Big eater - can I request second meal?
 

Im working out so I eat a lot and if I don't eat sufficiently it starts giving me a headache. Do you think it is possible to request an extra meal on economy class?

Also what is the best way to make the most of your dining experience? I want to eat as much as possible and don't mind staying up so I don't miss the snacks/juices/chocolates etc.

Thanks

Big eater - can I request second meal?
 

You can bring food aboard the plane, thus eating what you want when you want.

Assuming the food is complimentary, you will probably be limited to one meal. They rarely cater much more than the number of passengers... and I have seen them occasionally run out of food.

Now, if you have to buy the box/meal, then by all means buy what you want.

But I would suggest just bringing food on board with you.... just try not to bring "stinky" food...

If you did get a second meal would you be a glutton for punishment? :D

If you're on a long haul flight with multiple meals, you can ask the FA to wake you for meals. Sometimes in business/first class the amenity kit will include a "wake me for food" sticker you put on.

You can ask. You won't get it, but you can ask.

I'd also question your choice of words. "Dining experience"? In Coach? :)

Bring your own snacks.

You can always ask. Whether you will be accommodated is really the question. To be certain that you won't be hungry, pack a lunch.

I've asked for and received a second meal. I explain to the FA that I'd like to try it and if they have any left over at the end of the service I'd appreciate it. I'm usually successful, though I certainly don't do it every flight.

Protocol is one to a customer. The point of inflight dining is to keep you alive, not sate you to fullness. If you need more, bring more. (Of course, if this is a US domestic flight where you pay a la carte for food items, you can buy multiple items -- though it would be very rude to buy a whole armful, thus enduring that the back ten rows get nothing. If this is an international flight with free food, you get one tray per meal.)

Unfortunately there is no smorgasbord in economy
where you can fill up.

Suggest you bring some Clif Bars.

Headache may be the result of insufficient hydration.

It can't hurt to ask, politely, for another meal if there's any left over after the whole cabin has been served. Anything that isn't eaten on the flight ends up in the trash anyhow.

That said, planes tend to be full and catering tends to be tight. You may hear "Sorry, there isn't any more." If you want to be certain of getting all the food you want, bring it with you.

If I'm even halfway hungry I'll eat a meal at the airport terminal before boarding. Airport food is often not great, but it's almost always better than what's available aboard.

When there's no time to eat before boarding, or I'm not hungry (but anticipate I will be in an hour) I'll grab something to-go and eat it after I'm settled in my seat.

I agree with Paul56 that a headache is more likely caused by dehydration than undernourishment, unless you are literally starving yourself.

never hurts to ask and its not a huge faux paux. obviously, bring your own food if you want it guaranteed

I didn't even know that you can bring your on food onboard :o I thought this wasnt allowed?

What should I bring onboard? I have two 10+hrs flights with a stop over in LHR. If I buy something meaty I might have problem warming it up. If I buy something from subway not sure if it will be fresh/safe to eat?

Yes I start getting headache when I get hungry, I drink plenty of water so never thought too much about it always assumed its my stomach telling me to eat something. I was working out and was eating 6 meals a day and I have continued that habit since I might be addicted to food and have a fast metabolism to I dont gain weight.

Don't count on being able to heat anything up. A cold Subway sandwich will last for hours as long as you don't get one of the soggy over-sauced ones (e.g. Sweet Onion Chicken Teriyaki, etc.).

If you are laying over at LHR there are plenty of places to buy cold sandwiches, baguettes, etc. and of course you can take them aboard with you.

If I were you I would eat as large a meal as possible at the gate before boarding, and pack plenty of non-perishable, filling snacks with you. This may limit you from bringing "meal" foods like meats (I avoid those as they would stink up the plane anyway), but bring protein packed foods like nuts and energy bars. Hearty, non crumbly breads like bagels would transport well, too.

If you fly CX from LAX to HKG, you can ask for cup of noodles in between meals as many times as you want. :p

On the other hand, when we asked for some chips (in between meals) for my young son flying business class international, 2 flight attendants brought out many bags of chips, opened his tray table and lay out a table cloth on top. :p

Big eater - can I request second meal?
 

If you lived in Germany you could order the extra meal to your house and bring it on the plane...

http://www.nbcnews.com/business/travel/germanys-lufthansa-offers-flight-meals-home-delivery-n208746

Wasn't there just an article about being able to buy to-go picnics in London that you can take onboard?

Found it!
On-Board Picnic Available at Heathrow

You can design your own menu to supplement the airline meal, and probably have some other passengers looking at you enviously.

I agree with everyone who suggested you pack food to take along, whether sandwiches, fruit, or high-energy snacks. If you make sandwiches at home before you go, put a lettuce leaf on the bread before you add the filling; this will help keep the bread from getting soggy.

I once was sitting in the second to last row in economy class. They ran out of food. However, they did raid first or business class and split up those meals among several economy class passengers. I got a bowl of soup, bread, and some nuts. Someone else got a main dish only.

On a few occasions, I've been unusually hungry and asked for, and received, a second meal in economy. I asked only after everyone had been served, and it was clear from the way I asked that I thought it would be a huge favor and not an entitlement in any way. The response has never indicated that it was a problem.

Of course, there's no guarantee that there will be extra food, so if you want to be sure of having extra food you should bring it aboard yourself.

you can always try asking for complementary nuts or on some asian flights cup noodles.

If you bring food on international flights, be aware that incoming customs rules probably require that you dispose of any uneaten food.

Try calling the airline and explain that you need an extra meal for "health reasons." Maybe they can provide one for an extra charge.

I once saw a guy in J who had ordered a kosher meal. Evidently the airline had loaded both a vegetarian and a chicken meal and when the FA asked which one he wanted he took both - and they weren't small meals.

