May 11, 22, 2:38 pm
Last edit by: WineCountryUA
previous thread: COVID Era UA inflight service changes
Thread is for general discussion of the state of UA in-flight service / catering, comparison to other carriers, past UA offerings and concerns with management decisions.
For a specific post about a recent in-flight food, use the appropriate Let's Eat .... thread.
The current Onboard Service descriptions by UA.com
Long-haul international premium cabin dining
North America, Caribbean and Latin America premium cabin dining
United Economy dining
Since the UA website is extremely vague, I'm looking for a few volunteers to submit data, and I will summarize to complete the wiki. kind regards, phkc070408
Domestic Under 300 Miles
Sample 1
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Bagged Snack? Yes/No
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Sample 2
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Bagged Snack? Yes/No
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Sample 3
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Bagged Snack? Yes/No
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Sample 4
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Bagged Snack? Yes/No
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Sample 5
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Bagged Snack? Yes/No
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Domestic Over 300 Miles Under 800 Miles
Sample 1
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Bagged Snack? Yes/No
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Sample 2
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Bagged Snack? Yes/No
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Sample 3
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Bagged Snack? Yes/No
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Sample 4
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Bagged Snack? Yes/No
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Sample 5
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Bagged Snack? Yes/No
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Domestic Over 800 Miles
Sample 1
Route? Morning or Afternoon or Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Snack Basket?
Sample 2
Route? Morning or Afternoon or Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Snack Basket?
Sample 3
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening/. or Late Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Snack Basket?
Sample 4
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening or Late Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Snack Basket?
Sample 5
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening or Late Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Snack Basket?
P-Tcon
Sample 1
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening or Red-Eye?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Snack Basket/Pre-Arrival?
Any other notes of relevance?
Sample 2
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening or Red-Eye?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Snack Basket/Pre-Arrival?
Any other notes of relevance?
Sample 3
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening or Red-Eye?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Snack Basket/Pre-Arrival?
Any other notes of relevance?
Sample 4
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening or Red-Eye?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Snack Basket/Pre-Arrival?
Any other notes of relevance?
Sample 5
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening or Red-Eye?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Snack Basket/Pre-Arrival?
Any other notes of relevance?
Polaris USA - Europe
Sample 1
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening or Red-Eye?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Menu?
Hot Towels?
First Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Appetizer / Desert Info:
Snack Basket/Mid-Flight Snack?
Arrival Meal? Short Description.
Any other notes of relevance?
Sample 2
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening or Red-Eye?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Menu?
Hot Towels?
First Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Appetizer / Desert Info:
Snack Basket/Mid-Flight Snack?
Arrival Meal? Short Description.
Any other notes of relevance?
Sample 3
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening or Red-Eye?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Menu?
Hot Towels?
First Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Appetizer / Desert Info:
Snack Basket/Mid-Flight Snack?
Arrival Meal? Short Description.
Any other notes of relevance?
Sample 4
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening or Red-Eye?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Menu?
Hot Towels?
First Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Appetizer / Desert Info:
Snack Basket/Mid-Flight Snack?
Arrival Meal? Short Description.
Any other notes of relevance?
Sample 5
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening or Red-Eye?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Menu?
Hot Towels?
First Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Appetizer / Desert Info:
Snack Basket/Mid-Flight Snack?
Arrival Meal? Short Description.
Any other notes of relevance?
Related thread: How bad does onboard catering need to get before UA invests in improving it?
Thread is for general discussion of the state of UA in-flight service / catering, comparison to other carriers, past UA offerings and concerns with management decisions.
For a specific post about a recent in-flight food, use the appropriate Let's Eat .... thread.
The current Onboard Service descriptions by UA.com
Long-haul international premium cabin dining
North America, Caribbean and Latin America premium cabin dining
United Economy dining
Since the UA website is extremely vague, I'm looking for a few volunteers to submit data, and I will summarize to complete the wiki. kind regards, phkc070408
Domestic Under 300 Miles
Sample 1
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Bagged Snack? Yes/No
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Sample 2
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Bagged Snack? Yes/No
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Sample 3
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Bagged Snack? Yes/No
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Sample 4
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Bagged Snack? Yes/No
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Sample 5
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Bagged Snack? Yes/No
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Domestic Over 300 Miles Under 800 Miles
Sample 1
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Bagged Snack? Yes/No
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Sample 2
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Bagged Snack? Yes/No
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Sample 3
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Bagged Snack? Yes/No
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Sample 4
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Bagged Snack? Yes/No
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Sample 5
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Bagged Snack? Yes/No
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Domestic Over 800 Miles
Sample 1
Route? Morning or Afternoon or Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Snack Basket?
