Why is this interesting? - The Airline Food Edition

Colin here. Airline food is always a hot topic. There’s been a steady march from the things served in the golden age of air travel—Middle East Airlines would offer hand-carved roasts rolling down the aisle—to the mass-produced slop that you see show up on your tray table today. That is if a passenger even gets a meal, as many carriers have cut them out of economy completely.

According to a deep dive on airplane food in Vox, most dining options were slashed after 9/11:

In the aftermath of 9/11, the industry took a devastating financial hit, and most airlines had to slash costs wherever necessary. One of the first things they cut back on was in-flight meal service. American Airlines completely stopped serving meals for economy passengers on domestic flights, with the exception of nonstop transcontinental routes. Delta and United wouldn’t serve economy meals on flights under four hours. (There were no changes to international flights.)

The normal state for non-premium fliers these days is a snack box or sandwich available for purchase plus the typical fare of soda, coffee, peanuts, and pretzels.

At the front of the plane, however, food is being used as a differentiator. Every airline has chef-selected menus, and the goal is to try to emulate the elevated cuisine that the airlines believe its moneyed passenger typically eats on the ground. More often than not, it is a distant approximation. There are many sites where people meticulously document every aspect of their in-flight meals if you want to follow along at home.

Why is this interesting?

While most of the meals may be gone, the complications of serving food while flying haven’t gone anywhere. There are innumerable interesting challenges that come with the planning of menus and logistics of getting cooked, plated, and served at altitude.

A United chef quoted in the Vox piece said there’s special attention paid to the culinary trends of the day: when people aren’t eating a ton of carbs, menus must change to accommodate. “There’s a lot of forecasting that goes into updating a menu,” Gerry Gulli, corporate executive chef at United explained. “The goal is to anticipate the next big food trend and apply it to menus. In 2019, for example, plant-based foods became very popular … and there’s a growing interest in Mediterranean food.”

In the most expensive first-class cabins, a serious effort is made. On Cathay Pacific, for example, they are trying for a standard that would be considered one Michelin star down on earth. A sample menu looks like:

When it comes to the complexity of the ingredients, the logistics of keeping caviar ready to eat, and even the intricacies of the presentations, the whole thing is quite astounding. All of this has made for a bit of an arms race between the top-tier airlines when it comes to luxury eating. Etihad currently leads the pack by allowing customers in their Residence, a private cabin, pre-order specific things for the bargain price of $15,000 for a one-way from Abu Dhabi to Sydney.

I expect food to remain a battleground for the foreseeable future. For many premium passengers, gone are the days of a feast and a booze-up on the flight. They instead want to adhere to their diets and not dehydrate or overindulge if they are trying to be functional on arrival. As a result, we’ll continue seeing more healthy options like the ones Singapore Airlines offers via its partnership with Canyon Ranch. But, bragging about onboard cuisine is a proxy for the entire experience, and a lot of the considerations from airlines have to be on marketing and perception, as well as the actual customer experience. (CJN)

X of the day:

Via the always-excellent Kottke, a handwashing PSA for this flu season. (NRB)

Quick Links:

So You Want To Eat Snow. Is It Safe? We Asked Scientists (NRB)
Tonight we have a little WITI contributor’s game night happening. We are playing the Tammany Hall board game. To get ready, I’ve been consulting this glossary of criminal slang from 1890-1919. (NRB)
Wondering why HGTV has so many open floor plans? Apparently, guys watching like all the sledgehammers. (NRB)

Thanks for reading,

Noah (NRB) & Colin (CJN)

Why is this interesting? is a daily email from Noah Brier & Colin Nagy (and friends!) about interesting things. If you’ve enjoyed this edition, please consider forwarding it to a friend. If you’re reading it for the first time, consider subscribing (it’s free!).