Update Review: August 2022
Flight Details:
- Flight: NZ 8, Auckland to San Francisco
- Departure: 6:50pm (scheduled), 7:XXpm (actual)
- Class: Business Premier
- Aircraft: 787-900
- Seat: 3A
Since I've reviewed this route many times, I'll skip all the pre-amble. Same-same as all previous flights: really great crew, fantastic wine, good food, decent seat. Read the original reviews below for more on those details.
- Flight: NZ 8, Auckland to San Francisco
- Departure: 6:50pm (scheduled), 7:XXpm (actual)
- Class: Business Premier
- Aircraft: 787-900
- Seat: 3A
Since I've reviewed this route many times, I'll skip all the pre-amble. Same-same as all previous flights: really great crew, fantastic wine, good food, decent seat. Read the original reviews below for more on those details.
Dinner
The dinner menu followed the same format as every other Air New Zealand dinner flight I've been on. No surprises here. A choice of two starters. A choice of 4 mains (one red meat, one chicken, one seafood, and a token vegetarian soup). Bread from "the bakery". A choice of cheese, ice cream, or another dessert. Some kind of hot bagel anytime.
Dinner Menu.
The full lineup:
To begin- Ahia smoked moki, fried capers, shaved fennel and orange salad, black olive crisp.
- Proscuitto and goat cheese, marinated artichoke and green olive salsa, toasted pinenut.
From the bakery- Semolina rolls, barley loaf, and garlic bread offered with Hawke's Bay extra virgin olive oil.
Mains- Grilled fillet of beef, crushed potatoes, spinach, roasted mushrooms and blue cheese butter.
- Ricotta and lemon stuffed chicken, chard and lentils, sundried tomato and black olive sauce, rocket.
- Baked Marlborough salmon with preserved lemon cous cous, green beans, ras-el-hanout, tomato red pepper sauce.
- Tomato, ginger soup, crispy chickpeas, chives, and sesame seeds.
To finish- Triple chocolate ice cream, caramel sauce, hokey pokey crumble.
- Nectarine tart with raspberry gel.
- A selection of fine New Zealand cheese served with relish and crackers
Mid-flight snacks- Warm bagel with bacon, fried egg, and cheese.
As always, orders for our main dishes and drinks were taken before we took off, starters and bread were served from the cart, desserts followed individually.
Fast Dine Dinner.
My advice to myself is always to skip the main on this flight, in order to get to bed earlier, and to just eat in the lounges before. I mostly took my advice, and did sample a slew of random things in the Air New Zealand and Strata lounges beforehand, and was in a very confused state of not really hungry but it was dinner time ... so, I planned to just do a starter and dessert, but at least moment decided to ask for the soup too. I was drawn in by the toppings. I didn't realize this was opting me into the "fast dine" experience, so I was actually served my full meal (starter, soup, dessert) all at once, and before anyone else was served even their starters. I had finished everything before their mains were brought out. This was definitely the right move if you wanted to eat fast.
I mostly enjoyed my meal, and in particular the wines and smoked fish redeemed themselves, and reminded me why I like the food on most Air New Zealand flights!
Shiraz, Cashews.
I decided to branch out from the pinot noir, which I always do enjoy, and tried the shiraz. I was rewarded for my bravery! I quite liked it, a fairly complex wine, but not much tannin nor acid. I'd gladly get this again.
****.
The nuts were again just cashews, fine, lightly warm, salted, but not my top choice of nut. ***.
To Start: Smoked Moki.
"Ahia smoked moki, fried capers, shaved fennel and orange salad, black olive crisp."
I was really looking forward to the starter. When Air New Zealand does smoked fish good, they really do it good. The smoked duck too, usually pretty good. And my flight from Sydney just a few hours before sadly had smoked chicken instead of seafood or duck, so I was craving it. The other option, with goat cheese (dislike!) and pine nuts (ahh, pine nut syndrome!) was not really appealing in any way.
I'll admit I was a bit confused when I saw this. Where ... where was the fish? I was expecting actual pieces of smoked fish, and this looked like just the garnish?
It turned out the smoked moki was basically like a dip. A very, very tasty dip. It was creamy, it was really smoky, and just overall quite flavorful and very enjoyable. The fennel and orange salad was refreshing and a nice pairing even if not what I'd necessarily think made sense with it. I had my own salad base of mixed greens that I added all this too, and I really quite enjoyed it.
The only fail was the black olive "crisp" that was far from crisp. It was soggy and floppy and remarkably bad.
But the dish overall was quite good, what I have come to know from Air New Zealand and keeps me raving about their food, and once I added my base greens, was pretty fantastic.
****.
From the Bakery: Semolina Roll.
I opted to actually try something from "the bakery" given the lackluster "crisp" as I wanted something to spread the unexpected fish spread on.
This roll was not a winner. It was not warm, and it was pretty stale tasting. Nothing good to say about it. *.
I pulled out a savory scone I had snagged in the lounge (sssh) and it completed my meal quite nicely.
From the Stove: Tomato Soup. (Fast Dine Option).
"Tomato, ginger soup, crispy chickpeas, chives, and sesame seeds."
I still don't entirely know why I opted to get the soup, I think I just was thinking I should get something. I also had really had disliked all the soups/curries I had tried in the lounges: a gloopy odd flavored one in the Air New Zealand lounge, a watery flavorless one in the Strata lounge, and curry that was even more watery than the soup also in that lounge ...
The thing is, I don't really like tomato soup. It was a very creamy tomato soup, and the ginger was a nice refreshing element, but, it was still tomato soup. Really not my thing.
The chickpeas on top may have been crisp when first added, but they quickly were soggy. I'm not sure where the sesame seeds were ...
A poor order on my part, and I didn't need or want this anyway, as I had my salad + fish starter, my savory scone, and had pasta, curries, and more in the lounge right before anyway. **.
Port.
To go along with my dessert, I asked for the port, always a nice indulgence on the Air New Zealand flights. It was quite enjoyable. Exactly what I wanted with some dessert. ***+.
To Finish: Nectarine Tart.
"Nectarine tart with raspberry gel."
I really adore the ice cream they serve on Air New Zealand flights, and the toppings (hokey pokey!) sounded fantastic, but, alas, the flavor was not just chocolate, but triple chocolate, and the caffeine is the opposite of what I wanted at that point. I needed to attempt to sleep early ...
And thus, nectarine tart it was.
This was a mixed success. The tart shell, the part I normally would dislike as I find most tart shells very lackluster, was quite good. It was like a shortbread cookie, not a traditional tart shell. Rich, buttery, sweet, very tasty.
Above the shell was a cream layer of some sort. Not a soft cream, more hard set, and not particularly interesting. The fruit also was not particularly interesting. I wouldn't have known it was nectarine, and it didn't taste fresh, but, it was clearly fruit, and also had some fruity goo/glaze on top.
Overall, it was a bit of a letdown, but, I did really like the shell. I also desperately wanted some whipped cream with it.
***.
The dinner menu followed the same format as every other Air New Zealand dinner flight I've been on. No surprises here. A choice of two starters. A choice of 4 mains (one red meat, one chicken, one seafood, and a token vegetarian soup). Bread from "the bakery". A choice of cheese, ice cream, or another dessert. Some kind of hot bagel anytime.
 |
| Dinner Menu. |
The full lineup:
To begin
- Ahia smoked moki, fried capers, shaved fennel and orange salad, black olive crisp.
- Proscuitto and goat cheese, marinated artichoke and green olive salsa, toasted pinenut.
From the bakery
- Semolina rolls, barley loaf, and garlic bread offered with Hawke's Bay extra virgin olive oil.
Mains
- Grilled fillet of beef, crushed potatoes, spinach, roasted mushrooms and blue cheese butter.
- Ricotta and lemon stuffed chicken, chard and lentils, sundried tomato and black olive sauce, rocket.
- Baked Marlborough salmon with preserved lemon cous cous, green beans, ras-el-hanout, tomato red pepper sauce.
- Tomato, ginger soup, crispy chickpeas, chives, and sesame seeds.
- Triple chocolate ice cream, caramel sauce, hokey pokey crumble.
- Nectarine tart with raspberry gel.
- A selection of fine New Zealand cheese served with relish and crackers
Mid-flight snacks
- Warm bagel with bacon, fried egg, and cheese.
As always, orders for our main dishes and drinks were taken before we took off, starters and bread were served from the cart, desserts followed individually.
 |
| Fast Dine Dinner. |
My advice to myself is always to skip the main on this flight, in order to get to bed earlier, and to just eat in the lounges before. I mostly took my advice, and did sample a slew of random things in the Air New Zealand and Strata lounges beforehand, and was in a very confused state of not really hungry but it was dinner time ... so, I planned to just do a starter and dessert, but at least moment decided to ask for the soup too. I was drawn in by the toppings. I didn't realize this was opting me into the "fast dine" experience, so I was actually served my full meal (starter, soup, dessert) all at once, and before anyone else was served even their starters. I had finished everything before their mains were brought out. This was definitely the right move if you wanted to eat fast.
I mostly enjoyed my meal, and in particular the wines and smoked fish redeemed themselves, and reminded me why I like the food on most Air New Zealand flights!
 |
| Shiraz, Cashews. |
I decided to branch out from the pinot noir, which I always do enjoy, and tried the shiraz. I was rewarded for my bravery! I quite liked it, a fairly complex wine, but not much tannin nor acid. I'd gladly get this again.
****.
The nuts were again just cashews, fine, lightly warm, salted, but not my top choice of nut. ***.
 |
| To Start: Smoked Moki. |
"Ahia smoked moki, fried capers, shaved fennel and orange salad, black olive crisp."
I was really looking forward to the starter. When Air New Zealand does smoked fish good, they really do it good. The smoked duck too, usually pretty good. And my flight from Sydney just a few hours before sadly had smoked chicken instead of seafood or duck, so I was craving it. The other option, with goat cheese (dislike!) and pine nuts (ahh, pine nut syndrome!) was not really appealing in any way.
I'll admit I was a bit confused when I saw this. Where ... where was the fish? I was expecting actual pieces of smoked fish, and this looked like just the garnish?
It turned out the smoked moki was basically like a dip. A very, very tasty dip. It was creamy, it was really smoky, and just overall quite flavorful and very enjoyable. The fennel and orange salad was refreshing and a nice pairing even if not what I'd necessarily think made sense with it. I had my own salad base of mixed greens that I added all this too, and I really quite enjoyed it.
The only fail was the black olive "crisp" that was far from crisp. It was soggy and floppy and remarkably bad.
But the dish overall was quite good, what I have come to know from Air New Zealand and keeps me raving about their food, and once I added my base greens, was pretty fantastic.
****.
 |
| From the Bakery: Semolina Roll. |
I opted to actually try something from "the bakery" given the lackluster "crisp" as I wanted something to spread the unexpected fish spread on.
This roll was not a winner. It was not warm, and it was pretty stale tasting. Nothing good to say about it. *.
I pulled out a savory scone I had snagged in the lounge (sssh) and it completed my meal quite nicely.
 |
| From the Stove: Tomato Soup. (Fast Dine Option). |
"Tomato, ginger soup, crispy chickpeas, chives, and sesame seeds."
I still don't entirely know why I opted to get the soup, I think I just was thinking I should get something. I also had really had disliked all the soups/curries I had tried in the lounges: a gloopy odd flavored one in the Air New Zealand lounge, a watery flavorless one in the Strata lounge, and curry that was even more watery than the soup also in that lounge ...
