Last week I had the chance fly JetBlue from New York to Los Angeles and tried out the Mediterranean Salad from JetBlue’s EatUp Café.
Healthy JetBlue Mediterranean Salad
I was seated in the last row of the aircraft (by choice) so I could have an open seat next to me. That meant I stood no chance of scoring a salad by the time the buy-on-board cart moved to the back of the aircraft, so I asked one of the flight attendants before she began service if I could buy one. She was happy to oblige me and commended me for thinking ahead.
Indeed, only five salads were loaded and by the time she reached the last row she confirmed that they had only lasted two rows! (seems like a lost opportunity or additional revenue from JetBlue…when a six-hour flight departs at 6pm, there is going to be many hungry people onboard).
The Mediterranean Salad was served in a plastic container meant to be shaken up so that the dressing and other ingredients could be evenly distributed.
The salad included:
- kale
- chickpeas
- red quinoa
- cherry tomato
- cucumbers
- tahini dressing
- lemon juice
- tahini paste
- agave
- olive oil
- sea salt
- feta cheese (packaged separately)
The salad is 420 calories, including 18g of fat, 53g of carbohydrates, and 13g of protein.
I LOVED the salad. Very flavorful and the tahini sauce was delicious. This is a delicious dish and a great buy-onboard option.
At $13, I thought it was bit pricey for the small portion, but it was quite delicious and I was happy to have a healthy salad instead of a carb-filled snack box on a transcontinental flight.
I do wish JetBlue would sell food from Mint class! I’d pay $30-50 for a nice meal onboard and they could do it Air Canada style, simply boarding extra meals up front and then selling off the extra dishes.
Have you tried the Mediterranean Salad on JetBlue?
med salad on jetBlue is a great option. i was shocked.
See, why why why are most U.S. Carriers so behind the curve? They actually think we want boxes of packaged processed cheese and junk for purchase. Or in many cases of flights under three hours to do anything they can to give you nothing, even drink service beyond a cup of water.
Even on 50 minute domestic flights in Australia (as one example) there are great options. And you don’t get the usual U.S. approach of, “Due to the short duration of the flight we will not able to provide any service.”
I agree, the service on many US carriers is so basic and poor. KLM are a great example, 40 minute flight, a decent sandwich, stroopwaffle and a small selection of drinks including Heineken is offered complimentary to every passenger with a smile.
United make it as hard as possible to get anything and everything is grossly overpriced.
People complain about euro business class but the reality is economy service is on almost on a par with many US carriers first.
Air Canada is a shining light in the north American market.
If the plane actually takes off… JetBlue is great.
I still think it’s a bit odd that these long flights with airlines that aren’t hard-core discounters don’t include complimentary meals, but what I find completely outrageous is the apparent lack of a facility to even purchase a proper meal (whether through pre-ordering, the AC system, or another way). With a connection, this could easily be an 11-hour trip door to door, sometimes with limited/no opportunity to eat something nutritious along the way. This thoughtless approach plainly shows disregard for the well-being of passengers.
Sorry to bring the bad news but a meal with 420 calories, including 53 grams of carbs and 18 grams of fat is not healthy.
That’s a really carb dense meal – more than 50% of the calories are coming from carbs, and 38% of calories coming from fat.
2 slices of bread (around 60 grams of carbs) would have had about the same amount of carbs as your salad. And you would get fibre and protein too.
53 grams of carbs in a 420 calorie snack is pretty carb dense.
A protein bar would have netted you 200 calories, around 15 grams of carbs and 20 grams of protein.
Nothing healthy or low carb about that salad. Worse – all the carbs are coming from sugar in the dressing. No good carbs at all. Just sugar to spike your insulin while you sit still on a plane.
It’s not the total carbs/fats/calories that are as important but the type of carbs/fats. Those that spike your blood sugar level fast (like most breads) are worse for you and may lead to weight gain. Complex carbs with fiber and good nutrients are good for you as they take time to digest and make you feel full – leading to less overall consumption. The right type of fats (omega 3 rich and natural non-processed) are also good for you and necessary to operate a well (pun intended) oiled machine – including your brain.
Exactly.
Disagree. Weight gain is calorie balance. Cals in V cals out. It’s the biggest contributor to wait gain. 420 calories is now a low cal snack at all. This salad is carb dense – of the 420 calories more than half come from carbs. And yummy salad dressing is high in sugar normally too. I maintain a ham sandwich (on wheat) or protein bar would be much better choice.
I’d bring my own food. At $13. I could make a salad that is healthier.
Tim – I agree on sugary dressings. They can nullify what would otherwise be a healthy salad! The Keto diet has a lot of high calorie foods such as a nice marbled steak, fatty salmon, etc., – yet most people on it seem to keep the weight off so there is a balance on number versus type of calories that needs to be taken into account. Even so, for those of us that enjoy food, there is nothing like skipping most of that thinking from time to time. Nothing like a good ham sandwich – especially on great slice of rustic bread.
I like the Mediterranean salad on JETBLUE in general.