United Airlines sells a burger in coach that’s hugely controversial. Some passengers swear by it, and think it’s the best $10 they could ever spend in coach. They’ll even order it up in premium cabins. I wonder if that’s more a matter of individual taste than a statement of quality.
In mid-May United started offering a first class burger, and trying something bold: serving fries with it. That may be a traditional pairing, but it’s something tough to do as a re-heat on board.
- The fries weren’t hot. They were undercooked and limp. And they had the texture of mealy potatoes.
- Don’t look at the meat. Seriously. The term ‘grey burger’ has been applied to United’s offering, and I think that’s fair although some people seem to like the taste (millions of people literally choose to eat McDonald’s burgers, too).
- The cheese on the burger was melted and congealed.
- And what was the butter on the tray for? I never did quite figure that out.
- Is it too much to ask that they serve the chocolate chip cookie warm?
I took a second bite of fries, and a second bite of the burger, only to make sure I understood it and to give a second thought to how I might describe it. If it wouldn’t have been rude to my fellow passengers, I’d have spit them both out.
A great burger starts with quality beef. It should have processed cheese that melts well. And it should ideally be inside of a potato bun that’s big enough to contain it but not so large that it overwhelms the contents. Everything you put on the burger needs to fit inside so it doesn’t fall apart when you eat it. You want to balance the flavors inside, getting a combination of everything with each bite.
You need to start with a good piece of meat and you need to cook it properly, ideally grilling it. You should get a nice char on the outside, while leaving the meat rare-to-medium rare on the inside.
United’s first challenge is the meat itself. The second challenge is that they’re re-heating the burger. And the third challenge is that consistent preparation in the galley. This isn’t a dish that can take over- or under-heating depending on the crewmember working up front.
I’ve had good fries on a plane, on Etihad and on Cathay Pacific in international first class, but I’ve also had misses with fries at that level of premium product offering. I was going to be shocked if United made it work in domestic first class.
They didn’t, and I do give them points for trying. Oddly thought the fries were underdone, the burger bun seemed overdone and hard. I wouldn’t select this again. The cheese enchilada is a better choice, and probably the Thai meatballs as well.
some of the best burgers I’ve ever had fell apart in a sloppy mess
…but perhaps that isn’t as endearing on a plane, though
@ Gary — The fact that the burger and fries are disgusting should have been obvious from the fact that United served it. That, plus the picture.
You are sitting in a big chair high in the sky. The great burgers are on the ground. This is food to keep you from fainting from hunger, not to knock the Minerva Tavern burger off the leader board. Don’t be so churlish.
PS I had the $10 Y class burger to keep from fainting a couple of weeks ago and didn’t think it was so bad. I’ve paid more for less back on the ground.
Surprised?
Silly the butter is to put on top of the cheese burger to ease the congealing and soften the hardness of the prime aged beef
I love this offering its the best pink/grey slime I’ve ever tasted
The extreme dryness of the meat is perfection and is brilliantly disintegrated
so you wont possibly get e coli.Have you forgotten they are primarily there for your safety?
The dull lifeless soggy limp mushy fries so delightful just the way I dream about it
I’m giddy with excitement thinking about it with my mouth watering
It would lead me to paying any price United might ask for an airline ticket knowing how
fine dining could be had on board with their world crass cuisine
Are you sure Minerva Tavern didn’t cater it?
Alaska Airlines served cheese burger for a while, but at least they didn’t serve fries. It tasted like burger that were served at AMPM Minimart at Argo Gas Station. I ate that for many years as poor college student. It was not bad, but it was also only $1.29. Maybe that’s how much they paid for it too.
Alaska has the burger again. Ordered it on a flight from Hawaii recently. Not great, not horrible.
Much has to do with how it’s heated in the plane. It’s a convection oven, the oven might be preheated, or all the meals put in at during taxi. The people at the back of the first class cabin tend to have the meal spend more time in the oven than the ones in the front. There may be turbulence which keeps things in the oven longer. I liked my burger, but the fries were undone, and they both were likely to have gone in at the same time. Without allocating more resources to cooking things accurately, domestic first will have some dishes which are more forgiving than others. At a better restaurant, they will cook your burger to order, from rare to well done. More flight attendants would be needed up front, and they would need to be trained to cook them properly. That’s not going to happen in domestic first, where flight attendants are there primarily so they can get nice layovers, and not to develop extraordinary culinary skills.
