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Dakota 400

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The occasional discussion of Amtrak menus and the years when different trains had their own menus has been of interest to me. I do recall the times when such regional menus were available and helped to make train travel fun. As a result of my interest, I have been doing some researching on some of the airlines web sites to see if I could find their menus. Sometimes, it's possible; sometimes, it's not. The domestic airlines, if they post anything, post generic menus. I have found one situation that I think is interesting and wonder what the airline's passengers might think.

A Lufthansa flight from Miami to Frankfurt: The First Class menu has 5 selections of appetizers and 5 selections of entrees. The Business Class menu has 3 selections of appetizers and 3 selections of entrees. 3 of the First Class appetizers and entrees are identical to the 3 offered to Business Class passengers. Given the price difference between First and Business Class, I wonder what the First Class passengers would think about that. If they knew.

The companion flight to this one is the Frankfurt to Miami flight. Both menus are different from each other.

I can think of a possible reason for this. In Frankfurt, Lufthansa would have their own kitchens. In Miami, they probably wouldn't and have to use the services of another airline or an outside caterer.
 
Not sure if they still own it, since it was considered for sale, but one of the largest airline catering operations LSG Sky Chefs was owned by Lufthansa and has a presence at almost every major airport. Originally founded by AA in 1942 and LSG in 1966 then went fully LSG later.
 
A Lufthansa flight from Miami to Frankfurt: The First Class menu has 5 selections of appetizers and 5 selections of entrees. The Business Class menu has 3 selections of appetizers and 3 selections of entrees. 3 of the First Class appetizers and entrees are identical to the 3 offered to Business Class passengers. Given the price difference between First and Business Class, I wonder what the First Class passengers would think about that. If they knew.
From what I've seen (on blogs), First Class will get bigger portions and a better presentation than the Business Class versions (i.e., in First Class they'll individually plate the items, whereas Business Class passengers may just get several items on a tray put down in front of them.
 
The last time I took a flight on Southwest Airlines, they provided your choice of one type of hypoallergenic snack-pack along with the drink service. I'm glad I thought to buy a bag of salmon jerky at the Whole Foods in Berkeley before I went to the airport. And this was for a 6-hour coast-to-coast flight.

As for airlines that pretend to serve actual food, here's what United served on a Washington to Beijing flight:

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At least the wine and beer was free on this international flight, even if the wine was pretty low-grade (but drinkable) plonk.

What they served on the return trip from Beijing to Washington was indescribably disgusting, and I didn't even bother to take pictures. I actually couldn't eat the "eggs and sausage" they served for "breakfast" before arrival at 6P local time.
 
Here you go, by Jeb Brooks: Menus - Greener Grass

Thanks. I will investigate that site.

From what I've seen (on blogs), First Class will get bigger portions and a better presentation than the Business Class versions (i.e., in First Class they'll individually plate the items, whereas Business Class passengers may just get several items on a tray put down in front of them.

I have never flown internationally in First Class, but, I have a few Business Class flights under my keel pre-Covid. Service by courses was once the standard for Business Class pre-Covid. flights. Even on my Singapore Airlines flight where there was a First Class section (out of which I was told to "leave" because I wanted to use the rest room which was closer than my Business Class rest room), service by courses was what I experienced.

The best of the "service by courses" that I experienced was on an Air New Zealand flight from LAX to AKL in Business Class. Dinner and breakfast was both served by courses.
 
Best I've had was probably Delta from Detroit to Narita in February 2018; the menu named Oishi Japanese Restaurant in Novi, Michigan as the preparer.

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The domestic airlines, if they post anything, post generic menus. I have found one situation that I think is interesting and wonder what the airline's passengers might think.
Most of my US3 flights serve no meals regardless of cabin. It's pantry snacks or nothing. It's been ages since I've had a memorable meal on the US3 but AA had some decent pizzas in the early 00's.

A Lufthansa flight from Miami to Frankfurt: The First Class menu has 5 selections of appetizers and 5 selections of entrees. The Business Class menu has 3 selections of appetizers and 3 selections of entrees. 3 of the First Class appetizers and entrees are identical to the 3 offered to Business Class passengers. Given the price difference between First and Business Class, I wonder what the First Class passengers would think about that. If they knew.
I'm guessing it would annoy them once they realize how much Lufthansa service has fallen relative to their high fares. There was always some overlap between First and Business class but this seems rather excessive. I previously considered LH a top-tier European carrier but their post-pandemic cabin service has received some truly atrocious reviews. Reading about one service disaster after another put me off flying them despite wanting a last chance A346 ride.
 
