AA Bringing In A New Team Of Premium Cabin Chefs

TWA1985 · Wed May 04, 2016 2:20 pm

It looks like AA is partnering with four new chefs to redesign their premium cabin menus for both domestic and international flights.

Maneet Chauhan, Nashville restaurant owner, will create the menus for international flights departing the US.

Mark Sargeant, a Michelin-rated chef from the UK, will create new menus for flights from Europe bound for the US.

Julian Barsotti, who operates three restaurants in Dallas, will design the new domestic flight menu.

Sam Choy, who recently reworked menus for AA's transcontinental and Hawaii flights (which were introduced May 1st).

It's about time! The AA meals as of late, especially domestically, have been sorely lacking and not up to the pre 09/01/14 standards. Let's hope this changes that!

Here is a link to the full article:

http://www.bizjournals.com/chicago/n...nes-bringing-in-a-new-team-of.html

DTWPurserBoy · Wed May 04, 2016 2:37 pm

Creating meals that can be successfully reconstituted in an airplane oven hours after they were cooked is a tough assignment. Things like pasta, stews, fish and some chicken entrees do the best. Steaks are a non-starter--they are tough and either raw or way over cooked.

Personally, I like meals that reflect either the origination or destination of the flight--Indian cuisine turns out very well as does goulash, good old meatloaf and mashed potatoes and lasagna are always winners and give us compliments. But a lot depends on the flight attendant running the oven. You can always tell the ones that do not cook at home because they won't take the time to tweak the temperature or timing to get the best results.

gonnagetbumpy · Wed May 04, 2016 2:50 pm

I think this is an interesting selection. The comments by Maneet Chauhan in the below article aren't very poised and don't inspire confidence in the selection or make me excited to try it. Also I think it is interesting to have a UK based chef; usually the UK isn't known for their 'good' food.

http://www.tennessean.com/story/life...an-airlines-partner-food/83858190/

IrishAyes · Wed May 04, 2016 4:10 pm

What about Asia, Oceania and Latin America flights?

TWA1985 · Wed May 04, 2016 4:13 pm

Quoting IrishAyes (Reply 3):
What about Asia, Oceania and Latin America flights?

Good Point!

The article discusses all international flights departing the US as well as flight coming from Europe, but nowhere else.

Hmmmmmmm ...

9w748capt · Wed May 04, 2016 4:15 pm

Oh wow - LCC Dougie and Hector finally got the clue that their onboard product sucks? Only took two years.

ckfred · Wed May 04, 2016 4:48 pm

Quoting DTWPurserBoy (Reply 1):
Creating meals that can be successfully reconstituted in an airplane oven hours after they were cooked is a tough assignment. Things like pasta, stews, fish and some chicken entrees do the best. Steaks are a non-starter--they are tough and either raw or way over cooked.

I had steak with lobster mac and cheese in late March on ORD-MIA. Have I had better steaks? Yes. But, the steak was better than many restaurants who tout their beef entrees. The steak was better than the meat I find at my local grocery store chain in Chicago, Jewel.

It was the lobster that was a tad rubbery, which is probably due to the process of getting an airline meal from the kitchen on the ground to my seat. But, there was an abundance of lobster. I was on a cruise ship that week, and there were no lobster meat in my lobster bisque.

Quoting gonnagetbumpy (Reply 2):
I think this is an interesting selection. The comments by Maneet Chauhan in the below article aren't very poised and don't inspire confidence in the selection or make me excited to try it. Also I think it is interesting to have a UK based chef; usually the UK isn't known for their 'good' food.

I believe Maneet Chauhan is one of the judges on the Food Network show "Chopped." She's actually very knowledgeable about a variety of cuisines.

