Thomas Hudson

Equipment was a little delayed from somewhere in the NE, so I had an hour or so to kill there. There were two very nice fellows sitting next to me. I heard one on the phone telling a loved one that they were stuck and not sure when they were going to get home and all they had to eat was hummus and olives.

These seemed like nice, intelligent people. I did not say anything, but I wish I had asked them if the food available 30 feet outside the door was not an option.

I really am trying to understand this deal as I have seen it on here too. Food is not all that expensive and it is all over the airport typically. If you are hungry, why not go get some hot food or a nice salad? What makes one feel like they have to stay in the Crown Room?

This is not meant to criticize, I really would like to understand this....

PersonalFlotationDevice

I think the problem is that you can't bring food in. While I understand the rule (you don't want the club to stink with fast food, etc.), the situation was more palatable in Worldclubs where at least you could get cheese and crackers and subsist.

As a legacy NW plat I am not one of the uber-partisans here (I do like the DL hard product and don't place as much value on intl upgrades) but the club deterioration has been one of the decided negatives.

number21

I get what you’re saying. If I’m stuck in ATL and have low probability of getting upgraded into F, I’ll have a good hot meal in one of the many restaurants in the terminal. Then go relax and have a drink in the club to finish it off.

I have family that will not spend money on food if they can get something free at the Skyclubs – even if it isn’t their favorite thing. Me personally, I can usually find something I like for $10 or so, and so I order and enjoy the food. Cheeseburger.

I do like the new cookies at the clubs. I just shouldn’t eat them.

BTW isn’t that “little B” Skyclub a hole in the wall.

itsaboutthejourney

You are at the airport, often in a rush to get there. You have 1 hour before your flight, but you have some emails to return and would like to charge the MBP or iPhone before the flight, a drink would help take the edge off. You'll have dinner at your destination, but something to snack on would be great too.

But today you have a decision to make: You can do all but eat in the SkyClub vs going to the food court for overpriced fast food.

6 months ago I didn't have to make that decision in the WorldClub, there were carrots, celery, apples/oranges/bananas + real cheese & crackers + fresh cookies to snack on until the next meal.

Someone as wise as you should be familiar with time management

jimrpa

The "dining" options in Atlanta aren't exactly the healthiest. It's particularly though to find anything suitable for vegetarians.

scotty00

When I think of Hartsfield it conjurs up the smell of Panda Express combined with Burger King. Ugh. At least there's the Wall Street Deli...

PepeBorja

I always travel with food in my backpack. Cheerios, apples, oranges, cashews, peanuts, almonds, beef jerky, powerbars. I seldom ate the fruit they had at the old NWA lounges and I don't eat the current stuff. Too many poopy hands touching the product and the current stuff has little nutritional value for the calories.

Next time try packing a few snacks with you and you will see a difference in your mood. Your wallet and waistline will be better for it too.

MarqFlyer

While the food in ATL isn't expensive, as others have noted, many of the options aren't particularly attractive or healthy.

But I think part of the reluctance may also result from the fact that many club members felt they had bought more for their membership dollars than they're currently getting. For example, I bought my NW WC membership (3 year) at a time when we regularly had real cheese, fruits and veggies as options, and even when they had rolled out soup in MSP. Therefore, when I bought my membership, NW had created an expectation that there would be enough in the club to sustain me through a couple of hours. Needless to say, many of those options have since been taken away.

It would be different if we'd never had those options in the first place....

Thomas Hudson

THese guys were stuck there for hours as they stated. I do not think time management was an issue. That is the part of this I was trying to understand.

While it certainly is not as good as the options you get out of the airport, the quality has gotten notibly better over the last few years. They have kiosks with nice sandwiches and salads. That Mexican plance on T is good. THere are a few nice spots on E. That bread factory or whatever it is called. The meat and 3 place is good and I bet they have a veggie plate. My late breakfast or afternoon snack is usually a fruit cup from one of the 372 Starbucks there.


SO, you do have some reasonable options.

I hate that you lost some of those options and understand that this change has been difficult. People who flew Delta before merger have seen changes as well. At this point I would for starters, be grateful my 3 year membership is still worth anything. I would reassess my options and make a plan of action based on said options, and then I would send a note to Delta stating my desires and expectations.

MarqFlyer

Ummm, thanks for the advice, but I'm way ahead of you. I've already told DL that I will not renew unless substantial improvements are made by the time my membership expires. The value just isn't there anymore.

trvlr64

They didn't want to give up their prized seating in the Sky Club to face the hoard of unfrequent flyers. ;-)

If they refuse to get up off their behinds to eat properly that's their fault and no one elses. Many times the Sky Clubs are overcrowded and just as noisey so it's easier to just find a spot in the food court or restaurants and try to relax and enjoy a meal.

PepeBorja

It's just weird to see that many SC member's valued the food more than the access to a lounge where workspace, wifi, comfy chairs, wifi, booze, and helpful travel assistants can be found. An oasis away from the madness of the gate areas.

What is it with food anyway? Is it that important to keep stuffing your body with empty calories and stuff with little nutritional value?

I welcome the people that want to bail out of the SCs in favor of the gate area seats. It will make more room for those of us that go to the SC to relax, surf the web, send an email, work a little, or have a stiff drink to take the edge of flying an old fleet of DC-9s with more skin doublers than Joan Rivers.

pdac1975

I don't really understand this mentality either. I have never gone to any of the airline clubs (and i've been in most of them) expecting food. I mean seriously, there are plenty of good places to eat in ATL. If you bought the club membership thinking you would have a free dinner every night you did not really think things through. Snacks are fine with me. Even if they had more "robust" snacks, if I want a meal I'm going to a restaurant. (I love the smoked salmon in the Ketel One bar in terminal A)
I won't lie, the main reason I chose to fly delta when I started traveling every week was because of the free booze in the skyclub so I may not be your average member. And yes, I've spent many hours in the NW club too but I honestly was never a fan of the Self Service thing.
Long story short, it seems like most people these days will eat garbage if it's free.

Thomas Hudson

There are a lot of folks like us actaully. I have never been to the Ketel One place. Good food? I will put that on my list to try....

Thomas Hudson

At least you will have access to food again once you quit....