A new study has ranked the best and worst airline based on their inflight meal, based on thousands of customer reviews! To discover the best and worst airline food, MoneySuperMarket’s travel insurance team analysed over 27,000 passenger reviews of meals across more than 100 airlines, finding the best first class meals and business class meals, along with the best routes for in flight dining at 30,000ft.
With first class flights costing as much three to four times more than an economy fare, it’s no surprise that the in-flight meal service is a significant factor in the luxury experience.
In addition to an elevated menu and crockery, most first and business class providers, such as ANA, also offer an additional on-demand menu alongside their standard meal service, allowing passengers to order what they want, when they want. But which airlines are best in class, and which struggle to cut the mustard?
The Best First Class Meals
For those looking for the best first-class dining experience, Swiss International Air Lines should be their first port of call, scoring 9 out of 10 among passengers.
Other airlines scoring particularly highly in the first-class meal rankings were Qantas (8.8), Lufthansa (8.7), China Airlines (8.6), Etihad Airways (8.4) and All Nippon Airways (8.2).
At the bottom end of the list was Air France (5.70), providing the least appealing meal service to passengers, with United and Qatar also falling to the bottom of the list, despite the latter’s respectable score in its economy offering.
Top 10 Airlines for First Class Meals
Rank Airline Number of Reviews Score 1 SWISS INT AIR LINES 61 9.02 2 QANTAS 92 8.80 3 LUFTHANSA 128 8.66 4 CHINA AIRLINES 52 8.55 5 ETIHAD AIRWAYS 53 8.37 6 ALL NIPPON AIRWAYS 86 8.19 7 SINGAPORE AIRLINES 186 7.75 8 JAPAN AIR LINES 93 7.68 9 EMIRATES AIR 102 7.52 10 DELTA 265 7.48 Explore the full, searchable list with 100 providers on the study page
The Best Business Class Meals
The results were a bit different for the best business class meals, with Kuwait Airways getting the lead score of 8.87 after 55 reviews, and Turkish Airlines with a strong score of 8.18 and a whopping 256 reviews.
Top 10 Airlines for Business Class Meals
Rank Airline Number of Reviews Score 1 KUWAIT AIRWAYS 55 8.87 2 GULF AIR 83 8.86 3 AEGEAN AIRLINES 81 8.66 4 TURKISH AIRLINES 256 8.18 5 JETBLUE 57 8.15 6 QATAR AIRWAYS 185 8.13 7 AERO MEXICO 61 8.10 8 AUSTRIAN AIRLINES 185 7.96 9 LUFTHANSA CITY LINE 72 7.90 10 ASIANA AIRLINES 91 7.89 Explore the full, searchable list with 100 providers on the study page
Best First Class Routes for In flight Dining
While airlines generally have a standardised menu across their flights, food options can vary dependent on the route you fly.
Based on passenger reviews across 266 flight routes, just three in-flight meal services picked up top marks from travellers, scoring 10 out of 10.
In first class, both the Asiana Airlines New York to Seoul, and Swiss International Airlines’ Switzerland to Miami flights scored a perfect score among passengers.
However, while the former boasts premium traditional Korean dishes made with “premium ingredients”, such as beef rib Ssambap, passengers can expect to pay in the region of £2,500 for the 15-hour flight.
Alicia Hempsted, travel expert at MoneySuperMarket, said “A memorable inflight dining experience can elevate your overall travel experience, particularly in first and business class where passengers are paying a premium or using a large number of points to fly. According to passenger, Airlines like Swiss International Air Lines and Asiana Airlines have set the bar high with their exceptional meal services, providing passengers with gourmet cuisine at 30,000 feet.
Due to how closely regulated the airline industry is, generally speaking inflight meals are safe to eat, however it still is possible to become unwell, even in some of the highest rated rated restaurants and hotels or planes. That’s why it’s important to take out travel insurance with sufficient medical cover to protect your trip should the worst happen.”
The Best First Class Routes for In flight Dining
Rank Airline Route Outbound Airport Outbound Country Inbound Airport Inbound Country Score 1 ASIANA AIRLINES JFK to ICN New York – John F. Kennedy (NY) USA Incheon, Incheon International Airport Korea South 10.00 2 SWISS INT AIR LINES ZRH to MIA Zurich (Zürich) – Kloten Switzerland Miami (FL) USA 10.00 3 JAPAN AIR LINES CGK to NRT Jakarta – Soekarno-Hatta International Indonesia Tokyo – Narita Japan 9.75 4 QANTAS DXB to LHR Dubai – Dubai International Airport United Arab Emirates London – Heathrow United Kingdom 9.73 5 CHINA AIRLINES AMS to BKK Amsterdam – Amsterdam Airport Schiphol Netherlands Bangkok, Suvarnabhumi International Thailand 9.64 6 LUFTHANSA SEA to FRA Seattle/Tacoma (WA) USA Frankfurt/Main – Frankfurt Airport (Rhein-Main-Flughafen) Germany 9.43 7 QANTAS SYD to LAX Sydney – Sydney Airport Australia Los Angeles (CA) – International USA 9.08 8 CATHAY PACIFIC LAX to HKG Los Angeles (CA) – International USA Hong Kong – International Airport (HKIA) Hong Kong 8.60 9 ALL NIPPON AIRWAYS HNL to NRT Honolulu (HI) – Honolulu International Airport USA Tokyo – Narita Japan 8.60 10 CATHAY PACIFIC HKG to YYZ Hong Kong – International Airport (HKIA) Hong Kong Toronto – Toronto Pearson International Airport Canada 8.58 The full study, with more information is available at: https://www.moneysupermarket.com/travel-insurance/the-best-and-worst-airline-food/
