London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, May 31, 2025

'I miss airline meals so much I make them at home'

'I miss airline meals so much I make them at home'

Self-confessed aviation geek Nik Sennhauser misses air travel so much that he is recreating the inflight meals he once enjoyed to remind him of good times before the pandemic.

Before Covid, Nik, who lives in Glasgow, would spend much of his free time looking for flight deals.

He loved the airports and airlines experience so much he thought nothing of flying to the US for a weekend trip.

"I once got a flight from Edinburgh to Boston for £150 return," he told BBC Radio Scotland's Our Lives with Michelle McManus.

"I took the Friday off and on the Thursday after work got on a plane and flew there, had some lobster rolls and dipped my feet in the sea - and then got back on a plane."

A United Airlines' chicken and waffles meal
Nik's recreation of the United meal
Nik, from Glasgow, said some people were willing to spend the same amount of money going to the pub.

"Aviation was always part of my life before the pandemic," he added.

One of things he misses the most about international travel are the inflight meals he was served.

"I grew up between Thailand and Austria, so I spent a lot of my childhood on planes and in airports," said Nik.

"My dad was working in Thailand for a multi-national and we went to school in Austria, so every holiday, even if it was just for a weekend, we would fly to Bangkok to see dad.

"The plane was the one place I would eat food without questioning it. At home my mum had to force me to eat vegetables and other foods."

Singapore Airlines' Hainanese chicken and rice
Nik spends hours recreating the meals, serving them in inflight dishes bought online

Nik said the flights he took from Thailand back to Europe were always at night.

"I found it fascinating that you got on a plane at two in the morning and an hour later someone came round and served you a three-course meal.

"It was like a wee performance on the plane.

"It was like entertainment."

Nik's meal on a Japanese ANA flight
The ANA meal recreated in Nik and Graham's kitchen in Glasgow

These days the pandemic has drastically reduced Nik's chances of getting on a plane and tucking into an inflight meal.

"Then one Sunday I was making sausages, eggs and hash browns and thought it looked a bit like a plane meal," said Nik, a business support manager for a Glasgow-based e-commerce start-up.

It was the spark which gave him the idea to recreate meals he had enjoyed on flights all over the world.

"Being a plane geek I have a trolley filled with glasses, plates and cutlery," said Nik, who bought the authentic inflight items online.

Nik said he found desserts the hardest of the foods to make

He now spends Sundays recreating meals for himself and his husband Graham.

Nik bases his creations on photographs he took of inflight meals served on his travels to and from Europe, Asia and the US.

They include lobster thermidor, meat patty and gnocchi, and fried chicken with waffles, roasted potatoes and grilled peaches.

But Nik admitted he enjoyed the eating far more than the preparation of his meals.

"I don't like cooking. It's not my thing," he said.

Sitting down to another of Nik's homemade inflight meals

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Satirical Sketch Sparks Political Spouse Feud in South Korea
Indonesia Quarry Collapse Leaves Multiple Dead and Missing
South Korean Election Video Pulled Amid Misogyny Outcry
Asian Economies Shift Away from US Dollar Amid Trade Tensions
Netflix Investigates Allegations of On-Set Mistreatment in K-Drama Production
US Defence Chief Reaffirms Strong Ties with Singapore Amid Regional Tensions
Vietnam Faces Strategic Dilemma Over China's Mekong River Projects
Malaysia's First AI Preacher Sparks Debate on Islamic Principles
White House Press Secretary Criticizes Harvard Funding, Advocates for Vocational Training
France to Implement Nationwide Smoking Ban in Outdoor Spaces Frequented by Children
Meta and Anduril Collaborate on AI-Driven Military Augmented Reality Systems
Russia's Fossil Fuel Revenues Approach €900 Billion Since Ukraine Invasion
U.S. Justice Department Reduces American Bar Association's Role in Judicial Nominations
U.S. Department of Energy Unveils 'Doudna' Supercomputer to Advance AI Research
U.S. SEC Dismisses Lawsuit Against Binance Amid Regulatory Shift
Alcohol Industry Faces Increased Scrutiny Amid Health Concerns
Italy Faces Population Decline Amid Youth Emigration
U.S. Goods Imports Plunge Nearly 20% Amid Tariff Disruptions
OpenAI Faces Competition from Cheaper AI Rivals
Foreign Tax Provision in U.S. Budget Bill Alarms Investors
Trump Accuses China of Violating Trade Agreement
Gerry Adams Wins Libel Case Against BBC
Russia Accuses Serbia of Supplying Arms to Ukraine
EU Central Bank Pushes to Replace US Dollar with Euro as World’s Main Currency
Chinese Woman Dies After Being Forced to Visit Bank Despite Critical Illness
President Trump Grants Full Pardons to Reality TV Stars Todd and Julie Chrisley
Texas Enacts App Store Accountability Act Mandating Age Verification
U.S. Health Secretary Ends Select COVID-19 Vaccine Recommendations
Vatican Calls for Sustainable Tourism in 2025 Message
Trump Warns Putin Is 'Playing with Fire' Amid Escalating Ukraine Conflict
India and Pakistan Engage Trump-Linked Lobbyists to Influence U.S. Policy
U.S. Halts New Student Visa Interviews Amid Enhanced Security Measures
Trump Administration Cancels $100 Million in Federal Contracts with Harvard
SpaceX Starship Test Flight Ends in Failure, Mars Mission Timeline Uncertain
King Charles Affirms Canadian Sovereignty Amid U.S. Statehood Pressure
Trump Threatens 25% Tariff on iPhones Amid Dispute with Apple CEO
Putin's Helicopter Reportedly Targeted by Ukrainian Drones
Liverpool Car Ramming Incident Leaves Multiple Injured
Australia Faces Immigration Debate Following Labor Party Victory
Iranian Revolutionary Guard Founder Warns Against Trusting Regime in Nuclear Talks
Macron Dismisses Viral Video of Wife's Gesture as Playful Banter
Cleveland Clinic Study Questions Effectiveness of Recent Flu Vaccine
Netanyahu Accuses Starmer of Siding with Hamas
Junior Doctors Threaten Strike Over 4% Pay Offer
Labour MPs Urge Chancellor to Tax Wealthy Over Cutting Welfare
Publication of UK Child Poverty Strategy Delayed Until Autumn
France Detains UK Fishing Vessel Amid Post-Brexit Tensions
Calls Grow to Resume Syrian Asylum Claims in UK
Nigel Farage Pledges to Reinstate Winter Fuel Payments
Boris and Carrie Johnson Welcome Daughter Poppy
×