The thing is, I don't really like tomato soup. It was a very creamy tomato soup, and the ginger was a nice refreshing element, but, it was still tomato soup. Really not my thing.
The chickpeas on top may have been crisp when first added, but they quickly were soggy. I'm not sure where the sesame seeds were ...
A poor order on my part, and I didn't need or want this anyway, as I had my salad + fish starter, my savory scone, and had pasta, curries, and more in the lounge right before anyway. **.
 |
| Port. |
To go along with my dessert, I asked for the port, always a nice indulgence on the Air New Zealand flights. It was quite enjoyable. Exactly what I wanted with some dessert. ***+.
 |
| To Finish: Nectarine Tart. |
"Nectarine tart with raspberry gel."
I really adore the ice cream they serve on Air New Zealand flights, and the toppings (hokey pokey!) sounded fantastic, but, alas, the flavor was not just chocolate, but triple chocolate, and the caffeine is the opposite of what I wanted at that point. I needed to attempt to sleep early ...
And thus, nectarine tart it was.
This was a mixed success. The tart shell, the part I normally would dislike as I find most tart shells very lackluster, was quite good. It was like a shortbread cookie, not a traditional tart shell. Rich, buttery, sweet, very tasty.
Above the shell was a cream layer of some sort. Not a soft cream, more hard set, and not particularly interesting. The fruit also was not particularly interesting. I wouldn't have known it was nectarine, and it didn't taste fresh, but, it was clearly fruit, and also had some fruity goo/glaze on top.
Overall, it was a bit of a letdown, but, I did really like the shell. I also desperately wanted some whipped cream with it.
***.
Breakfast
The cabin sprung into life about 2 hours 45 minutes before landing, slightly later than my previous flight that was even before the 3 hour mark, but still considerably earlier than most other airlines. That said, breakfast service took forever ... smoothies and juices were offered as we were woken up and beds were converted, and then it was a good 30-40 minutes before "the pantry" cart came through, another 20+ minutes before the "bakery", and a further 20 minutes before the mains. Orders for the mains were taken after juices/smoothies were brought out, so it was a very drawn out time.
Multi Course Breakfast.
I complain, but I quite enjoyed my breakfast, just not necessarily how long it took.
Breakfast Menu.
Breakfast also followed the same format as always. A smoothie or juice offered as they wake you up way too early, followed by the cart with the same fruit/yogurt/cereal offerings as my prior flights, the "bakery" next now with just croissants and no danishes (which, has been the case for several years), and finally, your choice of four mains, ordered as they wake you up, including the same bagel that was offered throughout the flight, two egg choices (but not the amazing poached eggs, grrr), or a breakfast carb that is always fairly awful.
Wake-up drinksGet yourself started with an all natural blueberry smoothie or your choice of juice.
From the pantry- Fresh fruit salad
- Plain Greek yoghurt or fruit yoghurt
- Vogel's Cafe Style Light Berry Gluten Free Cereal
- Vogel's Cafe Style Pistachio, Almond, and Hemp seed granola.
From the bakery- Croissants
- Vogel’s or fruit toast with your choice of: marmalade, strawberry jam, Vegemite, Marmite
From the stove- Smoked Ahia moki and leek omelette, skillet kumara, rocket and sweet paprika cream.
- Potato and herb rosti with spinach and feta scrambled eggs, ratatouille.
- Cinnamon and buckwheat pancakes, plum compote, yoghurt, vanilla syrup.
- Bagel with crispy bacon, caramelized onions, fried egg, cheese, tomato relish.
I had no idea what to pick for my main. I had a similar version of the bagel on my flight from Auckland to Sydney and really disliked it. Flabby bacon, lackluster soggy bagel, crappy fried egg ... yeah, not good. But I don't like omelettes (the moki and leek did sound appealing though, as did the skillet kumara), and I was pretty sure I wouldn't like the scrambled eggs with feta and ratatouille which left me with the pancakes as my only real option. In "real" life I'd likely order pancakes anyway, as I do love my warm sweet breakfast carbs, but, literally never have they been even remotely decent on Air New Zealand flights. I still took the gamble. I had muffins and scones from the lounge with me on standby if I needed.
As other people's orders came out, I was a bit feeling buyer's remorse. While I didn't want the scrambled eggs, the potato rosti served with it actually looked good and crispy. And the omelette had a delicious looking cream fish sauce ... 
Coffee, Black, Regular.
The coffee, regular, was not very good. Fairly harsh. But, I certainly wanted caffeine after just a few hours sleep, and thus I dealt with it. **.
Decaf Plunger Pot!
Since breakfast took so long, I had finished my coffee long before even the bakery phase was reached. I knew I wanted more coffee to go with my main, but I really didn't like the regular coffee, plus I needed to pace myself. So I opted for decaf, and was thrilled to get an individual plunger pot, clearly not instant. I was told to wait a few more minutes before plunging.
This was considerably better than the regular, and considerably better than previous (clearly instant) decaf. Having my own plunger pot also kept it hot longer. I was quite happy with this move. Not amazing coffee, but, not bad at all. ***+.
Sparkling Water: Perrier.
I am always amused by the sparkling water served by Air New Zealand. Sometimes it is plastic bottles of New Zealand Naturals, sometimes it is glass Perrier. Same flight, you usually get both mixed throughout the meal. I always prefer the Perrier, the carbonation level is a bit more I think? 
Pantry: Fruit & Berry Yogurt.
To get started, the cart rolled through the aisle offering up the "pantry". I generally am never able to have fruit salad due to my melon allergy, but this time I was - the fruit was mostly oranges and pineapple, plus a single kiwi per bowl. While I didn't want the citrus nor pineapples, I did want kiwi, so I went for it. I was really craving grapes or berries, but, alas. I also asked for just a tiny bit of yogurt, the berry one, to go with it (as I had tried that brand natural yogurt on the prior flight).
The kiwi wasn't awesome, kinda hard, but it was still nice to have fresh fruit. I tried a chunk of orange and it was flavorless, and pineapple really wasn't my thing. **+.
The berry yogurt was fine. Not fake sweet tasting, it seemed to have berry compote mixed through. Reasonably thick and creamy. With some fresh berries and granola I think I would have been satisfied with this. ***.
Pantry: Cereal.
Hedging my bets, I also opted to get the cereals, both of them, Vogel's brand. I asked for soy milk, and was given a cute little pot on the side. The milk was fine, average soy milk.
I do always like the Vogel's cereals. I know they are common in New Zealand and Australia, but the style is a bit different from most US cereals, and I like the change up from the standard corn flakes we have. Both had interesting mix-ins.
Bakery: Croissant.
Finally, after years of not doing it, I finally tried a croissant. Why did it take me so many years? Well, I've mostly just been grumpy about the danishes going away as I did kinda like them, and never really thought the in-flight croissants would be good anyway. They do always look fairly decent though, so, finally, I tried one.
It was not very good. Lukewarm. Very, very, very dry. Not flaky. Slightly buttery. At least I tried, and now I know? I do think it would be nice to go with the poached eggs just to have something besides the baps to soak up the yolk goodness. Maybe next time I'll try the toast ... **.
From the Stove: Pancakes.
"Cinnamon and buckwheat pancakes, plum compote, yoghurt, vanilla syrup."
And finally, my pancakes. I was pretty apprehensive about these, given just how poor most Air New Zealand warm breakfast carbs are, but, alas, the other things weren't my style either. (I wished they had the amazing poached eggs on this flight, but those seem to only be served on the route to New Zealand or Sydney, not the return trip).
I was well rewarded for my gamble. Finally! A good warm breakfast carb on an Air New Zealand flight! It wasn't all sunshine and roses, but, mostly, quite a success.
The portion was rather large, 3 thick mid-size pancakes, which, after fruit/yogurt, granola, and a croissant was a bit much, but I nearly finished them. I quite liked the pancakes themselves, such a shocker to me. They were a slightly hearty style, darker, with some texture (groats?) in them. The consistency was good, they weren't light and airy, per the buckwheat, but, they weren't dense or gummy either. Decent base flavor too. They reminded me slightly of the harvest grain n nut pancakes I used to love at IHOP.
So, pancakes themselves, definitely winners. ****.
The toppings are what let me down. The plum compote I found too sweet, and sorta just an odd flavor. The yogurt was sweet vanilla yogurt, runny style, not my thing. I wished I had thought to ask for these on the side, as both somewhat ruined the pancakes for me. I scraped off as much as I could. *.
The toppings also weren't really needed. The pancakes had enough flavor from their hearty base (although I didn't taste the cinnamon from the description), and I quite honestly enjoyed them plain, or with just a little butter and syrup.
Next time there is no egg dish I'm interested in, or, if I'm in the mood for sweet carbs in the morning, I'll get the hot breakfast carb again (toppings on the side please!), as Air New Zealand has redeemed themselves.
The cabin sprung into life about 2 hours 45 minutes before landing, slightly later than my previous flight that was even before the 3 hour mark, but still considerably earlier than most other airlines. That said, breakfast service took forever ... smoothies and juices were offered as we were woken up and beds were converted, and then it was a good 30-40 minutes before "the pantry" cart came through, another 20+ minutes before the "bakery", and a further 20 minutes before the mains. Orders for the mains were taken after juices/smoothies were brought out, so it was a very drawn out time.
 |
| Multi Course Breakfast. |
I complain, but I quite enjoyed my breakfast, just not necessarily how long it took.
 |
| Breakfast Menu. |
Breakfast also followed the same format as always. A smoothie or juice offered as they wake you up way too early, followed by the cart with the same fruit/yogurt/cereal offerings as my prior flights, the "bakery" next now with just croissants and no danishes (which, has been the case for several years), and finally, your choice of four mains, ordered as they wake you up, including the same bagel that was offered throughout the flight, two egg choices (but not the amazing poached eggs, grrr), or a breakfast carb that is always fairly awful.
Wake-up drinks
Get yourself started with an all natural blueberry smoothie or your choice of juice.
From the pantry
- Fresh fruit salad
- Plain Greek yoghurt or fruit yoghurt
- Vogel's Cafe Style Light Berry Gluten Free Cereal
- Vogel's Cafe Style Pistachio, Almond, and Hemp seed granola.
From the bakery
- Croissants
- Vogel’s or fruit toast with your choice of: marmalade, strawberry jam, Vegemite, Marmite
- Smoked Ahia moki and leek omelette, skillet kumara, rocket and sweet paprika cream.
- Potato and herb rosti with spinach and feta scrambled eggs, ratatouille.
- Cinnamon and buckwheat pancakes, plum compote, yoghurt, vanilla syrup.
- Bagel with crispy bacon, caramelized onions, fried egg, cheese, tomato relish.
I had no idea what to pick for my main. I had a similar version of the bagel on my flight from Auckland to Sydney and really disliked it. Flabby bacon, lackluster soggy bagel, crappy fried egg ... yeah, not good. But I don't like omelettes (the moki and leek did sound appealing though, as did the skillet kumara), and I was pretty sure I wouldn't like the scrambled eggs with feta and ratatouille which left me with the pancakes as my only real option. In "real" life I'd likely order pancakes anyway, as I do love my warm sweet breakfast carbs, but, literally never have they been even remotely decent on Air New Zealand flights. I still took the gamble. I had muffins and scones from the lounge with me on standby if I needed.
