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-   -   Finnair Long Haul Business Class Food (https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/finnair-finnair-plus/1894515-finnair-long-haul-business-class-food.html)

Purjelentaja Feb 18, 2018 3:26 am

Finnair Long Haul Business Class Food
 
We have a thread for short haul business class food, one for business light and one for what to preorder for long haul flight, and some loose posts in other threads, but no thread for normal long haul business class catering. Until now, as I think it might be usefull for non-frequent flyers of what to expect, and also to inform us regulars of changes.

Purjelentaja Feb 18, 2018 3:36 am

HEL-HKG
 
HEL-HKG midnight menu a couple of weeks ago
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...f49ab19837.jpg

Broiled Baltic herring
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...d2af96ea01.jpg

Breakfast options HEL-HKG
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...c0093465e4.jpg

The menu on Finnair web pages was somewhat confusing:
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...5768864be2.jpg

There was no starter, but only main course, cheese and ice cream for dessert. Remembering the time of the flight (past midnight) I think the dinner even without starter was quite fine. The herring was very tasty, and I heard the beef was good as well.

lento Feb 18, 2018 3:37 am

Overcooked reindeer on recent HEL-DEL

​​​​​​​https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...1d3126c38c.jpg

OH-LGG Feb 18, 2018 3:46 am

Is that portion smaller than in Y ?

Anyway remember eat well before getting on board. These C meals are size of snack nowadays.

lento Feb 18, 2018 3:56 am


Originally Posted by OH-LGG (Post 29429812)
Is that portion smaller than in Y ?

Anyway remember eat well before getting on board. These C meals are size of snack nowadays.

It was relatively small, although looked OK after eating "premium lounge dinner" which had portion size for 2 year old.

Purjelentaja Feb 18, 2018 4:04 am

BKK-HEL
 
Lunch menu for BKK-HEL a week ago
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...861f56e8bc.jpg

Amuse: Smoked salmon
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...cc4ff8bb6e.jpg

Starter: Scallop, prawn
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...df72461a48.jpg

Main: Beef red curry
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...111f89058b.jpg

Cheese
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...30adcc5b2a.jpg

Desserts: ice cream and small cakes
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...060f368cb6.jpg

Light meal: Pad thai
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...14e672e36f.jpg

The lunch was really tasty, one of the best airline meals for quite some time, presentation was nice and food was delicious. The light meal (pad thai) was not up to level of the lunch, it was just ok as it lacked seasoning: lime and peanuts.

Between the meals the crew was busy making sure no one can even think of getting hungry or thirsty, offering small snacks and drinks all the time, service was exceptionally good. Great flight.

Purjelentaja Feb 18, 2018 4:17 am

New wine list
 
Wine list has been renewed, from the beginning of February. Now they have 3 white wines and 3 reds instead of previous 2 and 2, very good! The ones I tasted were very good. Hopefully we get another champagne as well to choose from.

Also signature cocktail has been changed, Blue Sky is gone and been replaced by Golden Sky. In addition to that 3 other cocktails and one mocktail are now presented, very good improvement. To my taste the new Golden Sky is too much on the sweeter side, hopefully they will bring back the Blue Sky in addtion to the new ones on the list.

One thing I miss in the menu/wine lists is food-wines pairing suggestions, as it would be much easier to find the right combination.

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...30ae4d4a0d.jpg
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...b28b40f9bf.jpg
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...e1ad16b232.jpg
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...e0fadaeec6.jpg
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...46e951ccd1.jpg

tinkicker Feb 18, 2018 5:29 am

Ref the midnight menu: As a non-fish eater it's a pretty limited menu of basically cold duck with blue cheese (not a fan of blue cheese) or the soup. I thought the soup was good and the smoked elk bits very tasty but last time there was such a large lump of sour cream that it was basically cold.

I'd suggest eating in the lounge pre-departure though again it's pretty fish orientated!

The Finnish Gin (can't recall the brand) and Tonic is very good.

NoWindowSeat Feb 18, 2018 5:51 am


Originally Posted by tinkicker (Post 29429979)
Ref the midnight menu: As a non-fish eater it's a pretty limited menu

While true, please remember that you can always pre-order something that suits your diet. Fish is usually 33/50% of the choices (for starters could be even more..) so you always limit yourself a lot if just going with the normal menu = more or less "blind" pre-order anyway..

wkndtraveler Feb 18, 2018 6:15 am

Thanks, Purjelentaja. This is a useful thread for frequent flyers, too.

Here is my experience from a recent flight to Hong Kong. This was an afternoon departure. Food was okay but the all-Asian crew on this flight provided excellent service, one of the best I’ve ever had on Finnair.

