The last time we flew Delta to Italy the service and food was terrible. We filled out formal complaints, but really, no one cares. We are looking for new ideas for food to carry on. I have checked the old threads, but I am hoping someone has different ideas since 2002. Thanks!

i heard the food is good on ships

You actually spent time filling out "formal complaints" about the terrible food??? If you were that dissatisfied I cannot imagine why you would need suggestions about what to carry on but here's one: anything Delta doesn't serve.

I usually just bring things that will last okay throughout the flight, such as sandwiches (usually peanut butter/jelly), apples, baby carrots, muffings or croissants for breakfast, crackers, granola bars, etc. I try to sleep as much as possible on the plane. Usually, coming from St. Louis, we have a long layover on the East Coast before going on to Europe, so we tend to grab dinner at the airport.

At the risk of stating the obvious, what I always take is (whether I buy it at home or grab it at the airport) one pre-made sandwich, small juice, cookie, a few energy bars or nuts.

It probably dates from before 2002, but the late Craig Claiborne, food critic of the New York Times, once put together a carry-on menu that included, as far as I can recall, paté de foie gras, cheese (I think Camembert), a baguette, a French pastry from one of the better shops in NYC and a half-bottle of wine or champagne.

He must have been travelling to France. You might try an Italian version of the same thing: prosciutto & melon (melon peeled, prosciutto and melon in separate containers), a Caprese salad (fresh mozzarella, ripe tomatoes, olive oil, fresh basil), bread and a pastry from a reputable Italian bakery and a bottle of white wine (Italian, of course). I might add a small thermos of espresso. And you can always ask the flight staff for salt and pepper.

That's a great suggestion to bring along a meal of the country you will be visiting...great way to get into the mood of the country.

Love the idea...

Hi Eloise, I may be wrong but I was always under the impression that one could not serve themselves any type of alcohol that they, the passenger, brought aboard the plane.

Does anyone else know for sure?

The FAA rule, I believe, is that alcohol has to be served by airline staff. Whether the individual airline has a ban on your bringing your own wine, or whether you could find an accomodating flight attendant, I don't know. How would you get the cork out? TSA won't let me carry my corkscrew because of the small blade for cutting the foil, much less my Swiss Army Knife.

I believe they do sell wines and other drinks, but I don't know about the quality or certainty of supply; I was lucky enough to be upgraded on a recent domestic flight, and they had run out of white wine and brandy!

Sorry, it never occurred to me that there might be obstacles to bringing one's own wine onto the plane. (I am prepared to bet that Craig Claiborne did not find it a problem, but he was Craig Claiborne and it was a long time ago.)

But those tempted to do so might try to research the problem by checking with the FAA or their airline.

And if one can bring the wine, one can choose a screw-top bottle; not the finest wines, generally speaking, but in a pinch... And I might even go out on a limb and bet that there are corkscrews that can be borrowed from first class.

Last week on United (international) they announced that drinking alcohol you brought onboard was not allowed. They just began charging in coach for alcohol on international flights. I thought it was interesting how MUCH less alcohol was consumed.

The wine they serve onboard has screw tops, anyway, so is the same quality. I think they have a lot of nerve saying you aren't aloud to consume your own alcohol if you bring one of those little mini bottles with you (just like they serve). You are allowed to have it as you could have bought alcohol in the dutyfree shop.

A meal on an airline is nothing I spend time worrying about or thinking about. It's just a couple hours, I don't expect some cosmic gourmet dining experience or plan menus for the whole thing.

Hello everyone, now that I think about it I believe the rule is that the alcohol has to be provided by the airline (either for free or by charging) as attendants need to keep track of passengers drinking so they do not get drunk (although some seem to be drunk when they board a plane).

And I remember a redeye flight from SFO to Miami when a man had his own bottle of bourbon and did get real drunk and caused a bit of a problem. The co-pilot came out and discovered the passengers bottle and took it away from him. And latter one of the attendants told me passengers are not allowed to drink alcohol that they bring aboard.

I would not imagine anything has changed, especially after 911.

I think I posted unclearly. The FAA rule is that you can bring your own alcohol (but there is a cap on the proof allowed), but that it has to be poured by a crew member. I would think the reason is that the crew is responsible for the safety of the passengers, so they are empowered to control how much you can drink, even if you brought it yourself.

I'm not surprised that some airlines don't allow you to bring your own. They are squeezing every nickel these days in an attempt to survive, and they can make some money by selling us alcohol, while having a flight attendant pour what we supplied would not earn anything for them, and would be more work for the flight crew, which already seems to be quite busy.

By the way, the idea that a screwtopped wine is of poor quality is dated. The ancient allure of cork has been pretty much debunked and more and more vintners are moving to the screwtop.

Since many airlines flying transatlantic (at least the European ones) still serve free wine and cocktails I don't know why you'd bother to bring your own.

If you do want to sneak liquor on, you can match the brands served and buy the tiny bottles at a liquor store ahead of time. Or make a mixed cocktail yourself (vodka in lemonade disguised in a gatorade bottle works nicely) if there's no free booze, and you are truly determined to beat the system.

Some carriers (British Air for one) still serve decent hot meals and cold snacks, often enough I don't bother to tote anything but a few snack/candy bars.

I really don't agree that a flight is the time to be breaking out various containers of fancy foods. It would be a pain to carry on, not easy to eat in cramped quarters, and potentially messy (caprese salad leaked all over the inside of my carry-on bag... i don't think so!).

I think it's ridiculous to bring an entire gourmet meal onboard a flight as suggested by Clairbone. I mean, seriously...unless you have blood-sugar issues or severe allergies, nobody NEEDS to bring fancy food onboard. Just pack your regular sandwich and your favorite cookie, and you're ready to go. If you need fancy stuff, you're a wee bit high-maintanence.

One thing that has always interested me is that I read so much how many children are allergic to peanuts.

And that is what SW serves.

That must be a problem for families who have children with this allergy as from what I have read something about the air around peanuts can cause an allergic reaction.

Also, I think NOT eating peanuts or other salty foods is good as one does not want to become thirsty on planes.
If you are, then more liquids are consumed, then more trips to the head etc.

One thing I always pack is dried apricots. Easy to eat and not messy. I have had hour long flights that were delayed hours, so a bag of dried apricots and a bottle of water are good to have on hand. Ah, the joys of flying!

One way to bring your own beverage aboard is to put it in something else, such as a sport water bottle - obviously not a clear one!

I usually bring a Zingerman's sandwich.

A pal in New York gets stuff at Dean & Deluca to make her snack.

A gentleman who was one of my professors goes to Fauchon for his mid-air munchies.

Chacun a son gout....

BC

I'm with LoveItaly on the dried fruit suggestion. I pack anything that won't drip, crumble, or stink.

Dried fruit and nuts, yes. Crusty baguette, no. No stinky peanut butter, tuna, or egg sandwiches. Actually, I don't like tuna or egg sandwiches and am nauseated by the smell--thus my suggestion against stinky foods.

Seedless grapes, cheese cubes, small crackers you can eat in one bite, carrot sticks. Think about it more as snack time to stave off hunger. I'll eat a great meal when I get there and won't be wearing my meal on my shirt.