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Home » United Airlines » Taste Test: The Chicago Bagel Breakfast Melt By Jeff Mauro On United Airlines
Meal of the WeekUnited Airlines

Taste Test: The Chicago Bagel Breakfast Melt By Jeff Mauro On United Airlines

Matthew Klint Posted onMay 5, 2025May 5, 2025 17 Comments

a sandwich and a cup of coffee

I flew from Los Angeles to Chicago for the Freddies last week on United Airlines, and of course, my upgrade did not clear (I was #15 even as a Premier 1K), but that gave me the chance to try out what turned out to be a declious bagel breakfast melt inpsired by Jeff Mauro from the economy class buy-on-board menu.

Jeff Mauro + United Airlines Collaborate For Chicago Bagel Breakfast Melt…And It Was Delicious

This was a quick trip to Chicago that I booked at the last minute, with cash fares for the front cabin way too high to justify…it seems that airlines are having no trouble filling their front cabins without having to upgrade any frequent flyer elites. I love first class, but I’m not stupid.

As a MileagePlus Premier 1K flyer in United Economy, I receive a free food and beverage item on each flight when I do not receive an upgrade. On flights longer than 1,190 miles, United offers a “Bistro On Board” menu that includes a trio of heartier hot items. While breakfast tacos are back on the menu (I approve…), I tried a rather creative Chicago-inspired breakfast sandwich (normal cost, $11).

a burger with a burger and a couple of spices

The Chicago Bagel Breakfast Melt by Jeff Mauro
Folded omelette, Honey G pepper relish cream cheese, giardiniera-dusted Amy Lu chicken sausage, and fontina cheese on a sesame bagel
Created exclusively for United Airlines

I like omelets, I like giardiniera, I like sesame seeds…so I figured this might be good.

…and it was!

a coffee and a packet on a table

a bag of breakfast meal

a burger with egg and cheese on a paper bag

a burger and a cup of coffee on a tray

a breakfast sandwich on a napkin

The ingredient list was still a bit longer than I’d like and it did not quite look like the picture on the menu (above), but it was really a nice blend of flavors and hit the spot…it’s actually something I would have ordered had it been on the first class menu (and it is best eaten with a fork and knife).

Jeff Mauro is the co-host of the Food Network series The Kitchen and host of Sandwich King and $24 in 24. This breakfast sandwich was created exclusively for United Airlines and it’s worth a try…I’d 100% order it again.

Below is Mauro in an Instagram video that cracked me up. He was flying United in first class and ordered his cheeseburger (which was on the menu last month). His seatmates saw how much he enjoyed it and everyone asked for one…the poor economy class passengers must have ended up with nothing!

#Let them eat stroopwafels!

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Jeff Mauro (@jeffmauro)

While I think celebrity chef collaborations can often be overrated, not here – this is a great fit for United and now I need to try the Honey G Cheesburger as soon as it returns to the menu!


Each week, my Meal of the Week feature examines an airline meal from my travels over the years. This may be a meal from earlier in the week or it may be a meal served over a decade ago.

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About Author

Matthew Klint

Matthew is an avid traveler who calls Los Angeles home. Each year he travels more than 200,000 miles by air and has visited more than 135 countries. Working both in the aviation industry and as a travel consultant, Matthew has been featured in major media outlets around the world and uses his Live and Let's Fly blog to share the latest news in the airline industry, commentary on frequent flyer programs, and detailed reports of his worldwide travel.

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17 Comments

  1. Malik Reply
    May 5, 2025 at 7:21 am

    Feels like UA is starting to make the right steps for catering. Hope this continues as they try to compete with DL across all meals on top of making service consistent. Still feels like catering and FAs are a mixed bag, when it shouldn’t.

    • Alert Reply
      May 5, 2025 at 8:01 am

      Yep , but a wrong step to describe it as “Chicago” style … it does not evoke Chicago in any way .

      • Maryland Reply
        May 5, 2025 at 8:48 am

        Sausage and peppers served on a roll is regarded as Chicago-style

  2. Maryland Reply
    May 5, 2025 at 7:52 am

    The giardiniera seasoning is intriguing. I could see many uses for this. While not sold on the sausage sandwich I would order the spice mix.

  3. TyInTheSky Reply
    May 5, 2025 at 8:49 am

    Tried the Burger last month ex IAH – still craving it to this day!

  4. Dave Edwards Reply
    May 5, 2025 at 10:08 am

    I’m clear on my dislike for fancy foods by fancy overpriced chefs, but this takes it to a new level. Why the need for Chicken Sausage? AA pulls this with their breakfast too. Cream cheese? Come on. It has to be a small percentage of the public that wants this over Pork Sausage and Cheddar Cheese.

    At least it was “free”.

    • Maryland Reply
      May 5, 2025 at 10:57 am

      Dave the description said fontina cheese. The ingredients list says Swiss cheese. While similar they are not the same, so heck, it could have been cheddar. I didn’t catch the cream cheese but why is there at all?

    • Matthew Klint Reply
      May 5, 2025 at 11:31 am

      What’s wrong with chicken sausage and Swiss cheese?

  5. Santastico Reply
    May 5, 2025 at 10:20 am

    As someone that works in the food industry for over 25 years, here are just a few things that make me cringe when I read the ingredients list. Not listing all the bad ones otherwise it would be a long post. I still don’t understand why we cannot have simple food in this country.
    Enriched flour
    Calcium Propionate
    Azodicarbonamide
    Guar Gum
    Corn Syrup
    Xanthan Gum
    Sodium Benzoate
    Potassium Sorbate
    ETC……

    • Matthew Klint Reply
      May 5, 2025 at 11:30 am

      I agree with you and in this limited sense, I am 100% behind RFK’s efforts to at least align our ingredient requirements to European levels. Additives, fake coloring, and unnecessary preservatives should not be permitted.

      • Santastico Reply
        May 5, 2025 at 2:23 pm

        Glad to hear that. As an investor in the food space, I have always been shocked that the US allows thousands and thousands of ingredients that have been banned in the EU for almost 20 years to still be in our food here. The lobby of food companies is just way too strong. They are now crying saying the prices of your products will be higher which is a huge lie since those same products are already sold in Canada and EU with healthier and cleaned ingredients. Just this past weekend my wife asked me to buy shredded mozzarella cheese. What can be bad about mozzarella cheese, right? Well, when I read the ingredients list: canola oil, cellulose and netamycin. Why can’t it be just cheese?

  6. Todd S Reply
    May 5, 2025 at 12:31 pm

    Appears that UA is trying to give AA a run for the money comparing AA’s options to UA’s BOB options. Clearly, offering nothing will trump the taste and ingredients of UA’s offerings. AA and their non-multiple options clearly wins when comparing them to UA.

  7. Dennis Lyons Reply
    May 5, 2025 at 2:33 pm

    Hi Matthew,
    Let’s make these on your next visit!
    Cheers

    • Matthew Klint Reply
      May 5, 2025 at 3:43 pm

      Yay! Let’s do it.

  8. Pete Reply
    May 5, 2025 at 3:41 pm

    That’s almost a whole day’s carb allowance for me, and most of my fat allowance too. Sure looks tasty, though!

    • Matthew Klint Reply
      May 5, 2025 at 4:04 pm

      Indeed, I generally avoid all but trace amounts of carbs each day, but my strict diet seems to fall by the wayside when I step on a plane!

  9. AAflyer Reply
    May 6, 2025 at 3:09 am

    It does look ok. The cheese looks gloppy though. Without tasting it seems like it’d be better with just the cream cheese spread and without the cheese.

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