As for UK food, fine dining in London has improved a lot over the last 20 years. From what I've read in restaurant and travel articles, the disparity in fine dining between London and other "foodie" cities like Paris and New York is quite small.

alasizon · Wed May 04, 2016 5:12 pm

Another difficulty as well is that the domestic meals include the cold plates served on the Eagle flights which can currently be very hit or miss depending on the ingredients.

gen2stew · Wed May 04, 2016 5:35 pm

Hoping for the best! Unless the "do it on the cheap/ America Worst" mindset is changed, this will be nothing more than chef branded slop or better known as lipstick on a pig.

Seat1F · Wed May 04, 2016 5:50 pm

Quoting gen2stew (Reply 8):

Hoping for the best! Unless the "do it on the cheap/ America Worst" mindset is changed, this will be nothing more than chef branded slop or better known as lipstick on a pig.

Bingo. AA can bring on 20 new chefs to design new menus but unless they are willing to spend a lot more (think triple what the spend now) on premium cabin food and bevs, not much will change. The core problem isn't the chefs designing the menus, rather it is the amount of money AA is willing to spend on the actual food/bevs.

CPDC10-30 · Wed May 04, 2016 5:51 pm

Quoting gonnagetbumpy (Reply 2):
Also I think it is interesting to have a UK based chef; usually the UK isn't known for their 'good' food.

Still stuck in the 1980s? So much has changed since then.

9w748capt · Wed May 04, 2016 6:10 pm

Quoting gonnagetbumpy (Reply 2):
The comments by Maneet Chauhan in the below article aren't very poised and don't inspire confidence in the selection or make me excited to try it.

Seems to be as though you've completely misunderstood her comments.

PlanesNTrains · Wed May 04, 2016 6:17 pm

Quoting ckfred (Reply 6):
I was on a cruise ship that week, and there were no lobster meat in my lobster bisque.

Mine a few weeks ago had a big hunk in the middle, but it was in the premium restaurant so I as paying for it twice.

-Dave

TWA1985 · Wed May 04, 2016 6:24 pm

Quoting Seat1F (Reply 9):
Bingo. AA can bring on 20 new chefs to design new menus but unless they are willing to spend a lot more (think triple what the spend now) on premium cabin food and bevs, not much will change. The core problem isn't the chefs designing the menus, rather it is the amount of money AA is willing to spend on the actual food/bevs.

Does anyone here have data on what AA spent per passenger on premium cabin meals pre-09/01/2014 and after?

PlanesNTrains · Wed May 04, 2016 6:32 pm

Quoting TWA1985 (Reply 13):
09/01/2014

Seems like nothing good ever happens in this industry in September.

-Dave

ckfred · Wed May 04, 2016 7:00 pm

Quoting Seat1F (Reply 9):
Bingo. AA can bring on 20 new chefs to design new menus but unless they are willing to spend a lot more (think triple what the spend now) on premium cabin food and bevs, not much will change. The core problem isn't the chefs designing the menus, rather it is the amount of money AA is willing to spend on the actual food/bevs.

This is a common complaint in the hospitality industry. If you look at Cruise Critic, people complain that with the advent of specialty restaurants on cruise ships, food in the main dining room has suffered. While people think that the chefs on cruise ships are well trained, they are getting ingredients that are sub-par. I've read comments about tough meat (beef and poultry) and poor quality produce.

The steak I had in F a couple of months ago was good, but not great. I remember having filet mignon in F back in the late 1990s that was usually very good. But, that was the 1990s when most leisure fares had Saturday stay-overs, meaning business flyers were paying full fare Y or close to it.

TVNWZ · Wed May 04, 2016 7:15 pm

Quoting DTWPurserBoy (Reply 1):
But a lot depends on the flight attendant running the oven. You can always tell the ones that do not cook at home because they won't take the time to tweak the temperature or timing to get the best results.

