Japan Airlines

Intro

Japan Airlines serves meals in every cabin on international flights, usually about an hour after takeoff, mixing Japanese and Western dishes with small sides such as cold soba, salad and fruit. In Economy there’s also a SKY OASIS self-service corner with snacks and chocolates to help yourself to during the flight. On flights from Japan, Economy and Premium Economy passengers can pay to upgrade to a WASHOKU (Japanese) or International Cuisine meal, and Business passengers can pre-order their meal online. Special meals, including halal-certified Muslim meals and low-allergen meals, can be ordered on the JAL website up to 25 hours before departure, or 49 hours for kosher and low-allergen meals.

JAL Meals By Cabin

On a trip from Los Angeles to Tokyo, the first meal was a choice of chicken or beef, served on a red tray with cold soba noodles and dipping sauce, salad, fruit and small side dishes. Two hours before landing came breakfast of scrambled eggs with meat and rice, fresh fruit, yoghurt, and cheese spread with crackers. In between, rice crackers, nuts, Cup Noodles and Japanese sweets were available from the galley. Connecting on to Bangkok in Premium Economy, the choice was Japanese beef curry or chicken teriyaki with rice, with champagne and extra snacks that weren’t offered in Economy, and a corn mayo bread before landing. You can read more about both flights in our Japan Airlines review.

Meals By Route

What’s New

JAL’s Economy menus now include collaboration dishes created with master chefs, and its inflight food is showcased through a partnership with RED U-35, Japan’s competition for young chefs. In Business, the vegan and vegetarian menus are supervised by Chef Yonezawa Fumio on most flights from Haneda and Narita, and JAL now uses eco-friendly cutlery as part of its sustainability push. If you’d rather sleep, the JAL Meal Skip Option lets you tell JAL in advance that you don’t need a meal, and you’ll get a JAL amenity kit instead. Over the years, JAL has also teamed up with brands such as KFC, MOS Burger and Dean & DeLuca on limited-edition Economy meals.

Pre Order Meals

The paid WASHOKU and International Cuisine upgrades can only be bought on the JAL website, either when booking or in Manage Booking, at least 25 hours before departure, and not at the airport. Numbers are limited, and refunds aren’t given unless your flight changes, although you can switch between the two menus. Business pre-orders have the same 25 hour deadline, except on JL30, JL754 and JL774, which close at 48 hours. JAL meals must be eaten during the flight, and while JAL offers hypoallergenic meals, it can’t guarantee any meal is completely free of allergens.

Special Meals

Order special meals on the JAL website under Service Selection (Seat, Meal) at least 25 hours before departure, or through JAL at least 24 hours before. Kosher and minimal allergen meals need 49 hours online or 48 hours by phone. Special meals may not be available on codeshare flights run by other airlines, and some are temporarily unavailable on JL779 from Kona to Narita.

FAQs