Air New Zealand Lounge, Sydney

Of all the airport lounges we've set foot in, one of the most memorable is Air New Zealand's lounge in Sydney. The overall lounge had a very nice clean design and they really made an effort to serve more than the traditional sandwiches, soup, salads and snacks that you see in the lounges.

The food in Air New Zealand's lounge stands out among the rest, and this is comparing it to North American lounges, European lounges and Asian ones as well. Their presentation was nice and they put an effort into serving warm dishes over and above the typical sandwiches, soup and easy to serve items.

There were two things that stood out - the presentation of the food and the hot meals served. In addition to the typical food you would find at an airline lounge, they also had two hot meals served in little chinese lunch take-out boxes. They had a beef bourguignon with garlic mash, and a tuna and vegetable pasta bake the day I was there. Both were really good.

Roast Beef Sandwich, Chocolate Mousse, Mini Blueberry Muffins

Fresh Fruit Salad with Passion Fruit and Mint Garnish

Hot Tuna and Vegetable Pasta Bake