Virgin Atlantic Launches New Onboard Menu for Spring and Summer
The new menu is now available onboard Virgin Atlantic flights across its network
by Lauren Smith
April 6, 2023
Virgin Atlantic greets the warmer weather with a refreshing spring and summer menu featuring seafood tortellini, Pimm’s pudding, iced tea, and rosé. In addition, the airline will mark both Easter and King Charles’ coronation with special treats.
The British carrier’s seasonal menu debuted on April 5 across its network. As usual, the new offering for passengers in the Upper Class cabin steals the show. New additions include a lobster and crab tortellini, a vegetarian poke bowl, and that summer pudding infused with classic British liqueur Pimm’s’a staple of garden parties and boat races.
Still hungry? Passengers in the Upper Class cabin can also order off the Extra Bites menu, which now features a crisp club sandwich made with applewood cheese, house slaw, seasonal leaves, and brown bread, and aloo tikki, served with pepper pakora, a tomato and onion salad, and sweet tomato and chili chutney. Finally, passengers can cleanse their palate with brand-new strawberries and Northern Bloc ice cream flavors.
New additions to the beverage menu in the Upper Class cabin include the Côtes de Provence rosé from Whispering Angel, infused with grapefruit and citrus flavors and served in a chilled glass, and peach iced tea from teapigs.
Further back in the plane, customers in the Premium Economy cabin will choose between chicken pie and spinach & ricotta tortellini with sage butter sauce and a roasted pumpkin and caper panko crumb. In addition, Virgin Atlantic offers a “heavenly” passionfruit and mango cheesecake topped with coconut for dessert.
Economy passengers will receive a barbecue chicken thigh with Portuguese rice and steamed vegetables or a farfalle pasta in spinach ricotta cheese and roasted garlic sauce.
To mark Easter, Virgin will serve Cocoba chocolate “iced lollies” in all cabins on flights departing the United Kingdom for the United States and the Caribbean between April 7 and 10.
King Charles Coronation Special
Virgin Atlantic will also pull out all the stops for a much rarer occasion this spring: Britain’s first coronation in 70 years.
To mark King Charles’ ascension to the throne on May 6, the airline will greet customers in Upper Class with mini bottles of Black Label champagne to toast the new monarch.
Additionally, during the coronation bank holiday weekend from May 6 to 8, Virgin will host a special Mile High Tea in the Upper Class and Premium cabins. Available nibbles will include three finger sandwiches with fillings of dill cream cheese and roasted peppers, cheddar cheese, pickle and mixed leaf, and vegetarian coronation chickpeas.
Tea partiers will also enjoy traditional and patriotic sweet treats, such as a warm scone with clotted cream and strawberry jam and a trio of mini patisseries: a raspberry and rosewater macaroon, a calisson white chocolate and earl grey ganache, and a red, white and blue Battenburg.
Meanwhile, that weekend, customers in all cabins on transatlantic flights from the UK will receive packets of specially created Joe & Seph’s Kings Coronation raspberry and white chocolate coated popcorn.
Virgin also isn’t forgetting the food it serves at sea level and has announced that its London Heathrow Clubhouse lounge is partnering with Full Circle Farms in West Sussex. The community farms use small-scale regenerative farming processes, with no pesticides or herbicides, and are run by volunteers using farming as therapy, including people with autism earning farming qualifications and veterans with PTSD prescribed farm work by their doctors. The farms will provide the Clubhouse fresh fruit, vegetables, and herbs from July.
Corneel Koster, chief customer, and operating officer at Virgin Atlantic, said: “We’re pleased to mark the return of warmer days with an enhanced food and drinks service onboard. At Virgin Atlantic we’re always working to create unique and personal experiences for our customers, and delicious dishes and refreshments never go unnoticed.”
“Delighting our customers is what our teams do best; offering fantastic and extensive choice in our Clubhouse and onboard, with special touches to celebrate momentous occasions. We will continue to develop our offering, to delight our customers as they do business, visit family, or seek the sun.”