To each their own I guess.

 

There's a good YouTube video a JetBlue pilot posted on eating during trips. ( and probably several others.)

Sad thing is, pay has never been better in the regional world.

 

Re: food...

Invest in a quality food dehydrator. You can make your own jerky meats and dried fruits. If sealed in a bag with little-to-no air, neither needs refrigeration. Most veggies don't either. Use zip-lock bags, close 3/4ths of the way, then suck out the remaining air while sealing. Hey presto! Instant resealable vacuum packed food.

Supplement with block cheese, quality crackers, and nuts. A few pieces of jerky, some dried fruit, a few carrots sticks, a hunk of cheese, some crackers, and a bottle of water is a very quick, easy, nutritious, cheap, and light weight (ie. easy to carry) meal. Not messy; can snack in the cockpit no problem. Don't need utensils and you can easily pack 3-4 days worth. As mentioned by others, supplement with free hotel breakfasts or the occasional dinner. Eating this way will keep you fit and trim, too. You can also easily share with others to make friends if you so desire.

Lots of excellent recipes and "how to"s for dehydrated foods online.

 

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=yvHYWD29ZNY

 

A bout with ecoli might be worth a couple million. Not gonna make it as a regional guy.

 

Ummm, at more than a few regionals that is considered theft.....

 

Must be wonderful places to work

 

Those of you worrying about food poisoning from home-cooked food...have obviously never worked in food service, especially fast food outlets (at airports or anywhere). If you saw what goes on behind the counter...I doubt you'd be rushing to write off home-cooked food as 'unsafe' or 'asking for food poisoning.'

I simply carry a crew cooler with me, along with 2 cold packs. I usually make six meals (lunches and dinners), and freeze those in Tupperware. Breakfasts generally tend to be free at hotels, so those six meals will see me through three days of a trip. (There's simply no way to fit enough food for 4 days into my cooler.)

Anyhow, most hotels have room fridges, and if they don't, the front desk almost always has a full-size fridge for the hotel staff, which they are usually happy to let guests use. Also, if you're doing hub turns and are worried about your food defrosting, just toss it in the crew room freezer. With the right cold packs and a good crew cooler, your food will likely stay nicely frozen.

And that food is a darn sight healthier and more affordable than the processed garbage that passes for most American restaurant food. Toss in some fresh fruit, yogurt, and hard-boiled eggs from the hotel breakfast, and you're good to go. Just avoid the bagels, waffles, toast, and sugar bombs disguised as breakfast (i.e. cereal) and you'll be fine.

This strategy has actually allowed me to lose 15 lbs since starting at the regionals 18 months ago. Well, that and religious use of the hotel gyms.

I see these pilots everywhere carrying around 30-50 lbs of extra weight around their bellies, while chowing down on McD's or BK or some other shrine to grease and cholesterol...why would you want to do that to your body? Even salads at most restaurants are more calorific than many of the burgers offered.

That said, when I show up at a DoubleTree and they have those warm cookies waiting...or when I wind up in OKC across the street from the Dairy Queen (which we don't have where I live)...or if we overnight in MFR and I think about Kaleidoscope Pizza just down the road...all of the above goes out the window

 

Pro tip, keep your cooler cool with one of those sacks you put ice in and hold against your head when you've got a headache. Even if you run up against a hotel with no refrigerators, they'll still always have an ice machine. Presto, personal fridge.

 

Here's a better question for those of you that are sitting in your rooms eating string cheese and biscuits while thawing your 3 day old pasta.

How do you not go insane? I probably wouldn't last one trip doing that.