‘Unlimited’ caviar in first class and refreshed cabins: Emirates touts $2B in upgrades

Emirates, the Dubai-based airline known for luxurious premium cabins and top-notch service, announced today that it plans to invest $2 billion into passenger experience starting this year.

The investment will fund upgraded cabins, new inflight menus and specialized hospitality training for cabin crew, the carrier said.

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In first class, some new meals include pan-fried salmon trout with moqueca sauce and creole rice, and roasted duck breast with orange thyme jus, steamed broccolini and fondant potatoes. Travelers will receive "unlimited" portions of Persian caviar as a benefit of Emirates' famous dine-on-demand service. Plus, they can enjoy the "Cinema in The Sky" service, which will offer fun snack options like edamame, salted popcorn, sliders and even lobster rolls.

New first-class menus will start to roll out this month on select routes. The new menus will come to economy and business class on Sept. 1.

Additionally, Emirates noted that it will add new vegan food options, with sample dishes like "pan-roasted king oyster mushrooms, flavoursome jackfruit biryani and sliced kohlrabi garnished with burnt orange." The airline has dubbed its vegan offerings as "purposefully vegan choices," and travelers in all cabins will be able to order an expanded selection of vegan food.

These new food offerings coincide with Emirates' recent commitment to a more sustainable food supply chain. According to the press release, flights departing Dubai International Airport (DXB) will feature greens grown in Bustanica, the world’s largest vertical farm. This project is a joint venture through Emirates Flight Catering.

Perhaps the most interesting part of Emirates' passenger experience investment is that the airline plans to upgrade the interiors of all classes. Emirates notes that this includes adding premium economy cabins to more than 120 aircraft. The airline said all cabins will receive new or reupholstered seats as well as new paneling, flooring and other features. Emirates stated that aircraft will start to be retrofitted with these improvements in November.

Details are scarce, but we expect that aging aircraft will take priority, as many Emirates planes haven't been refurbished in years.

From the sounds of the press release, these improvements mostly surround the "soft product" while the airline's first-, business- and economy class cabins will remain largely the same. However, we could see Emirates make a surprise announcement down the road with a new cabin design or a branding change. Regardless, these changes are a welcome improvement.

TPG has reached out to Emirates for more information on these refurbished cabins.