This trip has been long overdue. Now, finally, in May of 1968, you're on your way to Santa Maria in the Azores Islands. There, you'll join your childhood friend Philippe and his lovely wife Ava for a ten day sail around the islands on his new catamaran. And of course, you're pleased to have been able to book a pair of First Class seats for you and your girlfriend aboard TAP Portuguese Airlines' offering nonstop Boeing 707 service from New York to Santa Maria.

A lovely stewardess welcomes you both aboard while another relieves you of your outer garments and offers a pre-departure libation. Hmm... is the wine chilled yet? Right on! Two glasses of your white wine, please. Menus were delivered next, and, following delicious sips off your wine, you both perused this evening's dinner offerings...

TAP TRANSPORTES AEREOS PORTUGUESES

DINNER
New York to Santa Maria

Caviar Belouga Malossol
Melba Toast

Appetizers
Scottish Smoked Salmon
Medallions of Lobster "Belle Vue"
Portuguese Sardines
Prosciutto with Melon
Fois Gras de Strasbourg

Consomm�
Flavored with Port Wine or Madeira

Salad in Season
Choice of Dressings

Main Courses

Duckling a la Julius
~or~
Veal Chops with Madeira Sauce

Accompaniments
Selection of Vegetables
Portuguese Fried Potatoes

Assortment of Cheeses
Served with Traditional Accompaniments

Dessert
Black Forest Cake
Assortment of Pastries

Fresh Fruit Basket

Portuguese Coffee

Hello lamphs

I've been collecting First Class menus since I was a teenaged school boy. I used to spend the day walking up and down Manhattan's 5th and Lexington Avenues hitting up all the airline sales offices for menus, brochures about the new airplanes and inflight services and postcards. That alone accounted for a good sized collection of menus from the 1970s and 1980s. Additionally, I occasionally mine the resources found on the internet which sometimes yield a nice find or two.

In both presentation and variety, these old menus offer some truly inspiring meals, and especially some of the appetizers and hors d'oeuvres. I've always loved finger foods such as hors d'oeuvres, and unfortunately, given the diminishment of First Class in favor of Business Class, canapes and hors d'oeuvres have largely disappeared from most premium class menus these days.

Hope you found a good dinner tonight!

P.S. I should mention that the introductions I add to these menu transcripts are mainly just to entertain myself and set the mood, as it were. I just make it all up as I go. It's all in fun, and hopefully those who enjoy this thread don't mind indulging me as to the scenarios. Then again, if y'all would prefer just the straightforward menu, I can switch to that, too

Also, I have flown aboard some of these flights. Between industry discounts and great exchange rates making for low fares in some countries, I was able to experience a good number of First Class cabins back in the 1980s and 90s.

Those of us who were fortunate to have flown international First Class back in the 70s and 80s were treated to lavish spreads artistically presented with panache atop fully laden trolleys. It was great spectacle and some darned fine food as well.

This is probably the best presentation I've yet seen regarding how First Class airline meals were truly special back in the 1960s and 70s. Indeed, having flown a lot of international First Class since 2000, I'd go so far as to say the meals - and most certainly the presentation - were superior back in the 1970s.

Unfortunately, a significant percentage of today's passengers flying in First Class (most of whom were born after 1970) have no idea how good food aloft was or even could be. And honestly, I don't think most of them particularly care. Standards and expectations have dropped precipitously over the years. What the airlines serve today is acceptable to most (except perhaps Anthony Bourdain ), but - just my personal opinion here - I just think the inflight catering was considerably better back in the 60s and 70s. It definitely was in terms of presentation, when everyone ate at the same time allowing for those elaborate trolley services. I'd take those any day over the comparatively soulless and sterile dine on demand service that is the preferred approach today. Flying had pageantry back then. These days the majority of premium class flyers just want to be locked away in their flat bed pods behind sliding doors while wired into their IFEs. Dinner? Oh yeah, whenever... whatever...

I might add that I'm well aware of the various studies indicating diminished taste while flying, but as one who's eaten hundreds of quality restaurant meals in my life, I think I'm a good judge of what good food tastes like - at least per my tastes - and I thought the airline food I was served back in the day tasted pretty darned good. Especially the many really good sirloin steaks and filet mignons I enjoyed on Continental and the multitude of Chateaubriands I enjoyed aboard United and Western.

Personnally, I would prefer that the introduction scenario format was retained; it offers a glimpse of a life that I was never fortunate to experience but as a child of the 60s and 70s, I can appreciate.

My own personal memories of my early flights are on charter airlines like Britannia Airways, which was an all economy (coach) layout but everyone got served a meal tray with little Melamine dishes and plastic cutlery; very basic but all very exciting for a young lad mad keen on aeroplanes.

