I first flew on EK in 2013 LHR-DXB-PEK//HKG-LHR-DXB. All A380s and all pretty new at the time too, thought the service was excellent, the best airline I had flown on at the time. Didn't think much of DXB, still don't, but the airline was flawless in Y class IMO.
Since then I have flown on many other carriers. I can only really compare them to QR in terms of direct competition, both of which I have used out of EDI on long haul in Y class in the last 12 months. The meals on EK have gone downhill and the overall attitude of the crew on all 4 of my EK flights last month was not great. Smiles were certainly few and far between and the response time to call bells (even outside of meal service times when the crew are not as busy or trying to p
push carts around) left a lot to be desired. QR crew have been the complete opposite. Some of them spoke to me more than my own family did and the service was always top notch. One thing I did like was that the EK IFE featured complete series or several films from the same franchise, where as QR tended to only have random mid-season episodes or the second film out of a trilogy for example. QR had more choice over all though, so it's really just a matter of personal taste. Cabins on QR appear more modern, however I have been on some tired looking 330, 340 and 777s out of DOH too.Both EK 777s I've had out of EDI have been dated, but I've also had a newer 777 on the BKK route, which was nice. EKs 380s are still like new IMO. QR offer more than EK does portion wise and tended to come round more with snacks and refreshments in between meals, although some of the offerings I have had on QR have left me wishing I'd brought my own food, especially when it comes to breakfast, which I think they fail on massively. EK was a lot more palatable when the breakfast service came round.
That said, I do think they have gone down hill. I think perhaps even Finnair offered a better service. EK still beat any US and most European carriers hands down.
I have had a few TK flights this year too, only short haul, but I may be using them for a long haul towards the end of the year, so it will be interesting to compare them. The short haul flights have all been fantastic. Food, baggage and IFE on inter-Europe flights is wonderful. Even on domestic flights inside Turkey a free hot snack and drinks is served in Y, which is very rare these days.