I agree that the cheese enchiladas are better, but not everyone likes spices.
Nasty!
I’m about to try one of the pay to play cheeseburgers in AS coach. I’ll let you know how it goes….
I’ve had it a few times.The burger is meh. The fries can be good but they have to let them cook a long time to get them crispy.
Amazing that people can’t go 6 hours in-between meals anymore. No wonder we are so fat. 7-11 sells a hamburger you can microwave too. Why anyone expects anything hot & edible at 30,000’+ is mind blowing too. Just because something can be done doesn’t mean it should be…
@Emily Ratawhateverski. It’s not your place to judge. You’re ignorant too. Research supports small meals at more frequent intervals for weight loss. Somebody on a 6 hour flight might have been traveling for hours prior with no access to any food. Plenty of hot and edible things are prepared at 30k feet and hamburgers in the air not only can, but have been, done and done well.
“I was going to be shocked if United made it work in domestic first class.
They didn’t, and I do give them points for trying.”
I don’t. I would give them points if they tried this in the kitchen at HQ, but never rolled it out. Having rolled it out, one has to ask, “why?” When they know the cabin crew can’t follow directions, why? When they know the caterers tend to screw up orders, why? When everyone and their dog knows that reheated fries are a failure, why?
Why did they unleash this monstrosity upon us?
Delta burger much better, and they don’t have to douse it in cheese. I know airline food sucks and they need to do anything to make it better like cover it in cheese, but many hate dishes like this where the optionality is ignored and those who have dairy allergies are left without a choice
If you want a gourmet burger then go to your favorite joint. It’s an airline burger with cooking limitations. To waste an entire active seems silly. LOL
@SPC. I had a cheeseburger today that fell apart in a sloppy mess. My burgers usually do. They are good though.
I cook the ground beef at least medium. I don’t like raw meat-especially with E Coli.
WHY! BA’s pot roast with potatoes and carrots and roll on the side is the perfect meat and potatoes meal. I leave hamburgers for McDonalds and Red Robin or better yet, Ruth’s Chris.
We had the cheeseburger in United first class. They over heated the burger.
Last time we had it better but not this time.
They could always try taterTots instead of fries.They hold up better. Dominoes ditched fries for Tots.
United catering-brought to you by Purina.
Would not want to eat nothing that heavy on a flight.
The headline said United Airlines so I was pretty sure that safety officers would not be able to cook proper food. The rest of the article confirmed it.
Nothing wrong with the burger, it’s much like the gas station plastic wrapped burger I used to buy in the early 80s
Why would anyone ever try to emulate French Fries in the air?
At best they have a 1/2 life of a few minutes once outside the deep fryer, on the ground.
You know some idiots’ gonna try installing a deep fryer on airplane soon. Maybe a BBQ smoker too.
White man’s privilege…
Agree fully. The UA “burger” I had in F this week and it was absolutely disgusting. Plus, the “fries” were stone cold. Alaska’s is somewhat edible. United just can’t seem to get catering right imo.
I’m thinking the butter is to slather on the cookie. At least that’s the least nonsensical answer out of a set of really bad choices.
Hey, don’t knock the McDonald’s Homestyle Burger until you’ve tried it!
And their fries are pretty good…..
Sorry. A good burger should not have processed cheese.
Fried foods and burgers don’t belong in first class. Period. Don’t try. They’re plentiful elsewhere — who has ever travelled a week and thought “hmmm, I wish I could get more french fries.” And the results are almost always below mediocre.
I did have UA’s coach burger a couple months ago, comped as a 1K. I think it would have been OK (not great) but the crew didn’t heat it through. A cold burger is definitely a bad burger. I wouldn’t pay 10 bucks for it.
“Much has to do with how it’s heated in the plane.” A pilot confirmed as much to me. Hit or miss. I know order the cheese and fruit plate when sitting up front coast-to-coast, as it is reliably always the same.