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...f2cd613647.jpg

The dinner started with amuse-bouche. It was smoked vendace and sour cream. It was delicious.

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...836592b2b5.jpg

Appetizer: Cold smoked salmon, Baltic herring, mustard herring, vendace roe and cream, roasted carrots, marinated onions, green salad with lemon olive oil, and Karelian pies. Very good.

https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...3408bb957d.jpg

First main course: broiled Baltic herring, mashed potatoes with lemon and dill butter. I like Baltic herring but not this one. I like it crispy. This was just soggy.

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...aa05932e74.jpg

Second main course, the preordered one: overcooked reindeer was overcooked indeed. Didn't like it at all. After all the food I had consumed I was so full that I decided to skip cheese and dessert and enjoyed a glass of Calvados only.

https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...89b3baa321.jpg

Before landing, I opted for light breakfast and I'm glad I did. It included yoghurt, granola, fresh fruits and blueberries, croissant with blueberry jam and bread roll. In addition to instant coffee, also espresso and cappuccino were available. American breakfast with omelette and sausage was another option, Chinese noodles third one.

tinkicker Feb 18, 2018 6:16 am


Originally Posted by NoWindowSeat (Post 29430021)
While true, please remember that you can always pre-order something that suits your diet. Fish is usually 33/50% of the choices (for starters could be even more..) so you always limit yourself a lot if just going with the normal menu = more or less "blind" pre-order anyway..

True... except it's pretty much guess work what any of the "special" meals would be (seriously without googling it..what is Low Purine?) and there is usually something I can eat on the main menu.

NoWindowSeat Feb 18, 2018 6:30 am


Originally Posted by tinkicker (Post 29430071)
True... except it's pretty much guess work what any of the "special" meals would be (seriously without googling it..what is Low Purine?) and there is usually something I can eat on the main menu.

Then you just go with your luck and deal with the limited options...there are many people like you who don't eat fish, meat, peanuts, this or that..airlines cannot have 7 courses just to satisfy everyone's diets and allergies, unless you fly (certain) F

SPBanker Feb 18, 2018 7:14 am


Originally Posted by tinkicker (Post 29429979)
Ref the midnight menu: As a non-fish eater it's a pretty limited menu of basically cold duck with blue cheese (not a fan of blue cheese) or the soup. I thought the soup was good and the smoked elk bits very tasty but last time there was such a large lump of sour cream that it was basically cold.

I'd suggest eating in the lounge pre-departure though again it's pretty fish orientated!

The Finnish Gin (can't recall the brand) and Tonic is very good.

Tha would be Napue: https://kyrodistillery.com/products/napue/# . And yeah, I agree, it is good.

lkrt Feb 18, 2018 7:17 am

Love the ”salmarikossu”!

wkndtraveler Feb 18, 2018 7:25 am

A return flight from Hong Kong last week, morning departure.

If the all-Asian crew on the flight to Hong Kong was one of the best, the crew serving inbound flight to Helsinki was one of the worst, completely opposite. They were slow, indifferent, even rude. They looked tired and didn’t smile. When you asked something they sighed. Dirty tableware wasn't collected actively. After 3,5 hours I decided to take mine back to galley.


https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...01ef1c2f45.jpg

Amuse-bouche consisted of smoked duck, mozzarella and cherry tomato. Tasty. Campari orange that I ordered as an aperitif barely had any orange juice. It was very strong. A flight attendant didn’t know what this cocktail was but I had to tell the recipe. My partner asked for mimosa and the very same flight attendant hadn’t heard about it either.

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...17df8174e5.jpg

Appetizer: roast beef, pickled vegetables, and potato and mustard salad. The meat was super dry. Side salad was tasty, more varied than the one served on flights departing Helsinki. Another option was cold smoked salmon and fennel.

https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...51743caa08.jpg

Main course: meatballs, rosemary sauce, carrot and potato mash, pickled onions and lingonberry jam. This looked awful but it was very tasty. I could have eaten another one.

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...f6e7acda82.jpg

Main course: The two other options were chicken with ginger, broccoli and rice or halibut, beetroot and cabbage. My partner had chicken. This is how it looked. It was tasty.

https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...ea2b60b5c2.jpg

Cheese: cheddar and camembert.

