Airplane food is notoriously questionable, with most people struggling to enjoy their mid-flight meals.
But a shocked travel blogger claims she was served the ‘worst plane meal’ of all time – a ‘monstrous’ macaroni and cheese topped with prawns and ‘slimy’ mushrooms for breakfast.
Nicola Easterby, from south-east London, decided to book a last-minute flight from Britain to Australia with her husband James to surprise her family with a visit over the Christmas holidays.
The 29-year-old was struggling to find tickets from London to Brisbane under £1,200 when she came across a cheap one-way ticket on China Eastern Airline from Rome to Brisbane for £500.
From ‘bad-smelling’ fish pie to a mysterious dessert, she documented every meal she was served during the 28-hour journey, without missing a beat.
Nicola Easterby, from South East London, decided to book a last-minute flight from Britain to Australia with her husband James to surprise her family with a visit over the Christmas holidays
After a mini-vacation to Rome, where the couple indulged in tasty Italian delicacies, nothing could have prepared them for the four plates they encountered along the way.
Nicola said: ‘Guys, it’s official. This was the worst airplane food I’ve ever had.’
After a rough start to the flight, with the entertainment units broken for the first four hours, the couple were served meal number one.
Nicola and James were served a ‘bad smelling’ tuna pie, accompanied by vegetable couscous and a pear and ricotta crumble, which she said was the only ‘completely edible’ part of their dinner.
She told viewers: “I tell you what, it tasted worse than what it looked,” before giving it a measly two out of ten.
The travel blogger added: ‘Of all the things you can serve on a plane, the smell was so bad.
‘The couscous salad was one of the saddest things I had seen in my life. It was just couscous with frozen vegetables and black olives.
“The only completely edible part of the meal was this pear ricotta crumble, which wasn’t even tasty, it was just a lot better than everything else.”
The worst food combination came when they had their last breakfast and were given a plate of a “monstrous” mac and cheese with shrimp on top and “slimy” mushrooms.
Nicola added: ‘The couscous salad was one of the saddest things I had seen in my life. It was just couscous with frozen vegetables and black olives’
She told viewers: “I tell you what, it tasted worse than what it looked,” before rating the fish pie a measly two out of ten.
The pair were then left without a single bite for eight hours before being served more questionable meals.
However, the worst food combination came when they were given their last breakfast and were given a plate of ‘monstrous’ mac and cheese with shrimp on top and ‘slimy’ mushrooms, of which Nicola couldn’t eat more than a bite.
Although the travel and food content creator admits she wasn’t expecting big things from the meals on offer, she didn’t think she’d be left hungry.
Nicola said: ‘The last meal was the worst of all. It was our breakfast. We had mac and cheese topped with shrimp and slimy mushrooms.
“I think I took a bite and thought, ‘No, I can’t actually do this.’ It was a monstrosity. While this would be bad at any time of the day, I couldn’t think of anything worse for breakfast.
‘My husband ate the whole thing, he was so hungry. At that moment he ate everything, but I didn’t.’
She added: ‘There was another strange artificial desert and a tasteless watermelon.
‘I’ve had really bad airplane meals before, but this was definitely the worst. Now we understand why they were so cheap.’
Commenting on the macaroni and cheese, she said: ‘My husband ate everything, he was so hungry. At that moment he ate everything, but I couldn’t’
By the time “breakfast” was served about eight hours later, he was upset when confronted with noodles and a pasta salad
Shocked by what she had experienced, the blogger, who runs travel blog Polka Dot Passport, posted the video online with the caption: ‘I’m still shocked by that breakfast at the end’
The couple’s first flight took them from Rome to Shanghai, with a five-hour layover before boarding a second plane to get to Australia.
Recalling the second meal on the first flight, Nicola explained that they were starving after the first meal of a tuna fish pie and couscous salad – by the time ‘breakfast’ was served about eight hours later, they were distressed when confronted noodles and a pasta salad.
She noted, “I thought the salad part of the meal couldn’t be worse than that couscous salad, but I was proven wrong.
“These pork noodles were definitely more edible than the fish pie, but at this point my standards were so low.”
After the stopover, the blogger was “nervous” to see what food awaited her on the second trip.
But things started off well with a shrimp and potato salad and chicken edamame noodles, which she admitted was “probably the best meal of the day.”
However, when it came to the mystery dessert, the couple couldn’t even identify what it was.
Travel blogger Nicola said: ‘I’ve had really bad plane meals before but this was definitely the worst. Now we understand why they were so cheap’
After the stopover, the blogger was “nervous” to see what food awaited her on the second trip
The second flight started off well with a shrimp and potato salad and chicken edamame noodles, which she admitted was “probably the best meal of the day.”
She added: ‘The only completely edible part of the meal was this pear ricotta crumble, which wasn’t even tasty, it was just a lot tastier than anything else’
Stunned by what she had experienced, the blogger, who runs travel blog Polka Dot Passport, posted the video online with the caption: “I’m still shocked by that breakfast at the end.”
She concluded: ‘I didn’t complain to the airline because I knew what I was getting into, but it was funny how bad it really was.
“If anyone is going to fly China Eastern, I would say just pack your own snacks.
“Honestly, we had the roomiest economy seats I’ve ever sat in. But in terms of food, I became very sad after 28 hours.
“After we landed, it was just great to be able to have a nice meal with my family.
‘My father made a roast leg of lamb, which was fantastic. He’s a very good cook, but in the end everything would get better.’
China Eastern was repeatedly contacted for comment but did not respond.