Due to the fact that the second leg of my local airlines (Northwest) flight to Europe is to India, they often provide much more Indian food than is necessary. It is not that I don't like Indian food, but more than once the whole back of the plane has been left with nothing but curried lentils with garbonzo beans. The idea of eating 8 ounces of beans at the beginning of a 12 hour journey does not appeal to me (or my fellow passengers!) so I have ordered the Kosher meal, on the assumption that it will not be beans.

Does anyone have any experience with the various special meals the airlines provide?

hey there -

every time i fly between the US and Europe I request a vegetarian meal, this way i'm sure to avoid mystery meat. as long as you call 24 hours in advance of your flight, most major airlines will offer it to you, no problem. i've never travelled to india, so i cant say if it's the same, but check the website of your airline to see who you can call to request one.

alternatively, you could pack your own food, which is the best guarantee of a happy stomach. good luck!

During my last few trips overseas, I requested the low calorie meal. It is usually far better than what they normally serve and you typically get it served before anyone else.

Out of the two meals served, the kosher meal was about the same as a regular meal for one and FANTASTIC for the other. They had real roast chicken with stuffing and glazed carrots, a fresh bagel with a very nice eggplant spread and fresh fruit along with chocolate mousse.

The breakfast/snacks were a bit sub-par, but the flight attendants were very nice and made up for it by giving me parts of the regular meals.

Next time I will try something different, but I will stay away from the vegetarian, not wanting to risk those pesky garbonzo beans!