Fiji Airways business class drops inflight dining for preflight dining
Fiji Airways is betting that travellers will prefer to eat a gourmet meal in the lounge rather than late at night in-flight.
Airlines with overnight flights – especially relatively short ones – have been steadily steering business class travellers away from a full meal above the clouds.
The go-to has been to improve meals offered at the lounge, with passengers encouraged to take their dinner on the ground so that they can maximise their sleeping time during the flight, although there's usually an inflight supper menu on hand.
From a wellness perspective, enjoying a freshly-prepared meal in the lounge is decidedly better than tucking into a galley-heated three course meal which is going to sit heavily on your stomach for hours.
Fiji Airways is the latest airline to embrace this shift, with what it calls Dine on the Ground: "a new luxury dining experience offering passengers a pre-flight gourmet meal to maximise rest while traveling."
The eat-now, sleep-later service is being introduced for morning and late evening flights out of Fiji's Nadi International Airport, upgrading the buffet of its flagship Premier Lounge to a more substantial spread.
Ahead of Fiji Airways' morning flights to Sydney, Brisbane, Christchurch, Wellington and Hong Kong, the Premier Lounge will serve an à la carte brunch with made-to-order breakfast items, a full bakery selection, fresh fruit juices and barista-pulled coffee.
(Passengers on evening flights to Nadi – which includes Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide – should also aim to have their dinner in the airport lounge, as the inflight dinner menu on those legs is being removed.)
Flights to Los Angeles and San Francisco will see an in-lounge dinner featuring "signature dishes designed by Fiji Airways executive in-house and guest chefs" complemented by signature cocktails, mocktails and a full service bar. A full breakfast will be served before landing.
Fiji Airways says that these flights will still carry fruit bowls, gourmet panini, fresh salads, international style tapas and soups. "However, by dining pre-flight, onboard meals better reflect the time of day and allow guests more time for rest and relaxation."
However, the airline cites research which found that 31% of Australian passengers "regularly skip in-flight meals in favour of some extra shut-eye" – which means that 69% of Aussie travellers, or more than two out of every three, will need to re-adjust their schedule and expectations when it comes to enjoying a full inflight meal service.
Virgin Australia - Velocity Rewards
01 Mar 2012
Total posts 177
I have been doing that in Houston at the Polaris Lounge and do feel better eating a full meal and hour or so out from departure. I think it is a good idea, plus if they can decrease waste that can't be a bad thing in a lot of ways.
24 Aug 2011
Total posts 1205
It makes sense particularly for flights that depart late at night such as MEL-NAN which takes off at 23:35; no one wants to sit up for an hour waiting for an airline meal if it can be avoided.
05 Oct 2017
Total posts 526
09 Mar 2015
Total posts 32
I definitely eat in the lounge before I fly. Most of my trips these days are to Singapore and Hong Kong, so in Sydney as a Platinum frequent flyer I can visit the Qantas First lounge and skip the main inflight meal. But it's most useful ahead of the overnight flights from Singapore and Hong Kong back to Australia, otherwise you can lose two hours of your potential sleeping time waiting for and then eating the meal. However I still like the option to have something light to eat on the flight if I am running late and my lounge time is reduced due to having a shower.
13 Feb 2015
Total posts 70
While I totally understand the logic behind this move, will the price of the fares be dropped? Otherwise the cynic in me says this is just an airline cutting costs to the detriment of the passengers' service level experience.
Air New Zealand - Airpoints
21 Jan 2016
Total posts 193
Probably not, as the cost of the meal in the fare will be use to pay for the pre-dinner experience in the lounge.
09 Mar 2015
Total posts 32
Oh I would agree this was driven more by cost-cutting than anything else. Fiji Airways will save a lot of money in not loading a full meal service with all the different choices they need to have. It's just funny that as the article indicates they chose to listen to one-third of their passengers to justify this.
Qantas
19 Apr 2012
Total posts 1428
And what about those passengers who come to flights quite late to avoid the lounge, that is the two thirds of flyers. The next step will be the American thing of charging an arm and a leg for any food.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
05 Oct 2016
Total posts 113
Agree. I don't usually have the time to arrive for a full meal in the lounge. Let alone the fact that many lounges are so full these days you can't find space...
