Originally Posted by
lost_in_translation
I have to say, every single meal posted above looks like an unambiguous improvement from what existed before - well done BA!
And if anyone from the BA team is reading the reactions in this thread, when in a few months time the bean counters come to you suggesting you should make a few small cuts to the service here and there since 'customers won't notice the changes', tell them politely to **** off!
I suspect both your comment and my answer would fit better in the other (general discussion) thread, but I don't altogether agree.
- On all bands, I see the re-introduction of a cold plate breakfast as an improvement. The bread also looks nicer though I have not seen anyone post croissants, etc which worries me a little.
- On band 1, the introduction of a small starter is positive and the main course salads look a little nicer than previously (the beef looks nicer than the beetroot but maybe that's just me!) I'm still bewildered by the incapacity to offer some dressing if you are going to offer main course salads. For afternoon tea, that is no use to me, but the sandwiches certainly look a lot nicer than the previous version and many (again, not me, but that is a matter of taste) will be happy to see the scones back. I think that on the whole the catering for band 1 now looks good for the distance. ^
- On band 2, the exact same improvements apply (plus a slightly nicer starter for lunch/dinner), o definitely "better than before", but I personally do not think that it is adequate yet for flights which are typically 2-2.5 hours block time. The main complaints about catering in the previous installment was for medium flights, and it simply does not seem like medium flights have had any significant improvements. You get a quiche instead of a panini, a small starter or scones in addition to what you had before, and the afternoon tea that some of us dislike as a long serving window.
- On band 3, this time, this strikes me as an outright worsening of the offer. The former fairly sophisticated starters (effectively the main course salads from the short/medium flights!) have been enhanced into a small cup of coleslaw, however much anyone may miss school dinners of bangers and mash, that is definitely a bit of a cheapening of the main course, and even the pasta dishes have become a lot more basic (we move from chicken with pappardelle on lobster sauce to gnocchi with ratatouille). Moreover, as
nordic mentioned in the other thread, if you end up choosing the "signature salad" option as main, you are effectively getting the band 1 meal plus two pieces of cheese. As I mentioned there too, it is, after all, fine if this is what you choose, but we all know that choice has its limits on BA, and that limit is usually about 2-3 rows before the crew reaches the end of the cabin, so some people will get that band 1 meal plus cheese without actually choosing it.
As always, with BA reforms of CE catering, we are talking winners and losers. Last time round, the big losers were band 3A (which was downgraded to medium and lost hot meals) and the big winners were domestic (who got CE) and band 3B (which service was joined with the former band 4 as part of long). In this new installment, it seems to me that the winners are band 1, who were actually not so inadequate given the short length and seem to be getting a significant improvement in quality. The losers are the former long (assuming band 4 is, as discussed, equal to band 3 though there might be small variations) who are moving down to a downgraded starter, something that looks like cheaper mains and a risk of getting the band 1 salad instead of the hot main against your meal if sat in the wrong place, and a one tray service. Medium now known as band 2 which was the "problem point" before remains the "problem point" now.
On the whole, my comment would be something like: "quality seems to have improved, but food concept certainly has not".