Originally Posted by
kalia960
I must say, though, that the food and service were not what I'd expected.
For the first meal there was no menu, only a surly FA saying "veg or nonveg?" When pressed she admitted that they also had "continental" (I haven't heard that word in years).
The food came all on one tray, the items still in their aluminum containers (i.e. not plated). Certainly there was a large quantity, but otherwise the food wasn't distinctive in any way. Just as an example, the hot item was a rectangular reheating container with rice in the middle, vegetable on one side, chicken on the other. The quality was comparable to economy class---edible, definitely not memorable.
I was woken up ~2.5 hours before landing in Frankfurt; apparently the fact that I might prefer to sleep rather than eat hadn't occurred to them.
No choice offered for this meal, just a tray put in front of me. Starting with this second meal we got real plates. No choice after takeoff either, just a breakfast tray consisting of convenience-store-grade baked goods. Finally, 3 hours before landing in DEL, we actually got a menu with 4 items to choose from. Again, large quantity, mediocre quality (lots of potato in the cooked dishes, lots of rice, bread). I would guess they wanted to feed us so far in advance of landing so that they could finish their work and relax.
No kits were ever handed out.
I've only flown longhaul on AI in J once (an op-up
), so I can't really comment.
However, contrary to your experience, the meals were plated, and the amenity kit was decent.
Choices were described ("chicken with rice, and vegetable") instead of veg, non-veg, continental, etc. (and on that note, "continental" isn't that uncommon).
Meal quality usually ranges from edible to great, but I've never had a
bad meal on AI.
Seems like the experience depends a lot on how hard-working the FAs are, and it looks like you unluckily got some lazy FAs.