I like your expert observation. And it is a belief I have had for some time. It's all in the end preparation and if you are not wise to the nuances that produce good tasting food you will not get it. This is particularly important when you consider the obstacles that get in the way just because it is being served at 40K feet in a tube. And this is totally overlooked by just about everyone commenting about food quality on airplanes.

jsnww81 · Wed May 04, 2016 7:19 pm

Quoting Seat1F (Reply 9):
The core problem isn't the chefs designing the menus, rather it is the amount of money AA is willing to spend on the actual food/bevs.

This and careless presentation are the biggest problems. Nine times out of ten, what's set down in front of you doesn't look much like the carefully-plated demo meals that are rolled out at media events. Food loses water when it's reheated, so it's not uncommon to find your steak sitting in a half-inch of liquid when you get it, with sauce often slopped on the sides of the plates. It's a minor gripe and a total first-world problem, but the attention to detail from the caterers and flight crew usually just isn't there the way it is on other carriers.

9w748capt · Wed May 04, 2016 8:52 pm

Quoting jsnww81 (Reply 17):
It's a minor gripe and a total first-world problem, but the attention to detail from the caterers and flight crew usually just isn't there the way it is on other carriers.

Exactly. Starts at the top IMO. The AA crews know that the suits couldn't give two shits about the onboard product and have seen how badly degraded it is from the legacy AA days, so there's minimal incentive for them to even try.

DTWPurserBoy · Wed May 04, 2016 9:25 pm

Quoting 9w748capt (Reply 5):

Oh wow - LCC Dougie and Hector finally got the clue that their onboard product sucks? Only took two years.

I worked closely with Hector Adler at NW--he is probably the finest Inflight VP today in the industry. We would kill to have him back. Unfortunately, his decisions are generally based on budget constraints placed by people higher in the food chain.

For example, Hector and I had a discussion about wine that is served aboard the plane. He said that he frequently gets a name or a label or sometime a whole bottle of a wine that someone feels would be a good fit. Sometimes even the price point is right. But the trouble develops when they ask the vineyard to supply 60,000 CASES of that wine--every three months. Yup--we use a lot of wine. Very few vineyards can accommodate the quantities needed.

Quoting TVNWZ (Reply 16):

I like your expert observation. And it is a belief I have had for some time. It's all in the end preparation and if you are not wise to the nuances that produce good tasting food you will not get it. This is particularly important when you consider the obstacles that get in the way just because it is being served at 40K feet in a tube. And this is totally overlooked by just about everyone commenting about food quality on airplanes.

Thanks--as one who likes to cook I watch these things closely. For example, you cannot cook steak in the same oven with fish--the fish will turn to mush or the steak will be cold. I shudder to think what we would find if we ever stuck our food with a thermometer--we are probably serving botulism around the world. I use one at home but I think TSA would have a real problem with a pointed thermometer in my bag.

jsnww81 · Wed May 04, 2016 9:26 pm

Quoting 9w748capt (Reply 18):
Starts at the top IMO. The AA crews know that the suits couldn't give two shits about the onboard product and have seen how badly degraded it is from the legacy AA days, so there's minimal incentive for them to even try.

In fairness to the current AA leadership, the catering quality on legacy AA for the last 10-15 years was nothing to write home about, either. As far back as 2004-2005, I can remember getting food in F and J that was embarrassingly bad, served by crews who clearly didn't care about presentation or quality.

AA was cutting catering budgets (and quality) long before the merger was a twinkle in anyone's eye - remember the fiasco about eliminating the second olive in the salads? If memory serves that was all the way back in the 1990s.

As I said before, this feels a lot like previous "catering enhancements" from AA. Big-name chefs will come in to put their name on the menu, some delicious looking demo food will be trotted out for media representatives, and the inflight reality will continue to be variably mediocre.

coolian2 · Wed May 04, 2016 9:38 pm

This forum can sustain 20+ posts about premium food but dare mention Y food and the attitude is "ha, lucky you get anything".

I love this place.

PlanesNTrains · Wed May 04, 2016 10:05 pm

Quoting ckfred (Reply 15):
If you look at Cruise Critic, people complain that with the advent of specialty restaurants on cruise ships, food in the main dining room has suffered.