Listening to the roar of the Boeing 737-200 Pratt & Witney JT8D engines as you popped open the plastic wrapper on your bread roll doesn’t have the same elegance as some of your scenes but it’s a memory which I look back on with much fondness.

Even economy flights in the 1990s in the UK and Europe were served a complimentary meal and drinks and I lament the arrival of the Low Cost operators for the fact that airlines now have to dumb down their offerings in order to compete with them. I appreciate that LCCs have allowed the opening of new routes and the availability of affordable travel for the masses and I have flown with some of those airlines too but I just miss those days where flying was a more comfortable and enjoyable experience.

I don’t really understand the attitude of “I don’t care how uncomfortable or bad the flight is, I just want it to be cheap”; as they say in the military, any fool can be uncomfortable. I will endure a Y flight up to about 90 minutes duration but I won’t like it.

Thank you for a very enjoyable thread.

Thank you, Nimrod -

Not only for shining such a warm light on my particular approach to presenting these menus but also for sharing of your own experiences from some of the British charter services of the 1970s. On the whole, I've heard they were quite good - as all-economy charter flights go.

Honestly, I can't really fault people born after 1970 for not knowing any better and in many cases being so accepting of today's comparatively lackluster and inferior services, be they inflight catering or the service one receives - or used to receive - at their hometown retailers. Such is the world they grew up in. Service standards and people's expectations were truly higher 40-50 years ago. Today, shareholder satisfaction and profit have Trumped quality service. Yes, airfares are cheaper, but at what cost? Very few seem to appreciate the intangible losses to our quality of inflight services - and in some cases - services in general.

Ah well, thus we have threads like this one, highlighting a largely forgotten and irrelevant age to the most of the under 50 crowd, but enjoyable to revisit nonetheless for those of us who lived it - or were at least aware of it.

And for those who through no fault of their own were born a few years too late, I hope they can at least enjoy a window into how good First Class inflight catering used to be.

For some of us, there is - or at least was - more to a good flight than a sliding door suite, a narrow and cramped Business Class lieflat bed and an IFE with 1000 movies. I particularly miss the social aspect to those shared trolley meal presentations, be it the anticipation of watching others being served or sharing one's excitement with the stewardess serving you or enjoying that same meal with your seatmate.

These days, they just bring people a plate of whatever they've ordered from the galley.

And yes, I've logged fifteen flights aboard Emirates - all of them in First Class. Their food is quite nicely prepared and presented. But the performance art of the trolley is gone, as is the social aspect of everyone - if only one's seatmate - enjoying a good meal together.

Now, it's just the passenger. Snugly locked away behind the sliding doors of their premium class suite.

Something's missing here. Like sitting down to a family dinner. Without the family.

Yes, these are only old menus presented in this thread, but if some here can envision the style and pageantry in which the food therein was presented, hopefully they can feel some of the magic of flight that we once were privileged to have experienced those many years ago.

Bon apetite!

😉

Seat 2A I found this thread, and found it amazing. The history of air transportation and the history of cuisine are at a complicated nexus of history, economics, and social norms.
Dining on airplanes is fascinating because it is sort of ridiculous: why would I want lobster or caviar on an airplane, when it would taste far better on the ground? It's more about the idea, the logistics, and the laughable pageantry.

In my family, the usual joke is 'Warm mixed nuts presented in a ramekin with your preferred cocktail or beverage." There is no rational reason why that even needs to appear on a printed menu, but it's some absurdly flowery way of suggesting uncontrolled opulence. There is an odd psychology about ice cream sundaes and the even stranger development of Southwest Airlines offering its highest-paying passengers a bag of pistachios. (Of course I'll pay $200 extra if there are 15 pistachios! Why didn't you say so?)

When my grandmother passed away, my parents found all kinds of oddities in her house. There were two boxes of menus, which she had nicked from restaurants and airplane flights. I will never know the rationale: perhaps a souvenir, a diary or scrapbook, or she just felt like she ought to have it as proof that she dined at a particular restaurant or flew on some specific flight. My parents didn't want to just discard the menus, so they shipped them to me, and said 'figure out what to do with these.' I found a professor of Latin American History who studied the culinary traditions of Latin America. Thus, my grandmother's menu collection (mostly Pan Am, Varig, Swissair, and El Al) has a home at the University of Toronto.

Thanks, mats!

That your grandmother would desire to save those old menus or that the university would be happy to accept and house them in its transportation library (one of several to have done so, btw) is testament to the value of those menus as a window into our past lives and travel standards.

https://share.google/HwaDqXLgo8f7mzBj0

It's well known and accepted that in the early days of flight, only the very well to do could afford to fly, and as such the onboard services were designed to appeal to and attract them. Complimentary meals were a hugely important means of accomplishing that.

