Dishing brings us the news that Boston’s favorite celebrity chef Todd English has been tapped to create a menu for Delta Airlines. The menu items under consideration, which will be available for sale in coach, sound nice, if not terribly interesting: a smoked salmon and egg salad croissant, a chicken and avocado wrap, hummus. As New York Times food critic Frank Bruni has discussed, however, the involvement of a top chef does not guarantee a fine product, especially in the world of airline food. Miami chef Michelle Bernstein recently created a menu for Delta’s Business Elite class that Bruni described as “rubbery.” Is there any reason to believe that English’s meals will fare any better?
Whenever possible, we like to pack our own food before flying. Choose something simple but filling, like a baguette with goat cheese and prosciutto or a giant salad (although since liquids are banned, you’ll need to pre-dress it or get dressing inside the terminal). If packing a meal at home isn’t possible, we’ve found that getting a meal to go from one of the restaurants in the airport is almost always a better bet than taking your chances with the food served on the plane. The exceptions? Logan’s Terminal E, which has unspeakably awful food options and flights on non-American carriers, where the food is generally pretty good.
Todd English, Flight Attendant [Dishing]
Delta Continues Upgrading Travel: New U.S. Food for Sale Menu to Feature Chef Todd English [Delta]
Mile-High Flubs [Diner’s Journal]
[Photo: Todd English]
