A full plated meal service on a narrowbody jet is not something most business class passengers expect, but Etihad Airways delivered exactly that on its A321LR operating the Düsseldorf (DUS) to Abu Dhabi (AUH) route. Paul Lucas of "Wingin It" flew the flight in Business Class and came away impressed by the catering, even as the pre-departure lounge left him visibly frustrated.
Düsseldorf Lounge That Didn't Deliver
The experience at Düsseldorf Airport before departure was a notable low point. Lucas noted(0:51) that flight had originally been scheduled for a midnight departure, but the timing shifted in the days before travel. Whatever the hour, the lounge access that came with the Business Class ticket did not impress.
“The lounge behind me is not going to be like that. It's not often I have bad things to say about lounges, but this one really sucks.”
Lucas has reviewed Etihad's ground product before and in the past he had similar critisize. In earlier coverage of the carrier's 787-10 Business Class Studio flying into Abu Dhabi, he flagged a similar pattern of lounge and ground-service shortcomings alongside strong onboard performance. The Düsseldorf lounge serving Etihad appears to follow that same script.
Full Menu, Plated Service on a Single-Aisle Jet
Once airborne, the Etihad product shifted considerably. The main course arrived roughly an hour after takeoff (11:11), and Lucas explained what that represented on a narrowbody aircraft:
“Etihad have retained the full menu and full plated service for the 321, which is honestly great to see.”
The meal began with a veal salad that Lucas described(12:35) as a standout opener. He attributed the dish's character to the route itself, calling it German-inspired and appropriate for a flight departing Düsseldorf. It's always great to see airlines use the local cuisine of the departure to give their catering a unique and special refreshment.
The sequencing of the service, starter followed by a plated main course, tracked closer to what passengers might expect on a widebody long-haul than on a single-aisle regional jet. That gap between expectation and delivery appeared to be the core of Lucas's positive reaction to the catering.
Service Standards and the Arrival Into Abu Dhabi
Beyond the food, Lucas reflected on the cabin crew's performance after the meal service concluded:
“Etihad service standards really impressed me.”
The approach into Zayed International Airport added a visual moment Lucas called out separately: taxiing past Etihad's A380s on the ground left him, by his own account, blown away. The airline still operates the type on select routes, and the sight of the double-deckers from a narrowbody window apparently landed with some weight.
Lucas's overall verdict on the DUS-AUH A321LR product was positive: "Overall, I'm impressed and we're now descending into the UAE". Lucas's title asks whether this is the best narrowbody Business Class in the world, and while he stops short of a definitive ranking, the catering and crew performance are the two pillars he keeps returning to. The lounge in Düsseldorf remains the unresolved weak link in an otherwise strong door-to-door picture.
It's worth noting that just twelve days before this review published, Lucas had examined Etihad's long-haul narrowbody product from a different angle, finding that Etihad delivered a great experience despite an aircraft downgrade on another route. The A321LR on the Düsseldorf run appears to be a more intentional deployment, with the full catering program intact rather than a fallback option.
