American Airlines is rolling out new first class meals. Aviation watchdog JonNYC flags that beef becomes available by pre-order only, rather than something that will be catered on board normally. That should save some money.
What’s more interesting to me is how they’ll be catering flights where they don’t have the ability to provision fresh food. There are a number of cities where airlines don’t set up catering contracts.
- They may “double cater” a flight with food out of their hub, service one meal to passengers leaving the hub and the other meal to passengers coming back.
- But if the flight is too long, or the plane sits too long (including overnight), they’ll offer “shelf stable” food that doesn’t require refrigeration.
American Airlines has introduced a new ‘shelf stable’ “Meal of the Moment 3 Cheese Pasta” that flight attendants will mix hot water into prior to serving. This replaces the shelf stable MyPasta introduced in fall 2022.
On the Meal of the Moment website the price is listed as 99 rupees (US$1.19). It’s unclear what the cost is to American Airlines – U.S. pricing may be different, but they’re also buying in bulk. The pasta is supposed to be made with boiling water, not just hot water (and ideally not with airplane tank water). It has a 9 month shelf life.
Would you eat this, and do you consider it to be a premium meal you’d enjoy in first class?
Disgusting, even for economy
American Airlines should just serve up hardtack as that seems to be where they are going.
That’s disgusting.
If the price is in rupees , does that mean it comes from India ?
@jns … I’ll stick to alcohol .
Seriously, why not just pack an MRE and be done with it. Of course you need to remove the heating chemicals but should work well.
@Jill … C-ration can of bans and franks , and a p-38 can opener ?
They are no longer charging 10 times the price in economy for First class. Something has to give.
You guys are so fussy Here it is American is just trying to compete with
Singapore Airlines
American is proudly offering premium boxed macaroni with Creamy Velveeta cheese
Delicious!
I will triple my business with this luxury First class offering 😉
Glad to see they are improving the meals for the pilot upgrades. I mean the “contractually required upgrades”. Duh oh I meant the customers….
Awful
Correction: American Airlines is dead
There’s no way the current company will do well with this attitude. What a joke
First of all I would not let my dog eat this. And after the boiling water is added it must sit for 8 minutes. So it’s not only slop, but cold slop. I’ll continue to just enjoy my water.
No Biltong, no bueno!
America and Americans are dead. This is just a sign of the time. None of the government agencies function as intended since the passage of the Patriot act and the unlimited money lobbying the government in order to make profiting easier for the companies. Boeing can’t even assemble a plane to deliver. Chinese are coming into the USA and stealing missle secrets. But best we can do is create new genders and sexualities and legalize marijuana.
Absolutely disgusting
Wow, and they even include the water! How many ways can an airline embarrass itself?
What…WHAT are they thinking at American? They sink lower and lower each day. With Delta poised to pounce on Miami and take the South American routes away, AA will just fade away. Maybe they are doing this on purpose? Continual fighting with their unions (sigh), continuing to lower the brand’s stature, maybe the management is intentionally putting the company out of business OR hoping that a decent company/airline will buy them out. With the terrible reputation that their front line employees have, no decent company would consider inheriting that mess. Buh bye AA
American will still be around as long as we dopes continue to obtain their FF miles. It’s the banks that are the stupid ones in this game overpaying for crap. What’s next 100k and 150k signup bonuses?
Here is my pro tip for flying first-class on American Airlines. When you take a can of Pringles® cheddar and sour cream flavor stackable potato chips, add boiling water, and let it sit for eight minutes, it will taste better than the shelf-stable “Meal of the Moment 3 Cheese Pasta.”
Always think about safety first. To help prevent clogging the toilet, do not flush or dispose of an uneaten shelf-stable Meal of the Moment 3 Cheese Pasta down the aircraft lavatory unless you first eat it, then poop it out.
@Alert,
P-38? You are dating yourself …….I still have one on my key chain from survival training.
This is only for stations that don’t have refrigeration for overnighted aircraft in small Mexico citys
We flew American to Europe and we will avoid them as much as we can. Service was bad and the meals were even worse than imaginable. You are better off bringing your own food.
I was served this on Feb. 3rd, 2024 JAX to DFW. The flight attendant was so embarrassed to be serving it!! FFers were groaning and fairly appalled. At first we thought it would be ramen, which would have been weird but on trend if there were add-ins. But no, it was gloopy spiral pasta with a colorless coating. Served on a dish, it had no taste, really, not cheesy, salty, or otherwise. It was just there. Thankfully there was hummus along with breadsticks and some grapes on the tray. That’s what saved us!!!
