HAT

I was on the same route 2 weeks ago and it was afternoon tea indeed, with some finger sandwiches and scones. Definitely stick with an Asian Veggie meal.

LH4116

I'm contemplating on whether to order a special meal or not. Flying a band 3 flight next week, which departs at 11.25. I assume it'll be the extended breakfast meal, which in many cases seem to consist of a cold cut plate with various types of hams. Problem is that I don't eat pork, lactose or gluten. Which special meal should I order, or should I just take my chances and see what's available onboard? If the cold cuts consist of salmon and chicken, then it works fine for me.

orbitmic

Don't -- the vast majority of "brunch" plates as they are now called are pork based. Unfortunately, your multiple red lines make it hard to find something that will work for you even among the special meals. I'd suggest keeping it simple and ordering vegetarian and hoping to be in luck in terms of the lactose and gluten elements.

LH4116

That's quite a bummer. So I shouldn't go for a muslim or kosher meal? To avoid the pork component at least.

orbitmic

You would most certainly avoid the pork indeed, but I think that the odd of gluten loaded meals would be much much higher - in fact, many of those meals seem to involve sandwiches or pasta of some sort for some reason. I personally wouldn't given your constraints.

Swindoneric

Separate question re. Short haul catering.. No breakfast at all on BA8705 Edi to LCY ON Monday. Captain announced that no food had been loaded but that pax could obtain a voucher from the BA desk at LCY for food on arrival. Because everyone wants to hang around LCY on a Monday morning. Has anyone else ever experienced that?

BHDATC

Yes happens occasionally. 4 times from BHD this year with me. Sometimes you get a voucher, sometimes they have no idea a voucher was meant to be given at the other end.

It's not major deal especially on these commuting services where you'd rather leave on time than wait around for catering.

Dicksbits

Was astonished to be offered a choice of cold meal on yesterday's flight from Madrid into LCY. Used to a bun being thrown at me in Y.

Dicksbits

I did wonder if it was part of a new strategy to cut down on handing out booze. Confused passengers asked where the drinks was and were told 'it would be along later, it takes half an hour to hand out this food, meanwhile chicken or veg pasta?' (It wasn't pasta, it was falafel balls on rice). Lots of people turned it down. Those who took the food were given a plastic sealed cup of still water.

When the 'drinks' trolly did appear noone seemed to ask for an alcoholic drink from row 6 (first row of Y) back. I was in row 12 and asked for a red wine pls, which was brought out of a drawer and almost thrown at me. New BA enhancement strategy to cut back on the amount of alcohol being served, or just a coincidence that noone wanted / asked for booze?

orbitmic

Not really unusual, it's the LCY catering concept - on flights of that length at meal times they give a cold meal despite LHR and LGW only getting the sandwich/sweet bun pack. It has been like that for a while

Dicksbits

So normal BA food times don't apply to Citiflyer? Club were getting a hot meal (flight was 16:50). Isn't that afternoon tea time?

In Y I received a sandwich and a cake when flying back from Granada. That was last year and the flight time was 12:50. Things have clearly changed as I got this cold plate on a 16:50 MAD departure.

teme

Flying out on new year's eve. Departure time changed to 4.55PM, so afternoon tea it'll be. Would have hoped something more subtantial for the three our flight, especially on new year's eve. Well, maybe I just have to concentrate on bar offerings, although the current Monopole champagne probably does not lift up the festive spirit anymore than the afternoon tea...

orbitmic

I'll admit that I have no idea at all about the first point. Maybe they stuck to the "old" times when dinner started at 16.30?

On the second, I suspect Granada might just have received a less good service because it may be considered a "leisure" destination? The MAD service has been as you describe for several years.

Andy33

Might it have something to do with round-trip catering? As an IAG hub it would be very easy to uplift catering in MAD, this doesn't apply to Granada.
I don't know if they actually do uplift, though.

Dicksbits

Not sure about MAD for a LCY flight (although the same aircraft flies to and from MAD at least twice, and overnights there), but GRX definitely doesn't uplift food. I was on a delayed flight (bird strike) and the crew said they couldn't serve the food as it had all gone off in the heat on the ground.