US F - no meals <3.5 hours
AirTran has a premium cabin - no meals - just free drinks and snacks - they call it Business Class - more pitch than US but - it sets real expectations.
So if US sells domestic First Class - I think they should rise up to the competitors re: F meal service. DL, UA, AA
If not - rebrand the product to business class IMHO.
US has a small F cabin - mostly 12 seats on the A319,A320 - 16 on the A321. How much could this really cost as compared to lost revenue from disgruntled customers who choose a different venue?
My thought is they are selling a premium product at the same price as competitors but offering a sub-par product. Makes no sense in the long term. If you are going to do it - do it right!