Favorite Restaurant Booked Solid? Fly First Class
Next time you're flying someplace First Class, don't be surprised if you're offered a celebrity chef-designed meal and a wine pairing suggestion from the on-flight sommelier. In the latest effort to lure customers, airlines are touting gourmet menus with meals prepared by big names. Passengers heading to South America or Japan on United Airlines will be privvy to award-winning chef Charlie Trotter's appetizer of sauteed prawns and crispy short rib wontons with organic Thai barbecue sauce and chilled sweet-and-sour cucumber relish. Travelers flying to Europe on American Airlines can feast on rosemary-scented shrimp drizzled with garlic sauce and served with lemon rice and artichokes.
With financial pressures that began with the 2001 terrorist attacks and have only worsened as fuel prices have soared, competition is fierce for airlines to stand apart and build customer interest and loyalty. Still, opting out of the celebrity chef craze will be a money-saving move that airlines could pass on to passengers. Personally, I'd rather bring my own lunch and have a nice meal once I reach my destination, but I suppose there are those who are going to want that organic salad and "Mile High" mojito. Read the full story here.
--AndreaLeigh
cerement on May 13, 2008 at 07:44 PM
Whereas here in the real world, where most of us are stuck traveling in cattle class, the quality of feed is still abysmal. But all is not lost! Now the major American airlines are actually charging you for the privilege of eating their branded crap.
Merry on May 17, 2008 at 03:50 PM
Bringing your own meal really only works for flights six hours or less. If I'm flying from the east coast to Asia, I'm going to want to eat something warm on the plane, so I'm all for improvements in quality.