I've been traveling back and forth between coasts quite a bit lately and having flown close to a million miles I know the benefits of packing my own snacks. There are only so many packs of salty pretzel mix and diet sodas you can enjoy on a flight cross-country. Whenever possible I try to bring my own snacks on board -- a protein bar, a pack of almonds, a Macoun or Granny Smith apple usually fills me up along with several bottles of water to keep hydrated 36,000 feet above the earth.
Last week though, when I was on my usual flight from Boston to Seattle, and tempted to buy one of the snack packs offered for purchase, I saw that the airline also offered a kid's snack box. My seat mate decided to go with the cheese snack box. We each paid $6 for our snacks and waited for them to be delivered.
Sure, my seat mate enjoyed a very adult snack a la Grace Kelly with a glass of White Zinfandel along with cheese, grapes and crackers but I had a kid's meal that came with A TOY! Starting with glass of cranberry juice mixed with sparkling water, I tried the Pirate's Booty, followed by applesauce (an odd sensation to sip applesauce but tasty.) Throughout the rest of the flight, I enjoyed a honey graham cookie (above) which tasted like a berry Fig Newton, along with some organic chewy fruits. The snack box also came with a turkey jerky stick that I gave to my seat mate (I'm a vegetarian).
The best part? While my seat mate was left with an empty box (no fun), I had a toy--Wikki Stix, colorful, pliable, waxy strings that I shared with my seat mate. We each braided the strands and made each other a bracelet. The airplane kid's meal was definitely a good call and much more fun than a salty snack mix or even the hot meal. A kid's meal may be the ultimate happy food!
