In-flight meal stumps flyer: 'Nothing was quite as insubstantial as this'
- Replies 17
Airport food has a reputation for being pretty meagre, often leaving passengers unsatisfied.
We’ve heard various in-flight dining horror stories over the years, but this latest one isn’t one of those in the sense that the food was bad. It’s that the food was — well, you’ll see.
Chris Charli, a regular traveller, was flying out of Indonesia recently aboard Japan Airlines in business class.
According to his account posted on FlyerTalk, a forum for air travel enthusiasts, he was asked by a flight attendant before takeoff about his vegan meal for the flight, which he confirmed.
And so, as the plane took off and the flight progressed, he was served a banana.
There was nothing too flashy about the fruit, which he called an ‘underwhelming appetiser’. Of course, what followed was the main dish, anyway.
Chris waited, and then waited some more… until he realised that the banana was ‘it’. It was the vegan ‘meal’.
‘My flight attendant confirmed that I ordered (a vegan meal) and that my breakfast was a banana, by which I mistakenly assumed she meant that breakfast included a banana,’ he said.
‘It was, in fact, the entire meal service!’
Despite the odd meal, even by air travel standards, Chris still managed to utter a line of praise for the humble fruit.
‘It was a really good banana—one of the best I've had recently—but it still seems more appropriate as a snack,’ he added.
It also appears he was later served other snacks and another meal, but the banana made quite a lasting impression.
‘Lunch was barely seasoned spaghetti, and my meals on other (Japan Airlines) flights were also bad, but nothing was quite as insubstantial as this,’ he said.
‘It was cute of the crew to serve the banana with chopsticks, though!’
Maybe the chopsticks were also edible… Kidding!
In response, many people commented on his post and shared their sympathies.
‘Not that I ever would either, but, in my view, those who order a vegetarian meal should be afforded more than just a banana, albeit an a very appetising and high quality one,’ one commenter said.
‘Airlines need to get their s**t together!’ began a second. ‘I would request some sort of compensation for the lack of effort. If you paid for a business class product, they should go out of their way to have a quality offering since they knew WELL IN ADVANCE what your meal selection was.’
‘I do hope (Japan Airlines) improve their catering as a result of the coverage, but not sure one incident is enough,’ added another.
Another commenter went as far as checking Chris’ flight details to confirm his story.
‘Looking at the menu for that flight on (Japan Airlines’) website, there isn't really a formal breakfast service after takeoff,’ they said.
‘Instead, there are some light snacks, such as a cheese plate or noodles, which I suspect you could have requested from the general menu in addition to your (vegan meal) banana. The main meal service is lunch, probably served 2-3 hours out of (Narita International Airport), which it appears you got.’
The news has reached the ears of Japan Airlines, which issued a statement in response.
‘On flights departing from Jakarta, a snack/refreshment is served immediately after take-off in business class. Prior to arrival at Narita, a meal is served: (JL720-lunch) or (JL726-breakfast),’ they said.
‘The current snack/refreshment for all special meals on this route is a banana.’
‘We take customer satisfaction seriously, and we will continue to respond to our menus in light of the growing interest and diverse needs of customers requesting special meals, including the valuable feedback from this customer.’
Hopefully, for the sake of passengers with special diets, all airlines will take note of this incident and offer better food choices.
On a related note, you might want to read these similar stories involving other airlines:
Or maybe you have similar stories to share?
Tell us in the comments section below!
We’ve heard various in-flight dining horror stories over the years, but this latest one isn’t one of those in the sense that the food was bad. It’s that the food was — well, you’ll see.
Chris Charli, a regular traveller, was flying out of Indonesia recently aboard Japan Airlines in business class.
According to his account posted on FlyerTalk, a forum for air travel enthusiasts, he was asked by a flight attendant before takeoff about his vegan meal for the flight, which he confirmed.
And so, as the plane took off and the flight progressed, he was served a banana.
There was nothing too flashy about the fruit, which he called an ‘underwhelming appetiser’. Of course, what followed was the main dish, anyway.
Chris waited, and then waited some more… until he realised that the banana was ‘it’. It was the vegan ‘meal’.
‘My flight attendant confirmed that I ordered (a vegan meal) and that my breakfast was a banana, by which I mistakenly assumed she meant that breakfast included a banana,’ he said.
‘It was, in fact, the entire meal service!’
Despite the odd meal, even by air travel standards, Chris still managed to utter a line of praise for the humble fruit.
‘It was a really good banana—one of the best I've had recently—but it still seems more appropriate as a snack,’ he added.
It also appears he was later served other snacks and another meal, but the banana made quite a lasting impression.
‘Lunch was barely seasoned spaghetti, and my meals on other (Japan Airlines) flights were also bad, but nothing was quite as insubstantial as this,’ he said.
‘It was cute of the crew to serve the banana with chopsticks, though!’
Maybe the chopsticks were also edible… Kidding!
Key Takeaways
- A passenger travelling on a Japan Airlines flight from Jakarta, Indonesia, to Narita, Japan received a banana as his vegan meal.
- He was under the mistaken impression that the banana was meant to be an appetiser.
- Other people online sympathised, with one saying he should be compensated for his experience.
- Japan Airlines responded and confirmed it offers bananas as snacks for special diets in its Jakarta-Narita route.
- The airline says it has taken note of Chris’ experience and that it is keeping track of flyers’ diverse diets.
‘Not that I ever would either, but, in my view, those who order a vegetarian meal should be afforded more than just a banana, albeit an a very appetising and high quality one,’ one commenter said.
‘Airlines need to get their s**t together!’ began a second. ‘I would request some sort of compensation for the lack of effort. If you paid for a business class product, they should go out of their way to have a quality offering since they knew WELL IN ADVANCE what your meal selection was.’
‘I do hope (Japan Airlines) improve their catering as a result of the coverage, but not sure one incident is enough,’ added another.
Another commenter went as far as checking Chris’ flight details to confirm his story.
‘Looking at the menu for that flight on (Japan Airlines’) website, there isn't really a formal breakfast service after takeoff,’ they said.
‘Instead, there are some light snacks, such as a cheese plate or noodles, which I suspect you could have requested from the general menu in addition to your (vegan meal) banana. The main meal service is lunch, probably served 2-3 hours out of (Narita International Airport), which it appears you got.’
The news has reached the ears of Japan Airlines, which issued a statement in response.
‘On flights departing from Jakarta, a snack/refreshment is served immediately after take-off in business class. Prior to arrival at Narita, a meal is served: (JL720-lunch) or (JL726-breakfast),’ they said.
‘The current snack/refreshment for all special meals on this route is a banana.’
‘We take customer satisfaction seriously, and we will continue to respond to our menus in light of the growing interest and diverse needs of customers requesting special meals, including the valuable feedback from this customer.’
Hopefully, for the sake of passengers with special diets, all airlines will take note of this incident and offer better food choices.
On a related note, you might want to read these similar stories involving other airlines:
- Traveller’s UNDERWHELMING ‘gourmet’ meal at an airport makes the rounds on social media – ‘That’s obscene!’
- Vegetarian frequent flyer left hungry — and angry — after Qantas meal refusal
- Traveller blasts airline for shocking meal: ‘What the hell?'
Or maybe you have similar stories to share?
Tell us in the comments section below!