05 Oct 2017
Total posts 526
There are many reasons why passengers might arrive relatively late for a flight. If I'm entitled to use the lounge before travel, I do my best to arrive a little early but sometimes it doesn't work out. In which case there is even more reason NOT to drop the inflight meal service, which is just a cost cutting measure anyway. So I definitely agree with you - the next step will be turning business class into cattle class and cattle class into - a flying bus service along the lines of America's greyhound.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
21 Jan 2014
Total posts 320
Sounds like a good idea as long as the meal in the lounge is a quality offering. It would have to be more economical for an airline to offer a small quality steak with sides for example in the lounge than an airline meal on a plane, a win win for both pax and airline.
13 Sep 2013
Total posts 116
Super late dinners on flights is one of my pet hates!
I recently took a CX flight out of HK a few weeks back departing at 2am. Dinner was served around 3am and I was astounded the amount of people that wanted to eat at that time!
Imagine if you were shook awake at home at 3am and someone tried to feed you a full dinner!
I'm a big fan of dinner on the ground well before.
05 Oct 2017
Total posts 526
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
14 Sep 2018
Total posts 15
I have been eating the lounge more frequently and rarely eat an evening meal onboard.
07 Mar 2017
Total posts 62
Cant say I'm impressed by this, especially as the emphasis of discussion has been evening flights (where there can be a case), but morning flights are similarly losing the meal service.
Also, from the picture it doesn't appear like the buffet is going to be that appealing. It just appears to be some fruit, simple lettuce salads, some bread... Part of the enjoyment of business flights is occupying the time during daylight flights with a meal, but now it appears to be a simple breakfast on the ground, and seemingly not much in the air, so chase a late lunch on arrival, impacting your plans afterwards... Doesn't seem a great experience, especially for the cost.
24 Oct 2010
Total posts 2560
The lounge photo is an airline-supplied file image of the Premier Lounge, it doesn’t represent the new in-lounge dining options.
Virgin Australia - Velocity Rewards
01 Mar 2012
Total posts 177
I don’t think you are losing the service. You can choose to eat prior, unless I’m missing something.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
10 Oct 2013
Total posts 112
id love to be able to eat well in a lounge before flying - so i can sleep on board - but i live in adelaide!
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
25 Mar 2014
Total posts 219
Maybe a toasted sandwich available only in Adl
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
10 Oct 2013
Total posts 112
precisely - i fly EK a fair amount out of adelaide and always have dinner on board as the food in lounge is not enough / nice enough for me to cope until brekkie - i do however understand those who want to sleep but we are limited with food obviously! toasted sandwich or veggie curry last time i was in lounge
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
09 Jan 2013
Total posts 10
05 Jan 2018
Total posts 56
it’s not great.
05 Oct 2017
Total posts 526
05 Jan 2018
Total posts 56
the spin on this cost cutting (and cost cutting is all it is) is amazing...doubt the flight will cost less $$s but the food option now is the swill from the typical lounge.
31 Mar 2014
Total posts 397
Couldn't agree more with this statement
09 Mar 2015
Total posts 32
Rotate, you do realise there is an all new menu at the lounge for these morning and evening flights? Unless you have tasted it then I think it's fair to wait and see how it actually is, I'm sure if AusBT has the chance to sample it they will report back, and going by the recent review of the Philippine Airlines' Manila lounge it will be a very fair-minded report. I also don't see anything 'naive' in this article, it's a report of what Fiji Airways is doing, it doesn't pretend to be anything more.
05 Jan 2018
Total posts 56
has anyone seen or tasted this menu? for thinking this through based on what we’ve been told- this menu is apparently going to be the quality as expected by J fare paying passengers but for ALL visitors to the lounge. who believes that? would be a world first if true.
27 Jul 2017
Total posts 17
Not sure about early morning flights but I would be a fan of this on late evening departures. I think often people eat food because it's offered to them, not because they're hungry. I recon if airlines stopped serving such meals there would be very few complaints.
05 Oct 2017
Total posts 526
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
11 Oct 2014
Total posts 691
For those who have viewed the Fiji Air promo material, it isn't "all about cost-cutting". The emphasis is on customer convenience, better in-flight service delivery and ecological considerations. Food wastage (non-consumed) - particularly on flights to Australia - is cited as a major concern to FJ, according to their CEO.
07 Mar 2017
Total posts 62
If food wastage is really the primary concern, then the solution would surely be to allow specific ordering in advance to be done as other carriers do. That way you would know what most people want and just have a small amount of base orders for late/non-bookers, change of mind. There will always still be some wastage - including at the buffet.