As I'm sure you're aware - but I'll state it for everyone's benefit - here in America, prior to the democratization of air travel via the abolishment of the Civil Aviation Board in 1978, air fares were controlled by the government. Unlike today, where fare sales and airline loyalty programs are a huge factor in airline marketing, back in the day airlines resorted to competing via quality service. I could go into plenty more detail, but suffice it to say that inflight food service was an important part of that effort., as was seating comfort (Anyone remember First Class legroom on all flights with Western and Frontier Airlines, or 5-across seating on 707s, 727s and DC-8s with Continental and United?)

https://share.google/ChvOBJoBHottJaSGl

I have Coach menus that I took off my flights between Denver and New York as a student that describe and offer a greater variety of foods than I've experienced in First Class on many flights of similar distance today.

Indeed, the entire product was special enough that most people actually dressed up for it. With regard to the inflight food service, many people appreciated it enough to memorialize it by taking the menus home with them - or in some cases - collecting them.

And of course, look at how many trip report contributors here cover their inflight dining experiences via written description and/or pictures

As trendy as it is to denigrate or dismiss inflight meal service as trivial, there's little doubt it has been - and continues to be - an important part of our travel experience - all the more so in this era of super long distance flights.

Check out the six episode documentary below. It's on Amazon prime, but you can watch it for free on Tubi

The Inflight Food Trip (TV Mini Series 2019� )

https://share.google/kq20rqa2cnrxqagXe

Worth considering... The people who could afford to pay thousands of dollars for First Class travel back in the 1960s and 70s (There were no free upgrades or mileage awards back then) lived lives that included quality food in their day to day existence. They weren't eating Swanson TV dinners or frequenting fast food restaurants. Some had maids and kitchen staff seeing to their daily culinary needs. They didn't dress up because they were flying. They dressed well because that's how they chose to present themselves when going out in public. Does anybody here honestly think that a significant percentage of these folks along with the jetset and Hollywood glitterati of the day actually held their noses and choked down that caviar, oxtail soup, Chateaubriand and cherries jubilee? The Anthony Bourdains of the world are entitled to their opinion, but keep in mind that Mr. Bourdain speaks (or rather, spoke) only for himself, not for society as a whole. Additionally, many of the complaints heard about airline food back then came from people flying in Economy Class.

Increasingly, many of our members here at Flyertalk have never flown in international First Class. With the devaluation of most airlines' frequent flyer program awards for premium class travel combined with so many airlines shrinking their First Class cabins or removing First Class entirely, many of them never will.
.
As for modern day Business Class, the meals are okay, but in both variety and quantity, not to mention presentation, they come nowhere near the quality of the First Class meals you read about in this thread.

And to those who dismiss the importance of a nice meal inflight relative to a lie flat bed or a sliding privacy door, well, what can I say? You're in the wrong thread.

Here's some visual food for thought...






TWA was highly regarded for its inflight cuisine




Pan Am - Beds and Sleeper Seats have been around for awhile


I don't believe I've EVER heard a bad word about Wardair's inflight meal service. More than most, Max Ward recognized the value of good food and happy passengers

Remembering the Golden Age of Airline Food
https://share.google/2uzYjLWnit9PnbIke

Ah, the big day is finally here! It's the spring of 1983 and to celebrate you and your lovely wife's 25th wedding anniversary, you're getting away from your home outside dusty Kalgoorlie in Western Australia and flying off to Bali for two weeks of tropical bliss. Following an hour of cocktails and reception sandwiches in the Perth International Airport's Captain's Club, the call for boarding is issued and you make your way down the concourse to your waiting 747, a beautiful red and white -238B registered VH-EBH, bearing the name "City of Parramatta".

Upon inspecting your boarding passes, a flight attendant escorts you both to your seats up in the nose of the airplane and inquires as to your pre-departure drink preferences.

Hmm... with the highly regarded wine growing region of Margaret River just down the coast, you inquire as to the availability of any regional wines. Upon an affirmative response, you both decide to start with a glass of locally produced Chablis.

Mmm... sip, swirl, swallow... absolutely sublime! Before you know it, you're on your second glass, which is delivered with copies of the flight's menu. It'll be a four hour and fifteen minute flight up to Denpasar, and luncheon will be served along the way. Taking another pull from the wonderful Chablis, you open the menu and consider the options...

