Because getting there is not fun.

That cookie is too large for the overhead, sir ...

Sat, 2008/05/03 - 19:09 by aargh

The evolution of food on AA's short- and mid-distance flights:

First, there was free fare. Maybe a box lunch of a sandwich and a cookie.

Next came "snack box": for a mere $3 you'd get something that was less than appetizing but still cheaper than buying food in the airport. (Cheaper food, mind you, though not necessarily better food.)

Now, we have a la carte: buy a sandwich, cookie, or chips.

One leftover from the snack box days is the airline's repeated request for exact change. Equally unimpressive was the flight attendant disappearing for over an hour before distributing everyone's change. Either you're prepared to run a till or you're not...

That gripe aside, the a la carte format is growing on me. For one, I'm not paying for items I don't eat, which I did with the snack box. (Did anyone eat that dodgy-looking sausage thing? or did the airline collect and recycle them to add some weight to the boxes?)

Two, it's nice to get a proper sandwich. Three, someone did their homework on the price point: $5 for the sandwich, $3 for chips, and $3 for the cookie. That's around what one would pay in the airport Starbucks, without the extra attitude they offer when you don't purchase an overpriced coffee beverage.

The portion sizes caught me by surprise, though. The "chips" were a full-sized can (Pringles, I think) and the "cookie" ... well, see for yourself:

big cookie

(As for the name: an extra laugh for anyone hip to modern French slang. -ed)

Yes. A quarter pound. Enough for the outbound flight, return, and the days in between. I dare say it weighed more than my sandwich.

No fear, I won't share the nutritional information. If you want a cookie, you already know what you're getting into ...