Airline vegetarian food!

[Joanbunting Profile]

On Monday I flew BA from Washington to Heathrow.

I am not a veggie but I often eat veggie food and after the horrors of the food on the outward journey to Nassau I decided to go down the veggie route. Unfortunately I dont eat many wheat products especially when travelling (I loathe pasta!)so I tried to request a wheat-free vegetarian meal.

You can guess what I got - pasta!

The steward said it was not possible to order two options at once and was more or less told to like it or lump it.

I lumped it but I did wonder what anyone with real dietary problems might do on a long haul flight.

The "standard" meals were a choice of beef - inedible with the plastic cutlery provided or.......... pasta!!

How do veggies cope? Any thoughts?

[Stokey Sue Profile]

The last veggie meal I had on a plane was BMI to Berlin (admittedly business class)
I hadn't pre-ordered, but the non-veg turned out to be tarragon chicken (good apparently) - not massively keen on chicken, can't do tarragon

So I had the veggie "mushroom stroganoff" which was fantastic, a huge portion of mixed mushrooms in a very good sauce, my only reqret was I expected it to be bland & creamy & asked for white wine, red would have gone better

The steward said it was not possible to order two options at once and was more or less told to like it or lump it.

That is ridiculous! How did you order it? If online, it should have not let you tick two boxes, if by phone they should have said.

[Joanbunting Profile]

Hi Sue

The BA website did let me tick two boxes and we were travelling world traveller plus (whatever that might mean!!)

My SIL who does the trip at least once a month says that Virgin is much much better.

Have to say that on the London-Paris leg - business class - we got a most tasty snack and the food and drinks in the BA lounge were excellent.

I just felt for anyone who really couldn't eat anything on offer on the long flight.

[Stokey Sue Profile]

I used to use the all-business London Paris flight that came back about 18:00

They used to give ypu an assortment of lttle crustless triangular sandwiches - the standard was one smoked salmon, one pate, one egg & cress and one (?) cream cheese - but you could have a veggie plate I am pretty sure

Brilliantly simple - worked equally as afternoon tea with a cuppa, or as canapes with a G&T!

Virgin Atlantic is much better food than BA, but cheer up - it could have been my bete noir, American Airline who never knowingly serve anything edible, focussing on dried out pizza, veg or non-veg (not sure how you tell the difference )

[Joanbunting Profile]

Hi Sue

What really astonished me was that on all(?) internal flights in America - including to Hawaii no food at all is served or available. So Nassau to Washington - nowt, except a very expensive g&t. S-I-L who travels almost every week says it is a real pain.

Thinkong that perhaps this thread might be better off elsewhere on the board - what do you think?

[jeral Profile]

Given it was a leg of BA I think they should be told that it's not acceptable to offer wheat if the option was "gluten free" as it can be life threatening in some or can set recovery (intestinal villi) back for ages. The USA has a coeliac organisation (spelt celiac) and to me offering pasta is inexcusable (I assume it was wheat as can make pasta from corn). Some people are allergic to wheat though not in a long term way if eaten as far as I know.

As to what to eat long haul, tricky. Nuts and raisins would be a backstop (assuming no nut allergy). Do they not offer little pots of fruit? There must be some food that's unadulterated, or if not, then there should be *stamps foot* Can a passenger take his own food on internal flights?

I think you ask a valid question, so I'd ask the people at BA what they'd eat when "boxes are ticked"... I assume your flight wasn't exactly economy but it shouldn't matter even if it had been.

[Stokey Sue Profile]

In the US you are expected to take your own food on internal flights

There is a little mini mall of a fast food outlets round departures, and the smell of pizza in the waiting area at the gate can be overwhelming.... not a lot of choice for vegetarians, apart from a careful selection of pizza toppings

But that's not what narks me about US internal flights Oh no. What annoy sme is tha they are allowed stupid amounts of carry on (drag on) baggage, and all these short fat women stand in the aisles , preventign you from getting on the plane as they have a suitcase on wheels about hteir own siz, and htey can't get it into the locker unaided.

And when all of this is sorted, there is a pause while they ask for volunteers to be "bunped off" - (I don't understand how this can happen after seat allocation)

[Global_Worming Profile]

In the US you are expected to take your own food on internal flights

There is a little mini mall of a fast food outlets round departures, and the smell of pizza in the waiting area at the gate can be overwhelming.... not a lot of choice for vegetarians, apart from a careful selection of pizza toppings

But that's not what narks me about US internal flights Oh no. What annoy sme is tha they are allowed stupid amounts of carry on (drag on) baggage, and all these short fat women stand in the aisles , preventign you from getting on the plane as they have a suitcase on wheels about hteir own siz, and htey can't get it into the locker unaided.

