Originally Posted by
convair
I tend to use more of a business logic for such choices. I ALWAYS eat prior to flight if a very decent opportunity presents itself. Food on the plane is totally missable (I've been through every single menu choice on BA longhual multiple times by now) and 2 hours saved on the plane - that's what it amounts to between wheels-up and tray-cleared away - is two clear hours extra work, two hours extra sleep, or two hours buried in a decent novel. All save the most expensive restaurants will be worth that trade-off on a long-haul flight, even if I'm paying for myself, and frankly insignificant in the context of a $5000 ticket. I would be doing my company a disservice NOT to fork out $100 more to gain two hours rest/work time on the plane.
I too can understand such logic, but only on long haul. Surely (in Club Europe) it is a convenience to eat onboard when there's nothing else to do with no laptop power, inseat phone & a seat that is definetly not fit for sleeping in. Surely then, the lounge time is more valueable & makes use of otherwise wasted travel time.