Where do Air New Zealand's lollies land them in the airlines snacks menu. Photo / CC
Where do Air New Zealand's lollies land them in the airlines snacks menu. Photo / CC
News that Air New Zealand is mixing up its in-flight snacks was met with great delight.
Second only to takeoff, it is the moment the catering trolley wheels along the galley that all travellers look forward to the most.
We're not talking chicken, beef and tinfoil trays. The global nature of long-haul flights mean that most of the airlinemeals are cooked in the same kitchens and, in all honesty, are now something of a rarity.
It is the choice of complimentary snack that sets carriers apart.
It has to be local to the route, not too messy and stand out among the competition.
Cookies have been a long-time staple of Air NZ. Photo / CC,Flickr.com
The choice of snack is not a paltry one. It took Air New Zealand six-weeks, 100 flights and more than 7,000 customers to choose the final menu. They're a picky bunch.
"We're keen to showcase the best of what Aotearoa has to offer," said GM of Customer, Leeanne Langridge.
The new treats you can look forward to on Air New Zealand will include popcorn, crisps, muesli bars and chocolate.
Cathay's complimentary cup of noodles is a crowd-pleaser. As a warm snack, the ramen is in a league of its own. Just add boiling water and you've got instant Kowloon comfort.
KLM
The Stroopwafel is as Dutch as a pair of wooden clogs, but far more appetising. A caramel sandwich, between two buttery wafer biscuits. We'll take one with a cup of coffee, alstublieft!
Pretzels. Not everyone is a fan. Salty, crunchy, joyless biscuits. You may wonder whose idea it was to put these dehydrating snacks in a passenger cabin. Until, that is, when paired with Warstiner beer. Schmeckt das!
There's nothing more American than apple pie. Apart from maybe a Biscoff biscuit. The cookies are a staple of American Airways. Delta is also a supporter of the biscuit dunker. Dependably bland. If they hadn't been on planes since the mid-1980s, one wonders if the airline misread the brief for "plain food"?
Air France
A croissant? Bien sur, but only with a choice of pastry in the morning. Air France has a changing menu with a cold sandwich for midday, and a savoury or sweet treat in the afternoon. Something that Air New Zealand is looking to emulate on early routes.
¿Has probado los #alfajores? ¿Cuáles son tus favoritos: dulce de leche, mermelada, chocolate? ¡Qué difícil! 😬😋
LATAM's condensed cream biscuit sandwiches are world famous in South America. Dulce de leche Alfajores are shots of sugar with crumbly shortbread biscuit.
Simple, classy and understatedly iconic. (Though, perhaps lacking imagination.) Swiss Air would be missing a trick if it didn't serve up the squares of chocolate. The unofficial food of the Confédération Helvétique. No Toblerone though. Duty free has cornered that market.
Poetically translated as the "Sky Oasis" - or more directly from the kanji characters as "self-service corner" - Japanese Airlines offers a grab-bag of individually wrapped snacks. Depending on your familiarity with Japanese you could score yourself anything from a boiled lolly to a handful of crunchy fermented soybeans. Joy!
Achiras cheese biscuits might seem like a rogue choice for the Colombian national airline, but wait until you try them. There's something extremely moreish about these crackers made from Achira corn flour.