This topic brought back some of my old memories about this :D
Many years ago I flew SFO-HKG round trip by CX, I asked the flight attendance for an extra meal... both worked. I looked very young back then, maybe that helps. First time succeed :p
I'm a big eater too. When I fly long-haul international flight in coach, I occasionally ask for another meal. Sometimes I could be lucky, maybe some other passengers skip the meal. Just a matter of probability. Most recent experience was flying OSL-IST operated by TK. That was the best inflight meal I've ever had in my life. I asked for another meal. No dice :(
When flying biz/first class, there always seems to be infinitely amount of food...
Just ask, don't feel bad about this - nobody will remember you.

I do not ask even in FC, but a FA could maybe do a carry out run, or call for delivery...

I would just carry a few donuts...

Please allow me to direct you to my blog, where I've eaten burgers which are days old. I've yet to die!

I ask my FA and she gave me more foods. I was so extremely hungry. I ate pasta and it was so delicious! I had no problem for me at all.

I flew out DTW-CDG. She gave me a dinner and I ate tortellini and I am really like it lots. It was so delicious! I call FA button and I ask her if she does have more tortellini and she went to back the gallery. She look for it and she came back right at me.

I imagine easier in Biz or First. Was it economy? Amazing if it was. Just wondering....

If you order your main course in advance for FC or business class, as some international carriers encourage, you can typically also get an extra main course from the regular menu )after others have choses) to have a fish course and a meat course as part of your main meal. Something like this might also work for a cold plate and a regular hot meal, or you could ask for a leftover cold plate to be served later in the flight.

I have been able to snag a second meal around 5 times in my lifetime. Just have to ask nicely after meal services is complete.

You can certainly ask, no rule against it. As mentioned above, I would ask if there are any left over. Worst they can say is no.

You can bring food that is not liquid/gel/cream through security with you. Fruits, vegetables, sandwiches, hot dogs, trail mix, energy/granola bars, etc are all ok. You can also buy food and drinks air-side and bring on board.

If you absolutely will get hungry and sick if you don't eat extra, then you should bring stuff onboard with you. Yes you can ask politely and if they have extra they usually will help you, but economy class is usually catered to the exact load, with maybe one or two extra.

A subway sandwich with the condiments on the side, including things like tomatoes and cheese, will last quite awhile.

I've been known to bring small baggies/small plastic containers of carrot sticks, celery, cucumbers, fruit (certain fruits freeze well, like grapes, peaches, plums, and will stay cold for quite a long time - if you pack other stuff with the fruit, instant airline friendly cold pack), nuts etc for snacks.

Some airlines, usually in Asia, will provide cups of noodles in economy class. Since you are flying through LHR, most likely this wouldn't happen but you could bring your own (or anything else that could be heated up by adding hot water, such as oatmeal cups, easy mac, etc) as that is a request the flight attendants should be able to readily accommodate.

You can bring sports supplements such as protein bars, fruit and nut mixtures, maybe even a drink supplement that can be mixed in a bottle with water, etc.

It is possible to bring on sandwiches or deli food in general for consumption early in a flight. Note some selections may be annoying to fellow passengers.

The issue with carrying food that involves liquids, gels, etc. is getting through security rather than getting on the plane. There can also be a problem getting off the plane with meat, vegetables, etc. due to customs controls so eat everything that might not pass import regulations and leave the scraps behind.

Thanks guys for all the great suggestions. I think I will wait till everyone has finished eating and go at the back and ask them if I can get a second meal. The worst that can happen is they will say no and I will have to take the walk of shame but as long as they don't rub it in or see me indifferently then its all good.

Im not a big fan of protein bars or granolas but I will try getting something from subway with some less sauces.

You can generally bring any consumables on board, even alcohol. You just can't drink alcohol on board that wasn't served to you by a flight attendant.

As for what you should bring...depends on what you'd like to eat. Things that require refrigeration will stay good for at least a few hours, and I personally wouldn't have an issue with eating a meat sandwich that had been out up to four or so hours, and maybe up to six. Smell it and see - if it smells funny or appears/feels slimy, it's gone bad. So, you might eat the things that should be refrigerated first, if you choose to bring them.

Since you won't be able to warm anything up unless you find a very nice and underworked flight attendant, it's best to bring things that don't require refrigeration and you like eating at room temp. Nuts, dried fruit, fresh fruit (apples/banana/orange), perhaps a peanut butter and jelly sandwich (though PBJ might be problematic getting through security). Harder cheese doesn't really require refrigeration in these time frames, so cheddar is fine but I'd steer clear of soft/runny cheeses. Bread is good too, of course. Or just bring some powdered protein shakes and add water/milk from the FA.

You could bring some cold cooked noodles or a couple of Cup O Noodles - you can make them with some hot water, which the FAs will be happy to provide, but they tend to have a lot of salt which can exacerbate your headaches if you are getting them from dehydration.

I asked for a second meal when I was flying LHR-JFK on VS in Februari and got it. Just asked it to the FA after everyone was catered, and she let me even choose between the meals.
Although that flight was almost empty, around 80 passengers in the whole Y cabin of the A340 (I had a middle row for myself).

You can ask (not a faux pas), but it will depend upon how many meals there are (most catering is one per passenger). There are several posts on FT about "stinky" food (which is always in the eye of the beholder) being brought onboard. I would stick with blander, less aromatic foods. I am reminded, years ago, of a Delta Owly Bird from ATL to LAX on an early 747; eleven passengers and fourteen FAs. We were told to eat as many sandwiches (the only choice) as we wanted since they would be thrown away when we landed.

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