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Food on Singapore Airlines

Singapore Airlines menu

A few years ago, there was a website called Airline Meals where users could upload photos of the various foodstuffs they were served on flights. It listed all different airlines, and had both domestic and international flights in all seating classes. It was fun to look at, even if you weren’t traveling! The site gradually faded away as airlines phased out included meals and replaced them with pay snack boxes full of packaged food that is less visually interesting. Thankfully, international flights never phased out their meals. I heard good things about Singapore Airlines, which I recently took to Korea, and looked forward to seeing what the food was like – especially considering I didn’t have a good, recent online reference point to go from.

The photo above is the menu, showing an entirely edible landscape with pasta for tree bark and beans, artichokes and cauliflower as the forest floor. I took it as a good sign.

On the flight out, the food was good but I didn’t have my camera anywhere I could get to it so that I could try to take photos (plus, it was dimly lit so people could sleep). There was a beef stew for the first meal and a steamed fish and veggie dish for the second. The airline offered vegan Indian meal options standard, too. The best part of the first let of the trip from the US to Seoul took almost 13 hours. The food, although good, couldn’t compare with the service on this particular flight, which was exceptional. Juice and water were offered up and down the aisles almost continuously, as were snacks, and the flight attendants were extremely kind and helpful.

I have found that (and this may not be true of business or first classes), the food is usually a bit better when you’re returning to the US than it is when you depart, so I was sure to keep my camera handy for the flight home. The first meal was Korean Chicken with rice, veggies, bread and some sort of curried pasta salad. The chicken was very tender and in a sweet sauce with mushrooms and a few other veggies. It was really tasty and I was glad I only had a small snack in the airport.

Korean Chicken

Speaking of snacks, the mid-flight snacks were stuffed-bun sandwiches, which is to say that they were soft rolls with either a meat or vegetarian filling. I tasted a curry salad, tuna salad and chicken salad. All were reasonably tasty and made a nice light snack, along with Kettle Chips and some cookies. No photos here, as the lights in the plane had been turned out so people could sleep. The dessert was an individually sized portion of Red Carpet Cheesecake ice cream (a.k.a. strawberry cheesecake) that had bits of both fruit and real cheesecake in it!

Kimchi fried rice

The last meal I had on the airline was breakfast, as the flight landed right around noon. There was a scrambled egg option, but I went for the kimchi fried rice. It didn’t have a stong kimchi flavor, but was still tasty and reminded me of some of the food I ate in Seoul. It was served with laver (seaweed), which the rice could be wrapped in, fresh fruit, bread and some strawberry yogurt. Not the most exciting dish to look at, but I would certainly eat it again.

Kimchi fried rice

Overall, I would say that the food was very good and the service – especially on the flight out to Seoul – was excellent and I had a great experience with Singapore. I’m glad I could share a little of the food. The next time I fly, I’ll be sure to keep my camera handy!

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13 Comments
  • Anna
    October 13, 2009

    Yes, my dream in life is to fly Singapore Airlines First Class, but based on your experience, I’ll settle for coach. Nice job with the documenting and the pictures, especially considering the lighting. Glad the Red Carpet ice cream didn’t taste like its name. The meat filled buns sounds good right now too.

  • C(h)ristine
    October 13, 2009

    I personally

  • C(h)ristine
    October 13, 2009

    ack! what happened to the rest of my comment? I wanted to say that I personally LOVE the bibimbap served on Korean Airlines (Asian Airlines also serves bibimbap). I’ve travelled a lot, I’ve travelled in first class and coach, and there is no better airline food.

  • Hanna
    October 13, 2009

    Thanks for the photos! I got a kick out of seeing all those Korean brands in your meals (especially the Cled’or ice cream and Maeil’s ‘Bioghurt’ yogurt).

  • Daniel
    October 13, 2009

    We’re flying to Seoul next on Singapore Airlines, hope the food is as good as it looks in your photos!

  • Teresa
    October 14, 2009

    In May of 1999 I took Singapore airlines from LA to Malaysia and had great food both going and returning. I could have just stayed on the plane and enjoyed great chicken satay for days going all around the globe. And don’t forget the fresh hot towels!

  • Eleana
    October 14, 2009

    Asian airlines have SO much better food-options than the American ones. The first time I flew British airways, I was appalled, since I’d only taken China Airlines and Eva Airlines before.

    Also, NEVER get the egg option for breakfast. The egg is always horribly dry. Stick with the “Asian breakfast” as they call it …

  • Dianna
    October 14, 2009

    It’s true that Airlines in the States don’t have a clue about serving good airline food. Even on international flights, the US carriers can’t compare. I’ve never flown Korean Air, but British Airways and South African Air did not disappoint. Although Ethiopian air is another story… 🙂 Great post. THANKS for a good read.

  • Gemma @ Distracted Gourmet
    October 14, 2009

    I get so excited about airline food… I’m glad I’m not the only one!

  • Monica
    October 16, 2009

    I have not been in Singapore Airlines but heard about it many times. I am bored of having food in US Airlines. I have seen on Internet also that US airlines serve the worst food and have the least comfortable seats, a new study has found. In a new survey by SeatGuru.com, American Airlines, United Airlines and U.S. Airways were voted the worst, reports The Daily Telegraph. The only stand-out, US carrier Continental, was voted as having good in-flight fare and comfortable seats.

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    April 15, 2010

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  • travesti
    May 18, 2010

    I’m glad I’m not the only one!

  • travesti
    May 18, 2010

    It’s true that Airlines in the States don’t have a clue about serving good airline food.

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