Very true.

Quoting jsnww81 (Reply 20):
remember the fiasco about eliminating the second olive in the salads? If memory serves that was all the way back in the 1990s.

I believe that was late '80's

-Dave

DTWPurserBoy · Wed May 04, 2016 10:52 pm

Quoting coolian2 (Reply 21):

This forum can sustain 20+ posts about premium food but dare mention Y food and the attitude is "ha, lucky you get anything".

I love this place.

Main cabin food internationally admittedly is not a high priority. Quality and quantity has deteriorated over the years and domestically hot meals in YC are history. Over nearly 40 years I have served and picked up literally thousands of meal trays in coach and I cannot count how many times I heard "that was the WORST meal I have ever had on an airplane. I would rather eat nothing." Mind you his plate was clean but I just smile and say--be careful what you wish for. Now you do get nothing.

A lot of this is due to the fact that airlines no longer run their own flight kitchen. When we did we could control the quality and choices--now it is all outsourced. The dinner you are eating from DTW to NRT was actually made in AMS, flash frozen and shipped as freight around the system. (Insider hint: that is why the omelets all taste like rubber. Eggs do not freeze well) Take a look at the date and time stamp on the plastic covering your food.

One good thing is that the quality of food available for purchase in the terminals has really gotten good. With major chains like Wolfgang Puck and California Pizza Kitchen you can grab something with a bottle of water and eat when you like. I am perfectly happy with a sandwich and a bottle of water--the cost is inconsequential to me--I would have to pay to eat lunch no matter whether I was at work, home or wherever.

AAplat4life · Wed May 04, 2016 10:56 pm

Quoting jsnww81 (Reply 20):
In fairness to the current AA leadership, the catering quality on legacy AA for the last 10-15 years was nothing to write home about, either. As far back as 2004-2005, I can remember getting food in F and J that was embarrassingly bad, served by crews who clearly didn't care about presentation or quality.

Perhaps, but it was better than what US Air offered. And the crews have confirmed many times that the increase in passenger complaints about the food quality decline since the merger. My own personal experience about food decline since the merger has been mediocre to awful in premium international about 3/4s of the time. I will say, however, that I noticed some improvements in domestic first recently.

Quoting ckfred (Reply 6):
I had steak with lobster mac and cheese in late March on ORD-MIA. Have I had better steaks? Yes. But, the steak was better than many restaurants who tout their beef entrees

For some reason, the food on ORD-MIA is usually very good. I once had sea bass that was outstanding. I had the steak with lobster mac recently from DFW-ORD, and it was dreadful. One of the Chicago business publications recently compared premium meals on United vs. AA. I don't recall if there was a clear winner, but the bad steak offered by AA was noted.

coolian2 · Wed May 04, 2016 11:26 pm

Quoting DTWPurserBoy (Reply 23):
Main cabin food internationally admittedly is not a high priority. Quality and quantity has deteriorated over the years and domestically hot meals in YC are history. Over nearly 40 years I have served and picked up literally thousands of meal trays in coach and I cannot count how many times I heard "that was the WORST meal I have ever had on an airplane. I would rather eat nothing." Mind you his plate was clean but I just smile and say--be careful what you wish for. Now you do get nothing.

I've had some pretty poor meals in Y - and Y+ to be honest. I still smiled and said thank you, because I'm not an ass.

With that said I could wander down the street to my local bakery and get something worse, but they won't act like it's a privilege for me to have what I paid for.

Not all airports are great on choice. AKL - it's Burger King and a long walk. SYD - it's McDonald's and a long walk. CHC - I don't know, I always left in the evening and the bar seemed like a better option given I was in a distance relationship.

I don't fault the frontline employees - I'm sure they'd rather toss a sandwich at me than try to slink past avoiding eye contact.

gonnagetbumpy · Thu May 05, 2016 1:22 am

Quoting 9w748capt (Reply 11):
Still stuck in the 1980s? So much has changed since then.

