Lufthansa vs United Economy
 

So I booked an award flight from United, non-stop MUC --> IAH (11h 30min) on the 767. However, I just checked, and I can change the connection to a Lufthansa connection: MUC --> FRA --> IAH (12h 45min) on the A380 for an additional $50.

Is flying Lufthansa and the A380 worth the extra $50, additional connection, and flight time, or should I just stick with the MUC --> IAH nonstop?

Depends on the seat you get. E+ on United beats standard economy seats on LH because of more leg space. If you can get an exit seat on LH, then that's not bad either. Other than that I believe both airlines managed to race to the bottom very well and are comparably basic with regards to Economy service.

HTB.

Is food on Lufthansa still better than United?

I have been traveling partly in premium Y this year (where, in substance, one gets Y food), and I found the food good. I assume that it is better than what United serves.

Not worth the hassle and add. payment, let alone to change from a non-stop to a 1-stop itinerary; the latter makes it an absolutely no-go in my opinion. No significant difference between UA and LH in Eco - both are awful!

I would leave it as it is. A direct flight is almost always preferable to a connection. UA E+ is perfectly good for a daytime flight, though the seat fabric is plastic, so you may get sweaty bum. A 767 is 2-3-2, which is always preferable to a A380 layout. Otherwise everything is better on LH, IMO.

This is my thinking.... However the A380 is more comfortable (much quieter), Lufthansa economy gives free alcohol and better food, has better flight attendants, takes care of its customers better if something goes wrong, and the Lufthansa Terminal in MUC is nice. Both arrive at about the same time in IAH, both provide USB power, Lufthansa would require me to be about 1 hour earlier in MUC.

I agree, but the extra UA legroom would win it over for me if you can access E+. Beer and wine free on UA. Like I said, everything else better on LH. Have you thought about paying a cash upgrade to Prem Eco on LH? Of course, you'd need to commit before you actually knew whether this was being offered.

Blah;
I just checked and I’d have to pay the close-in booking fee (again). I’m sure this is an error, but it’s not worth the hassle to call United and deal with their zombies....

This is unfortunate; I wanted to fly LH

It's worth paying $50 for a flight option that AVOIDS a FRA connection. Lufthansa has basically the worst Economy Class configuration of any A380 operator -- nothing at all "special" about it. IMHO, be grateful you got the MUC-IAH nonstop.

While not relevant to the 767 you are considering, one related thing for others to consider is that UA is in the process of retrofitting their 772 fleet from 3x3x3 to 3x4x3, which is unacceptable to me. While your seat map might currently reflect the 9-abreast layout, there's a chance you might get stuck with 10-abreast seating in the future.

I would go for the UA 767, which has the best wide body Y layout. The A380 is fine, but I don't like the plethora of middle seats. Personally, I think the Y food is better on UA.