As other people's orders came out, I was a bit feeling buyer's remorse. While I didn't want the scrambled eggs, the potato rosti served with it actually looked good and crispy. And the omelette had a delicious looking cream fish sauce ...
 |
| Coffee, Black, Regular. |
The coffee, regular, was not very good. Fairly harsh. But, I certainly wanted caffeine after just a few hours sleep, and thus I dealt with it. **.
 |
| Decaf Plunger Pot! |
Since breakfast took so long, I had finished my coffee long before even the bakery phase was reached. I knew I wanted more coffee to go with my main, but I really didn't like the regular coffee, plus I needed to pace myself. So I opted for decaf, and was thrilled to get an individual plunger pot, clearly not instant. I was told to wait a few more minutes before plunging.
This was considerably better than the regular, and considerably better than previous (clearly instant) decaf. Having my own plunger pot also kept it hot longer. I was quite happy with this move. Not amazing coffee, but, not bad at all. ***+.
 |
| Sparkling Water: Perrier. |
I am always amused by the sparkling water served by Air New Zealand. Sometimes it is plastic bottles of New Zealand Naturals, sometimes it is glass Perrier. Same flight, you usually get both mixed throughout the meal. I always prefer the Perrier, the carbonation level is a bit more I think?
 |
| Pantry: Fruit & Berry Yogurt. |
To get started, the cart rolled through the aisle offering up the "pantry". I generally am never able to have fruit salad due to my melon allergy, but this time I was - the fruit was mostly oranges and pineapple, plus a single kiwi per bowl. While I didn't want the citrus nor pineapples, I did want kiwi, so I went for it. I was really craving grapes or berries, but, alas. I also asked for just a tiny bit of yogurt, the berry one, to go with it (as I had tried that brand natural yogurt on the prior flight).
The kiwi wasn't awesome, kinda hard, but it was still nice to have fresh fruit. I tried a chunk of orange and it was flavorless, and pineapple really wasn't my thing. **+.
The berry yogurt was fine. Not fake sweet tasting, it seemed to have berry compote mixed through. Reasonably thick and creamy. With some fresh berries and granola I think I would have been satisfied with this. ***.
 |
| Pantry: Cereal. |
Hedging my bets, I also opted to get the cereals, both of them, Vogel's brand. I asked for soy milk, and was given a cute little pot on the side. The milk was fine, average soy milk.
I do always like the Vogel's cereals. I know they are common in New Zealand and Australia, but the style is a bit different from most US cereals, and I like the change up from the standard corn flakes we have. Both had interesting mix-ins.
 |
| Bakery: Croissant. |
Finally, after years of not doing it, I finally tried a croissant. Why did it take me so many years? Well, I've mostly just been grumpy about the danishes going away as I did kinda like them, and never really thought the in-flight croissants would be good anyway. They do always look fairly decent though, so, finally, I tried one.
It was not very good. Lukewarm. Very, very, very dry. Not flaky. Slightly buttery. At least I tried, and now I know? I do think it would be nice to go with the poached eggs just to have something besides the baps to soak up the yolk goodness. Maybe next time I'll try the toast ... **.
 |
| From the Stove: Pancakes. |
"Cinnamon and buckwheat pancakes, plum compote, yoghurt, vanilla syrup."
And finally, my pancakes. I was pretty apprehensive about these, given just how poor most Air New Zealand warm breakfast carbs are, but, alas, the other things weren't my style either. (I wished they had the amazing poached eggs on this flight, but those seem to only be served on the route to New Zealand or Sydney, not the return trip).
I was well rewarded for my gamble. Finally! A good warm breakfast carb on an Air New Zealand flight! It wasn't all sunshine and roses, but, mostly, quite a success.
The portion was rather large, 3 thick mid-size pancakes, which, after fruit/yogurt, granola, and a croissant was a bit much, but I nearly finished them. I quite liked the pancakes themselves, such a shocker to me. They were a slightly hearty style, darker, with some texture (groats?) in them. The consistency was good, they weren't light and airy, per the buckwheat, but, they weren't dense or gummy either. Decent base flavor too. They reminded me slightly of the harvest grain n nut pancakes I used to love at IHOP.
So, pancakes themselves, definitely winners. ****.
The toppings are what let me down. The plum compote I found too sweet, and sorta just an odd flavor. The yogurt was sweet vanilla yogurt, runny style, not my thing. I wished I had thought to ask for these on the side, as both somewhat ruined the pancakes for me. I scraped off as much as I could. *.
The toppings also weren't really needed. The pancakes had enough flavor from their hearty base (although I didn't taste the cinnamon from the description), and I quite honestly enjoyed them plain, or with just a little butter and syrup.
Next time there is no egg dish I'm interested in, or, if I'm in the mood for sweet carbs in the morning, I'll get the hot breakfast carb again (toppings on the side please!), as Air New Zealand has redeemed themselves.
2019 Reviews
I've flown this route way too many times. Please start with my earlier reviews if you please, from 2018, 2017, or my first review of this route in 2015.
February & March 2019
Flight Details - February:
- Flight: NZ 8, Auckland to San Francisco
- Departure: 7:45pm (scheduled), 8:50pm (actual)
- Class: Business Premier
- Aircraft: 77W
- Seat: 11 K
Ok, so this didn't start off very well.
Our flight was delayed, but they didn't notify us ... ever. Thus we had to leave the lounge, trek to the gate, and stand there for nearly 2 hours. Sigh. US departures have to go through additional security, so there wasn't even anywhere to get food, walk around, etc. Let's just say, I was grumpy before we even took off.
Our flight was delayed, but they didn't notify us ... ever. Thus we had to leave the lounge, trek to the gate, and stand there for nearly 2 hours. Sigh. US departures have to go through additional security, so there wasn't even anywhere to get food, walk around, etc. Let's just say, I was grumpy before we even took off.
My seat was one I wasn't looking forward to, I got a window, but, the back mini cabin I never enjoy, as it is served sooo much later than the front, and the engines are quite noisy there. Given our flight delay, it means that dinner service didn't even *start* until nearly 11pm New Zealand time, totally in the middle of the night for our destination.
The in-seat power was broken in my seat, and the one behind me, so I couldn't charge devices during the long flight.
The crew were fine, but more strict rule abiding than usual.
Yes, I was grumpy.
Yes, I was grumpy.
Flight Details - March:
- Flight: NZ 8, Auckland to San Francisco
- Departure: 7:45pm (scheduled), 8:pm (actual)
- Class: Business Premier
- Aircraft: 77W
- Seat: 3K
Just three weeks later, I took the exact same flight. Yes, I was traveling way too much. Same menu. So, I'll combine these reviews in one.
This flight was not as delayed, the crew better, my power did work, and, I was up in row 3, so, that was much better. I think 3K might be my favorite, the K aisle is best so my drink is on my right hand side, and being in row 1 or 2 is too close to the front galley and bathroom. So, scored my fav seat, always a good thing.
Cuisine
As always, main dish orders were taken as soon as we were underway, and eventually our tables were prepared with a tablecloth. Starters and bakery were served from the cart. Refresh bakery and wine was offered after the starters. Main dishes delivered one by one as they were ready, which took an excruciatingly long time since I was in the back cabin. Dessert orders taken individually and brought out right after dishes were cleared.
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| Actually, really satisfying meals: February. |
So the service? Overall, just, meh. But the food? Some of the best I've had on Air New Zealand.
I wasn't excited exactly the have the exact same menu just a few weeks later, even though I had liked it, but it meant I knew what to expect, and planned accordingly. I knew the dessert was awful, and that I couldn't have much of the ice cream (chocolate!), so I came prepared with my own dessert. I was eager for the duck, but not particularly excited about the burger, so I ate gnocchi in the Strata lounge, since I really do like that, and brought a salad on board.
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| Overview: March. |
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| Dinner Menu. |
The full lineup:
To begin
- Smoked duck breast with pickled pear relish and walnuts, horopito and roasted garlic aioli.
- Kumara and kawakawa hummus, sumac dusted goat cheese, aubergine, mint and cumin salad.
From the bakery
- Flaxseed loaf, mini walnut loaves, and garlic bread offered with Hawke's Bay extra virgin olive oil.
Mains
- Angus beef burger, brioche bun with Swiss cheese melt, crispy pancetta, onion relish, pickles, and beetroot chutney.
- Roasted chicken with risotto primavera, broad beans, mint, courgettes and basil, parmesan, and pea tendrils.
- Hapuka with black garlic and ginger wok fried rice noodles, mushrooms, broccolini and edamame, fermented black bean sauce.
- Smoked tomato soup with corriander sour cream and lavosh.
To finish
- Dark chocolate ice cream with peach and passionfruit compote and meringue crunch.
- Greek yogurt mousse with raspberry coulis and freeze dried raspberries.
- A selection of fine New Zealand cheese served ploughman's chutney and cracker selection
Mid-flight snacks
- Warm Parmesan bagel with streaky bacon, caramelized onions and barbecue sauce.
The first time I flew this menu, the choice of starter was a no brainer for me, as I dislike goat cheese. Not that I really was excited for duck. I was sad no smoked seafood option was available, as those are frequently quite good.
The main too was a simple choice: the burger!!! I still remember how good my travel companion's burger was once on an Air New Zealand flight, as was my halloumi burger one time, and even the Impossible Burger sliders were on my previous flight (review coming soon!). They do a nice job with burgers, and the toppings sounded great on this.
For dessert, I was so sad the ice cream was chocolate, dark chocolate no less, since I don't have caffeine at night. I adore the Kāpiti brand ice cream they serve on board!!!
The next time, I eagerly went for the duck starter again, because, surprise, it turns out, I loved it, decided to skip the burger and dine in the lounge instead, and, brought my own dessert to pair with just a little of the chocolate ice cream.
Our first drink orders were taken before takeoff, but it did take a while for me to get served, as I was in the back row of back cabin.Since I had white wines on my previous flights, I decided to move on to red, also, red would pair better with my planned meal.
I had the choice of Syrah or Pinot Noir, and asked which was less tanic. The FA recommended the pinot. It was pretty decent, it had a slight bite, but wasn't bad. I believe this was the "Kuru Kuru 2016".
The nuts were the same as my AKL-SFO flight, just simple mixed nuts: almonds, hazelnuts, cashews, salted. No nuts I really like though, like brazil nuts, macadamias, or even pecans. Served stone cold!
In March, my options were merlot or pinot noir, and I decided to mix it up and go for the merlot, not something I ... ever do?
My flight attendant really loved this wine, and vocalized this love several times.
It was fine, again I'm not normally a merlot drinker, so it had a bit more bite than I normally go for, but, it was fine.
"Smoked duck breast with pickled pear relish and walnuts, horopito and roasted garlic aioli."The main too was a simple choice: the burger!!! I still remember how good my travel companion's burger was once on an Air New Zealand flight, as was my halloumi burger one time, and even the Impossible Burger sliders were on my previous flight (review coming soon!). They do a nice job with burgers, and the toppings sounded great on this.
For dessert, I was so sad the ice cream was chocolate, dark chocolate no less, since I don't have caffeine at night. I adore the Kāpiti brand ice cream they serve on board!!!
The next time, I eagerly went for the duck starter again, because, surprise, it turns out, I loved it, decided to skip the burger and dine in the lounge instead, and, brought my own dessert to pair with just a little of the chocolate ice cream.
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| Sparkling Water / Pinot Noir / Mixed Nuts. (February) |
I had the choice of Syrah or Pinot Noir, and asked which was less tanic. The FA recommended the pinot. It was pretty decent, it had a slight bite, but wasn't bad. I believe this was the "Kuru Kuru 2016".
The nuts were the same as my AKL-SFO flight, just simple mixed nuts: almonds, hazelnuts, cashews, salted. No nuts I really like though, like brazil nuts, macadamias, or even pecans. Served stone cold!