QANTAS

LUNCHEON
Perth to Denpasar

Caspian Caviar
Served with traditional garnishes and Melba Toast or Blinis
~or~
Duck and Peppercorn Pate

Garden Salad
With your choice of vinaigrette or Roquefort dressing

Roast Fillet of Veal
Served with mustard seed sauce
~or~
Supreme of Chicken
Served with wild rice and accented with cognac
~or~
Seafood Platter
Crayfish, Moreton Bay Bugs and Smoked Tuna with Lemon Mayonnaise

Fresh Vegetables

Cointreau and Coffee Ice Cream
Served with a sauce of fresh, seasonal berries
~or~
Lemon Tart
Dusted with icing sugar and served with cr�me fraiche

Cheese Board
Australian Blue, Gippsland Blue, King Island Cheddar,
West Australian Goat's Cheese
Served with walnut bread and grapes

Coffee or Tea
Handmade Chocolates

Oh my... you and the missus had such a good time in Bali that the following year (1984) you've decided to take a week in Japan to attend the Hirosaki Cherry Blossom Festival, featuring over 2,500 trees, pink-petaled moats, and illuminated castle grounds.

From your home outside Kalgoorlie, located a couple hundred miles east of Perth in Western Australia, you've booked a bedroom aboard the Australian National Railways' eastbound Indian Pacific for the three day ride across the bottom of Australia to Sydney. Following a nice weekend with your wife's parents out on Bondi Beach, it's off to Sydney's Kingsford Smith Airport for your flight to Tokyo, with an intermediate stop in Cairns.

Your aircraft today is one of Qantas' two Boeing 747SPs, registered VH-EAB and bearing the title of Australia Asia Airways. You note that it's named "City of Traralgon". The Captain offers a cheerful welcome aboard and informs the passengers that it should be smooth flying up to Cairns, but there is a possibility of thunder storms later this afternoon out over the Bismarck Sea, north of Port Moresby.

A pair of deliciously spicy Bloody Marys - complete with celery stalks - are delivered to you and your wife, followed by amenity kits and finally the menus, housed in attractive maroon folders embossed with the Qantas logo. Your flight attendant informs you that brunch will be served out of Sydney, followed by a full luncheon between Cairns and Tokyo. Right on! You're thankful you didn't over indulge in too many of those delicious breakfast pastries in the Captain's Club airport lounge.

Well alrighty then! Let's see what we have to look forward to...

QANTAS / AUSTRALIA ASIA AIRLINES

BRUNCH
Sydney to Cairns

Orange Juice ~ Champagne and Orange Juice ~ Tomato Juice

Cold Poached Salmon
Accented with herb vinaigrette
~or~
Fresh Fruit Platter
Served with honey yogurt dressing

Eggs Benedict
Poached Eggs and ham on English muffin with Hollandaise Sauce
~or~
Grilled Fillet Steak
Served with savoury horseradish butter and grilled peppers
~or~
Lobster in Pernod
Served in an individual casserole

Fresh Asparagus ~ Broiled Tomato ~ Almond Rice

Strawberry Flan
Accented with King Island Cream

Earl Grey ~ English Breakfast Tea ~ Coffee

Qantas Handmade Chocolates
Specially created by our master confectioner


LUNCHEON
Cairns to Tokyo

Hervey Bay Prawns
Served with fresh mango
~or~
Terrine of Mushrooms with Pistachios
Served with a tomato and tarragon sauce

Spring Salad
Served with vinaigrette or Blue Cheese dressing

Roast Fillet of Beef
Prime Australian beef carved at your table
~or~
Barramundi Meuniere
Barramundi fillets are lightly dredged in flour, then pan-seared in butter until golden,
and finished with a rich, nutty brown butter
~or~
Duckling with Green Peppercorns

Vegetables in season

Crepes Normande
Apple pancakes served with whipped cream

Cheese Board
Served with the traditional accompaniments

Fruit Basket

Coffee ~ Tea ~ Green Tea

Our tastes may vary, but all of the lobster and caviar that I've been served in the troposphere have tasted absolutely delicious. Especially the caviar, washed down with Champagne or a good white wine. Never.vodka! Save that for the Russians!

As for the "laughable" pageantry, I think you really have to experience the panache of a beautifully laden trolley wielded by stewardesses who knew how to put on a show with regard to the presentation. That, too, was part of their training. It was - to me at least - better quality entertainment than any of the movies.

I don't care if food would taste better on the ground. If I have the choice between an in-flight meal or just sitting there doing nothing, I'll gladly take the former.

I had in-flight meals in economy in the 1980's and 90's, and a few in First Class in the 2000's. I thought it was awesome. I never had the glamorous in-flight meals of First Class in the 1970's, so I enjoy reading these trip reports as if I were there as well.