OTOH, cutting back the onboard service much more is something you do when you're try to achieve other goals.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
25 Mar 2014
Total posts 219
Dont the crew eat the left over meals?
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
06 Apr 2011
Total posts 106
No wastage in the Lounges, then?
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
14 Sep 2012
Total posts 382
Seriously??? For those that choose it, and MANY do, inflight dining is a key component to any reputable business class service offering. The assumption that FJ is somehow improving the customer experience by removing key meals is astounding! Surely the paying business class customer can decide how and when and where they want to dine, and how they choose to maximise their rest or not.
28 Aug 2018
Total posts 10
The principle is great - however I want to reduce time spent waiting around and would rather eat on a plane (when I can't do much else) than spend an hour of my non travel time getting to the airport earlier
United Airlines - Mileage Plus
17 Feb 2016
Total posts 45
I recall FinAir used to do this on their late night long haul flights out of Helsinki . There was a really nice restaurant you went to and had what you wanted then jumped on an MD 11 and straight to sleep. Even QF's Sleeper Service just isn't quick enough and it really kills sleep time on the shorter long haul e.g. Sin to Syd or HKg to Syd. I suppose the better lounges have really replaced the need to keep the lights on during the late night flights. Wonder if they might mandate it one day..
28 Jan 2019
Total posts 6
would not fly Fiji Airways anyway meal or no meal . They cancelled my flight SYD to LAX in business class due to pilot shortage at last minute and replace with premium economy with Qantas and compensated only $300 per ticket ( original ticket costed $2500 one way) Shame Fiji Airways
Turkish Airlines - Miles & Smiles
08 Jun 2014
Total posts 262
Will it decrease the price in the airfare? One would hope so, for example an airline taking out the Chauffeur service, nice amenities in the lounge and in the air (in your set) to save costs yet still charging the full (normal) fare....
Qf
26 Apr 2015
Total posts 21
The late night one makes sense, not sure about breakfast. We will be on the flight to Sydney in late August, so can experience first hand. It’s not a very long flight, so I don’t see how too many people would be sleeping. I don’t like early mornings, but even so don’t anticipate sleeping on that flight. The whole thing sounds a bit like Qantas’ cafe breakfast debacle. I feel if you are paying for business class then you should have the choice of a decent meal on board and not have some executive making that decision for you.
British Airways - Executive Club
28 Mar 2014
Total posts 70
Are FJ hoping that no onboard meals will also lead to less alcohol being consumed? I am sure many passengers enjoy a few glasses of wine when dining. Maybe not so much would be consumed if no food is served...
Air New Zealand - Airpoints
08 Aug 2014
Total posts 39
Ain't that the truth, as AT observes above, of having to adjust? This is a cynical cost-cutting move that doesn't fool anyone. Mind you, the culinary offerings on Fiji Airways are decidedly below par anyway. On AKL-NAN-AKL Economy flights not so long ago I was offered a barely edible pasta and frugal-looking other things on the tray, and the service was also skimped to the point of non-existent. You were lucky to get more than one drink without summoning a crew member and even then you got the third-degree about wanting a drink. A lot of the cabin staff congregated down the back of the aircraft giggling amongst themselves for a good part of the flight. Never again. It's Air NZ for me, and even they are a bit Nannyish as well. .
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
18 May 2017
Total posts 37
I think this move to "pre-flight" dining is a cop out for the airlines who have chosen this. They are cheap skates, and offering poor service. A reasonable meal at a good airport eatery would cost anything from $80 to $150... On the other hand, the business class ticket is often double or even triple the cost of a standard economy ticket, so it is clear the airline is doing this for cost-cutting reasons. If they are not prepared to cater to passengers, are passengers then entitled to bring their own hot food packs onto the plane.... or would they be confiscated at the gate? I bet that the airlines do not discount the cost of their tickets to reflect this removal of proper and appropriate catering on their flights.
Qf
26 Apr 2015
Total posts 21
We experienced the breakfast last week when flying from Fiji to Sydney. It actually worked better than I thought. When checking in you get given a card and that lets you order a hot option in addition to the buffet available to people in the lounge via status. We both had eggs Benedict served with smoked salmon. Nice sauce and eggs lovely and soft, so I guess better than what you could do in the air.
On board they served a brunch of fruit, pastries and a choice of either a frittata, chicken Panini and an Indian option, which they ran out of very quickly. No change to alcohol that they served.
I think I would still prefer a meal in the air, as who sleeps on a short flight like that, but it was OK.
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