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Please let us know when you return. I hope you will have good flights with little stress at the airports
In my experience both 2021 & 2022 have been pretty bad compared to the standards of 2019, but long haul flights are still better than Amtrak IMO. The UA Polaris lounge was better than any Amtrak lounge I've ever visited. On the plus side there is nothing that Amtrak could not copy or exceed, both in lounges and on trains. It is my hope that they eventually figure this out and beat the airlines at their own game.
 
The UA Polaris lounge was better than any Amtrak lounge I've ever visited.

I have not flown on UA since they introduced their Polaris Lounge and Service. II did visit their Lounge at Newark and thought it was very satisfactory. Nice selection of food and, of course, an open bar. The nicest airline lounge that I have used is Delta's Sky Club in the International Concourse in ATL. A wide selection of food is available appropriate to the time of day with an attendant keeping his/her eye on the items. Plus, the open bar as well with comfortable seating, good work areas, and nice restrooms.
 
I have not flown on UA since they introduced their Polaris Lounge and Service. II did visit their Lounge at Newark and thought it was very satisfactory. Nice selection of food and, of course, an open bar. The nicest airline lounge that I have used is Delta's Sky Club in the International Concourse in ATL. A wide selection of food is available appropriate to the time of day with an attendant keeping his/her eye on the items. Plus, the open bar as well with comfortable seating, good work areas, and nice restrooms.
We should all realize that AmtrakMaineiac is traveling coach. Obviously, there's going to be no chance to experience the Polaris Lounge and Service in such a case. We'll just have to see how the current offerings in coach compare to what I was served in 2017. (See my post of July 9, above.) I should note that on my 2017 trip to Beijing, I had upgraded to Economy Plus, but that doesn't give you anything more in service, only more legroom.
 
Thanks. I will investigate that site.



I have never flown internationally in First Class, but, I have a few Business Class flights under my keel pre-Covid. Service by courses was once the standard for Business Class pre-Covid. flights. Even on my Singapore Airlines flight where there was a First Class section (out of which I was told to "leave" because I wanted to use the rest room which was closer than my Business Class rest room), service by courses was what I experienced.

The best of the "service by courses" that I experienced was on an Air New Zealand flight from LAX to AKL in Business Class. Dinner and breakfast was both served by courses.

Flew first class once from Taiwan to San Francisco on a Mandarin Airlines MD-11. It was incredible too since there were only 4 first class passengers and I believe about as many first class flight attendants. The food was still just reheated, although I chose the Chinese food option. However, they had various snacks including Sevruga caviar. Also a choice of alcoholic beverages including vintage Dom Perignon and non-vintage Krug as well as XO Cognac.

I don't remember Air New Zealand being all that special in economy. In fact we were flying standby on someone buddy pass, so it could have gotten interesting if we were denied boarding due to lack of availability. However, I do remember being at Auckland Airport for about a 2 hour transfer connection to Sydney at about 5 AM, and McDonald's was open where we got Egg McMuffin meals.
 
The last time I took a flight on Southwest Airlines, they provided your choice of one type of hypoallergenic snack-pack along with the drink service. I'm glad I thought to buy a bag of salmon jerky at the Whole Foods in Berkeley before I went to the airport. And this was for a 6-hour coast-to-coast flight.

The experience I remember was when we went and dropped my in-laws off at OAK, where we stopped by In-N-Out first. My FIL didn't seem to think it was that great and told us to keep it, even though my wife and I already ate two on the way over and had the other two in a bag. So we just offered them to anyone in line at security who wanted it, at which point my FIL (who can be pretty cheap sometimes) couldn't stand to see us give it away and grabbed the bag. But there was a taker before he took it. I think before we got to security someone asked where in the airport they had it, and we said we got it on the drive in by the freeway.

Southwest supposedly had prepared sandwiches at one point on some routes.

Alaska Airlines used to advertise about how great their meal service was, but



I can't find it, but I do remember one where they showed an airline board room where everyone was eating steak and lobster while they were discussing how to nickel and dime the passengers while serving them micro-meals.
 
Best Airport Lounge experience I ever had was while I was flying FC on CP Air from San Francisco to Vancouver.

CP had a Deal with Quantas to use their Lounge @ SFO, and the food and drink, as well as the Service,was Outstanding during the 6 hours I was in the Lounge because of a Weather Delay of the CP Flight.

Once we were aboard and heading up the Coast to Vancouver, the Few passengers in FC were served the Best Fresh Salmon I've ever had, along with World Class Wines and Deserts.
 
