dave31

I will be travelling to Madagascar from London via Addis Ababa flying with Ethiopian for the first time in their Cloud Nine Business class. I appreciate that the topic of food and drink tends to be rather subjective but would appreciate any comments regarding things that may be worth sampling and general selection of wines and spirits. Any observations about flying with Ethiopian will be gladly received.

cheltzel

My wife and I just got back from a 2 week trip from the US to South Africa and flew ET. The wines on board are distinctly better that what I would normally get on UA or AA (the vast bulk of my business/first experiences on both carriers is pre-pandemic). The highlights for me were a Spanish Red blend and a South African Pinotage. The Ethiopian coffee is both strong and tasty.

The food IMO is some sort of fusion between Western Europe/North America and Ethiopia. Most of the Western meals are palatable, although I found one of the beef dishes over cooked and chewy. There was an Ethiopian lamb stew that I found very tasty. Many flights have a section title "The Ethiopian National Dish". Personally, I like it. But I know of many who do not. Many of the snack option on the longer flights have egg rolls, samosas, breaded chicken and/or fish that look like they came out of a bag of froze starters from a cheaper food service.

My wife took some exception to the food as she felt it was a bit over seasoned (chiles). But I grew up in south-central Texas and I grew up eating food much. much spicier than what we were served.

As always, YMMV.

BA6948

The food from outstations is good but us generally western and the portions are massive. But the highlight are the meals served from Addis to African destinations. Ethiopian will give you a menu and they will ask you to select a main from 3 mains which are European dishes but they will also come with a trolley with Ethiopian dishes. I would suggest skipping the European main and going with an assortment of Ethiopian dishes. That only if you like spices and you are open to trying food from other countries. The food is really good.

as for the wine I found the Ethiopian Rift Valley Red wine very good. Smells and tastes Ethiopia.

All in all, very good. And you can always try the large buffet at the cloud nine lounge.

dave31

Thank you very much for the information that you have provided. I will look forward to trying something completely new to me in terms of wine from Ethiopia and the Ethiopian national dishes. Not normally a fan of spicy dishes but if I don't try, I will never know!

Jetboi

I can't speak for Cloud 9, but for Y, it appears they do catering in the departure city and the quality will vary. The whatever-it-was I got from Zanzibar is perhaps the worst I've had in the air ever.

The ethiopian wines I've had, in Ethiopia - not on board - are quite sweet. Pairs very well with spicy food (should work fine with most injera) and cheese.. but maybe not with desserts. In general, I'd try and sample them on board. As for the ethiopian food, it's like medium Indian on the chilli, but very rich in flavour. Considering that your senses of taste and smell are dulled in the air, I can hardly think of anything more suitable to eat up there (and down here for that matter).

cheltzel

I've had a similar experience flying ET in business out of ORD (multiple times). What's really a shame is there is a Do&Co operation at ORD and TK as well as several other international airlines use it. The quality of food from Do&Co is outstanding.

subject2load

As a general rule …. yes.

However …… where you have an airline such as BA who - though partnered with Do & Co - still find it hard to shake off their customary tight hold on the purse strings, then the result is often a case of you get what you pay for !

cheltzel

I've experienced BA business class catering from Do&Co out of ORD. It is far better than what ET serves.

BA6948

You can still sample the Ethiopian food in cloud nine lounge in Addis if you like. Also Ethiopian will allow you to taste the wine before serving you.

as for the FAs, they can sometimes be either reserved, shy or trying too hard to be professional. A joke (about yourself) will make them at ease and the dynamics will change…

one thing is you’ll never be hungry on a ET flight. In the contrary, as I said, I skipped the western style main because otherwise you’ll feel bloated with food quickly!

BA6948

I think it all depends on the outstation. Had very underwhelming food with AF out of Atlanta which quite an achievement. Food out of the US is not great. However, out of Paris or BRU, ET were great.

cheltzel

I've had some very decent catering out of ORD on several Pacific and Middle East carriers. Unless al of these are carrying their return catering onboard when they fly in to ORD, they are sourcing it locally.

B747-437B

Cloud Nine food = exceptional.

Economy food = buy Burger King or Pizza Hut at the Temrinal before boarding. Thank me later.

Jetboi

I tried Burger King in Bole (city), not really my recommendation. Is the one the airport actually any better?

B747-437B

For the $20 price tag for a Double Whopper with Cheese, it better be made from Wagyu!

dyxu0909

the lounge at ORD was really disappointed from my recent experience with Ethiopian business.