There was a dedicated SpiceBiz counter at the airport, where they gave me my ticket and lounge pass in a smart SpiceBiz sleeve, which I guess I was supposed to flaunt. On board, they welcomed me with watermelon juice, which echoed their signature colour. On my flight out, I was served breakfast. After a brief moment of indecision over the spinach neer masala dosa and the paneer bhurji with subz paratha, I opted for the latter. The food was superb and the accompanying smoothie not too sweet, but then SpiceJet&rsquos F&B has always been a notch above the rest&mdashespecially if you had been wise enough to pre-order your preference. Where the competition offers dehydrated meals, SpiceJet has always served &lsquoreal&rsquo food.
The collapse of Jet Airways has led to a sudden availability of mixed-class aircrafts for lease, leading several domestic airlines to launch a business class on select routes/flights. All you need is a mild bit of branding on the aircraft body, and you&rsquore good to go. Adoption on SpiceJet, which launched its business-class offering on May 11, 2019 seems to have been quick, given how full the business class section of the flight was.
A business-class ticket on SpiceJet comes with complimentary lounge access, gourmet meals and beverages, priority services, and 30kg of check-in baggage allowance. SpiceBiz is expected to be available on select international routes soon. In fact, as the airline ramps up capacity and inducts more B737s, SpiceJet may well become the second biggest business-class operator in India. Based on whether the aircraft is a B737-700, 800 or 900, the airline will offer eight, 12 and 28 business-class seats, respectively. The front row and the over-wing exit rows of the economy cabin will be offered as premium economy seats, tagged as SpiceMax.
On my return flight, I opted for a dinner of stir-fried noodles with chilli garlic chicken. Excellent again. But they need to work on their coffee. The crew too seemed a bit tentative, but will certainly find its feet soon.