Emirates’ first-class caviar ‘scoffing’ soars, Sydney among top routes

Emirates’ first-class passengers are spooning up caviar in greater proportions than last year, the Dubai-based airline has revealed. It helps that the supply of Siberian sturgeon caviar is unlimited in the resplendent front-of-the-plane cabin.

The airline says it has recorded a 30 per cent jump in caviar consumption year-on-year.

And the routes eating the most of the expensive fish egg delicacy – which can retail at $1300 for 500 grams – are on flights between Dubai and London, followed by between Dubai and Paris.

The next most caviar-hungry route is between Dubai and Sydney, Emirates says.

“The Sydney-Dubai leg is 14 hours long, so the sort of people who can afford a first-class fare are also the sort of people who appreciate caviar, and who appreciate experiences that will help the time fly,” Sydney-based food critic Terry Durack said.

“I had caviar three times on the long leg, and my tip is to order a bowl of potato crisps as well and scoop up your caviar with them. Saves filling up on all those blinis.”

The caviar farmed from Siberian sturgeon, or Acipenser baerii, is “medium-sized, ranging in colour from dark grey to brown or black”, Emirates said.

The species of sturgeon is native to the Siberian river systems flowing into the Arctic Ocean, which include the Ob, Lena, and Yenisei rivers, although, today, Siberian sturgeon caviar is farmed in Europe, China and even the United Arab Emirates.

It has a “smooth, clean taste with a delicate texture and mild briny flavour”.

After the Dubai-Sydney flights, Emirates flights between Moscow and Bangkok had the most caviar gobblers.

Following Russia’s full-scale invasion of neighbour Ukraine in February 2022, the airline is among the few major Gulf carriers that continue flights to Moscow, where drone attacks have occasionally disrupted airport operations.

Emirates says the caviar is rinsed with water, salted, vacuum-packed into tins, pasteurised and stored in a chiller before being delivered to its supplier.

Durack said: “People like me actually think they are ‘getting their money’s worth’ by scoffing as much caviar as possible in the time available.

“To be flying through the air cushioned in comfort and able to order a full caviar service with all the trimmings, and a glass of Dom Perignon 2015 is blow-your-mind material,” said Durack, the former chief food critic for The Sydney Morning Herald, who now contributes to the masthead.

“By trimmings, I mean chopped egg, chopped onion, chives, sour cream, lemon, blinis and crackers, and a mother-of-pearl spoon for serving.”

“Emirates’ caviar is available to all first-class customers, across all global routes as a complimentary service,” the company says.

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