Random passengers are raiding food from United’s ‘grab ‘n go’ lounge. They aren’t members but walk up and take the self-service food items.
They’re doing this, even though the offerings are often described as “gas station quality” food. Of course, back in the day United Airlines passengers would stuff copious amounts of packaged Tillamook cheese into their laptop bags when leaving the Red Carpet Club.
United Airlines Club Fly, Denver
It’s even more dramatic when the food is decent! Delta Sky Clubs have more robust food options, and one woman shares video of herself taking salami: “If you get 36 slices of salami per Delta sky club lounge visit, you break even on your annual fee after just 30.5 lounge visits.”
@meat.slut Delta executives hate this 1 money saving trick #meat #traveltiktok #travel #foryoupage #fyp #meatslut @delta ♬ Little Bitty Pretty One – Thurston Harris
One passenger at the New York JFK Chase Sapphire lounge was spotted maybe taking what amounts to a record for food removed from a lounge?
The couple next to me filled up two duffel bags worth of food. They basically shoved entire plates of desserts, prepared food, etc. and ordered six Sapphire Burgers, etc. and put them in their duffel bags inside empty boxes they had brought. There was a huge pile of empty plates they stashed behind a plant.
Six Sapphire Burgers Were Shoved Into A Duffel Bag
It’s better food, at least, than the Chase Sapphire Terrace which will be closing in a few months (and not because they ran out of food) where one member “drain[ed] the farmers fridges…they took 25+ cartons loaded up their stroller and walked out…”
And here’s video from the British Airways Galleries First lounge at London Heathrow where two passengers reportedly made several trips to take 20 or more drink cans and five bags of chips.
Capital One has actually really leaned into this, introducing high quality grab and go food and drink in their lounges, and placing it by the entrance.
Junk people stealing junk food .
Trashy people stealing trashy food
I do not condone theft, so time to prosecute that criminal.
However, if you are mocking paying customers, lounge members, for taking more food than you subjectively deem ‘enough’ then I think you hate freedom.
Does anybody care.
1. Credit card companies are flush with cash. They aren’t trying to run a profitable restaurant business; they construct a honeypot to snag more clients.
2. What is a minimum-wage-slave staffer going to do, call security? It’s not like they are losing a cash tip. And security is too busy inspecting mother’s milk bottles to care.
3. The flying public has no concept of etiquette and civility. I was in LHR First Wing BA Lounge several times this year. I know those under-counter beverage refrigerators. Actually, these two passengers with their untucked shirts, jeans, and baggy shorts, are dressed better than 90% of the lounge patrons I saw. Most of the lounge patrons in the LHR BA First Wing Lounge wear track suits, trainers, backwards baseball caps, some sort of athleisure/pajamas combination, dirty ripped tee-shirts, etc. Anway, if BA really cared, they would ban these two greedy passengers, except that BA doesn’t seem to care. But the rest of the LHR BA First WIng T5 lounge is okay, and compares favorably to a state-side AA Admirals Flagship Lounge.
The infamous “Airport Lounge” seems to be an evolving experience. All the old rules are out, and no one knows what behavior is right or wrong, anymore.
Garbage people stealing garbage food
And people want to Ask “Why has the experience become so bad at Airline X”. Its the Degenerates out there, The Basket of Deplorables that Hillary Clinton mentioned about. Trust Me they know the caliber of people out there and Everyone pays the price.
Gary Leff writes, “Passenger Shoves 6 Burgers and Plates of Desserts into Boxes, Fills Two Duffel Bags In JFK Airport Lounge Food Heist.”
When Gary writes about American Airlines Flagship® First Dining at DFW, MIA or the Chelsea Lounge at JFK, or, the United Airlines Grab and Go lounge, I think about the character Mr. Creosote blowing up in the movie Monty Python’s “The Meaning of Life” after he vomits excessively at a restaurant while eating his meal.
View the video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=373B9U4Dd60 or here:
@rogers. No one made it politically motivated…I gather you just waited for an opportunity to throw out an insulting remark . Anyway back to the topic ….I can see taking a piece of fruit or something small to snack on…but some people feel very entitled. It too bad…makes me wonder what they are teaching their children
And if you read your article about the cost of food (specifically beer) at airports and the quality (not to mention the cost and quantity) of inflight food on airplane we are shocked? Not to mention the credit card fees and APR.
