higgies

So this happened to my colleague on the last US flight we were on and I've heard this happen on CO quite a bit.

My colleague and I were flying in FC from SJU to PHL. She is a vegetarian and when presented with the menu options, the vegetarian option was fish, which she doesn't eat. She asked if they had any snack boxes in the back and the FA said sure, but they would have to charge for it. Since she didn't want to starve, she gave in and paid for the snack box from coach.

I've heard of this happening quite a bit on CO when they run out of meals in FC. They charge the FC passenger for a snack box or sandwich.

I can understand that they must have to account for these meals, but this seems absolutely ridiculous. Can't the FA's be allowed to use some judgment and common sense to write off a meal or snack box for FC passengers??

We're awaiting any response to letters sent to Customer Service. It's outraging! Anyone else had a similar experience?

steves

In a way it makes sense. There is an option to request a vegan meal when you bought the ticket ahead of time. USAirways does not have a "vegetarian" option - it is called vegan and does not contain fish so I am a little confused as to what she ordered. I would assume this was a gate or other last minute upgrade (perhaps free upgrade?). The meal that comes with the seat was bought and paid for - and there is an option when you buy the ticket to request a special meal so in essence you decided while in the sky at 30,000 feet that you did not like what you ordered while on the ground before takeoff -or you neglected to order a special meal. I do not think it is reasonable nor possible for aircraft to carry unlimited menu choices.

If you also wanted a second meal from another section of the plane (perhaps an even better meal or at least more to your liking) then I would assume it needs to be paid for. I also think anyone who would like to purchase items for sale on the plane in any section could purchase extra meals.

Now if you paid for first class, ordered a vegan meal, and was served something else then I do believe the airline owes you some compensation. If it was a last minute upgrade you may assume the food is already on board and you should be prepared to purchase food on board if the menu isn't to your liking - or if a picky eater bring your own.

dcpatti

I'm not sure how the BOB (buy on boad) meals work on US, but a FA friend of mine with UA explained this is how it works there. The catering contractor inventories the meals when they're loaded and there's another inventory done upon landing; the difference is expected to be represented in the form of revenue turned over by the FA's. Come up short and you get a warning; actually if memory serves me, you get 3 warnings. After that, it goes on to a negative mark on your employee record and you may be asked to cover the shortfall too. It's not the airline's property, it's the catering company's, and there's no room given for judgement call, probably because some bad apples in the past have abused that.

At any rate, as steves says, if the vegan option were ordered in advance then some compensation would be due, but if the passenger did not advise the airline of their dietary restrictions, then I don't see where there'd be any compensation due. I also think anyone with really strict, extreme dietary restrictions (and I know there are a lot more vegans out there than there used to be, but you're dis-allowing a major portion of what the average American diet consists of) or just plain fussiness should be proactive and keep a small supply of snack/light meal options with them when they travel. You can get a wide variety of shelf-stable items at any grocery store and fresh items at most airports.

It would be nice if airlines were flying restaurants, with several choices and none that ever run out, but that's just not what domestic travel in the States is. Far better to plan ahead than end up writing for compensation.

AZ Travels the World

They certainly should be able to, but clearly they are not.

To me, the fact US is accountable to a contractor for the cost of the inventory is not an excuse. US chose that approach. And they could just as easily choose to pay the contractor for items they chose to provide to F passengers.

It shows how little management trusts its employees. The FAs are not trusted to use good judgment and common sense to take care of a F passenger who, for whatever reason, can't or won't eat the option provided.

This example is but a tip of that 'lack-of-trust' iceberg that prevails at US (and most large US airlines).

mrredskin

sneak in a piece of ribeye in her salad and let the flavor explosion turn her into a carnivore

Often1

This is much-a-do about nothing. US offers a vegan meal choice in F. OP doesn't say how it happened, but apparently didn't order it. Then OP doesn't like the meal choices presented. Then OP expects a free box from BOB the first letter of which stands for "Buy."

Accountable process isn't just about FA's, it's about catering personnel on both ends as well as anybody else who has contact with the BOB.

twa777

Is there the option to request a special meal for flights to SJU? The US website says special meals are only available on international flights, and I'd actually be surprised if US considers SJU to be "international". I know they often make exceptions for Caribbean destinations counting as being international.

(BTW, I'm not to imply that it's not available -- I'm genuinely curious, as a friend of mine is also going to SJU and had asked me about the availability of vegetarian meals on flights there.)

dvanrip

I understood that special meal requests are only available on International flights (in both Envoy and Economy with 24hrs notice). Since the US site specifically says Envoy, not First, I would assume these requests are only valid on flights operated with Envoy service. As SJU-PHL has 'First' (not Envoy), I'm not sure that an advanced meal request is an option on this flight... but perhaps I'm wrong.

With that said, I've heard stories of people getting a free BOB meal when requested (instead of the F meal), but I think this was from a accommodating FA and an exception to the rules.

PittDoc

Having recently moved away from the "American" diet (good topic for another forum) I was looking into the question of special meals on US international and domestic recently and according to the US website (here) special meals only apply to Envoy and main cabin "transatlantic" flights.

More surprising is the number of different special meals available. Fifteen, yes, FIFTEEN different meal types. Impressive.

I am interested in knowing if there really is a vegan option for domestic, Canada, South America, Caribbean, Hawaii, etc. in First class when you purchase the ticket. Having only done F as an upgrade I didn't realize this was ever available. Has anyone obtained vegan meal with a elite or miles upgrade?

GotCalcio4

I am 100% certain that specials meals haven't been available in anything other than Transatlantic or South American flights for several years.

GotCalcio4

Next time, I would recommend eating the salad, bread, appetizer (if it does not contain meat), and dessert and just forgoing the entree. I've seen FAs that have been happy to provide that, which is at least substantial enough to get by on for a few hours.

Joshua

Even when they were available, it was pretty iffy to request them when you only knew if you were upgraded a day in advance.

redii

Absolutely! When I first went vegetarian, I did that quite often. In one instance, I even had a particularly nice FA give me an extra salad! ^

The sentiment is all over FT: FC is a bigger seat, not a restaurant in the sky. After a couple of times going hungry with just a salad, bread, and dessert, I started planning ahead and packing something even if I know there's meal service. I've never had a FA refuse to reheat a burrito I've picked up during a connection.

Here's my x: list for vegetarian food options:

PHX: Blue Burrito Co makes a wonderful vegetarian burrito
CLT: Manchu Wok has some vegetarian options. BK also has a veggie burger (if you're willing to slum it). Sbarro's veggie pizza is ok, even from a New Yorker :-D
LGA: Sky Asian Bistro, Joey's Pizza, and Slip Mahoney's all have veggie options

DCAorBust

I'm not a vegetarian, nor do I have any particularly challenging dietary requirements. Sometimes however, I simply don't like the choices in F. In those cases if there's a cheese plate or something on offer in Y that I think would be more satisfying, I open my wallet and order it. I don't really see a reason to complain just because I don't like the complimentary choices.

PittDoc

Thanks for the list, I'll be grabbing one of those burritos next week. Years of gastronomic indiscretions when traveling is one of the underlying factors leading to my recent switch to vegetarian. Knowing where the tasty veggie options are is a big help when bombarded with indulgences at the airport.

I see more and more Cibo Express' popping up in airports on the East Coast (DCA, PHL, LGA, BOS, MCO) and can recommend them as a source of healthy, carry-on-the-plane food too. Even better than their full restaurant. Some have small dining bars that are quick and convenient.