Nope actually just moved back to the US from London three months ago. I've not tried AA's food so I can't comment on it but it should be an interesting outcome. I'm sure their selection is well researched just interesting to me.

gen2stew · Thu May 05, 2016 1:37 am

Speaking of Y food, one bright spot for AA is the LAX- SYD catering, both crews and pax are complimenting if not actually enjoying the new menu, portions, and style of service.

oc2dc · Thu May 05, 2016 1:57 am

Quoting DTWPurserBoy (Reply 1):
Steaks are a non-starter--they are tough and either raw or way over cooked.

I flew ZHR-JFK-LAX in J and then F on the transcon half. The steak on the ZRH flight was genuinely incredible. I was shocked at how good it was...I tried my luck again 7 hours later when I jumped on my JFK-LAX flight and the steak was atrocious. I'm not sure if the Swiss catering is really good at their job or if they have some serious differences in quality when you fly international J vs. domestic F.

On another note, what about revamping food for flights to Asia. I flew LAX-PVG in J at the beginning of the year and was taken aback by how bad every single part of the meal was... Very disappointed.

ckfred · Thu May 05, 2016 2:23 am

Quoting AAplat4life (Reply 24):
For some reason, the food on ORD-MIA is usually very good. I once had sea bass that was outstanding. I had the steak with lobster mac recently from DFW-ORD, and it was dreadful. One of the Chicago business publications recently compared premium meals on United vs. AA. I don't recall if there was a clear winner, but the bad steak offered by AA was noted.

Knowing a bit about the restaurant business and the food business (my father worked in the food industry in various positions, including management and consulting, for more than 40 years), meat, whether beef, pork, lamb, or poultry, can vary in quality, even with consistent sourcing. I have a favorite butcher shop, for when my wife and I are having friends for dinner, or we simply feel like treating ourselves to meat that is better than chain store quality. While it's normally very, very good, once in a while, you can get a steak or roast that may be off in terms of quality.

My steak on ORD-MIA was a bit tough to cut, but I blamed it on trying to cut it with what was essentially a sharp butter knife. In the post 9/11 era, an airline can't hand out steak knives.

Yet, on a cruise last summer, I had a New York strip that was very tough to cut, with a steak knife, far tougher than what I had at 35,000.

Frankly, the worst meal I had on AA was in 2006, when I had a fruit plate in F, flying LAS-ORD. The fruit was rock hard, and cutting it with a plastic knife, without making a mess, was next to impossible. Ten years earlier, in 1996, flying on my honeymoon, I had a similar meal in F, and the fruit plate was outstanding. Nothing was over-ripe or under-ripe.

chrisair · Thu May 05, 2016 4:45 am

Quoting DTWPurserBoy (Reply 19):
I shudder to think what we would find if we ever stuck our food with a thermometer--we are probably serving botulism around the world.

Oh god. I didn't need to hear or think about this...

n7371f · Thu May 05, 2016 4:52 am

Quoting DTWPurserBoy (Reply 19):
I worked closely with Hector Adler at NW--he is probably the finest Inflight VP today in the industry. We would kill to have him back. Unfortunately, his decisions are generally based on budget constraints placed by people higher in the food chain.

AA has a group of people on Amon Carter that are Six Sigma trained who do nothing by crunch numbers on catering. I know because I was there for a few days. So later on I wasn't surprised when the complaints started flying.

Hector is a nice guy. But his track record ain't great. Sure you could argue he was handcuffed at NW, esp during Chapter 11, but his work with US and now AA doesn't incite much. Other side of that is, yes, his hands are tied and in the case of AA, it's pretty clear the America West model totally undercut AA passenger expectations.

AAplat4life · Thu May 05, 2016 11:11 am

Quoting n7371f (Reply 31):
AA has a group of people on Amon Carter that are Six Sigma trained who do nothing by crunch numbers on catering.

