A Turkey Dinner from 37,000 Feet Over Iraq

I realized something while searching through my massive archive of airline meal photos today.

I’ve had steak, chicken, lamb, pork, fish, lobster, crab, octopus, and even reindeer as a main course on an airplane. But never have I had turkey. Not even once.

So for this special Meal of the Week edition, I take a look at the closest thing possible…a meal from Turkey on Turkish Airlines that included turkey.

We draw back the clock to 2011 for this meal on an overnight flight from Erbil in Iraqi Kurdistan to Istanbul.

a tray of food on a table

I’ve never actually written about my experience in Iraq, but on this Thanksgiving Day the thing that struck me was how much thanksgiving the Iraqi Kurds expressed to me, just for being American.

“Thank you for liberating us!” was the common cry. As if it was me…

The war is so much more complex than that, but in every war there are victors and losers.

Anyway, Turkish Airlines typically offers a breakfast on overnight short- and mid-haul flights. Flights out of Iraq are double-catered in Istanbul.

All service was on a single tray and included a delicious cheese course with cucumbers, olives, and tomatoes (a fitting Turkish breakfast), a cheese omelet with cooked mushrooms, vanilla yogurt, freshly-cut fruit, and finally…sliced turkey.

It was a delicious meal…I still remember it clearly six years later.

And to date, it is one of the only flights that I’ve ever had even a side of turkey.

Happy Thanksgiving!