On The Road Travel: Airport Food

On The Road Travel is an online resource for independent travelers in South and Central America. This Weblog is a description of the development of the website as well as a discussion of other relevant travel issues. Here's a sample post about airport food:

Airport Food
by Veronica Montero
On The Road Travel
January 26, 2007

Finding a nutritious meal at airports can be a challenge. Not only do you know you’re getting ripped off but also you know your body is cringing at what you’re feeding it.

Click here for complete post.

British Airways strike called off

(Whew!)

Airline Strike Called Off
Sky News
Updated: 16:05, Monday January 29, 2007

A planned strike by thousands of British Airways cabin crew has been called off.

Click here for complete article.

Here are more recent articles about the last-minute deal which averted the walkout:

British Airways Strike Canceled, Agreement Reached (Update6)
Bloomberg - January 29, 2007
By Tracy Alloway and Chad Thomas. Jan. 29 (Bloomberg) -- British Airways Plc averted a strike by flight attendants, reaching an agreement on pay and sick ...

BA says T&G cancels strike plans, but flights this week will still ...
Forbes, NY - January 29, 2007
LONDON (AFX) - British Airways PLC said a UK trade union has called off strikes that could have wiped out many of its services from London this week and ...

British Airways strike averted; too late to avoid disruptions
USA Today - January 29, 2007
LONDON (AP) — British Airways said Monday it had reached agreement with a union representing cabin crews to head off a strike scheduled to begin at midnight ...

British Airways Strike Canceled, Agreement Reached (Update5)
Bloomberg - January 29, 2007
By Tracy Alloway and Chad Thomas. Jan. 29 (Bloomberg) -- British Airways Plc, Europe's third- largest airline, averted a strike by flight attendants, ...

UPDATE 2-British Airways says cabin crew strikes called off
Reuters - January 29, 2007
Martin Broughton has been a Board Member since May 2000, Deputy Chairman from November, 2003 becoming non-executive Chairman in July, 2004. Safety. ...

BA says cabin crew strikes called off
Reuters.uk, UK - January 29, 2007
LONDON (Reuters) - British Airways said on Monday a 48-hour strike by cabin crew members of its largest union had been cancelled, although it still expected ...

BA reinstates all cancelled long-haul flights
Reuters India, India - January 29, 2007
LONDON (Reuters) - British Airways Plc said on Monday it had reinstated all long-haul flights that had been cancelled ahead of a possible strike by cabin ...

BA cabin crew strike is called off
Guardian Unlimited, UK - January 29, 2007
A planned strike by thousands of British Airways cabin crew has been called off following a deal to end a bitter dispute over sickness absence, ...

British Airways Strike Canceled, Agreement Reached (Update3)
Bloomberg - January 29, 2007
By Tracy Alloway. Jan. 29 (Bloomberg) -- British Airways Plc, Europe's third- largest airline, said flight attendants canceled a strike due to start at ...

British Airways says cabin crew strikes called off
Reuters - January 29, 2007
LONDON, January 29 (Reuters) - British Airways Plc (BAY.L: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Monday a 48-hour strike by cabin crew members of its largest ...

British Airways strike update

Airport Chaos Expected
Sky News
Updated: 14:19, Thursday January 25, 2007

Thousands of passengers face travel chaos next week as British Airways axes hundreds of flights because of strike action.
The airline has cancelled all flights from Heathrow for two days next week because of strike action by cabin crew.

Click here for complete article.

British Airways Cabin Crew to strike?

It appears that British Airways Cabin Crew are gearing up for industrial action. Here's a statement from BA's website:

Following the announcement by the Transport and General Workers Union’s (T&G) cabin crew branch that its members will take industrial action on January 29, 30 and 31; February 5, 6 and 7; and February 12, 13 and 14 we would like to assure our customers that British Airways remains committed to resolving this dispute through continued talks. They are offering a change policy different to that of your ticket restrictions – as we have more details I shall forward them to you.

Visit www.britishairways.com for updates.

See below for recent articles about the potential strike:

More travel disruption as BA strikes loom
InTheNews.co.uk, UK - Jan 15, 2007
Thousands of striking BA cabin crew on January 29th, 30th and 31st will mean more delays for passengers just one month after heavy fog caused severe ...

British Airways cabin crew to stage 3-day strike
Boston Herald, MA - Jan 22, 2007
The union notified BA of its intention to call out cabin crew on strike again Feb. 6-8 and Feb. 12-14 if the dispute is not resolved. ...

BA seeks arbitration to avert strikes
Lancashire Evening Post, UK - Jan 22, 2007
BA says the union also wants the airline to combine its two cabin-crew pay scales, the newer of which was agreed to by the union a decade ago. ...

BA recruits third party to avert looming strike
Manchester.com, UK - Jan 22, 2007British Airways (BA) has called in conciliation service Acas to help resolve its dispute with cabin crew staff. Talks with cabin crew representatives from ...

BA cabin crew workers vote to strike
ATWOnline, MD - Jan 16, 2007
"BA cabin crew have voted to say the airline has gone too far. BA must rebuild the trust of its cabin crew by negotiating rather than imposing change and by ...

