Originally Posted by
eng3
Does it really take another FA to use a different plate or having an appetizer plate, or a bowl of ice cream instead of candy bar? There are alot of things that can be done without more labor onboard
I suppose having the sundae cart would require another FA or more time to do the service
Yes.
The casserole dish ("dog bowl") approach takes very little labor. Dishes are just put in oven, take the cover off, and serve. Plated service means individual containers of components are heated, then each component is individually placed onto a plate. Better quality all around.
A bowl of ice cream doesn't really take much more labor, but the former sundae service, with individual toppings on request, does. And again, it is a significantly better, with choice of toppings, warmed (or at least room temp), instead of a frozen block of pre-made serving.
The cut in staffing on Intl flights is the big news story out of all of this. It impacts every part of the soft service, and will not be easily reversed.