Business class flyer says they were served a single banana onboard – despite ordering a vegan breakfast in advance

A business class air passenger has revealed the underwhelming vegan meal they were served during a recent flight.

According to Kris Chari, who shared their story on aviation forum Flyertalk, they had ordered plant-based meals in advance of their travels.

But despite reportedly being given advance notice, airline staff didn’t rustle up anything more substantial than a single banana served with a pair of chopsticks.

During the flight from Jakarta Soekarno-Hatta International Airport to Japan, Kris was also served lunch. But this meal also failed to impress, being described as ‘barely seasoned spaghetti’.

Flyer served single banana

Writing on the Flyertalk forum, Kris wrote: “Before take-off today, my flight attendant confirmed that I ordered VGML (Vegetarian Vegan Meal) and that my breakfast was a banana, by which I mistakenly assumed she meant that breakfast included a banana.

“When she served the banana after take-off, I thought it was just an underwhelming appetiser, but it was in fact the entire meal service!”

They continued: “It was a really good banana – one of the best I’ve had recently – but it still seems more appropriate as a snack.

“Lunch was barely seasoned spaghetti and my meals on other Japan Airlines flights were also bad, but nothing was quite as insubstantial this. It was cute of the crew to serve the banana with chopsticks, though.”

Vegan food when flying

While this flyer was left disappointed, an  increasing number of airlines have been serving dedicated vegan dishes in recent years, in line with demand.

Plant-based travel options can be found online via FlyVe, a site created by The Vegan Society in collaboration with Humane Society International.

At its launch in 2019, the Vegan Society said: “Adding vegan options to every standard in-flight menu would mean that all passengers can opt for a more environmentally-friendly meal.

“It would be fantastic to see airlines really embrace the variety and creativity that is possible with vegan recipes, and to create options which are suitable for vegans but appeal to everyone.

“We have launched FlyVe to allow us to see which airlines are flying ahead of the curve, and which could do with some extra support when it comes to embracing plant-based options. We encourage any airline to get in touch for advice and training.”

Featured image courtesy of @Kris_Chari via Flyertalk

If you’re travelling and have to pack your own lunch, create something you’re excited to tuck into by checking out these 16 delicious vegan sandwich fillings that aren’t falafel.