When Virgin Australia announced in June 2024 they were launching new business class meals I just had to try them. With Qantas and Virgin Australia the only two airlines flying domestically in Australia, there isn’t much competition and the bar for food is not particularly high since Covid. Virgin Australia has been shaking things up by offering a solid food product up against Qantas’ business class food and so I was interested to see what the new Virgin Australia business class Sydney to Melbourne food menu was now serving.
Main Meal Service – Virgin Australia Business Class Sydney to Melbourne
Once boarding was finished, and before takeoff, the cabin manager made an announcement to business class introducing herself and announcing dinner options and taking pre-take off drink orders (water or sparkling). Interestingly the cabin manager announced this meal was dinner, even though it was a 4.30pm flight. The two options being served were a butter chicken or a cheese tortellini with tomato and pesto. I chose the butter chicken which was served with a packet of cheese and crackers and a small chocolate. The butter chicken was served with rice and a small Lebanese bread. I thought the Lebanese style bread was a weird choice for the dish – why not a roti or a poppadom? The bread was extremely dry by the time it was served. There were about 6 small pieces of chicken and the dish was about 1/3 butter chicken and 2/3 rice. The butter chicken dish was delicious – the sauce was really flavoursome.
Nutrition comment
This meal really needed some vegetables. The green flavourings in the rice are a start but a side salad or 1-2 spoonfuls of cooked vegetables in the dish are definitely needed to enhance this meal. There was also too much rice – the dish wasn’t very balanced with approx. two thirds rice and one third meat/sauce. While the flavourings in the rice were a nice touch and would have contributed small amounts of nutrients to the dish, it really needed more substantial vegetable component to make it a standout dish.
Final thoughts on Virgin Australia Business Class Sydney to Melbourne
The meal on Virgin Australia Business Class Sydney to Melbourne was a flavoursome meal which I enjoyed, however there were improvements that could be made. The meal definitely needed vegetables, not only for packing a nutrient punch when in the air but also for flavour. For the price of the ticket the meal wasn’t too bad as I didn’t find the overall meal experience much different from it’s more expensive competitor in Qantas.
When flying Virgin Australia check out the reviews of Virgin Australia lounges in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane.