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| Sparkling Water / Craggy Range Merlot / Mixed Nuts. (March) |
My flight attendant really loved this wine, and vocalized this love several times.
It was fine, again I'm not normally a merlot drinker, so it had a bit more bite than I normally go for, but, it was fine.
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| To Begin: Smoked duck breast. (February) |
I wasn't particularly excited for this, since duck I only really like when prepared certain ways (crispy skin!), and cold duck isn't normally my thing, but, I certainly didn't want the goat cheese option. And, this had garlic aioli and "horopito", whatever that was?
Um, it was DELICIOUS. Like, actually delicious.
The duck was tender, cut easily with my knife, had an amazing smoky quality to it. While I didn't care for the fat layer, the rest of the duck was flavorful and just really quite nice.
It didn't *need* any of the toppings, although I gladly enjoyed them too, as they were fantastic. The pickled pear relish had a nice texture (not too mushy, not too firm) and an interesting flavor, I think it would go great with some brie. It was a nice acidic compliment to the duck, although again, not actually necessary.
The garlic aioli was creamy and delicious, although I didn't really taste much garlic, which I think is a good thing, I love garlic, but that might be odd with duck. It went great with the relish too.
The walnuts were just toasted nuts, but added crunch. And horopito? Turned out to be the green herb on top.
Overall, this was just really shockingly good, and although I was not hungry, and planning a light meal (uh, and had a burger coming next), I had no choice but to finish this. Amazing!
In March, I was worried that I had remembered the duck too fondly, particularly because my flight from Sydney to Auckland also featured smoked duck in the appetizer, and I didn't love that one, but, I'm happy to report, this was nearly as good as my first time.
I say nearly because 2 of my 3 slices were great, the third one was a bit odd, not sliced as uniformly as the others, it had a thicker end, and had some chewy bits. But the rest of the duck was tender, smoky, and although I didn't care for the fat again, I really enjoyed the duck.
And again, I absolutely loved the aioli. Seriously, it was crazy good. So creamy and flavorful, just not actually garlic-y.
I liked the crunch from the nuts, and really thought the pickled pair relish was great with the duck, with the aioli, and with the nuts.
Seriously, this is a great starter.
I discovered the port on my flight from Sydney to Auckland, and opted for it again. I really liked it, quite a lovely caramelized flavor.
"Greek yogurt mousse with raspberry coulis and freeze dried raspberries."
I can't say that greek yogurt mousse sounded super exciting, because, eh, greek yogurt, but since I didn't want the caffeinated ice cream, I had no choice. Plus, um, I had other desserts stashed in my bag that I needed to eat before entry to the US anyway ...
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| To Begin: Smoked duck breast. (March). |
I say nearly because 2 of my 3 slices were great, the third one was a bit odd, not sliced as uniformly as the others, it had a thicker end, and had some chewy bits. But the rest of the duck was tender, smoky, and although I didn't care for the fat again, I really enjoyed the duck.
And again, I absolutely loved the aioli. Seriously, it was crazy good. So creamy and flavorful, just not actually garlic-y.
I liked the crunch from the nuts, and really thought the pickled pair relish was great with the duck, with the aioli, and with the nuts.
Seriously, this is a great starter.
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| Main: Beef Burger. (February) |
"Angus beef burger, brioche bun with Swiss cheese melt, crispy pancetta, onion relish, pickles, and beetroot chutney."
The burger was less successful.
The bun was fine, a brioche bun, lightly warmed, lightly toasted on the inside. But I wasn't really interested in filling myself with bread.
The burger patty I didn't care for, a bit of an odd texture, not the best flavor, and clearly not a grilled burger. Meh to the burger.
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| Burger: Inside. |
The swiss was good though, really nicely melted. The pancetta wasn't necessarily "crispy" but it was flavorful, and went great with the swiss. The onion relish was spread on it already, and it was fine but a bit sweet. The beetroot chutney was served on the side in a pot, good bits of beet in it for texture, interesting flavor. It was odd that the onion relish was spread on already, and the beetroot chuntey was on the side though.
Also on the side was greens, fairly fresh and enjoyable actually, two slices of mediocre pickle (not dill, not bread and butter, kinda tangy), and two slices of mealty tomato.
Overall, I didn't mind that this wasn't great. The lounge food, the incredible duck, and the cheese/pancetta/relishes/greens made me more than satisfied.
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| Tawny Port. 10 Year. (February) |
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| Dessert: Mousse. (February) |
I can't say that greek yogurt mousse sounded super exciting, because, eh, greek yogurt, but since I didn't want the caffeinated ice cream, I had no choice. Plus, um, I had other desserts stashed in my bag that I needed to eat before entry to the US anyway ...
Um, I didn't like this at all. It wasn't creamy, it certainly wasn't a "mousse", in that it wasn't fluffy at all, and it was kinda tangy (greek yogurt, after all). The raspberry coulis was too sweet, and the freeze dried raspberries were just a dusting on top.
Major meh. Luckily, I had a fantastic cheesecake in my bag.
"Dark chocolate ice cream with peach and passionfruit compote and meringue crunch."
I had to make sure I didn't eat too much of this, because I didn't want the caffeine a night, so I brought a cheesecake with me to have instead ... mostly. I stashed the rest of the ice cream in my insulated travel thermos to have in the morning, because ice cream for breakfast is totally allowed.
The fruit compote on top was mostly peach, not much passionfruit, and was frozen solid. Peach, passionfruit, and chocolate seemed like an odd combination to me really, I just don't think of those fruits as making sense with chocolate.
The meringue crunch was actually nice, good texture, good crunch.
And then, the ice cream. The menu said "Dark Chocolate", but, looking at the website for the manufacturer, Kāpiti, they make a "Triple Chocolate", which I think this was? They don't seem to make a dark chocolate, and this ice cream wasn't really dark chocolate anyway.
Triple Chocolate Ice Cream:
"Rich and velvety chocolate flavoured ice cream blended with real chocolate pieces and a swirl of decadent chocolate sauce for a taste explosion."
I'm not sure I got the ice cream flavor right, but, the ice cream I had was more of a milk chocolate than dark, and it had flecks of dark chocolate throughout. I didn't find a swirl of chocolate sauce though ...
The ice cream was ok, but not as remarkable as other flavors I've tried.
I paired it with the port though, and, swoon. This port. I just love it! I'm not sure why I didn't like it on my Sydney to Auckland flight, maybe it really was different, but, when its good, its so very good, caramely, deep deep flavor. So very good.
Wake-up drinks
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| To Finish: Ice Cream. (March). |
I had to make sure I didn't eat too much of this, because I didn't want the caffeine a night, so I brought a cheesecake with me to have instead ... mostly. I stashed the rest of the ice cream in my insulated travel thermos to have in the morning, because ice cream for breakfast is totally allowed.
The fruit compote on top was mostly peach, not much passionfruit, and was frozen solid. Peach, passionfruit, and chocolate seemed like an odd combination to me really, I just don't think of those fruits as making sense with chocolate.
The meringue crunch was actually nice, good texture, good crunch.
And then, the ice cream. The menu said "Dark Chocolate", but, looking at the website for the manufacturer, Kāpiti, they make a "Triple Chocolate", which I think this was? They don't seem to make a dark chocolate, and this ice cream wasn't really dark chocolate anyway.
Triple Chocolate Ice Cream:
"Rich and velvety chocolate flavoured ice cream blended with real chocolate pieces and a swirl of decadent chocolate sauce for a taste explosion."
I'm not sure I got the ice cream flavor right, but, the ice cream I had was more of a milk chocolate than dark, and it had flecks of dark chocolate throughout. I didn't find a swirl of chocolate sauce though ...
The ice cream was ok, but not as remarkable as other flavors I've tried.
I paired it with the port though, and, swoon. This port. I just love it! I'm not sure why I didn't like it on my Sydney to Auckland flight, maybe it really was different, but, when its good, its so very good, caramely, deep deep flavor. So very good.
Breakfast
Breakfast service was as all my other Air New Zealand flights. No pre-orders taken before sleep. Just a little over 2 hours before landing, smoothies and juice are brought around. Main dish orders are taken shortly after. A bite later, a cart comes through the aisle with the "pantry", served to order, along with coffee and tea. Then, a basket with the "bakery". Finally, the main dishes are delivered one by one as they are ready, one type of entree at a time.
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| Breakfast Menu. |
Wake-up drinks
Get yourself started with an all natural tropical fruit and coconut smoothie or your choice of juice.
From the pantry
- Fresh fruit salad
- Plain Greek yoghurt or fruit yoghurt
- Vogel's Cafe Style Light Berry Gluten Free Cereal
- Vogel's Cafe Style Luxury Muesli
From the bakery
- Croissants
- Vogel’s or fruit toast with your choice of: marmalade, strawberry jam, Vegemite, Marmite
- Scrambled eggs with corned beef hash cake and tomato relish, toasted grain muffin.
- Sweet corn fritters, streaky bacon with creamy spinach, seared tomato and paprika sour cream.
- Yoghurt pancakes with cranberry and blueberry compote, vanilla yoghurt, syrup, and spiced butter.
- Warm Parmesan bagel with streaky bacon, caramelized onions and barbecue sauce.
I skipped the bakery both times since they no longer have the danishes ... and because I brought my own muffins that I got at the airport at Mach 2 (review soon!), Better Burger, and Peroni Bar. I finally decided not to get the breakfast carb hot dish that always lets me down.
The FAs all were jealous of my muffins, laughing when they saw them on my plate, saying things like "Hey, I didn't see those on the menu!" and "did you bring fresh muffins for me too?" One summed me up pretty well, speaking to the other, but with me there, "She knows what she likes! She flew with us a few weeks ago and she had her own ice cream toppings, she had sprinkles for the ice cream with her!" I was surprised she remembered that, but then again, uh, I guess it isn't standard behavior.
In February, I went totally rogue, and tried the fritters (although they accidentally brought me the scrambled eggs at first, which looked actually quite good - really creamy, and the hash cake looked crisp. Maybe next time?). In March? I tried those eggs.
First though, it was the middle of the night in my world, so coffee was in order. It wasn't very good, needed a little sweetener, but, at least it had caffeine. The bottom of my cup had a *lot* of sludge in it.The FAs all were jealous of my muffins, laughing when they saw them on my plate, saying things like "Hey, I didn't see those on the menu!" and "did you bring fresh muffins for me too?" One summed me up pretty well, speaking to the other, but with me there, "She knows what she likes! She flew with us a few weeks ago and she had her own ice cream toppings, she had sprinkles for the ice cream with her!" I was surprised she remembered that, but then again, uh, I guess it isn't standard behavior.
In February, I went totally rogue, and tried the fritters (although they accidentally brought me the scrambled eggs at first, which looked actually quite good - really creamy, and the hash cake looked crisp. Maybe next time?). In March? I tried those eggs.
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| Coffee. (February). |
I moved on to decaf, which was even worse.
Protip: bring my own, higher quality, instant?
In March I tried it again, forgetting my advice on the bringing better coffee, and again found it fairly awful. At least I had my own better instant decaf.
In March I tried it again, forgetting my advice on the bringing better coffee, and again found it fairly awful. At least I had my own better instant decaf.
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| Pantry: Berry Yogurt. (February) |
I planned to skip all of the "Pantry" as well, since I can't have the fruit (melon allergy), and never care for the cereal or yogurt, but the yogurt looked good. And my FA kept saying how lovely it was. So I got a TINY scoop.
