Alaska & Hawaiian Join the Service Upgrade Race With New Chef-Curated Menus

Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines announced new chef-curated menus and a premium wine program this week. The timing is notable - just days after Delta’s Delta One refresh announcement. The US airline service arms race continues to heat up.

Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines announced significant updates to their premium cabin food and beverage programs yesterday, including chef-curated menus and a new premium wine program. The announcement follows a busy week for US airline service upgrades, most notably Delta’s comprehensive Delta One refresh that we covered earlier this week.

For anyone following the US airline competitive landscape, the pattern is clear. Everyone is investing in soft product differentiation. Here’s what Alaska and Hawaiian are doing.

Image via Alaska’s News Hub

The Chef-Curated Menu Program

Alaska and Hawaiian both brought in James Beard-caliber chef talent to redesign their long-haul premium cabin menus. The specific chef partnerships announced:

For Alaska Airlines:

• Chef Renee Erickson - a Seattle-based James Beard Award winner
• Chef Brady Williams - The owner of Canlis, one of the most highly regarded restaurants in Seattle

For Hawaiian Airlines:

• Executive Chef Dell Valdez continues leading the Hawaiian culinary program
• Chef Sheldon Simeon - A James Beard Award finalist, who will be bringing authentic Hawaiian flavors onboard
• Chef Norio Ueno - focused on Japan routes
• Chef Jereme Leung - focused on China routes

Image via Alaska News Hub

The Premium Wine Program

Both airlines are also introducing a premium wine program. This will feature:

• Curated selections from top Pacific Northwest, California, and international wineries
• Rotating seasonal selections
• Enhanced wine service in premium cabins

This isn’t far off from what Delta announced with their partnership with Master Sommelier Andrea Robinson, and what American has been doing with their California wine refresh. The common thread: airlines are treating wine as a legitimate premium differentiator rather than an afterthought. No more boxed wines like we saw a few years ago on some of the US based carriers!

Image via Alaska’s News Hub

The Context

This announcement fits into a broader pattern we’ve been tracking all year. Virtually every major US airline is making significant investments in premium cabin experience:

American Airlines:

• California wine program refresh
• Flagship Dining expansion
• KHK Wines and KM Chocolate pairing at LAX
• Lounge upgrades across the network

Delta Air Lines:

• Delta One comprehensive refresh with Blanton’s bourbon, Simon Hulstone-led menu, Andrea Robinson wine program

United Airlines:

• Ongoing Polaris lounge investment
• Starlink Wi-Fi rollout across fleet

Alaska Airlines & Hawaiian Airlines (today):

• Chef-curated menus with regional expertise
• Premium wine program
• Aurora Suites and Leihoku Suites announcement from last month

Everyone is spending real money on soft product differentiation. The passenger benefits from this competitive dynamic.

What This Means for Travelers

Premium cabin passengers win. More investment in food and beverage quality across all US carriers means a materially better experience in business class on any US airline over the next 1-2 years.

Regional airlines have identity advantages. Alaska’s Pacific Northwest cuisine positioning and Hawaiian’s authentic Hawaiian/Asian cuisine positioning strong brand differentiation. You could even argue we’re seeing a little bit of this coming from American Airlines and their well rated BBQ offerings on flights out of DFW.

Wine programs are becoming battlegrounds.

My Take

Alaska has quietly been building one of the better US airline experiences for years. Adding chef-curated menus and a premium wine program is a natural evolution and puts them on par with some of the recent announcements from their peers.

For Hawaiian Airlines specifically, the ongoing Leihōkū Suites announcement plus these dining upgrades positions them as a legitimate premium Pacific player. For a long time Hawaiian felt like a leisure-focused airline that happened to offer business class. The combined investments signal that their team is building a proper premium brand.

After similar news from Detla and American, we’ll have to see if United will follow in the coming weeks with their own soft product announcement. ;)

Bottom Line

This is another positive development for US airline premium cabin experience. The service arms race across US carriers is good for travelers, and Alaska and Hawaiian are proving they can compete with the big three in terms of soft product quality.

If you fly either airline, expect to see these changes rolling out across their long-haul fleets over the coming months.

Source: Alaska Airlines Newsroom

Related: Delta One’s Next Era Dining Refresh · AA Expands Flagship Dining Access · Hawaiian’s Leihōkū Suites and A330 Refresh