I thought the whole purpose of lounges is to stock up on food so that the airlines don’t have to carry as much (I.e Polaris lounges) and no surprise that people take it to an extreme in the opposite extreme direction that the credit card and airline companies do?
Is this a bug or a feature or a hack?
It will be great when the lounges go out of business and the excess space can be used for other fliers.
@ Gary — Seriously? Food heist? You really should get a job with National Enquirer.
I’ve pretty much given up on lounges. Cancelled my UA card with lounge access and will do same with my AA card. Just ain’t worth it anymore. Pets roam like a barn yard. Families camping out across entire banks of chairs and sofas. Toddlers running loose. The other day I was in Terminal D at DFW and not a single place to sit in the Admirals Club. The Capital One Lounge was better, but filled to capacity by the time I left. Perhaps it is the sorry state of the USA economy that people are now forced to pillage the complimentary food and beverage in airline lounges to combat hunger.
Very little decorum left in this country. Mostly just trash. Disgusting!
The FLL UC has jelly beans! Saw a woman pull out her baggies and proceeded to fill 2 of them! No pics – unlike some travel vloggers.
Why Botha? The flying public is 80% uncivilized and grabby, self entitled Philistines. Airline Clubs are on the par with an outing @ KMart.
Why Botha? The flying public is 80% uncivilized and grabby, self entitled Philistines. Airline Clubs are on par with an outing @ KMart.
Why is this noteworthy news?
The “GloyDays” of Aviation and their Clubs are quickly vanishing.
Given that all of the above anecdotes occurred in fancy restricted lounges, one infers that these are “elite” and “premium” passengers which we are supposed to revere and exhalt?
@roger so you think the freeloaders are Republicans? Are you effing kidding me. Most of the welfare crowd are Democrats trust me I know I was in the supermarket business trust me I know
The Golden Age has been gone for sometime. The bus terminal transferred to the air terminal. One night in Denver while waiting for my flight I tried to find a quiet row to sit. Stood up, turned around to see an enormous woman with one huge breast out and a baby hanging off it plus she had to other children. Her head was hung back about half asleep!! And that’s what’s flying now!
Each airport lounge maintains House Rules. Each person admitted to a lounge must comply with House Rules. One AA House Rule reads:
“Complimentary food, alcoholic beverages and periodicals provided by Admirals Club are for consumption and use inside the Admirals Club only and may not be removed.”
Does anyone have any questions?
@ roger
Charter a plane or avoid the lounges if you don’t want to mingle with the hoi polloi. And mind your language. It isn’t necessarily degenerates who have no manners. Some traveling in first class remove their socks and shoes, leave the loo a mess, and behave worse than primitives are thought to do. Money and an Ivy League diploma are no keys to how a passenger behaves.
So do something about it. Bad people don’t call the cops or security. You can pretty much do or say anything you want to them. It’s a fact of life.
The two men in the LHR T5 Lounge are rookies compared to the woman and her daughter that I witnessed loading up two carry-ons with cokes, candy. cookies and PERISHIBLE hot and cold foods. To be fair though it was in the T3 Admirals Club . . . with most food offerings not worth a second trip much less stealing.
Are these lounges worth it anymore??
In the next episode, I’m waiting for a food fight to breakout.
More of a circus atmosphere.
BigTee hit it on the head. Low class people stealing bottom of the barrel food.
Conservative Bill Bennett wrote “The Death of Outrage.” While the book focused on one particular topic, which is NOT invoked here, the title spoke to a broader pattern within society . . . and not just American society, everywhere. People of all socioeconomic castes don’t possess the social sensibilities.
This is unacceptable behavior that must be stopped.
We need to bring back shame in this country.
These low lifes should be filmed and made infamous online.
Filming perps is something even low testosterone modern men can do!
Normal and high testosterone men are welcome to confront these perps.
Act like a man and stand for something!
Being passive just invites more bad behavior.