It was as I remembered. Creamy, smooth, sure, but sweet, and not really a style I care for. Better than a lot of airline yogurt, but just not really one I wanted. Have I mentioned though how much I love their yogurt in the Sydney lounge?
In March, I finally knew to skip this.
In March, I finally knew to skip this.
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| From the Stove: Sweet Corn Fritters. (February) |
"Sweet corn fritters, streaky bacon with creamy spinach, seared tomato and paprika sour cream."
On Air New Zealand flights, I've always gotten the pancakes, waffles, or french toast, as those are the things I actually like in general, but they really just don't do them well. I've had the bagel or breakfast panini a few times too, to mixed success, but had this exact version the previous week, so, I opted to try something totally new: corn fritters. I had plenty of muffins with me, and it was the middle of the night in my world anyway, so, if I didn't like them, I didn't care.
I was mostly into this to try the creamy spinach, my body was clearly craving some vegetables. I kinda assumed "fritters" would be mushy, soggy, and not great, because, well, it is airplane food. They were soft, not crispy, but I really did like them. Whole kernels of corn inside for texture, in a doughy pancake-like base. Two large fritter-pancakes, and I nearly finished them all, even though not hungry, and having just had my own muffins. I was pleasantly surprised.
I didn't try the seared tomato since I don't care for cooked tomatoes. The bacon was a flabbier style then I like, but I tried a crispy end and it was fine. The paprika sour cream was a nice creamy component, and I used it all slathered on my fritter, but I think I'd prefer something like a creme fraiche.
And finally, the creamy spinach. It was not seasoned very well, but luckily I had salt and pepper on my tray, so I quickly remedied that. It was creamy, but what I really liked was how the creamy sauce soaked into the fritters.
So overall, one of the most enjoyable breakfasts I have had on an Air New Zealand flight. Fritter-pancakes and creamy sauces were a nice mix. I think I'd get this again, and certainly will go for the savories from now on.
"Scrambled eggs with corned beef hash cake and tomato relish, toasted grain muffin."
Even though I loved the corn cakes, and was quite tempted to get them again, I decided to try something different, just to really know for future if I should go for the scrambled eggs. They *did* look quite good when accidentally presented to me last time, and, you know me, I had a bag full of muffins with me anyway, so if these failed, I was prepared. I asked the FA taking breakfast orders if people liked the scrambled eggs, and she looked at me like it was a crazy question, and said something like "of course". I didn't quite believe her.
Because ... I'm me, and I know what I like, I also asked (a different FA, the one bringing out the dishes, and one who was far more interested in talking to me), if there was extra paprika sour cream, if that could come with the eggs.
The eggs were not good. They were exactly what I expected, really, just the powdered kind, strange texture, not rich, not creamy, and just really not good in any way. Worse than buffet eggs.
The corned beef hash cake had ... so little corned beef that I struggled to even find any, really. Pretty sure you could serve these to a vegetarian, call them potato cakes, and they wouldn't question it. I'm really not joking. The cakes were also not good in any way. Mushy, just lumps of potatoes, not seasoned. Salt, pepper, the paprika sour cream (which I asked for mostly intending for it to go with the hash cake), nothing could save the cake.
On the positive side, the stuff that looked like ketchup was a smoky tomato relish, and I really did like it. Great flavor, and I wished I had something I wanted it on. I think I ate more of the hash cake and the eggs than I wanted, just so I could have more of the tomato relish. Star of the plate.
The toasted grain muffin at the base was also a bit of a surprise. I thought this would either be something like a whole wheat english muffin on the side (bo-ring), or a muffin-muffin, but instead it was more like the form of a english muffin, but not whole wheat exactly, rather loaded with grains, and was at the base of the eggs, so it absorbed lots of moisture from them. I kinda liked it. The texture from the grains was nice, it was crispy on the bottom, and, if I slathered it with smoky tomato relish and paprika sour cream, was a kinda nice savory item. I did wish I had some of the spinach from the corn cakes to add on to my creation, or, you know, nice eggs, but, it worked.
I wouldn't get scrambled eggs, or hash cakes, again.
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| From the Stove: Scrambled Eggs + paprika sour cream. (March). |
Even though I loved the corn cakes, and was quite tempted to get them again, I decided to try something different, just to really know for future if I should go for the scrambled eggs. They *did* look quite good when accidentally presented to me last time, and, you know me, I had a bag full of muffins with me anyway, so if these failed, I was prepared. I asked the FA taking breakfast orders if people liked the scrambled eggs, and she looked at me like it was a crazy question, and said something like "of course". I didn't quite believe her.
Because ... I'm me, and I know what I like, I also asked (a different FA, the one bringing out the dishes, and one who was far more interested in talking to me), if there was extra paprika sour cream, if that could come with the eggs.
The eggs were not good. They were exactly what I expected, really, just the powdered kind, strange texture, not rich, not creamy, and just really not good in any way. Worse than buffet eggs.
The corned beef hash cake had ... so little corned beef that I struggled to even find any, really. Pretty sure you could serve these to a vegetarian, call them potato cakes, and they wouldn't question it. I'm really not joking. The cakes were also not good in any way. Mushy, just lumps of potatoes, not seasoned. Salt, pepper, the paprika sour cream (which I asked for mostly intending for it to go with the hash cake), nothing could save the cake.
On the positive side, the stuff that looked like ketchup was a smoky tomato relish, and I really did like it. Great flavor, and I wished I had something I wanted it on. I think I ate more of the hash cake and the eggs than I wanted, just so I could have more of the tomato relish. Star of the plate.
The toasted grain muffin at the base was also a bit of a surprise. I thought this would either be something like a whole wheat english muffin on the side (bo-ring), or a muffin-muffin, but instead it was more like the form of a english muffin, but not whole wheat exactly, rather loaded with grains, and was at the base of the eggs, so it absorbed lots of moisture from them. I kinda liked it. The texture from the grains was nice, it was crispy on the bottom, and, if I slathered it with smoky tomato relish and paprika sour cream, was a kinda nice savory item. I did wish I had some of the spinach from the corn cakes to add on to my creation, or, you know, nice eggs, but, it worked.
I wouldn't get scrambled eggs, or hash cakes, again.
October 2019
Flight Details:
- Flight: NZ 8, Auckland to San Francisco
- Departure: 7:45pm (scheduled), 8:20pm (actual)
- Class: Business Premier
- Aircraft: 77W
- Seat: 5A
After 6 months, I was back on the same flight.
The flight was ... delayed in a very interesting way. Additional security measures for the US were still in effect, but Air New Zealand had too many flights to the US for the number of secure gates that they have, so ... we got booted out. To the tarmac. Literally.
So while Houston and Los Angeles got to use the secure gates, we ... were ushered through some crazy security doors, lead into a holding area downstairs, and then ... put on buses to reach our aircraft, that was just parked out away from the terminal. As stragglers showed up, those who didn't allow for an extra HOUR to board, they came by vans. It was all ... ridiculous. As was the contraption they set up to board us, a series of long ramps that snaked back and forth.
We were all kinda just in amazement of the whole production. Couldn't they ... anticipate this given flight times, and just do something different? This was so much logistical extra!
Once boarded though, everything was smooth and pleasant. I had an experienced, friendly, attentive, professional crew. Other passengers were polite, no babies, no honeymooners. Just, peaceful, actually.
And the food?
So while Houston and Los Angeles got to use the secure gates, we ... were ushered through some crazy security doors, lead into a holding area downstairs, and then ... put on buses to reach our aircraft, that was just parked out away from the terminal. As stragglers showed up, those who didn't allow for an extra HOUR to board, they came by vans. It was all ... ridiculous. As was the contraption they set up to board us, a series of long ramps that snaked back and forth.
We were all kinda just in amazement of the whole production. Couldn't they ... anticipate this given flight times, and just do something different? This was so much logistical extra!
Once boarded though, everything was smooth and pleasant. I had an experienced, friendly, attentive, professional crew. Other passengers were polite, no babies, no honeymooners. Just, peaceful, actually.
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| Some Delights! |
Some of the best I've had on Air New Zealand in a long time. I'm always amazed at the variance in their food - some I find really quite good, but others, barely edible. Luckily, plenty of hits this time.
Dinner
As always, main dish orders were taken as soon as we were underway, and eventually our tables were prepared with a tablecloth. Starters and bakery were served from the cart. Refresh bakery and wine was offered after the starters. Main dishes delivered one by one as they were ready. Dessert orders taken individually and brought out right after dishes were cleared.
I got a sneak peak of the menu on Flyertalk, so I knew what to expect from the menu, and, from people's reports on the quality.
I arrived prepared, with my own meals ready if necessary.
I arrived prepared, with my own meals ready if necessary.
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| Dinner Menu. |
The menu followed the same format as every other Air New Zealand dinner flight I've been on. No surprises here. A choice of two starters, one seafood, one pork. A choice of 4 mains (one red meat, one chicken, one seafood, and a token vegetarian soup). Bread from "the bakery". A choice of cheese, ice cream, or another dessert. Some kind of hot roll anytime.
The full lineup:
To begin
- Ahia smoked fish with lemon and caper aioli, pickled celery, cucumber, and fennel.
- Prosciutto with pomegranate and black pepper paste, Fiddler's Hill goat cheese and pistachios.
From the bakery
- Turmeric and carrot loaf, dark rye and polenta rolls, and garlic bread offered with Hawke's Bay extra virgin olive oil.
Mains
- Beef cheeks braised in spicy soy master stock, shiitake mushrooms with creamed miso polenta and charred broccoli.
- Paprika roasted chicken breast with cannellini beans and tomato, steamed kale, mascarpone thyme cream sauce, toasted hazelnuts.
- Marlborough salmon with rose harissa saffron sauce, baby potatoes, and seared zucchini with capers.
- Yellow lentil soup with berbere spices, yoghurt and lavosh.
To finish
- Gingernut and triple chocolate ice cream with chocolate sauce and ginger crumbles.
- Lemon curd and strawberry mousse cake..
- A selection of fine New Zealand cheese served with quice paste and crackers.
Mid-flight snacks
- Warm Parmesan bagel with streaky bacon, caramelized onions and barbecue sauce.
As always, the choice of starter was pretty easy for me: I often like their smoked seafood, or duck, if it is an option.
The main was more complicated though ... none really sounded good. I hate lentils, so the soup was out. I dislike fishy salmon, and none of the sides with the fish sounded good anyway. I do think Air New Zealand does a nice job with beef cheeks, and I love mushrooms, miso, and polenta, but, I had beef cheeks on my flight to Auckland earlier in the day, and I didn't really want them again. And thus ... chicken? Yeah, I don't eat chicken, but at least the sides with it sounded good. And like I said: I had my own food standing by anyway.
For dessert, I was so sad the ice cream was chocolate, triple chocolate no less, since I don't have caffeine at night. I adore the Kāpiti brand ice cream they serve on board!!! The cakes I've had on Air New Zealand flights have always been quite lackluster, and I dislike lemon curd anyway, so, meh to that too. Thus, I cake with my own trio of desserts: a cheesecake, salted caramel tart, and panna cotta from the lounge.
I asked to try both wines, and I'm glad I did. I normally like pinot noir, and never merlot, but I found myself really enjoying the merlot, it was quite full bodied and fruit forward, not what I really normally drink, but nice.
The pinot I found too acidic and tannic.
"Ahia smoked fish with lemon and caper aioli, pickled celery, cucumber, and fennel."
This was actually really quite good. Air New Zealand had disappointed me on some of the smoked seafood starters lately, like the one I had earlier that day from Sydney that just didn't have much smoky flavor at all, but this one sure did. Nicely smoky fish, not fishy, just, really lovely fish actually.
