Fine dining at 35,000 feet? These airlines are leading the way in exceptional in-flight cuisine. Photo / Supplied
Who said airline food can’t be tasty? Tamara Hinson takes a look at the airlines offering something a little more appetising than anaemic sausages and powdered eggs.
In-flight meals have come a long way since the first ones were served in 1919 on a London to Paris flight operated by British airline Handley-Page. They also became somewhat smaller – hardly surprising when you consider that, in 1987, American Airlines chief executive Robert Crandall realised that removing a single olive from every salad served in first class slashed the airline’s annual outgoings by $71,000. Fast-forward several decades and it appears in-flight opulence is back when it comes to onboard culinary offerings, proof of which is the fabulous food and drink served by these food-focused airlines.
READ MORE: Flight attendant reveals how to get the best meals on a plane
When it comes to local flavours, Air New Zealand gets a gold star. There’s a strong focus on seasonal, local ingredients and even the bread has a local twist – the rolls served in economy class are warm, rēwana-style potato bread rolls. Guests in premium cabins can browse Taste of Aotearoa menus, which currently feature delicacies such as a smoked kahawai mousse with confit potato, and a seared Hauraki Gulf snapper with nori butter and green pea purée. A similar approach is taken with the tipples – passengers in all cabins can sip on a range of homegrown alcoholic drinks (we’re especially fond of the Rogue Society Gin, produced by Central Otago-based Scapegrace Distillery), while passengers in upper classes can choose between a huge range of homespun vodkas, rums and beers.
USP: A conscious effort to champion regional cuisine and drinks from places such as Fiordland, Hawke’s Bay and the Coromandel, while incorporating the promise of manaaki.
Fun fact: Anyone travelling in Air NZ premium cabins can experience ‘A Taste of Aotearoa’ as long as you’re on a long-haul flight departing New Zealand.
Turkish Airlines has enjoyed massive investment in recent years, and this isn’t just evident in its spruced-up cabins but in its elevated onboard cuisine. Some 80% of ingredients used by the airline come from Turkey-based producers, and there are endless nods to the country’s cuisine. Our favourite example? In late 2024 the airline added the world’s oldest bread – served with oil, of course – to its menus. The doughy delight in question is made with wheat grown in Anatolia, where hunter-gatherers first produced bread using local wheat 12,000 years ago. We’re also seriously impressed with the range of teas served onboard. Chosen specifically for their health benefits, these include a roselle-infused tea designed to boost immunity (no matter how many snivelling babies you’re sharing air space with) and a caraway and garam masala-infused tea known to aid digestion.
USP: Turkish Airlines is the only airline to serve a range of coal-fired kebabs (don’t worry, the coal-fired bit takes place on the ground).
Fun fact: In 2024, Turkish Airlines reintroduced its Flying Chefs service on long-haul flights. Tasked with overseeing the preparation and delivery of onboard meals, these hand-picked chefs, who’ll often serve dishes themselves dressed in full chefs’ whites, are chosen for their expertise at some of Europe’s top restaurants.
Japan Airlines' meals make the cut because of the focus on both healthy cuisine and Japanese ingredients. Even the economy menus are created by celebrity chefs – culinary gurus such as Chef Kimoto Yoko, who honed her craft at Tokyo’s L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon before opening her own restaurant in Japan’s capital. Current economy-class offerings include beef and burdock butter rice, although things get even more luxurious in first class, where passengers can expect kaiseki-style, multi-course meals with regional delicacies served in lacquerware pots and on beautiful ceramic plates.
USP: Japan Airlines places a huge focus on healthy cuisine, regularly choosing themes for its in-flight menus – recent ones include “positive healthiness”.
Fun fact: Certain pieces of the airline’s (discontinued) in-flight dinnerware are regarded as collectibles. Examples include the silver tea sets once used to serve passengers.
Love a glass of vino? You’ll love United Airlines’ grape-based offerings – a recent refresh of its wine selection means guests in all cabins can now enjoy top-quality tipples from several women-owned wine brands, including California-based Just Enough Wines (bag a seat in business or first and offerings include Laurent-Perrier and Whispering Angel). We’re also rather fond of the wide range of free snacks offered in all cabins – passengers can help themselves to cinnamon stroopwafels, quinoa crisps and bags of savoury snack mixes.
USP: United Airlines recently started offering Maker Wine’s rosé – one of the few rosés available to passengers in all cabins on any airline.
Fun fact: United Airlines established the industry’s first in-flight meal kitchen in Oakland, California in 1936. The first meals prepared were fried chicken and scrambled eggs.
Swiss Airlines has always stated that the concept of Swissness shapes its in-flight cuisine, and nods to the country’s heritage are present across all cabin classes, whether it’s the Swiss cheeses available to all passengers (we’re huge fans of the gruyère) to the delicate squares of Swiss chocolate (made with cocoa beans from Central Africa) given to all passengers. 45,000 squares are handed out to passengers every day. Bagged a seat in first? You’re in for a treat – every three months new in-flight menus are created by Swiss chefs from restaurants with Michelin stars and Gault Millau points.
USP: Swiss is the only airline to offer passengers the chance to reduce waste (and enjoy some cut-price Swiss cuisine) by allowing them to buy leftover, uneaten in-flight meals at vastly reduced prices.
Fun fact: The bottled water given to all passengers is Valser water, alpine mineral water tapped from the springs of Vals, in Switzerland’s Graubünden mountain region.
Until recently, in-flight offerings for vegans typically meant rice cakes or tofu, but Emirates is an airline going all out to do better, expanding its portfolio of vegan cuisine with innovative dishes such as an “egg” made entirely from legumes, alongside vegan meals created specifically for kids (we’ve heard the children’s vegan pizza is exceptional). At the other end of the scale (or at least, the airplane), Emirates’ offerings for passengers bring to mind a Michelin-starred restaurant. On the menu? Everything from pre-dinner amuse-bouches and caviar to movie snacks and supersized steaks served on Royal Doulton chinaware.
USP: The mind-bogglingly wide range of plant-based dishes on offer across the airline’s routes – 300, to be precise.
Fun fact: Celebrating a birthday onboard? For $76 you can order a cake and champagne package – a vanilla or chocolate cake with a 20cl bottle of Moët et Chandon Brut Impérial. We’re assuming candles are out of the question…
Delta’s Sky Sommelier programme was created to upgrade the quality of the wines served onboard, no matter what cabin. Master sommelier Andrea Robinson created a training guide for flight attendants, and the onboard grape gurus – sorry, cabin crew - now serve one of the widest ranges of wines in the skies. Our favourites available to all passengers include the white wines from the women-run Une Femme vineyard, while passengers in the Delta One cabin can choose from 20 grape-based tipples, including wines, champagnes and ports.
USP: In late 2024 Delta announced it would start replacing plastic cups with paper ones, a move expected to eliminate 3.1 tonnes of plastic from its flights annually.
Fun fact: In 1997 Delta rolled out a so-called spa cuisine menu comprising dishes created by chefs at the world’s top spa resorts, including Switzerland’s legendary Victoria-Jungfrau Grand Hotel & Spa.
From skipping the queues to planning your parade spot, here's all you need to know.