When my omelette on LAX-ORD was tough and swimming in oil, the F/A said they had nothing else to give me and told me that I should write in and complain. I logged on to gogo, sent an email, and got back a response from someone in Phoenix about food portions in corporate-speak. Obviously, they did not want to hear about the issue or admit it, but I do think that there has been enough complaints that management is finally listening.

Quoting gen2stew (Reply 27):
Speaking of Y food, one bright spot for AA is the LAX- SYD catering, both crews and pax are complimenting if not actually enjoying the new menu, portions, and style of service.

Apparently, Qantas told AA that it needed to improve the food service. I don't know if it was a condition to agreeing to code-share. However, if you listen to Doug Parker's interview on CAPA, he comes right out and states that oneworld partners told him that the AA product and service needed improving (his words were blunter than mine).

superjeff · Thu May 05, 2016 12:01 pm

I fly AA regularly and find their domestic F meals are at least adequate. Not great, and certainly not as good as before the merger (although I don't know how much of that is presentation - I miss the tablecloths) but I wouldn't call them horrible by any measure. I've also flown transatlantic in J and the food was very good (including a steak which was delicious), and once in F MAD-DFW where I was pleasantly surprised. I think a lot of it has to do with the crews and their attitudes; I think Doug Parker, Hector Adler, et al are trying to do a good job and see there's a need to improve in some areas.

That said, I would argue that the airlines have cheapened domestic First Class by providing upgrades to frequent flyers; now there seems to be an attempt to monetize First - if this results in a better level of service, it might work, as would a true domestic premium economy (maybe even with food).

There really isn't any reason to make airline travel a flying bus line.

AA94 · Thu May 05, 2016 12:43 pm

Quoting AAplat4life (Reply 32):
When my omelette on LAX-ORD was tough and swimming in oil, the F/A said they had nothing else to give me and told me that I should write in and complain. I logged on to gogo, sent an email, and got back a response from someone in Phoenix about food portions in corporate-speak. Obviously, they did not want to hear about the issue or admit it, but I do think that there has been enough complaints that management is finally listening.

Not to get OT, but this is another thing I've been noticing. It seems like whatever automated response program AA is using just identifies key words in a complaint and then spits out a generic reply, regardless of whether or not it actually addresses the question. I'm assuming this is a US holdover, since I've only noticed it since integration. More customer enhancements from the folks in Phoenix!

TWA1985 · Thu May 05, 2016 2:20 pm

Quoting gen2stew (Reply 27):
Speaking of Y food, one bright spot for AA is the LAX- SYD catering, both crews and pax are complimenting if not actually enjoying the new menu, portions, and style of service.

I flew SYD-LAX on AA at the end of February and I have to agree. The portions were very generous and the food quality was much better than I was expecting. Even the mid-flight hot dogs and sliders were tasty!

airDFW · Thu May 05, 2016 3:24 pm

Quoting AAplat4life (Reply 32):
Apparently, Qantas told AA that it needed to improve the food service. I don't know if it was a condition to agreeing to code-share. However, if you listen to Doug Parker's interview on CAPA, he comes right out and states that oneworld partners told him that the AA product and service needed improving (his words were blunter than mine).

I hope AA's other partners make the same demand as I believe even for US3, AA is at bottom in terms of Y food offerings. I had better meal on UA flight (while it is 1 flight, I was pleasantly surprised as a.net had conditioned me not to expect much). If I go by a.net comments on DL, it seems to be better also.

bjorn14 · Thu May 05, 2016 6:51 pm

Quoting TWA1985 (Reply 13):
Does anyone here have data on what AA spent per passenger on premium cabin meals pre-09/01/2014 and after?