The lemon and caper aioli wasn't particularly lemon nor caper flavored, but, it was aioli, and I like aioli. It complimented the fish nicely.
The pickled veggies under were mostly cucumber, soggy, soft cucumbers, that I really didn't care for. I had maybe 2 pieces of celery, and 3 slices of fennel. Neither really seemed pickled but were fine.
Overall though, I was really pleased with the fish, so I didn't really care about the lackluster salad.
"Paprika roasted chicken breast with cannellini beans and tomato, steamed kale, mascarpone thyme cream sauce, toasted hazelnuts."
So I got this thinking the sides might be good, but, wow, I hated it all.
The beans were in a very tomatoey sauce, just not flavors I like. The kale was fine but boring. Really, I was excited for mascarpone thyme cream sauce, and ... this was just a thin sauce, more like a pan sauce. I didn't taste thyme nor mascarpone.
Yay for crunchy nuts?
I was glad I had my own meal waiting.
"Gingernut and triple chocolate ice cream with chocolate sauce and ginger crumbles."
I did try the ice cream of course, because I love Kāpiti ice cream, and was delighted to see that it was actually two different scoops, two different flavors, so I could actually have one.
Gingernut: "Crushed gingernut biscuits and crystallised ginger pieces folded into rich and creamy Kapiti ice cream."
Not what I'd pick for ice cream, since I don't really love ginger, but, I liked the texture of the biscuits and crystallised ginger bits, and the ice cream really was so amazingly creamy. Love Kapiti!
Triple Chocolate: "Rich and velvety chocolate flavoured ice cream blended with real chocolate pieces and a swirl of decadent chocolate sauce for a taste explosion."
This one went into my travel mug, to have as a smoothie for breakfast. Yes, this is ridiculous, but I find that I love the melty ice cream in the morning. #breakfastOfChampions.
The chocolate sauce, as always, made me grumpy. Just thin chocolate sauce, not actually very good, and I meant to ask for it to be left off. Next time.
The ginger crumbles were good, crispy, little bits of crumble, not particularly ginger flavored, which I liked. I didn't need to add my own toppings.
The main was more complicated though ... none really sounded good. I hate lentils, so the soup was out. I dislike fishy salmon, and none of the sides with the fish sounded good anyway. I do think Air New Zealand does a nice job with beef cheeks, and I love mushrooms, miso, and polenta, but, I had beef cheeks on my flight to Auckland earlier in the day, and I didn't really want them again. And thus ... chicken? Yeah, I don't eat chicken, but at least the sides with it sounded good. And like I said: I had my own food standing by anyway.
For dessert, I was so sad the ice cream was chocolate, triple chocolate no less, since I don't have caffeine at night. I adore the Kāpiti brand ice cream they serve on board!!! The cakes I've had on Air New Zealand flights have always been quite lackluster, and I dislike lemon curd anyway, so, meh to that too. Thus, I cake with my own trio of desserts: a cheesecake, salted caramel tart, and panna cotta from the lounge.
 |
| Red Wine Tasting: Merlot / Pinot Noir. |
The pinot I found too acidic and tannic.
 |
| To Begin: Fish. |
This was actually really quite good. Air New Zealand had disappointed me on some of the smoked seafood starters lately, like the one I had earlier that day from Sydney that just didn't have much smoky flavor at all, but this one sure did. Nicely smoky fish, not fishy, just, really lovely fish actually.
The lemon and caper aioli wasn't particularly lemon nor caper flavored, but, it was aioli, and I like aioli. It complimented the fish nicely.
The pickled veggies under were mostly cucumber, soggy, soft cucumbers, that I really didn't care for. I had maybe 2 pieces of celery, and 3 slices of fennel. Neither really seemed pickled but were fine.
Overall though, I was really pleased with the fish, so I didn't really care about the lackluster salad.
 | |
| Main: Chicken. |
So I got this thinking the sides might be good, but, wow, I hated it all.
The beans were in a very tomatoey sauce, just not flavors I like. The kale was fine but boring. Really, I was excited for mascarpone thyme cream sauce, and ... this was just a thin sauce, more like a pan sauce. I didn't taste thyme nor mascarpone.
Yay for crunchy nuts?
I was glad I had my own meal waiting.
 |
| To Finish: Ice Cream. |
I did try the ice cream of course, because I love Kāpiti ice cream, and was delighted to see that it was actually two different scoops, two different flavors, so I could actually have one.
Gingernut: "Crushed gingernut biscuits and crystallised ginger pieces folded into rich and creamy Kapiti ice cream."
Not what I'd pick for ice cream, since I don't really love ginger, but, I liked the texture of the biscuits and crystallised ginger bits, and the ice cream really was so amazingly creamy. Love Kapiti!
Triple Chocolate: "Rich and velvety chocolate flavoured ice cream blended with real chocolate pieces and a swirl of decadent chocolate sauce for a taste explosion."
This one went into my travel mug, to have as a smoothie for breakfast. Yes, this is ridiculous, but I find that I love the melty ice cream in the morning. #breakfastOfChampions.
The chocolate sauce, as always, made me grumpy. Just thin chocolate sauce, not actually very good, and I meant to ask for it to be left off. Next time.
The ginger crumbles were good, crispy, little bits of crumble, not particularly ginger flavored, which I liked. I didn't need to add my own toppings.
Breakfast
Breakfast service was as all my other Air New Zealand flights. No pre-orders taken before sleep. Just a little over 2 hours before landing, smoothies and juice are brought around. Main dish orders are taken shortly after. A bite later, a cart comes through the aisle with the "pantry", served to order, along with coffee and tea. Then, a basket with the "bakery". Finally, the main dishes are delivered one by one as they are ready, one type of entree at a time.
 |
| Breakfast Menu. |
Wake-up drinks
Get yourself started with an all natural berry antioxidant smoothie or your choice of juice.
From the pantry
- Fresh fruit salad
- Plain Greek yoghurt or fruit yoghurt
- Vogel's Cafe Style Light Berry Gluten Free Cereal
- Vogel's Cafe Style Luxury Muesli
From the bakery
- Croissants
- Vogel’s or fruit toast with your choice of: marmalade, strawberry jam, Vegemite, Marmite
- Scrambled eggs with kumara, chickpea and chorizo hash, sweet pepper relish and spinach.
- Sweet corn and smoked moki fritters with spicy tomato and spring onion salsa, wilted spinach, and hollandaise.
- Wheat germ and sunflower seed waffles, vanilla bean yogurt, feijoa and pear compote and vanilla syrup.
- Warm Parmesan bagel with streaky bacon, caramelized onions and barbecue sauce.
I skipped the bakery since they no longer have the danishes, and I came prepared with my own muffins. I never care for the yogurt, the fruit always has melon, I dislike smoothies, and the cereal is fine but not really interesting. So, skipped all that too.
In February, I went totally rogue, and tried the fritters, and really enjoyed them, so, after a sad experience getting the scrambled eggs in March, I was back ready for fritter, this time with smoked fish too, and even better sounding sides. It is so hard for me not to order the sweet carbs, as I do like waffles quite a bit, but I've always rather hated the Air New Zealand offerings, and, they'v tried to make them far too healthy tasting anyway (wheat germ? sunflower seeds? Yogurt instead of whipped cream? Come on!)
"Sweet corn and smoked moki fritters with spicy tomato and spring onion salsa, wilted spinach, and hollandaise."
Ok, I'm not usually one for savory breakfast, but this was *really* good. Significantly better than the fritters I had on my flight from San Francisco.
The fritters were not mushy, and were rather crisp. Hot and fresh. The texture was great, chunks of corn inside, and a lovely smoky flavor from the fish. The fritters alone, pretty tasty.
I meant to ask for no salsa, since I don't really like tomato sauces / salsa, particularly with breakfast, but I forgot. I tried it, it wasn't spicy actually, but it was basically like the lowest end mildest grocery store salsa ever. I did not like it, at all, and quickly pushed it aside.
The hollandaise was excellent though. Creamy, rich, slightly lemony. I adore hollandaise, and this was quite a treat. I did ask for extra, as this drizzle, particularly once I scraped off the salsa, was not enough. I was delivered my own little pot full, piping hot, and really, really enjoyed coating everything in it. I may have finished it off just with a little spoon. <3 hollandaise.
The spinach was good too, a generous pile, nicely wilted. It was clearly quite plain, but with some salt and pepper added, and, of course, tons of hollandaise, I enjoyed it too.
This is far from a traditional breakfast for me, but, it was nearly lunchtime when I was landing, so I thought of it as brunch, helping me get on the right time zone, and I really enjoyed it. (Plus, I had my own triple chocolate muffin and berry crumble muffin to start, and had some of my ice cream "smoothie", so its not like I didn't have my sweets!)
In February, I went totally rogue, and tried the fritters, and really enjoyed them, so, after a sad experience getting the scrambled eggs in March, I was back ready for fritter, this time with smoked fish too, and even better sounding sides. It is so hard for me not to order the sweet carbs, as I do like waffles quite a bit, but I've always rather hated the Air New Zealand offerings, and, they'v tried to make them far too healthy tasting anyway (wheat germ? sunflower seeds? Yogurt instead of whipped cream? Come on!)
 | |
| From the Stove: Fritters. |
Ok, I'm not usually one for savory breakfast, but this was *really* good. Significantly better than the fritters I had on my flight from San Francisco.
The fritters were not mushy, and were rather crisp. Hot and fresh. The texture was great, chunks of corn inside, and a lovely smoky flavor from the fish. The fritters alone, pretty tasty.
I meant to ask for no salsa, since I don't really like tomato sauces / salsa, particularly with breakfast, but I forgot. I tried it, it wasn't spicy actually, but it was basically like the lowest end mildest grocery store salsa ever. I did not like it, at all, and quickly pushed it aside.
The hollandaise was excellent though. Creamy, rich, slightly lemony. I adore hollandaise, and this was quite a treat. I did ask for extra, as this drizzle, particularly once I scraped off the salsa, was not enough. I was delivered my own little pot full, piping hot, and really, really enjoyed coating everything in it. I may have finished it off just with a little spoon. <3 hollandaise.
The spinach was good too, a generous pile, nicely wilted. It was clearly quite plain, but with some salt and pepper added, and, of course, tons of hollandaise, I enjoyed it too.
This is far from a traditional breakfast for me, but, it was nearly lunchtime when I was landing, so I thought of it as brunch, helping me get on the right time zone, and I really enjoyed it. (Plus, I had my own triple chocolate muffin and berry crumble muffin to start, and had some of my ice cream "smoothie", so its not like I didn't have my sweets!)
2018 Reviews
I've somehow managed to fly this route two more times, without publishing my reviews. Read on for my February AND July 2018 experiences, or go start with my first review of this route in 2015, or updates in 2017.
Spoiler: Air New Zealand does make some fabulous food, it surprises me, really. Just, not the breakfast carbs.
February 2018
Flight Details:
- Flight: NZ 8, Auckland to San Francisco
- Departure: 7:45pm
- Class: Business Premier
- Aircraft: 77W
- Seat: 6A
 |
| Wonderful Feast! |
Most aspects of this flight were the same as previous, but one thing here was a clear winner. Dinner was good. Very, very good. Great wine, wonderful smoked fish starter, shockingly good main, fabulous ice cream.
 |
| Dinner Menu. |
The menu followed the same format as every other Air New Zealand dinner flight I've been on. No surprises here. A choice of two starters, neither vegetarian. A choice of 4 mains (one red meat, one chicken, one seafood, and a token vegetarian soup). Bread from "the bakery". A choice of cheese, ice cream, or another dessert. Some kind of hot roll anytime.
