Originally Posted by
HiAperture
Thanks for the response. I concur about the intended ability to choose an appetizer, hence the decision to add printed menus on 2,200+ mi flights. On neither of these flights was a printed menu presented or a question on the choice of appetizer asked in lieu.
I believe on the earlier flight a totally alternate catering was loaded, likely intended for a different route, not an alternate side loaded for the one dish. The veg entree option was completely different (tortellini I believe but definitely pasta, where the pre-orders had the double grain bowl rotation). I remember one of the guests asking the FA if a particular dish contained an ingredient they wished to avoid, and she consulted the clearly printed menu intended for distribution, then remembered it didn't match the catering and answered she didn't know as the catering wasn't matching up.
The reason I mentioned the side is because that's not just an alternate substitution, it's not an actual published menu cycle (unless that changed recently, which is possible).
The two short ribs on non-Flagship domestic routes are the peppercorn short ribs with pimento Mac & cheese, and the short rib bourguignon with mushroom-topped polenta. The twice-baked potato is the side for the Chicken Espagnole on these flights. That's not to say the short ribs weren't switched for the other one too, I can't tell from the photo, but that potato isn't Mac & cheese or polenta for sure.