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...15eb20e82e.jpg

Petit fours: this was listed on a menu and when I requested it I was told by a chief of cabin they had none. I said it’s on the menu. She took my menu and started browsing pages. She said she need to check if they have it. Soon she returned with chocolate praline and cake and explained that the menu is new and that’s why she didn’t know about it. I’m not so sure she was telling the truth since the menu had created to celebrate Finland’s 100th birthday that was last year. Later I found they had wider selection of petit fours in the galley.

https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...94ca56d4e7.jpg

Digestif: espresso (listed on the menu) and calvados. When I asked for espresso the chief of cabin told first that the machine is most likely broken. I asked is it normally broken to which she replied: "Yes, in a matter of fact it is." I asked if she could check it. Then she asked if I would prefer cappuccino. ”But it’s just an instant coffee with milk,” she added. No, I wanted to have either espresso or just normal black coffee. She went to galley and returned with espresso. ”The machine wasn’t broken.” Funny. She also brought me a bottle of calvados I had ordered and asked me to open it.

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...b4c21e1f7c.jpg

Afternoon tea: a dry bread roll with cheese and ham. There were also cup noodles available.

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...abb5b09d6f.jpg

Meal before landing: Pasta with chicken or pork patties with soya sauce. I chose pasta which was inedible: dry, chewy and it had disgusting taste. Unacceptable for business class. Fuits were good.

tartempion Feb 18, 2018 12:59 pm

Thank you but sorry.
Viewing this tread I am not going to fly Finnair J any time soon.
I have a QR and a TK trip booked for 2018 so far, if TK is really good might fly them more versus QR.

casper79 Feb 18, 2018 1:10 pm

2 weeks ago HKG-HEL midnight flight.

I did not touch the cheese plate

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...a3370c6c97.jpg

HawaiiO Feb 18, 2018 2:10 pm

Thank u for the pics!
Food doesnt seem that appetizing. :(

ACYYZ/SD Feb 18, 2018 3:56 pm

While many of their dishes highlight local cuisine, it looks pretty basic for long-haul business class service.

Post Scriptum Feb 18, 2018 11:01 pm


Originally Posted by tinkicker (Post 29429979)
Ref the midnight menu: As a non-fish eater it's a pretty limited menu of basically cold duck with blue cheese (not a fan of blue cheese) or the soup. I thought the soup was good and the smoked elk bits very tasty but last time there was such a large lump of sour cream that it was basically cold.

I'd suggest eating in the lounge pre-departure though again it's pretty fish orientated!

The Finnish Gin (can't recall the brand) and Tonic is very good.

This is actually quite annoying issue in airtravel, there are ample about of made-up diets and imaginary problems but for those with allergies towards seafood there is never a pre-picked category. One can, and I do when travelling in C, call CS and ask for fish-free menu. I reckon globally fish related allergies are quite rare and no fish-alllergic would blow up the plane or create general somefeud on getting wrong food so in generally naturally airlines have to draw the line somewhere on how many categories to add up in the dietary options.

NoWindowSeat Feb 18, 2018 11:18 pm

Regular AY fliers know it already but this thread is actually quite scary read...the AY J dishes look awful in many cases...some of them taste better than they look but this is not good publicity for AY for sure...

teme Feb 19, 2018 3:37 am


Originally Posted by NoWindowSeat (Post 29432730)
Regular AY fliers know it already but this thread is actually quite scary read...the AY J dishes look awful in many cases...some of them taste better than they look but this is not good publicity for AY for sure...

Agree, especially the meal served on HKG-HEL flight looks quite horrendous. What is that stick with the cheese... a celery? And we are talking about the main meal on a 10 hour flight.

casper79 Feb 19, 2018 4:08 am


Originally Posted by teme (Post 29433144)


Agree, especially the meal served on HKG-HEL flight looks quite horrendous. What is that stick with the cheese... a celery? And we are talking about the main meal on a 10 hour flight.

It was celery indeed.

In my opinoin AY long haul business class meals aren't top, I would put them at the lower end of the competition but not in a different league (of legacy carriers) .

R2 Feb 19, 2018 7:57 am


Originally Posted by NoWindowSeat (Post 29432730)
Regular AY fliers know it already but this thread is actually quite scary read...the AY J dishes look awful in many cases...some of them taste better than they look but this is not good publicity for AY for sure...

I agree completely. If someone has photos please put a QR C meal, which is always served 'First class style' as opposed to a tray, next to these photos. The low-point I had in the past year was on AY6 JFK-HEL, absolute disgrace and nowhere near matching the fancy description on their webpage and the menucard blahblaah about the best of the Nordic nature etc.

Purjelentaja Feb 19, 2018 11:23 am

One of the main problems is how the dishes are presented. Usually they are quite tasty and well prepared, but as the mains are not plated onboard, the appearance is very often not at all appealing, even though the taste is good. It would be totally different story if they plated the same food just before serving instead of heating up pre-plated dishes, like many of they competitors are doing.