The full lineup:
To begin
- Chermoula marinated chicken with chickpeas, feta, peas, tomato, fresh dates and tahini yoghurt
- Hot smoked salmon salad with avocado and horseradish cream, pear jelly and radish
From the bakery
- Kumara sourdough loaf, flaxseed loaf, oatmeal rolls and garlic bread
Mains
- Lamb and oregano burger with griddled halloumi cheese, beetroot relish, tomato and cucumbers salad served with mint aioli
- Basil crusted salmon with smoked tomato fonduta sauce, chive mashed potatoes and wilted spianch
- Roasted thyme and lemon marinated chicken with honeyed golden kumara, steamed kale and tamarillo plum chutney
- Sweetcorn and saffron soup with chive sour cream and chipotle bagel crisps
To finish
- Gourmet dessert of triple chocolate ice cream with caramel sauce and coconut inclusions
- Passionfruit and yuzu meringue tart with creme fraiche
- A selection of fine New Zealand cheese served ploughman's chutney and cracker selection
Mid-flight snacks
- Warm kaiser roll with streaky bacon, caramelized onions and barbecue sauce.
Every dish was actually shockingly good.
 |
| Place Setting. |
As before, main dish orders were taken as soon as we got underway.
Then our tables were prepared with a tablecloth, starters and bakery were served from the cart. Refresh bakery and wine was offered after the starters. Main dishes delivered one by one as they were ready. Dessert orders taken individually and brought out right after dishes were cleared.
Then our tables were prepared with a tablecloth, starters and bakery were served from the cart. Refresh bakery and wine was offered after the starters. Main dishes delivered one by one as they were ready. Dessert orders taken individually and brought out right after dishes were cleared.
 |
| Man of War Wine & Nuts. |
Our first drink orders were taken before takeoff, which was great, as they were delivered promptly (Ahem, my previous flight that we literally weren't offered drinks until AFTER we had bread and starters in front of us!)
I tried the Sauvignon Blanc on my previous flight, and Chardonnay on the one before that, so it was time to move on to reds. I actually thought I picked a syrah, but when I asked about it more, a different FA told me it was a random blend called Man of War. When I tried to look it up later, I found out that Man of War *is* a New Zealand wine maker, but, they make many wines. It could have been a syrah. Or a blend. I have no idea.
The wine was actually quite good, not too tanic, had some complexity. I enjoyed my selection, the best I had on this trip.
The nuts were the same as my SFO-AKL flight, just simple mixed nuts, almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, cashews, salted. No nuts I really like though, like brazil nuts, macadamias, or even pecans.
 |
| Starter: Salmon. |
"Hot smoked salmon salad with avocado and horseradish cream, pear jelly and radish."
The choice of starter was a no brainer for me, as I dislike chicken and chickpeas and feta. I was skeptical though, as the smoked salmon on the first leg of my journey wasn't great.
Well, huh. This wasn't bad.
The salmon had an amazing smoky flavor. The texture was perhaps a bit odd, but the smoky flavor was incredible.
I was glad to see the avocado was totally not touching the salmon, as I'm allergic, and was worried that I might need to forgo the starter entirely. I was sad to miss out on teh horseradish cream though, as it was blended.
The sliced radish was pretty but a bit random, but the pear jelly cubes were fantastic! Super flavorful. And they didn't really taste like pear, but just a nice deep sweetness, that actually went really well with the salmon.
Such an odd dish, smoked salmon and pear jelly, but, I liked it far more than expected. Only thing missing for me was the creamy element, but that is only because I had to skip it.
 |
| Main: Burger (Customized). |
For mains, I was stumped. I certainly didn't want chicken, although maybe it was worth ordering for the sides (what is tamarillo?) I doubted the salmon would be good, but smoked tomato fonduta sounded interesting, and, mashed potatoes could be good. I didn't want the soup, because, meh, soup. I did want halloumi. I did want aioli. But, uh, a lamb burger? I don't like lamb.
So, I ordered the lamb burger ... without the lamb. I knew it would be assembled to order, and they could actually do this. I figured I'd eat the halloumi out, try the relish and aioli, and move on. I didn't actually need dinner at this point anyway.
Except, it turned out to be really quite good.
The roll was an olive roll. It was warm. It wasn't dry or stale. It was flavorful. It was, well, good. Maybe I wouldn't have loved it just plain, but with toppings? Yes!
 |
| Custom Burger: Inside. |
It was slathered with the beetroot relish on both sides. This too was good. Juicy, flavorful. Beet and olive was a nice combination.
The relish combined even better with the mint aioli. The mini aioli was fantastic. I literally finished the entire pot. I literally just ate aioli, but the spoonful, at the end. I literally dipped pieces of bread into it. I can't say I tasted mint, but it was creamy, garlicky, and really quite excellent.
The bread, with beetroot relish, and aioli, was truly tasty. I was beyond shocked.
And then, halloumi. Normally the burger comes with one piece, but they gave me two. It was decent. Not too squeaky, with grill marks. Sure, reheated, but, not bad. Bread + spreads + halloumi worked fine, btu I preferred the halloumi with some beetroot relish on its own, and the bread with beetroot relish and aioli on its own.
I didn't care for the tomato and cucumber salad, it had strange spicing and the cucumbers were soggy, but, I didn't really mind.
Overall, this was shockingly good, and I was thrilled that I decided to order it.
 |
| Dessert: Ice Cream. |
"Gourmet dessert of triple chocolate ice cream with caramel sauce and coconut inclusions."
For dessert, I didn't want the tart, so I opted for the ice cream, even though chocolate, and even though evening. As per Air New Zealand style, it was Kāpiti brand, and came with a sauce (caramel) and topping (menu said "coconut inclusions", but was "chocolate cookie crisps").
"Rich and velvety chocolate flavoured ice cream blended with real chocolate pieces and a swirl of decadent chocolate sauce for a taste explosion. "
It was really quite good. Really rich, creamy, chocolate ice cream, with chocolate chips. Not served too frozen. Not icy. Wow.
The caramel sauce was sweet and well applied, not too much, not too little. I liked it quite a bit.
The "coconut inclusions" though turned into chocolate cookie crispies, which was fine, they added a nice crunch. But, not as advertised
Overall, this was really quite good. I'm glad they source decent New Zealand ice cream.
Breakfast
 |
| Breakfast Menu. |
Wake-up drinks
Get yourself started with an all natural mango smoothie or your choice of juice.
From the pantry
- Fresh fruit salad
- Plain Greek yoghurt or fruit yoghurt
- Light and Right Berry cereal
- Toasted muesli
From the bakery
- Croissants and Danish
- Vogel's or fruit toast with your choice of: marmalade, strawberry jam, Vegemite, Marmite
From the stove
- Omelette filled with cottage cheese and basil with seared Italian pork sausage, red pepper relish and sauteed spinach
- Scrambled eggs with roasted zucchini and tomato, crispy bacon with toasted grain muffin
- Cranberry, currant and chia waffles with vanilla yoghurt, blueberry chia compote and sweet syrup
- Warm kaiser roll with streaky bacon, caramelized onions, mustard relish and barbecue sauce
Breakfast service was as all my other Air New Zealand flights. No pre-orders taken before sleep. Just a little over 2 hours before landing, smoothies and juice are brought around. Main dish orders are taken shortly after. A bite later, a cart comes through the aisle with the "pantry", served to order. Then, a basket with the "bakery". Finally, the main dishes are delivered one by one as they are ready, one type of entree at a time.
Breakfast wasn't amazing, but, I enjoyed what I had.
 |
| Regular Coffee. |
I skipped the juices, and went right for coffee and sparkling water. The coffee was fine, not amazing, but, I didn't need to add sweetener or anything.
 |
| Pantry: Berry Yoghurt. |
The fruit salad had melon (I'm allergic), and I've never cared for these cereals or yoghurts before, but I still decided to try a little of the berry yoghurt, hoping it would be like the amazing yoghurt I had the whole time I was in Australia (at the hotel, in the airport lounge, etc).
It wasn't though. It was just berry yoghurt. Thicker, creamier than what I am used to in the US, but, not very good.
 |
| Bakery: Berry Crumble Danish. |
From the "bakery", I was presented a basket as always with the toast and spreads, plain croissants, and assorted danish.
I went for the berry one, not because the danishes have ever been amazing, but because it looked really nicely filled with berry jam and a crumble on top.
The danish wasn't as warm as others have been. It wasn't as crispy on top. Like all others, it wasn't flaky, it wasn't buttery, it wasn't a good baked good. And yet, like many others, I did enjoy it, although I didn't care for the dried out edges.
The berry filling was as generous as it looked. There was tons of it. It was sweet and fruity, and there was a bit of crumble on top. The filling was really decent. Or maybe I was just in the mood.
 |
| Main: Waffles. |
"Cranberry, currant and chia waffles with vanilla yoghurt, blueberry chia compote and sweet syrup."
Air New Zealand has never made good waffles, pancakes, or french toast. I keep trying them. Because I have had good versions on other airlines (like the actaully good liege style pecan waffles with sautéed bananas and cinnamon honey served in British Airways first class). And, um, I have a label on this blog just for waffles. Plus, with such an excellent dinner, I thought perhaps the person running the galley on this flight just had the magic touch.
I tried to look past the fact that the waffles would have chia, cranberry, and currants (meh!), and yoghurt not whipped cream, and even the compote was going to be filled with chia. I still had a glimmer of hope.
I shouldn't have had hope.
The waffles were just as bad as every other Air New Zealand breakfast carb dish. They were soggy and dried out at the same time, particularly the edges. Where the compote was was a soggy mess.
The cranberries and currants didn't really seem to be in the waffles, but rather in the compote on top, which may have also had blueberries as described, I couldn't quite tell. The compote was actually not bad. Fruity, sweet, balanced.
The yoghurt too was not bad. Lightly sweet, slightly vanilla, and it went nicely with the fruit compote. Creamy, not tart. I liked it more than the yoghurt served earlier in the meal.
The syrup was the same as my prior flight, not maple syrup, just sweet syrup.
I salvaged the yoghurt and compote from this this, and enjoyed it with my danish, and I am still glad I picked it over the other options, but, still, not good.
July 2018
Flight Details:
- Flight: NZ 8, Auckland to San Francisco
- Departure: 6:45pm (scheduled)
- Class: Business Premier
- Aircraft: Boeing 777-300er
- Seat: 4K
 |
| Amazing Dining on Board! |
The flight itself was nice. Not much turbulence, lovely staff. And the food? Again, very good. More good wine, another tasty smoked fish starter, fabulous ice cream, good panna cotta, decent breakfast.
Air New Zealand really does do some shockingly good food on board.
Dinner
 |
| Dinner Menu. |
To Begin:
- Smoked fish with roasted beets & beet jelly, saffron aioli, and edamame beans.
- Chicken salad, toasted walnuts, fried eggplant with pickled red onions, coriander, and mint.
- Traditional sourdough, dark rye, garlic bread, purple grain roll.
- Served with Hawke's Bay extra virgin olive oil.
Mains:
- Beef cheek with horseradish mashed potato, caponata, chard, and porcini butter.
- Roasted chicken Marbella style, creamed corn with polenta, sauteed kale, green olive and mustard salsa.
- Hapuka in light turmeric and fresh curry leaf infused sauce, tomatoes and peas with steamed lemongrass jasmine rice.