BA Cabin Crew Union Increases Pressure With Strike Vote
Aviation Week, NY - Jan 17, 2007
... British Airways now faces the possibility of a strike over a long-running dispute regarding cabin crew work rules. More than 8000 -- or 96% -- of the BA ...

Disruption threatened as BA cabin crew back strikes
Guardian Unlimited, UK - Jan 15, 2007
At the start of a meeting attended by more than 1000 BA cabin crew today, union officials announced that 8132 people had voted for strike action, ...

BA cabin crew plan protest
Trade Arabia, Bahrain - Jan 15, 2007
British Airways (BA) cabin crew have voted overwhelmingly in favour of strike action in a dispute over sick leave, pay and staffing. ...

Huge majority of BA cabin crew vote for three-day strike
Independent, UK - Jan 15, 2007
"The reasonable men and women who are the BA cabin crew have been pushed too far and have had enough. The 96 per cent vote in favour of strike action sends ...

What? But, I already paid for my ticket!

Airports face chaos over tax rise
Air travellers are being warned of possible chaos at airports next month as some are told to pay a rise in tax despite buying tickets months ago.
BBC News
Last Updated: Saturday, 13 January 2007, 09:04 GMT

From 1 February, the Air Passenger Duty is set to go up ... Most airlines raised fares as soon as the Chancellor, Gordon Brown, announced the hike on 6 December. But some are demanding payment even for tickets booked before ...

Click here for complete article.

Chattanooga Foodie Tour

Recently, this blog's administrator spent several days in the Chattanooga area, where down home cooking (BBQ, soul food, southern cuisine, and more) was a highlight of my visit. What follows is a brief report of some of the scrummier meals I had while there. All the restaurants are extremely low budget options, except for the upscale (yet understated) Canyon Grill, which is still reasonably priced and very good value for money.










By no means is this an exhaustive list of good eats in the Chattanooga area. However, it must be said that getting beyond the Cracker Barrel curtain to some authentic, local cuisine can be a bit of a challenge. One great resource that I used to get beyond the mega-chain restaurants was Chowhound co-founder Jim Leff's CHOW Tour Dispatch #25: "I Heart Chattanooga".

Bon appétit y'all!

Old Plantation BBQ
1515 Dodson Ave
Chattanooga,TN 37406
(423) 624-8105

Wow! Despite a tight schedule and a full agenda, I luckily managed to eat here twice during my visit. Some of the best BBQ I've ever tasted - the pulled pork almost melted in my mouth. I highly recommend a visit to this popular, humble take-out joint (there are a couple of concrete tables in the parking lot). Get stuffed here for under $10 (the pulled pork sandwich costs $5 and will keep you satiated for hours).















Pitmaster Eatery
2004 Dodds Avenue (at East 19th Street?)
Chattanooga Tennessee 37404

Heading home from Old Plantation, I drove by Pitmaster Eatery and made a mental note to return the next day for lunch. I'm so glad I did. This friendly, homey place served me up some of the best fried okra and hot wings I've ever had. Unfortunately, they were closed for the holidays during the rest of my visit. Otherwise, I would have gone back to sample more of their menu. To spend more than, say, $7 per person here would require Herculean effort!
















Southern Star
1206 Market St
Chattanooga, TN 37402
(423) 267-8899
http://southernstarrestaurant.com/

Clean airy dining space, efficient friendly service, simple fresh home-style cooking with quality ingredients - all at a decent price. Southern Star is a no brainer. Approximately $10 per person will get starters, mains, drinks and dessert for lunch!



La Altena
314 W Main St
Chattanooga, TN 37408
(423) 266-7595

Regretfully, I don't have any pics of this great Mexican restaurant. I've been a fan of this taqueria for years now, and I'm glad to report that their food's gotten better! Seemingly tired of burrito slinging to gringos, our waiter was delighted when my wife and I ordered the chicken mole and the homemade tamales. He actually thanked us for ordering them! We were equally pleased to discover that they served orchata even though it wasn't on the menu. Great food at reasonable prices. Some of the best Mexican food I've had on the East Coast. $10 is plenty for a hearty appetite.

Canyon Grill
28 Scenic Hwy.
Rising Fawn, Ga. 30738
(706) 398-9510
http://canyongrill.com/

This unassuming restaurant atop Lookout Mountain (about 20 miles from Chattanooga) is a wonderful place for high quality dining in a casual setting and is also a great spot to keep in mind should you need to impress others (drive up around sunset for a spectacular show).

For $30, the Slash N Burn Catfish (a whole 3 pound farm-raised catfish crispy fried with black bean sauce served with one side) is feast enough to two. A great side is the crispy squash.




Battlefield BBQ
1006 Lafayette Rd
Chickamauga, GA
706-375-1111

Battlefield BBQ is a great dining option for folks passing through Chickamauga or visiting the National Military Park. I'm hesitant to place this take out restaurant in the same league as Old Plantation and Pitmaster Eatery, but I was more than pleased by the quality of the BBQ and the long list of available sides and veggies.













Photography by Emiana and Tiki Chris © 2006

Happy New Year from ontoTravel!

Sunrise at Tongariki
Photograph by Emiana © 2006