Another story then is lack of proper desserts, in addition to ice cream and petit fours.

DALtoAAL Feb 19, 2018 11:58 am


Originally Posted by R2 (Post 29433707)
I agree completely. If someone has photos please put a QR C meal, which is always served 'First class style' as opposed to a tray, next to these photos. The low-point I had in the past year was on AY6 JFK-HEL, absolute disgrace and nowhere near matching the fancy description on their webpage and the menucard blahblaah about the best of the Nordic nature etc.

QR is definitely something different than AY, here are some pics from last week, QR304, HEL-DOH.
https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...40e84d8a74.jpg

Pre-takeoff beverage & hot towel
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...abdfba015b.jpg

Pineapple Margarita & nuts
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...dae9c8827d.jpg

Amuse Bouche salmon, caviar & potato salad
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...56703ef64a.jpg

Appetizer salmon & potato sald
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...ebd254b32c.jpg

Main Paneer Tikka Masala
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...ffc06f5076.jpg

Dessert Coconut Pannacotta

tinkicker Feb 19, 2018 12:57 pm


Originally Posted by Post Scriptum (Post 29432704)


This is actually quite annoying issue in airtravel, there are ample about of made-up diets and imaginary problems but for those with allergies towards seafood there is never a pre-picked category. One can, and I do when travelling in C, call CS and ask for fish-free menu. I reckon globally fish related allergies are quite rare and no fish-alllergic would blow up the plane or create general somefeud on getting wrong food so in generally naturally airlines have to draw the line somewhere on how many categories to add up in the dietary options.

yeah I just want decent labelling of what's there. Though to be honest even then you can get caught out. I tried to order the vegetarian stir-fry rice in the Cathay Lounge at LHR this evening and they wouldn't serve it to me as it was made on the same griddle as shellfish. (the conversation had started with me saying I was surprised to see the chicken chow-main had a shellfish marker and so I'd have the veg rice instead)

... oh well. The veg soup was excellent.

intuition Feb 19, 2018 2:01 pm


Originally Posted by casper79 (Post 29431275)
2 weeks ago HKG-HEL midnight flight.

I did not touch the cheese plate

AY calling that a cheese plate is an insult. To the passenger. And to the cheese.

ffay005 Feb 21, 2018 5:58 am

Very good thread! And now that I've left HAV, where internet access was not too easy, I'll be able to comment, too.

To my surprise, HEL-HAV (menu read HAV/POP/PVR) was not a BusinessLight flight. I didn't take a photo of the menu, but there was an amuse bouche (roe), a choice of two appetizers, a petite salad, a choice of three main courses (I had preordered the reindeer, preorders are now possible, too, and it was perfectly cooked), Jymy lemon & vanilla + petite fours + cheese. I was satisfied with everything except the amuse bouche. It's of course my problem that I don't like roe, but it seemed to me that quite many pax skipped the amuse bouche. Perhaps it would be more sensible to offer something less exotic?

The second meal had two choices, some Indian-style cheese and vegetable dish and a very good tortellini with chanterelles and veal. It didn't look appetising but the taste was great. It came with a small side salad, fresh fruit and a croissant.

This is a bit off-topic, but I had a very nice crew, too. No J blankets – supposedly, they aren't able to wash them in HAV so we only had Y blankets, but J pillows. Go figure...


Originally Posted by NoWindowSeat (Post 29432730)
Regular AY fliers know it already but this thread is actually quite scary read...the AY J dishes look awful in many cases...some of them taste better than they look but this is not good publicity for AY for sure...

Yes, it's a scary yet very realistic read. I wonder why we didn't have such a topic a long time ago. Now let's hope that AY comes to the same conclusion and finally does something about it. ^ ^

ffay005 Feb 21, 2018 6:04 am


Originally Posted by Purjelentaja (Post 29429797)
HEL-HKG midnight menu a couple of weeks ago

There was no starter, but only main course, cheese and ice cream for dessert. Remembering the time of the flight (past midnight) I think the dinner even without starter was quite fine. The herring was very tasty, and I heard the beef was good as well.

So basically this is a J meal with the amuse bouche and the starter removed. I strongly disagree with the "past midnight" point here – while it might be past midnight at HEL, the pax might all be on quite different timezones, having come from different parts of the world and continuing to who knows where. Some have just woken up, some will want to sleep. It's not for the airline to choose when a J pax should eat what, it should be the pax who makes the choice.