- Kumara, lentil, cumin soup with caramelised onions and rosemary olive twist.
To Finish:
- Nectarine ice cream with blackberry compote and ginger wafer.
- Blueberry vanilla panna cotta with blueberry gel.
- Fine New Zealand cheese served with roasted vegetable chutney and cracker selection.
For the main, I have no hope for the cooked fish on flights, always dried out (and eh to rice and peas), and I certainly didn't want lentil soup. This left the beef cheek that sounded fairly promising (horseradish mashed potato! porcini butter) or the chicken. Now, you can say, "Uh, you don't like chicken, how was this a thought?", but the thing is, I really like polenta, creamed corn, and kale, and I knew it would come smothered in Marbella sauce. Chicken it was.
For dessert though ... I was so, so, torn. Just like on my flight from Sydney to Auckland. I love their ice cream. This one sounded great too. But ... the other option was panna cotta! I also love panna cotta, hence the blog label for that too. Although, I've had "panna cotta" on these flights before, and, um, they weren't really panna cotta. Spoiler: I got both, and I didn't even really need to ask!
As always, our drink orders were taken before takeoff, so that drinks could be served soon as we got underway. They came quickly, paired with nuts.
 | |
| Sparkling Water / Pinot Noir / Nuts. |
I asked for a small pour, but, certainly got a full glass, not quite what I was hoping for.
It was ... more tannic that I really liked. In the way that has some bite. Still a good wine, nicely complex, but, too tannic for me. I wished he had really given me the small pour I wanted.
I eventually just went back to galley and asked to trade it out, which seemed easier. The FA back there was very friendly, offered to let me try the other red (Syrah), and gave me a tiny pour. I'm glad he did, as I didn't like it either (too acidic).
On the side was mixed nuts, not warm, but a nice selection including walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts, and cashews, although primarily almonds. They were nicely roasted and salted, enjoyable to munch on.
 |
| Sauvignon Blanc. |
It was fine, not too acidic, not too sweet, but again a bit minerally.
 |
| To Begin: Smoked Fish. |
As standard, the starters come served from the cart, which comes through the aisle with additional drinks, bakery, and, your choice of chilled starter.
I was pretty excited for this one, since they often have fabulous smoked fish, and, um, I love aioli!
And ... it delivered.
The fish was lightly smoked, not as smoky sadly as some of my previous flights (including the one I had just gotten off of), but still decently smoky, nice firm texture, not fishy. A nice, simple, clear protein.
It came plated with edamame (eh, not my thing but they were cooked fine), roasted beets (the rectangular pieces, eh as I don't like beets), beet jelly (the little squares, fascinating, not much beet flavor, kinda fun I guess), and saffron aioli (ZOMG) on a bed of rather wilted greens.
The aioli was amazing. Sure, I always like mayo/aioli, but this was really quite flavorful, and perfectly creamy. Plenty of it, and I used it all.
I enjoyed this. It wasn't the best smoked fish I've had on Air New Zealand, but, it was quite good, and I was happy with it.
 |
| From the Bakery: Dark Rye. |
I'm glad I did. Slightly warm, not stale, and really a lovely flavor. If I'm ever really feeling the desire for some carbs, this satisfies.
 |
| Main: Chicken. |
I ordered this for the polenta and sauce. And kinda for the kale. And fascination with the idea of the relish.
It really was plated up nicely. The chicken looked relatively moist and covered in herbs, and if I liked chicken at all, I would have tried it.
The polenta and creamed corn mix was ok. Fairly creamy, and nice to have the texture of the corn in the polenta, but it wasn't anything special. Maybe I just wasn't very hungry.
The kale was not good. It looked great, but, it was really really bitter. Also salty, but I like salt. I tried a few pieces, and, although really nicely cooked, crisp, not mushy, the flavor just wasn't good.
I also did not care for the relish on top, and I do not think it was "green olive and mustard" as advertised, as I didn't taste either, and this was just really herby. Somewhat soapy. Not for me at all.
But the marbella sauce was really flavorful, sweet and savory, and I really liked it. I was glad it was smothered in it. Good texture from some chunks of fig/prune/something. I loved it with the rye bread too.
So, overall, I think this was done fine, but I wasn't really that hungry. I appreciated the flavorful marbella sauce though!
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| To Finish: Blueberry vanilla panna cotta with blueberry gel. |
After the meal, I was offered dessert, and I said "yes!" My FA asked which I wanted, and I asked about the panna cotta, asking if people liked it. My FA said it was new, so he didn't really know. I said I love the ice cream, but I was tempted. He very quickly said, "Why not both?" I liked his style.
I started with the panna cotta, to allow the ice cream to get melty. It was actually really quite good (and, lovely plating!)
The panna cotta was nicely set, and had a lovely vanilla flavor. Excellent panna cotta, better than many I get at restaurants, and certainly better than any I've had on a flight or in a lounge.
The layer on top I didn't like, a blueberry gel, firm, eh. Amusingly, I saw others return their plates with just that layer remaining too, so I wasn't alone in this thought.
On the side was another blueberry sauce, sweet, fine, better than the gel, but I didn't actually want it, the panna cotta had a great flavor on its own without it. There were also a few dried chunks of blueberry.
Overall, excellent, and I was happy with just this choice, actually. Creamy, satisfying, well sized dessert, certainly a full dessert, but not overwhelming.
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| To Finish: Nectarine ice cream with blackberry compote and ginger wafer. |
But of course, I also had the ice cream, again Kapiti brand, from New Zealand.
It too was actually really, really, really good.. This time it came topped with blackberry compote, and with a big huge ginger wafer on top.
"Ice cream made with succulent Central Otago nectarines and rich muscovado style pieces folded through to create a seasonal taste sensation."
The ice cream was perfectly creamy. No icy bits. Quality ice cream. The nectarine flavor was incredible, really really deeply infused, and quite enjoyable. Wow. I was blown away by the ice cream flavor. I think my favorite of all the ice cream I have tried on board so far.
On top was "blackberry compote", that seemed exactly like the blackberry and apple sauce that came with the lackluster mascarpone "parfait" on my prior flight. I wonder if it was the same? I wasn't into it, but I'll admit it went well with the nectarine.
And then, that "ginger wafer". Wow! It was a huge, crispy, sweet tuille. I loved it. So sweet and crispy. Intense ginger flavor. Great flavor, awesome texture.
Overall, also amazing. I was also perfectly happy with this choice, and again, a very reasonable sized dessert offering, 2 full scoops, and that giant cookie.
Breakfast
The breakfast menu, and service, were nearly identical on my next journey. For the main, a choice of omelette, scrambled eggs, waffles, or the exactly same bacon roll. Only the sides/fillings/toppings changed. |
| Breakfast Menu. |
Get yourself started with an all natural berry banana and cocoa smoothie or your choice of juice.
From the pantry
- Fresh fruit salad
- Plain Greek yoghurt or fruit yoghurt
- Light and Right Berry cereal
- Toasted muesli
From the bakery
- Croissants and Danish
- Vogel's or fruit toast with your choice of: marmalade, strawberry jam, Vegemite, Marmite
From the stove
- Omelette with feta cheese and spinach, creamy sauteed mushrooms, potatoes, and sweet pepper relish.
- Scrambled eggs with homemade beans, crispy bacon, and toasted grain muffin.
- Steel cut oat and cinnamon waffles, plum and cinnamon compote, vanilla yoghurt and vanilla syrup.
- Warm kaiser roll with streaky bacon, caramelized onions, mustard relish and barbecue sauce.
After giving everyone about 20 minutes to use bathroom and wake up, a cart came through the aisle with the "Pantry": yogurt, fruit, cereal, same selection as always, which included melons in the fruit, to which I'm allergic.
As this was also just 6 hours after I had finished my last, huge, meal, and it was 5am in my world, I wasn't exactly hungry, so I just skipped the course, knowing it was always lackluster.
For the main, I was fairly torn. For one, I wasn't hungry. But also, none of the choices sounded very good. I don't like omelettes, but, spinach and "creamy" mushrooms sounded good. I don't like scrambled eggs, but I know they do decent poached eggs, and maybe a "grain muffin" was interesting? Of course I adore waffles, but, I've never once had even remotely decent waffles, french toast, nor pancakes on Air New Zealand flights (sorry, ANZ, I really love a lot of your food, but the breakfast sweet carbs are always fairly awful). I've had some really great breakfast sandwiches on their flights, but, this one had no cheese, and a boring bun (kaiser roll). So hard to pick!
I settled on the waffles, which I enjoyed, but I did have a little omelette envy, as it truly did look good, with a side of really creamy looked mushrooms, just as advertised.
As this was also just 6 hours after I had finished my last, huge, meal, and it was 5am in my world, I wasn't exactly hungry, so I just skipped the course, knowing it was always lackluster.
For the main, I was fairly torn. For one, I wasn't hungry. But also, none of the choices sounded very good. I don't like omelettes, but, spinach and "creamy" mushrooms sounded good. I don't like scrambled eggs, but I know they do decent poached eggs, and maybe a "grain muffin" was interesting? Of course I adore waffles, but, I've never once had even remotely decent waffles, french toast, nor pancakes on Air New Zealand flights (sorry, ANZ, I really love a lot of your food, but the breakfast sweet carbs are always fairly awful). I've had some really great breakfast sandwiches on their flights, but, this one had no cheese, and a boring bun (kaiser roll). So hard to pick!
I settled on the waffles, which I enjoyed, but I did have a little omelette envy, as it truly did look good, with a side of really creamy looked mushrooms, just as advertised.
 |
| Coffee. |
I skipped the juices and smoothie, but had a cup of coffee, black. It was fine.
 | |
| Bakery: Apricot Danish. |
It was warm, which was great. The filling was actually pretty good, sweet fruit, decent apricot flavor. But the danish was not good. Sometimes they are actually decent, flaky, crispy, but this one was soggy and super oily.
 |
| Economy Class Decaf. |
Finally though, he did come back, and not with hot water. He found decaf in economy, certainly just instant, but, heh, that's all I was going to make too. It was ... fine? Needed sweetener for sure.
 |
| Stove: Waffles. |
I took a gamble and went for the waffles, based on three things: 1) I wasn't hungry, so if I didn't actually like it, no big deal, 2) Literally no one was ordering the bacon roll, so, they might know something I didn't, but, also, there would certainly be plenty left if I really wanted one, and 3) I've actually enjoyed the vanilla yoghurt and fruit compote from the breakfast carbs before, if nothing else.
These were the most successful waffles/pancakes/french toast so far.
But ... the waffles were still soggy, not crispy, not lofty ... so not actually good waffles. But they were hot, and I really did like the hearty nature to them from the oats. A nice flavor, even though the texture was off.
The texture wasn't really that noticeable though, as they were smothered in toppings. The vanilla yogurt was again really quite tasty, very sweet, runny style, so not what I'd want a bowl of, but the amount there was quite delightful, almost like having a really loose sweetened cream.
The fruit compote was also quite tasty, plum and cinnamon compote, loaded with bits of fruit, also quite sweet, but, really enjoyable. There was tons of it, and together with the yogurt, it was lovely. It soaked into the waffles extensively, so their soft nature didn't really matter.
And finally, a tiny pot of "vanilla syrup", just really sweet pancake syrup, tasty, but not needed for the waffles since it was already so coated in other toppings.
So, somehow, my 5am, not hungry self essentially polished the waffles off, and did actually enjoy the toppings. Finally ... basically success at hot breakfast carbs?
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