Food prep at UA and CO has gone downhill a great deal in the last twenty years mostly due to budget cuts, but also different prep methods.

In the 1980's and 1990's, first class and business class food was loaded on in aluminum trays with different foods separate. I.e., meat would be in one tray, potatoes in another and vegetables in a separate third. The dishware (which was called a "setup") would be separate. The flight attendant would heat the food and apportion the food herself onto the plates. Today it looks like the food is pre-placed on the plate in the kitchen which leaves the food mushed together when it is served.

In addition, more food in those days were loaded on in bulk. I.e., nuts for first class would be loaded on in a big plastic bag and the flight attendant would dish out the nuts until the bag was empty. Today the nuts are loaded pre-allocated in bowls so you only one one portion and the FA's can't offer your seconds.