partial to toasties so that was the winner for me.

 

[kermatu]

I've had the guava yoghurt a couple of times - rather nice.

 

[wannabeinvestmentbanker]

SYD-BNE - mid morning flight .... we swapped at half time. I’m partial to toasties so that was the winner for me.

Toasties are for the lounge not a full service J ticket. As much as I do love a good one I would still be a little disappointed but I guess when travelling at a snack time you can't expect much.

 

[amaroo]

Toasties are for the lounge not a full service J ticket. As much as I do love a good one I would still be a little disappointed but I guess when travelling at a snack time you can't expect much.

This was our last sector after flying from London in F ..... toastie was the perfect way to end a foodie holiday

 

[Pushka]

This was our last sector after flying from London in F ..... toastie was the perfect way to end a foodie holiday

Did the kids get crackers in Y?

 

[mrsterryn]

Not sure what class (don't think I have posted before )

 

[Chrism13]

Surprisingly, by today's standards, the menu illustrated is economy class. This indicated by the code at the bottom of the menu with SE indicating 'Southern Cross Route' + 'Economy Class'.