Qantas has shown the menu for it's groundbreaking London to Perth flights. The flights are a fantastic new option to cut out an unwanted stopover to get down under by some of the million or so passengers who fly from the UK to Australia each year, and to go with it there are jet lag friendly menu for its Perth to London 787 Dreamliner flight.
The shiny new 787-9 Dreamliner marks a milestone in the evolution of the Kangaroo Route, but body-clock breakdown on the 17-hour flight is likely to be the biggest problem.
The airline's celebrity chef, Neil Perry, says the new menus combined research from the University of Sydney's Charles Perkins Centre with in house experience of the Qantas and Rockpool teams to create dishes that encourage sleep at optimal times during the flight.
The new Qantas 787 London to Perth economy and business class menus are likely to be rolled out across other long-haul flights in the future.
"Working with clinical sleep specialists, nutritionists and metabolic scientists, we've designed new menu options using delicious ingredients that have added benefits of hydration, aiding sleep and reducing jetlag," said Mr Perry.
Qantas says it has taken chilli out of the overnight snack menu items, available from the walk-up snack bar, because chilli is associated with some degree of sleep deprivation. However, it is considering adding chilli to say its breakfast omelette.
"The menu we are trialling on the Perth to London route will continue to offer a selection of customer favourites but it has some special ingredient additions and exclusions."
Highlights of the new inflight menu in Business Class includes
Roast English beef with Yorkshire pudding, peas and onion gravy.
Poached eggs with kale, quinoa, grilled haloumi, pistachios, seeds and herbed tahini dressing
Tuna poke salad with wakame and sesame soy dressing.
Seared Cone Bay barramundi with herbed garlic potatoes, broccolini, lemo, olive and almond sala
There will also be Probiotic infused Botanica cold pressed juice shots
A bespoke herbal tea, which encourages relaxation developed especially for Qantas by Dilmah, made from lemon verbena chamomile and lemongrass
A hot chocolate bedtime drink with the combination of warm milk and chocolate containing the sleep inducing amino acid Tryptophan to help prompt the body's sleep cycle
Organic kombucha by Remedy: a live cultured, sparkling drink full of natural probiotics that assist with digestion.
Qantas' Boeing 787 Business Class seats are in a 1-2-1 layout, with new privacy screens, and the exterior armrests can be moved down for a quick getaway without having to retract your tray table, which conveniently slides away into the side.
There is a water bottle holder, with new bottle of water on take-off, a holder for the noise cancelling headphones, plus space for your laptop and magazines or newspapers. There are two lights - one for reading, one overhead, plus an international electricity socket, and a USB port. IFE has a huge 16-inch scrollable touchscreen.
At the back of the Qantas 787 in economy, meals include:
Tomato and mushroom puff pastry tart with corn salsa in Premium Economy.
Salad of cumin spiced beef with zucchini, corn and a citris dressing.
Chicken with red rice, roasted Mediterranean vegetables, soya beans and thyme jus.
There are special crockery, cutlery and glassware that weighs on average 11 per cent less for the Qantas Boeing 787.
Qantas' new premium economy seat is installed on the 787, which sits in its own cabin of four rows with a 2-3-2 seating layout, and a seat pitch of 38 inches. There is a special 'hold your mobile' clip on a very strong 'break your screen' spring.
The Qantas 787 economy class seats are in a 3-3-3 layout, unlike the wider 2-4-2 configuration which the 787 was designed for, and which some operators have ordered.
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