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I have not flown on UA since they introduced their Polaris Lounge and Service. II did visit their Lounge at Newark and thought it was very satisfactory. Nice selection of food and, of course, an open bar. The nicest airline lounge that I have used is Delta's Sky Club in the International Concourse in ATL. A wide selection of food is available appropriate to the time of day with an attendant keeping his/her eye on the items. Plus, the open bar as well with comfortable seating, good work areas, and nice restrooms.
I rarely fly United but I do fly airlines that contract with United lounges. I'm not much of a lounge person (mostly due to the lounge paradox¹) but I've visited a few United Clubs here and there. United has the only lounge at my home airport and does a decent job among the US3. Newer Delta Sky Clubs look interesting but most Delta hubs are out of my way. I put a premium on convenient daytime flights that are as short and direct as possible. The days of predawn crisscrossing are mostly over for me².

We should all realize that AmtrakMaineiac is traveling coach. Obviously, there's going to be no chance to experience the Polaris Lounge and Service in such a case. We'll just have to see how the current offerings in coach compare to what I was served in 2017. (See my post of July 9, above.) I should note that on my 2017 trip to Beijing, I had upgraded to Economy Plus, but that doesn't give you anything more in service, only more legroom.
United's Economy Plus seems to be stuck in first gear. Delta's Comfort Plus and American's Main Cabin Extra have been objectively better for years now. On most airlines Y+ food upgrades are pretty minimal (a fancier salad, a second dessert, or a third option main) but it helps improve the experience in a subconscious way. Domestically DL/AA include free drinks and a cocktail or two makes the seat feel more spacious and relaxing. Even if I book F/J I need to consider what would happen with a broken connection or equipment swap and E+ needs to catch up.

UA lounges were always a step ahead of AA (Giordano's pizza and lasagna in Chicago when AA had carrot sticks and dip comes to mind), so I won't be surprised if the Polaris lounge is every bit as good as the online reviews. Look forward to your opinion.
I'm not as familiarized as Jis but I felt the Chicago³ location lived up to the reviews. Entry was quick just scan and go. No gruff attitudes or lounge dragon encounters. The open yet cozy design, the relative abundance of seating, and the welcoming staff were the perfect antidote to the usual ORD scrum. The food was simple but well presented. The experience was not as polished as a Ritz-Carlton or Park Hyatt but it was damn good for a business lounge and the staff made up for any shortfalls. Compared to a typical business lounge Polaris was less crowded, more relaxing, and friendlier. Asian airlines are good at being deferential but that's not the same as being friendly and the Polaris lounge does a good job with staff interaction. It's a bit like a more conservative version of a VS Clubhouse. The big benefit for UA pax is that they can use Polaris lounges for arrivals as well. The following review lays it out pretty well, including pictures and menus, and although dated from April 22 is very similar to my recent visit.

https://upgradedpoints.com/travel/airports/united-polaris-lounge-chicago-ord-review/
To get this post back on-topic here are some business class menus of recent ANA/NH flights.

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NH Business Menu 02.png

1. Airports that are bad enough to make lounges appealing tend to have crap lounges and vice versa.
2. Except when AA busts my connection for the Nth time and I'm stuck with whatever is left.
3. Chicago O'Hare was the original location. The others are found at EWR, IAH, LAX, SFO, & IAD.
 
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Best Airport Lounge experience I ever had was while I was flying FC on CP Air from San Francisco to Vancouver.

CP had a Deal with Quantas to use their Lounge @ SFO, and the food and drink, as well as the Service,was Outstanding during the 6 hours I was in the Lounge because of a Weather Delay of the CP Flight.

Once we were aboard and heading up the Coast to Vancouver, the Few passengers in FC were served the Best Fresh Salmon I've ever had, along with World Class Wines and Deserts.
CP was a wonderful airline, and responsible for my long history and lifetime status with American Airlines. They were actual partners on many levels beyond codeshares and loyalty programs. It was sad when the Canadian government blocked a closer association between the two and forced a merger into Air Canada. Ironically at the time CP was run by an American and AA by a Canadian.
 
Here is the menu from Air Canada domestic "Signature Service" - one step above normal domestic Business Class, from my recent flight to Calgary:
menu.jpeg

They didn't have one of the entrees and actually ran out of Business Class meals entirely, with some passengers receiving Premium Economy trays. Also, you got cheese or a brownie - not both.
 
Here is the menu from Air Canada domestic "Signature Service" - one step above normal domestic Business Class, from my recent flight to Calgary:
View attachment 28867

They didn't have one of the entrees and actually ran out of Business Class meals entirely, with some passengers receiving Premium Economy trays. Also, you got cheese or a brownie - not both.

That's a very good sounding menu. I have friends who will soon be flying on Finnair Helsinki to New York in Business Class. Their projected menu choices do not sound as appetizing as these do.
 
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