These are secrets that airlines guard more closely than Fort Knox.

deltal1011man · Thu May 05, 2016 8:24 pm

Quoting DTWPurserBoy (Reply 19):

For example, Hector and I had a discussion about wine that is served aboard the plane. He said that he frequently gets a name or a label or sometime a whole bottle of a wine that someone feels would be a good fit. Sometimes even the price point is right. But the trouble develops when they ask the vineyard to supply 60,000 CASES of that wine--every three months. Yup--we use a lot of wine. Very few vineyards can accommodate the quantities needed.

This is something very overlooked by a.net and FlyerTalk.
I see people b**ching and complaining about wine and beer all the time. "Why Miller lite and bud light not some microbrew?"
Well few things, Believe it or not products like bud, bud light, miller lite etc are the most popular beers in the US, but more importantly most of those microbrews just don't have the ability to produce enough beer to fit one of the US3s needs.

Quoting jsnww81 (Reply 20):

AA was cutting catering budgets (and quality) long before the merger was a twinkle in anyone's eye - remember the fiasco about eliminating the second olive in the salads? If memory serves that was all the way back in the 1990s.

Everyone has been doing this for the last 30 years. Not just AA.

Quoting jsnww81 (Reply 17):
but the attention to detail from the caterers and flight crew usually just isn't there the way it is on other carriers.

I also think this is a part of it. Anyone seen how much(or little) some of the people working at the caterers make? Its just like ACS, want a great gate agent? pay for it. Pay someone the same pay they would get at a fast food restaurant to cook food for airlines and guess what happens? (hint, they damn sure aren't going to be 5 star chefs)

personally if I were a chef I would touch the airline industry's catering with a 100ft pole. Great way to make your name look like crap.

DTWPurserBoy · Thu May 05, 2016 8:39 pm

I am hoping that things will come full circle again--like bringing back hot meals in YC. All it would take is one legacy carrier and the others would fall in line.

But DL has just spent a fortune ripping out all of the aft galleys on the MD88/90, 757 and A319/320 fleets and adding seats and changing lav configurations. Then you have the staffing requirements. I remember the days when we had 5 f/a's working a 727-200 with a meal service. Today you would have three.

Perhaps the good ol' days are gone for good and we'll just have to adjust.

I have not flown AA in a while (my ex was an AA purser) and I have to admit FC to CDG and LHR was pretty darn good. I'd settle for just the return of the caviar! I should have put reciprocal pass benefits in the divorce decree.

Hector was almost in tears when he was ordered to dismantle the NW FC international service he had created. We were all so proud of it--tables individually set, beautiful charger plates and a "palate cleansing" sorbet course. Sigh.

N62NA · Thu May 05, 2016 10:04 pm

Quoting 9w748capt (Reply 18):
The AA crews know that the suits couldn't give two shits about the onboard product and have seen how badly degraded it is from the legacy AA days, so there's minimal incentive for them to even try.

I don't believe that statement is correct.

9w748capt · Thu May 05, 2016 10:53 pm

Quoting superjeff (Reply 33):
I fly AA regularly and find their domestic F meals are at least adequate.

Wow - you must like terrible food. I'm sure the AA bean counters love FFs like you!

Quoting AirDFW (Reply 36):
I hope AA's other partners make the same demand

I believe JL and BA were two others that also demanded a better product from AA. I'm too lazy to look up the source where Dougie said this though. IIRC QF asked AA to improve their product on LAX-SYD as a condition of entering the JV.

Quoting N62NA (Reply 40):
I don't believe that statement is correct.

Any proof to the contrary?

N62NA · Thu May 05, 2016 11:02 pm

Quoting 9w748capt (Reply 41):

Any proof to the contrary?

You're asking me to prove a negative?

Quoting 9w748capt (Reply 41):
Wow - you must like terrible food. I'm sure the AA bean counters love FFs like you!

Aside from a miserable few meals right after they cut back on the meal quality a few years ago, since they've reversed it shortly after making that mistake, they've ranged from "good" to "really good" (my LHR-MIA in J last week).

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