April 28, 2022
How much does catering for private jet cost? It’s never been cheap, but industry executives say it sometimes borders on ridiculous.
The old saying, “If you have to ask the price, you probably can’t afford it,” may need to be rephrased for private jet catering.
Regarding private jet catering, you may want to have a Plan B.
According to a LinkedIn post, charter broker Ironbird Partners was quoted $177.05 for a Grilled Chicken Sandwich Box on a flight departing Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
Its Managing Director, Daniel Harris, posted the catering bill as a quiz.
He asked if respondents could guess how much he was being asked to pay.
However, he gave the spoiler in the comments section.
Another poster responded with an invoice for $373 for three orders of scrambled eggs, bacon, sliced avocado, and berry cups.
There was also a pint of real cream, disposable napkins, silverware, plates, and a 32-ounce thermos of coffee.
Jet The World COO Julien Vernet commented, “I’ve had it with catering. It’s always underwhelming and insanely overpriced. I’m at a point where I hesitate to even offer it because the risk of disappointing the client is so high.”
Solairus Aviation CEO Dan Drohan added, “Sadly, ANY of the available answers are unconscionable. However, until our industry finally agrees we’ve had enough and we stop allowing it, there will be no change.”
According to the quote, the final price was based on the actual sandwich box, which was $51.98, a $16.95 airport fee, vendor sales tax of $8.11, and a $100 service fee.
Total cost of $177.05.
There were no additional charges for disposable set-ups or delivery fees.
Tailwind Air Aircraft Dispatcher John Carlos Gallego added, “We have always asked our flight attendant to prepare small cheese plates or muffin baskets when no catering is ordered. When there is a catering order, we check with local delis close to the crew rest hotel and avoid the airline caterers whenever possible. You would be surprised how helpful the FBO will be in securing local catering at a much cheaper price.”
He relayed, “It’s hard to add $2,000 to a bill for catering when all that was ordered are eight green salads with grilled chicken and a couple of bottles of Kendall Jackson wine. Many SoCal caterers and ski country will charge outrageous prices.”
Harris tells Private Jet Card Comparisons that he ultimately secured a similar boxed lunch for $67.
According to Flight Kitchens, “Since 2019, we have successfully delivered 21,000+ catering transactions to 3,407 airports in five countries.”
Its website lists its mission as making “ordering inflight catering anywhere else unacceptable for flight departments who value quality products, integrity, quality, convenience, and personal service.”
The catering service says, “You can find us at the corner of corporate jets and great food.”
One commenter quipped, “Better be a really good chicken sandwich.”
A representative of Flight Kitchens provided a brief response.
She said a Los Angeles-based private jet caterer owns the company.
Flight Kitchens offers a network of vetted caterers that service private aviation.
Brokers and operators tap their network of third-party kitchens to arrange the requested catering.
She said the $100 fee covers the time and staffing costs of sourcing a caterer from its network and tracking the order, including follow-up.
That includes tracking special requests.
It also means confirming orders with the kitchen the day before departure.
Flight Kitchens follows up on the day of departure to ensure the catering is delivered.
The representative added there are differences between restaurant catering and professional private jet catering.
She cited food safety procedures.
Orders must be transferred from where they are being prepared to an FBO and stored until the flight crew picks them up.
She said private jet caterers typically use different preparation and packaging techniques than restaurants.
Additionally, the private jet catering kitchens Flight Kitchens uses must pass health inspections and have insurance.
Regarding the LinkedIn post, she declined to comment and said she would refer our request to a company executive.
However, there was no further response.
READ: How bad are private jet price increases?
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