Stroopwafels Return to United Airlines Domestic Flights

Mike Pomranz
Updated
The caramel-filled treats were downsized to only Europe-bound flights last year.

You don’t need to be a hacky standup comedian to know that airline travel sucks. If anything, flying has gotten worse since Jerry Seinfeld first waxed poetic about tiny bags of peanuts. And speaking of sad in-flight snacks, things didn’t get any better this past June when United Airlines announced that it was axing one of its more beloved morning options: the stroopwafel. But alas, if you were looking for some good news to kick off 2019, here’s a tiny bit of Dutch heaven: United has announced that stroopwafels are coming back this month… though for how long is yet to be seen.

To be fair, when United first announced that its stroopwafels were being phased out on all flights other than those departing Europe before 9:30 a.m. (who is making these decisions anyway?), the airline did specifically state that “the Stroopwafel will be available again in the future as the airline rotates between morning snack options.” Well, like some minor leaguer being pulled so that Clayton Kershaw can take the mound, the stroopwafel’s spot in the rotation has apparently come up again.

“We’re starting 2019 on a sweet note,” United posted on Twitter, “the stroopwafel will be back in the snack rotation starting in January!” Specifically, my United Stroopwafel source told me that the chewy, cookie-like treats “will be available on domestic flights departing before 9:45 a.m.” (That’s right, European travelers: We get an extra 15 minutes. Take that!)

For those too afraid to ask what a stroopwafel is, a quick refresher: Though a “wafel” in name, this sweet treat from The Netherlands is actually two soft latticed wafers with a thin layer of caramel-like syrup in between. As I lamented last year, they make for an amazing airline offering because, unlike a hard cookie, the slightly chewy stroopwafel is less prone to messy crumbling. Plus they just taste awesome.

As for how long the stroopwafel will stay around for…. Well, that’s the trouble with a “rotation”: You can never be sure. Though judging by the over 2,000 likes United’s stroopwafel tweet has gotten over the past five days — one of the airline’s most popular posts — maybe it’s time the stroopwafel earned back a permanent spot.