And when all of this is sorted, there is a pause while they ask for volunteers to be "bunped off" - (I don't understand how this can happen after seat allocation)

SS dont knock being Bumped Off, if the airline has overbooked and the wiff of litigation is in the air grab the opportunity with both hands if you are not in a hurry.We got a suite in the Four Seasons, free food and a cab to Newyork and back + an upgrade 4 yrs ago.

[Stokey Sue Profile]

SS dont knock being Bumped Off, if the airline has overbooked and the wiff of litigation is in the air grab the opportunity with both hands if you are not in a hurry.We got a suite in the Four Seasons, free food and a cab to Newyork and back + an upgrade 4 yrs ago.

I know all that but the point is - why not do it at the check in desk as happens in the rest of the owrld, why make everyone (maybe 300 people) who is on the flight sit on the tarmac while 3 others retreive their luggage & get off? I have missed runway slots while this idiotic & inefficient farce goes on - and when travellinf for business I am hardly in the market for bumping

I think the way it is done in the US would actually infringe EU regulations

[efcliz Profile Website]

We flew with Turkish Airlines recently to Vietnam - a long time in the air - and were really impressed. I ordered the Jain meal and Matthew ordered the Asian vegetarian meal (I am not a Jain but suspected that the vegan offering might be salad based). All our meals and snacks arrived and although you might think they'd be tempted to give us the same, Matthew's included dairy butter and paneer. This is a list of meal options http://www.turkishairlines.com/en-uk/se ... needs.aspx Highly recommended.

[Joanbunting Profile]

Stokey Sue wrote

"I know all that but the point is - why not do it at the check in desk as happens in the rest of the owrld, why make everyone (maybe 300 people) who is on the flight sit on the tarmac while 3 others retreive their luggage & get off? I have missed runway slots while this idiotic & inefficient farce goes on - and when travellinf for business I am hardly in the market for bumping

I think the way it is done in the US would actually infringe EU regulations"

I totally agree. I was astonished to see the size of some of the passengers and their luggage. I assumed they would not be vegetarians but when GD told me that macaroni cheese was counted as a vegetable in the US I began to understand.

We just loved it when one of the lardies who had stuffed his "carry-ons" in the locker ahead got up after take-off to retrieve a snack and had the whole lot drop on his head!!

[efcliz Profile Website]

I totally agree. I was astonished to see the size of some of the passengers and their luggage. I assumed they would not be vegetarians but when GD told me that macaroni cheese was counted as a vegetable in the US I began to understand.

Why on earth would you assume that someone who is overweight wouldn't be vegetarian?

[Joanbunting Profile]

Hi

Don't know! Just me getting it wrong again I suppose!

Should have known better because some years ago M and I took a school party abroad and the two so-called vegetarians didn't eat any vegetables only pizza and Mars bars!

[Gillthepainter Profile Website]

Liz, what's JAIN please?
I reckon I could eat anything on that airline, and I normally tick the option for no food.

I can't eat on a flight - makes me feel bagged up (= like a lead balloon).

[efcliz Profile Website]

Liz, what's JAIN please?

Jainism is a religion which is usually Indian based. From a food point of view, they eat a vegan diet, but they also don't eat whole root vegetables such as carrots, potatoes etc. I don't pretend to know much about the religion, but I usually go for it on flights if I see it offered, as it's normally some type of curry.

[Joanbunting Profile]

Wonderful suggestion - will try next time!!

[Gillthepainter Profile Website]

Gorrit. Thanks Liz.

[denada Profile]

I get the impression here that US internal flights are treated very much as you would coach or train travel. They don't expect food and drink though on every internal flight we've used snacks are offered for sale. They also seem to always overbook flights though the request for volunteers to take different flights have been dealt with in the departure lounges. If they are getting desperate for the volunteer, they often offer good incentives, worth doing if you're in no hurry.
Just like to say thanks a lot guys for reminding me some long, long haul flights, US to Oz, loom in the near future, with all the joys of airline food that it involves. 24hours+ surviving on microwave heated bread rolls and a bowl of nuts with the drink. Deep joy!

[Stokey Sue Profile]

a bowl of nuts with the drink. Deep joy!

I haven't been given nuts on a flight in a long time - rice crackers or corn nuts, they aren't risking real nuts these days

I regret the passing of the piece cheese offered with the main meal in the past - it seems to have been replaced by a fun sized Twix; at least if you ate the cheese + bread roll + salad you felt you'd had something even if the main was nasty

[efcliz Profile Website]

I was very surprised to get nuts on my recent flights, but they were there in abundance. Hazelnuts, which was a nice change!