Sample 2
Route? Morning or Afternoon or Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Snack Basket?
Sample 3
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening/. or Late Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Snack Basket?
Sample 4
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening or Late Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Snack Basket?
Sample 5
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening or Late Evening?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Served Snacked? Yes/No. Hot/Cold. What was offered?
Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Snack Basket?
P-Tcon
Sample 1
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening or Red-Eye?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Snack Basket/Pre-Arrival?
Any other notes of relevance?
Sample 2
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening or Red-Eye?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Snack Basket/Pre-Arrival?
Any other notes of relevance?
Sample 3
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening or Red-Eye?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Snack Basket/Pre-Arrival?
Any other notes of relevance?
Sample 4
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening or Red-Eye?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Snack Basket/Pre-Arrival?
Any other notes of relevance?
Sample 5
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening or Red-Eye?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Snack Basket/Pre-Arrival?
Any other notes of relevance?
Polaris USA - Europe
Sample 1
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening or Red-Eye?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Menu?
Hot Towels?
First Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Appetizer / Desert Info:
Snack Basket/Mid-Flight Snack?
Arrival Meal? Short Description.
Any other notes of relevance?
Sample 2
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening or Red-Eye?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Menu?
Hot Towels?
First Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Appetizer / Desert Info:
Snack Basket/Mid-Flight Snack?
Arrival Meal? Short Description.
Any other notes of relevance?
Sample 3
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening or Red-Eye?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Menu?
Hot Towels?
First Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Appetizer / Desert Info:
Snack Basket/Mid-Flight Snack?
Arrival Meal? Short Description.
Any other notes of relevance?
Sample 4
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening or Red-Eye?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Menu?
Hot Towels?
First Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Appetizer / Desert Info:
Snack Basket/Mid-Flight Snack?
Arrival Meal? Short Description.
Any other notes of relevance?
Sample 5
Route? Morning or Afternoon/Evening or Red-Eye?
PDB - Yes/No? What was offered?
Menu?
Hot Towels?
First Meal Served? Yes/No. Short description.
Appetizer / Desert Info:
Snack Basket/Mid-Flight Snack?
Arrival Meal? Short Description.
Any other notes of relevance?
Related thread: How bad does onboard catering need to get before UA invests in improving it?
General discussion of UA's inflight service (Domestic / International, all cabins)
Jan 1, 22, 12:21 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2022
Posts: 1
General discussion of UA's inflight service (Domestic / International, all cabins)
Just returned from a UK trip to see family for the first time since COVID. Treated the family to Polaris thinking it would be like pre-COVID. How wrong could I be.
The flight to the UK was fine - we had a great dinner and cocktails in the newly opened Polaris lounge at Dulles (it's fantastic!). Our flight back from the UK was absolutely awful.
It was real Polaris and half empty but the flight was abysmal. The entertainment system was broken (for an 8.5 hour flight) and the purser gracefully gave me (for all 4 of us) 12,500 'bonus' miles which I was quite insulted by as a 1K flyer. The food was absolutely disgusting and I would have been unhappy with it in economy. An awful little salad, ravioli with a thin watery sauce and a melting ice cream. The drinks were terrible - 2 whites and 2 reds 2 of which were blended wines. The red I had was a disgusting Californian that tasted rank and was worse than what used to be served in economy.
The 'light dinner' served before landing was even worse - an inedible pesto sauce with couscous.
Paying a premium I expect a premium service - United is not delivering. I am slightly short of retaining 1K. My last 2 trips have convinced me it is not worth paying a premium price to retain 1K status.
I know all airlines are facing a real struggle in the COVID era - but United really has to up its game. Serving economy food and drink in a premium cabin is just not on.
The flight to the UK was fine - we had a great dinner and cocktails in the newly opened Polaris lounge at Dulles (it's fantastic!). Our flight back from the UK was absolutely awful.
It was real Polaris and half empty but the flight was abysmal. The entertainment system was broken (for an 8.5 hour flight) and the purser gracefully gave me (for all 4 of us) 12,500 'bonus' miles which I was quite insulted by as a 1K flyer. The food was absolutely disgusting and I would have been unhappy with it in economy. An awful little salad, ravioli with a thin watery sauce and a melting ice cream. The drinks were terrible - 2 whites and 2 reds 2 of which were blended wines. The red I had was a disgusting Californian that tasted rank and was worse than what used to be served in economy.
The 'light dinner' served before landing was even worse - an inedible pesto sauce with couscous.
Paying a premium I expect a premium service - United is not delivering. I am slightly short of retaining 1K. My last 2 trips have convinced me it is not worth paying a premium price to retain 1K status.
