dkc192

Yep, same menu I've gotten twice this year. As an AA flyer slowly migrating over to UA, I will say that I found both the beef and chicken to be quite good (chicken ex-SFO, beef ex-BOS).

1kBill

But honestly, kale in every entree?

I read an article somewhere where some chef asked if kale hired a PR agent. It's everywhere. Not a fan, I feel like I'm eating shreds of tree bark.

fumje

Well I'm only going to eat one of them.

In seriousness, though, I agree it's bad form to have such limited variety. I guess perhaps whatever soybean contract UA had has currently run out, but for a while it seemed soybeans were in everything. Perhaps they replaced that one with a kale supply contract.

wpcoe

I thought PDB stood for Pre-Departure Beverage, but I see it from time to time with a ramekin of nuts like in the above photo. What does PDB stand for these days?

S.R

goodeats21

PDB is still pre-departure beverage.
In the quoted clip, I take it to mean that a full PBD was offered, just not photographed. Then the first photo is of the nut service.

SFO777

Yesterday's flight from hell...

ORD-LAX
UA 1052
757-300 with crappy new uncomfortable "First" slider seats
December 5, 2018
7:39pm-10:14pm sked
8:48pm-11:38p actual

Where do I start? Note to United. Zone 1&2 boarding does not work well at B7. Fortunately, there was enough room between the front of the mob and the wall for 1Ks to slide past. First a one hour mechanical delay with zero explanation from flight deck, only an FA providing infrequent information. Then a pax decided he didn't really want to go to LAX after all, so let's hook up the jet bridge for the third time. In flight, a pax locked him/herself in the 2L lav and the crew had to remove the door to get him/her out. Needless to say the lav went in-op for the remainder of the flight, with the inevitable parade of Y pax to the F lav. Our late LAX arrival was delayed even further as curfew sent us out over the Pacific to loop back and land from the west. Overly cautious captain asked FA's to prepare for landing and take jump seats early due to "turbulence", when there was zero to negligible turbulence all the way down. Then we had to remain seated when we arrived to wait for EMT/LAFD to board and tend with a medical emergency. Not sure how much of an emergency it really was as the pax in question calmly walked off with medics a couple of minutes after they boarded. Nice way to beat the rest of the pax off the plane though. LOL.

And then there was "dinner" served at 11pm Central, even later in 6F. It's been 4 or 5 months since my last UA dinner fight but is this really the new Kirby norm? Choice of Four Cheese Ravioli or Cheeseburger? I made the mistake of going with the cheeseburger. I didn't even finish half of it.



Yeah, because I only like a tomato on 1/3 of my burger.





Dinner on the competition? I've dumped on AA a lot and deservedly so, but some of their "secret" special meals are amazingly good. My diabetic dinner on recent DFW-LAX and PHL-LAX flights.

findark

Two hot entrees on a midcon? Sounds like an upgrade from Kirbyville

fumje

That has been the ORD/LAX menu since April? May?. The ravioli is the better of the two, although I'll confess I don't mind the burger. Good idea putting some of the pathetic spinach bowl into it.

Flight sounds like it was lots of fun. I've only once seen the lav door come off, and that was an accident. Much bumbling ensued before it was declared inop.

milepig

Has the Buffalo Mac and Cheese changed? I recall that is used to have some spiciness and a sort of blue-cheezy flavor. Of late on ORD/ERW/ORD is has consistently been pretty generic mac with a neon orange cheeze sauce with a couple pieces of sliced chicken on one side. Not spicy or "Buffalo" in any sense of the term. I'd call it "Mac & Cheese with Chicken." I sort of recall that there used to be a sort of bready crunchy topping. That, if it existed, is also now gone.

Since I'm talking about this route. On three of my last four itins the dessert was a slice of some variety of cheesecake. On the fourth it was a pre-wrapped commercial brownie that was pretty bad. On that same flight my salad consisted of 4-5 baby spinach leaves and one mandarin orange slice rather than the full dish I usually get.

milepig

I've never had nuts (or anything else) served with the PDB. They always come when they take the first post-departure drink orders.

On another note - I just had two variations on "Scotch on the Rock". On the first flight, I watched the person put two mini's into a regular mixed drink glass. On the second flight, what was clearly a single shot was served to me in a wine glass. He then willing refilled it so I got the desired effect in both cases, however.

kirkwoodj

findark

All the knock-off mac and cheese dishes are so low quality, it almost makes one forget that UA still flies with the lobster mac.

DELee

12/04/18: UA360 LAX-IAD

Breakfast:

Le pâte ŕ l'œuf (egg kale pastry):



Intercontinental cookie!



David

DELee

12/06/18: UA1448 IAD-LAX

Snack:

Sitting in 2F, was told that the only thing left was the pepperoni calzone. Now there were quite a few GS in J but even in row 2, no choice as a 1K?



Pre-arrival snack: cinnamon "scone" which really is a muffin top:



David