@Dwondermeant: I don’t know, I think I’d probably take the premium boxed macaroni with Creamy Velveeta cheese over this crap….
Are customers willing to pay more for better food? They by and large do not in economy, as as much as domestic first class flyers like to complain, they usually are not spending their own money for cash fares in domestic first anyways, plus the most valuable domestic F passengers are the ones in captive hubs where they’ll fly the dominant airline no matter how disgusting the food is. Before putting up yet another article about how airlines are cutting back, is it worth writing about how consumers overwhelmingly choose cheaper fares even if all aspects of the product are absolute crap (see Ryanair’s dominance in Europe)
Utterly ridiculous and repulsive!!! Almost as bad as United who served mini stroopwafles (yes the ones the size of a quarter) on my last first class flight during dinner time.
Most of the ones in F?C are FREE updgades…..
We travel with our own food and never on American. They treat their passengers and employees like crap, the influence of USAir.
Because there are only a few large airlines, they can treat passengers as they like because you have limited options. If AA gets away with serving Top Ramen, UA and DL will do it next. But nothing good lasts forever. At one time, GM, Ford and Chrysler dominated the auto market, but how are they doing today?
Dominic Kivni has it right. Americans are cheap, cheap, cheap. The American consumer enabled “flying bus companies” like Southwest to flourish, because most Americans refuse to spend a few extra dollars for flights, to provide for some amenities and quality food. And most First Class passengers are not even paying; their company is.
These passengers are even more obnoxious, with their feeling of self-entitlement. Shut up. Stop complaining. The food you’re getting for free in First Class, is not a first world problem. That said, yes American Airlines is pure garbage now. American is run by MBA’s, who have absolutely no clue about providing a quality product, or the welfare of the passengers or crew. These MBA’s are trained like dogs to enrich the stockholders more, period.
Premium travel is alive and well on Delta.
Just curious. When Delta leaves first thing in the morning from Savanah on an aircraft that has been sitting there all night in the August heat/humidity and there are no catering facilities, what delicious, fresh, and gourmet meal are you expecting?
AA had been treating first class passengers to $6 a bottle grocery store wine for years. 99 cent pasta is the perfect compliment.
Let’s start with re-regulation of of airlines in the United States, airlines run by airline people and not railroad CEOs, Senior management beholden to the employees and not stockholders first. Airline workers not being stripped of pride for the airline that they work for. I miss the days on Pan American airways and United where they would carve the roast beast in front of you at your seats.
Disgusting. AA should be embarrassed serving this slop.
Bulk cost is about 59 cents if the cheese is a plastic non food product. God knows what this airline will do to save money
Disgusting. AA should be embarrassed serving this slop.
Junk food, processed food. If you think you are getting nutritious food (even at a restaurant on the ground) you have high expectations.
Don’t depend on airline food or even restaurants for nutrition. And when you go shopping for pasta at a grocery store, it needs to be “durum semolina” for having any nutrition.
United is just as guilty. They eliminated meals on flights under 900 miles. Last week from DEN to ORD, I was given a bag of popcorn
CAN SOMEONE PLEASE ANSWER A QUESTION FOR ME?
With the daily kvetching about AA’s lousy FF program, lousy FA attitude, and real shit for food, outside of AA being your only option, why do you fly with them?
I would rather read Tim Dunn telling me why Delta is better than your incessant whining. At least he talks about positives. Oh, and that AA doesn’t serve pre-departure drinks or give you second bottle of water. Any other complaints?
American airlines has gotten worse than Spirit. At least Spirit sells you decent food.
This is some cheap crap. Just one step above instant ramen.
AA, going for mediocre.
@La Lee AA also used to carve meat in the aisle, prepare salads in the aisle and serve caviar on toast points with all of the fixings as well. JS.
Perhaps they can just throw in the towel and turn to the US military
for MREs (meals ready to eat) and just give up
American wouldn’t know premium if it hit them in the snot locker
Is that a serious question or are you just baiting us? “Premium service” has been dead for domestic First Class for years unless you are on specific transcontinental flights. First class only equals free drinks and sometimes snack on most flights. In coach, there is only basic transportation and maybe a NA beverage.
Mac and cheese…voted the best dish to serve on board by the AA Pedo flight attendants Union so as to lure kids to the loo.
“Let’s start with re-regulation of of airlines in the United States,”
Oh sure…there’s a great idea. We can all see how well the government is run. Yeah give us more of that.
@jeree
Yes when prices were higher and people actually paid it !
Really, this just goes to the heart of AA’s lack of direction. If they are aiming to be a premium airline, this is… sad. If they are aiming to be an LCC, they need to just stop trying and invite pax to pre-order whatever meals they want.