Does any other (legacy) airline offer such reduced catering on night departures on longhaul flights?

haapalainen Feb 21, 2018 8:07 am

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...0658a85873.jpg
For comparison this is what I had today on a midnight departure on DXB-ZRH in Swiss business. No choice at all and the only thing warm was the cup of soup. (Sorry for bad quality pic)

I don't think the one-tray concept for midnight departures on AY is that bad actually. IME Cathay Pacific does the same in HKG and BA doesn't serve any dinner on sleeper services. Of course the reduced service onboard should be compensated by having full dinner available in lounge before the flight.

intuition Feb 21, 2018 11:43 am


Originally Posted by ffay005 (Post 29441537)
...
Does any other (legacy) airline offer such reduced catering on night departures on longhaul flights?

IIRC BA introduced a hated "meals appropriate for time of day" as a whitewash for savings.


Originally Posted by ffay005 (Post 29441524)
...

Yes, it's a scary yet very realistic read. I wonder why we didn't have such a topic a long time ago. Now let's hope that AY comes to the same conclusion and finally does something about it. ^ ^

It was talked about at the seat testing meeting, and the response was that they are genuinely aiming for over-par meal service as a way of compeeting and that new concepts are developing. Now this was 6 months ago and all I've seen is more of the same "fame-by-association" marketing (ie hiring famous chefs to design meals - the latest one a Japanese chef). Oh, the new "fika" aswell.

manymany Feb 21, 2018 2:14 pm


Originally Posted by Purjelentaja (Post 29429840)
Lunch menu for BKK-HEL a week ago
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...861f56e8bc.jpg


The lunch was really tasty, one of the best airline meals for quite some time, presentation was nice and food was delicious. The light meal (pad thai) was not up to level of the lunch, it was just ok as it lacked seasoning: lime and peanuts.

Between the meals the crew was busy making sure no one can even think of getting hungry or thirsty, offering small snacks and drinks all the time, service was exceptionally good. Great flight.

I did a BKK-HEL last week too and had the exact same menu. I took different options to you: I had the Beef to start and Salmon main then later the Goats Cheese Salad. All fantastic, some of the best meals I've had in the air. As with your flight the crew were fantastic. It was one of my most enjoyable long haul flights I have taken out of BA, CX, QR and AY.

nordic Feb 21, 2018 2:59 pm

So no one has flown to Shanghai, Seoul or Tokyo recently. Wasn’t the new service concept meant to start on February 7.

NoWindowSeat Feb 21, 2018 3:03 pm


Originally Posted by nordic (Post 29443534)
So no one has flown to Shanghai, Seoul or Tokyo recently. Wasn’t the new service concept meant to start on February 7.

Looks like everyone is busy scrambling to OUL and back so no time to go to Asia..no wonder the grandstands are empty at the Olympics..😁

Clydez Feb 22, 2018 4:31 am


Originally Posted by nordic (Post 29443534)
So no one has flown to Shanghai, Seoul or Tokyo recently. Wasn’t the new service concept meant to start on February 7.

Flew to PVG on 5th, missed by 2 days :( inbound was from SIN

quinzinho Feb 23, 2018 6:06 pm

I'm trying to book some special meals on long haul business flights, but without any success. When I go to Manage my booking, I do see all the special menus available spelled out, however they are NOT in the drop-down box where they're supposed to be.
I'm going mad.. what am I doing wrong?

ffay005 Feb 23, 2018 6:41 pm

Use the chat, might be the easiest solution.

Yoshi212 Feb 23, 2018 8:38 pm

I have an AA J redemption in May from SFO-HEL then on to PRG. I've found several trip reports with menus doing the HEL-SFO route but not the return. Anyone have a photo of the offerings out of SFO? I have requested a kosher meal option for HEL-PRG to see how that turns out.

@tinkicker Low-Purine meals are for people with gout or a propensity for kidney stones. Purine is found in diets heavy in smaller fish & organ meats.

I did find "rape flower" a bit odd.

ffay005 Feb 23, 2018 9:29 pm

I would discourage from ordering special meals in Euro-J. While they might have a long list of specials, in reality they try to get away with as many special diets as possible as easily as possible, so you might end up having a vegetarian glutenfree tasteless disaster tray.

Sept 2017 SFO-HEL included (cold) nuts, two starter options, three main course options of which I had swordfish and mashed sweet potato (looked horrible and tasted next to nothing) and chocolate mousse as the only dessert option. I have pics, too, but uploading them requires a third party hosting site etc, too complicated, sorry.

On this particular flight, the FA tried to trick me into eating a turkey sandwich for breakfast because they had either run out of the roastbeef one, or had never got them in the first place. What a memory!


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