I know all airlines are facing a real struggle in the COVID era - but United really has to up its game. Serving economy food and drink in a premium cabin is just not on.
Jan 1, 22, 1:00 pm
#2
Join Date: Aug 2017
Programs: Alaska 75K, Delta Silver, UA 1K, Hilton Diamond, Hyatt Discoverist, Marriott Platinum + LT Gold
Posts: 9,624
Jan 1, 22, 4:53 pm
#3
In Memoriam, FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: Durham, NC (RDU/GSO/CLT)
Programs: AA EXP/MM, DL GM, UA Platinum, HH DIA, Hyatt Explorist, IHG Platinum, Marriott Titanium, Hertz PC
Posts: 33,857
Jan 2, 22, 9:35 pm
#4
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: PHL, EWR
Programs: UA Gold; AA; Amtrak Select Plus;HH Diamond;Hyatt Disc;Hertz PC;Johnnie Walker Gold
Posts: 2,368
Jan 2, 22, 10:21 pm
#5
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: IAH and ORD
Programs: United 1K, Marriott Titanium and LTT
Posts: 162
Today we had PDBs (the now-usual "champagne" or water) and then a drinks service before lunch. I was pleasantly surprised. This was ORD-IAH. Wish they would also drop off some warm nuts with that drink but I'll take what I can get.
Jan 5, 22, 11:22 am
#8
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: ORD
Programs: UA Platinum
Posts: 396
I read through the thread and assumed my ORD-NAS flight tomorrow in First would offer sandwiches and snack boxes. But I just noticed it only says Business/snack. Does that mean it will only be the boxes and no sandwich offerings? Used to be exec plat for many years but havent flown UA F in a while.
Jan 5, 22, 12:53 pm
#9
Join Date: Sep 2000
Location: Denver, CO
Programs: UA 1K 24 years/2MM, Honors LT Diamond, AVIS & Hertz Prez Club
Posts: 4,707
Exec Plat on AA? Or were you Premier Platinum on UA? Either way, what you experienced in the past will not resemble the present day.
Jan 5, 22, 2:50 pm
#10
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: ORD
Programs: UA Platinum
Posts: 396
"Snack" equals sandwiches on UA. But that might be a coding error, because at 1311 miles, that should qualify for a meal of some sort. You might get offered something more substantial, but be prepared to only get a sandwich and pack snacks if you're one to get peckish.
Exec Plat on AA? Or were you Premier Platinum on UA? Either way, what you experienced in the past will not resemble the present day.
Exec Plat on AA? Or were you Premier Platinum on UA? Either way, what you experienced in the past will not resemble the present day.
I actually blanked and meant premier exec. Im platinum in delta now and I combined the two, whoops.
DL has really gone downhill recently so will be interesting to see UAs F product. I know Covid has changed them all but Ive been considering moving back to UA since Ive heard overall theyve improved from several years ago.
thanks again!!
Jan 5, 22, 3:42 pm
#11
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Los Angeles / Basel
Programs: UA 1K MM, AA EXP, Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 26,831
I read through the thread and assumed my ORD-NAS flight tomorrow in First would offer sandwiches and snack boxes. But I just noticed it only says Business/snack. Does that mean it will only be the boxes and no sandwich offerings? Used to be exec plat for many years but havent flown UA F in a while.
Jan 5, 22, 4:00 pm
#12
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2014
Location: MSP
Programs: DL PM, UA Gold, WN, Global Entry; +others wherever miles/points are found
Posts: 13,895
IMO, UA's domestic product has been in a continual decline since 2017, but right now is better than DL for non-premium (and non-SEA) domestic routes.
Jan 5, 22, 5:55 pm
#13
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: ORD
Programs: UA Platinum
Posts: 396
Interesting. I believe I left United in 2016 or so. I'm always at least in C+ which has full free booze again but their domestic F is sad these days.
Jan 6, 22, 6:33 pm
#14
Join Date: Sep 2016
Location: SNA (home), LAX, BOM/PNQ, LHR
Programs: UA 1K/*G, Marriott Gold Elite, IHG Platinum, HHonors Silver
Posts: 952
The nuts that they currently give with the Polaris meals, would it kill them to give that with the drink service? I can't imagine it's that much more effort to pour them into a ramekin and serve with drinks. Not like they warmed them half the time pre-COVID anyways.
Jan 6, 22, 8:57 pm
#15
Join Date: May 2001
Location: RNO, NV, USA.
Programs: UA 1K 2MM
Posts: 4,958
Are you suggesting UA offer nuts with the PDB in Polaris class? I think that might be asking a lot from UA. Did UA ever offer nuts pre-departure even pre- Covid? I dont think so. 😊
