Front cabins are both using fairly substantial plastic cutlery -- "silverware" is an oxymoron -- which seems to stand up to reasonable cutting. I got through two steaks on AA on my flights over the past two weeks. I have had two variants though, one set that is light brown coulour, larger and heavy duty, the other white plastic, the more standard picnic size. However, in the case of the latter, the knives and forks were heavy duty enough and not the very cheap and flimsy versions often found at picnics. And of course, the wines are opened at the commissary, and recorked for use on the flight. I realize it doesn't look the First Class role, but this cutlery is acceptable and functional, and something we may have to live with for quite a while.

If this is the case, then that advice given to Ben [Dustin Hoffman] may still hold 25-years later: "Buy plastic, son. The future's in plastics..." Hey, everything else on the market has tanked, why not buy plastics?