Auston

I flew MSY-DTW Friday evening and had the best meal I've had on a plane in as long as I can remember. It was a meatball dish with tomato sauce and I believe ricotta cheese and spinach. Very distinct and savory flavorings. I was impressed.

krlcomm

Not sure if it's new or not because I've never done the route before but I had an open-faced pulled pork burrito on LIM-ATL yesterday that was really good IMO. One of the better airplane meals I've ever had. And the farfalle lamb ragout on the way down was pretty tasty too!

dilbertsdaddy

I am glad they are trying to improve. But lately everything they try comes up short. Style over substance.

Don't try to be fancy, just give good food. And please sell the Salmon farm.

25 years ago you could get a good meal on DL.....

As another poster mentioned, normal omelet. But good.

I remember nice beef tips with rice and peas in Y for dinner ATL-PHL. Quite good.

On that same route in FC they had a simple chicken cordon bleu... really good. Or beef shishkebob with sauce. It was great. Twice baked potatoes.

Ham or Turkey Pita with a cup of soup in Y. Fresh, simple, tasty.

Real, not bagged desserts.

Real, not bagged rolls.

Ah, the memories.

MSPeconomist

I also would prefer simple high qualify foods, just normal nonethnic choices. Simple grilled boneless chicken breast, a large salad, a basic sandwich (with mayo, mustard, etc. served separately so that it's optional). Please no creative items, weird combinations, or highly spiced foods. Serve the gravy, sauce, etc. on the side.

brocklee9000

This was my experience on SAT-SLC (about 1000 miles) last week. Wife had the wrap, in the red tortilla. I opted for the cold option. However, mine was a really nice granola instead of a regular cereal. The egg option sounded unappealing, and upon seeing it, I was glad I didn't get it. But I'm also not one who eats much in the morning, especially large warm heavy meals, and I am particularly not fond of breakfast burritos.

So it's safe to assume this is being implemented already, across the board? I'm actually looking forward to this. At the end of the month, we're going to SJU via ATL, so I assume we can expect these new meal options on those flights? As much as I like the short rib, it'll be nice to mix it up (I was exhilarated in April to finally get the burger as an option). And I am glad to hear the cold salads are going. I swear, in the past 12 months, I have had the cold Asian chicken salad on more than a half dozen flights (and the southwest chicken salad). In fact, I am so averse to it that when we go to Costco and my wife points out the Asian salad kit, I feel a bit queasy.

gooselee

I've been flying up front on the ATL-LGA/JFK (and back) routes the last couple months, and occasionally in the past as well, and haven't seen any changes. Although they are under the 900-mile mark, meals are catered on this route because ATL-NYC is seen by DL as a competitive market.

That steak and rice thing has been around for a while. Other regular offerings seem to be shrimp skewers, "asian" dumplings (sometimes with shrimp), cold "asian" sesame beef, and jambalaya. The steak/rice and jambalaya are my go-to choices. The rest have been....not enjoyable.

OTOH, breakfast on this route has been pretty decent lately. Usually a warm bagel w/smoked salmon and a choice of either some crazy quinoa fruit oatmeal or yogurt & granola.

I also miss the omlets...

ssullivan

Ethnic and well spiced foods work better in the air because those types of foods are less likely to lose flavor when chilled, reheated, and served in a pressurized cabin at high altitude where the sense of taste is subdued. If you start with something bland on the ground, it's going to be completely flavorless in the air.

I'm thrilled to see DL offering some new choices. And, they are continuing to offer choices that fit what you're describing above – the short rib dinner entrée, for example, is a perfect example of simple and good. However, it definitely has some added salt and pepper to make it flavorful in the air.

I'll admit that I'm a very adventurous eater, but I have yet to see anything in the air on DL that I'd describe as a weird combination or something that wouldn't appeal to a lot of people. Of course, anytime you're dealing with food, there is nothing you can serve that will please 100% of the customers. At least they're trying. I had countless bland grilled chicken breasts on UA when I was flying them every week before deciding to give DL the bulk of my business, and that's the last thing I want to be offered for dinner. Flavor is a good thing.

SJC ORD LDR

It depends. There is a plain chicken breast with rice for dinner and it is very dull. If it is over-reheated, it's like trying to eat sawdust straight up. I would never make that at home. Using flavors like lemongrass make it tastier to me.

But, on the other hand, as long as they keep one choice something simple, it should work. I took an AS flight a few years ago and both breakfast options were eggs and I hate eggs. Bleh. Pancakes or cold cereal would have been a better option for me.

jdrtravel

You do realize that this is totally subjective, right? By "ethnic" I assume that you mean food that is not from your own culture. But that midwestern style meal that is "normal" to you might be "ethnic" to someone else (and for the record these are both lousy terms). Given that Delta is a global airline with an extremely diverse customer base, it hardly seems reasonable to only serve meals from one region or culture.

Orange County Commuter

I kept reading about that omelette so I finally broke down and got it one flight!

Sorry there was NOTHING edible about that thing!

Phil2016

I'm a big fan of the bland meal for dinner. Last night MSP-SFO it was a plain chicken breast, red potatoes, and asparagus, with both a side salad and fruit salad, and a bagged pretzel roll. Very tasty, especially the red potatoes. It's pretty consistent in being a simply prepared grilled chicken breast and variety of vegetables and/or potatoes. Of course, it depends on having an F seat confirmed >24 hours in advance.

MSPeconomist

That sounds perfect, but what's the bland lunch?

readywhenyouare

I'm not sure what the omelette is like today. I was speaking prior to 2008. A few months ago I had a scrambled egg dish on MCO-LAX that was pretty good.

ACCDraw

Neither was mine - and it was "special."

I order gluten free. That fluffy spinach omelette next to crispy potatoes & something bacon looked yummy. My fork hit ice when I tried to cut into it. The potatoes were ok, egg was cooked but spinach was hard as ice - round meat thing was hot. Re-heating it would have messed up the few edible potatoes, so I ordered a Bloody Mary & ignored the rest of the "special" meal.

Philosophically I try to remind myself I'm not in a flying restaurant, and then I look at the price of the ticket.

If only they'd serve decent wine or let me bring my own.

jrkmsp

I had the crab cake with rice and succotash on my BOS-MSP flight last week. Came with a dancing deer brownie. I thought it was one of the best Delta F meals I've had.