Cathay Pacific has long had a fine business class product, where their hard product has been industry leading. Unfortunately neither Jason or I had great things to say about Cathay Pacific’s catering – while we both thought it was fine (as the food is usually good), none of us thought that Cathay Pacific was anywhere close to an award-winning soft product. That’s fine for most people, as everyone just goes to sleep, but their prices are usually astronomical, which heightens our expectations.
Cathay Pacific Business Class Dining
I guess this is recognised, because Cathay Pacific has officially started trialling dine-on-demand on flights from Hong Kong to London Gatwick and Chicago.
Here’s a video that Jason originally spotted a while ago, but we haven’t felt comfortable to post until now, as the airline has kept the video as unlisted on YouTube:
As Jason has pointed out, most of Cathay Pacific’s flights may appear as slightly understaffed, which may induce stress on flight attendants working dine-on-demand flights, though on the whole it’s nice to see Cathay Pacific invest in their product. According to the video (which was filmed on an A350 from Hong Kong to London Gatwick), the process seemed organised, so I’m hoping the efficiency of this concept can actually be put in practice on all flights. The food quality does seem better in the video as well.
Cathay Pacific Airbus A350-900 Business Class
The rollout will continue in the third quarter of 2017, where the concept will be spread to other longhaul flights across North America and Europe.
I’d certainly appreciate a nice meal on a Cathay Pacific flight, though I’d rather wait 30 minutes for an average meal compared to an hour and a half for a great meal, especially on a nighttime flight. Also, long waiting times kind of devours the efficiency-focused process that dine-on-demand is supposed to represent. Sure, the new service requires food being plated at the galley as well, so there’s some extra change in food quality on that front, but efficiency is still pretty important on a plane.
I’m going to be flying on a dine-on-demand serviced flight for the first time in July, so I’ll be able to see how the concept is executed there. I hope to be scheduled in business class on one of Cathay Pacific’s routes equipped with dine on demand, so I can see how the concept is executed in practice.
Cathay Pacific Airbus A350-900 Hong Kong Airport
Bottom Line
I wish Cathay Pacific luck with their dine-on-demand routine, and will be on the lookout for reviews regarding their service over the weekend. Ultimately I feel like there will be a learning curve, but I hope this will be a worthy enhancement for business class passengers booked on Cathay Pacific in the future.
Have you tried Cathay Pacific’s new dine on demand service?