Airlines are upgrading their coach food by offering fresh foods and brand-name products

Sushi at 35,000 feet? "Cherry Garcia" ice cream in a middle seat? Sage-infused Derby cheese and dried apricots from a food cart?

Airlines are upgrading their coach food offerings this summer, hoping that passengers will finally swallow the notion of buying food in the sky.

Free meals in coach were removed from most domestic airlines in cost-cutting moves soon after 2001, and many travelers have grown accustomed to toting their own food aboard planes. Food-for-purchase replacements never sold well and airlines had trouble controlling inventory. Many tried boxes of snacks with long shelf lives but little appeal and poor nutrition. Most carriers say their coach food programs typically only covered their costs, with any profits usually wiped out by unsold food they bought from caterers then threw out.

Now airlines are revamping their offerings—and inventory control—in a bid to turn coach food into a money-maker, to better compete with upgraded airport food outlets and even enhance their own brand. Gone are boxes with beef jerky and soggy turkey sandwiches. In their place, fresh foods, lighter fare, brand-name products and even the kind of fancy food you get in first class. You might even call it "haute cuisine" since it's served six miles above sea level.

"Airline food today is totally different than it was when they wanted the cheapest turkey and cheapest bread to mass-produce free food," says Jeff Miller, senior vice president at LSG Sky Chefs, a major airline catering company.

Food sales will likely never generate hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue for airlines as baggage fees do, but meals can be a way for an airline to stand out over competitors. Continental Airlines is the only major U.S. carrier still serving free food in coach at mealtime on domestic flights, and its executives believe that has enhanced Continental's reputation among travelers. Other airlines are trying to stand out with appetizing buy-on-board menus. "This is one way for them to differentiate themselves," said Mr. Miller.

It may take a lot for U.S. airlines to win back some customers who gave up the notion of buying food on a plane. So far, airlines say new offerings are selling slightly better, but are just now picking up steam. Until travelers are convinced there will be good choices on board, many will simply buy what they like before boarding.

Monica Solomon of Austin, Texas, for example, studied restaurants and sandwich shops as she left the Hartford, Conn., airport. She wanted to know where to stop and buy dinner for her return flight last Sunday. "I can always bring something better," she says after consuming a Subway sandwich in-flight. "I haven't bought food from an airline in a couple of years, and when we did, we were disappointed."

To lure back fliers like Ms. Solomon, Delta Air Lines has been rolling out new coach food products designed by celebrity chef Todd English, including grilled chicken gyros, and almond-butter-and-grape-jelly sandwiches. Some popular indulgences like $2 cups of Ben & Jerry's ice cream have been added to some flights. One of the best-selling items, Delta says, is a $6 fruit-and-cheese plate with smoked Gouda, Havarti and Derby cheeses paired with grapes, pecan halves and dried apricots.

American Airlines thinks serving brand names is a better approach, rather than touting celebrity chefs who may not be well-known in some parts of the country. American now sells Boston Market sandwiches and salads, figuring the well-known restaurant chain will give passengers better assurance of the quality of the food over unnamed airline fare.

Catering companies that supply American's food prepare the items under Boston Market specifications, and items are priced only slightly higher than store prices. For $10, American serves you a chicken Carver sandwich, bag of potato chips and a soft drink (still offered free by the airline). Boston Market sells the sandwich combo with a drink and a side for $8.29.

Another offering: the popular nut mix American serves to first-class passengers has been packaged for coach customers, at $3 per serving.

"We weren't particularly good at retail food when we started, but we've learned so much over the course of five years, particularly from our flight attendants," says Lauri Curtis, American's vice president of on-board service. "I think we're on to something now." With the menu changes, overall sales are up slightly per flight at American, she says.

Frequent traveler Gail Cantor is a convert, opting to regularly buy from American's Boston Market menu now when she doesn't get upgraded to first class on meal-time flights. "It was not that bad, and I was hungry," she says of her Italian grinder. "This is better than it was when they first started doing pay-for-food. I'll do it again."

Perhaps the most ambitious coach food effort can be found at Hawaiian Airlines, which still serves free meals in coach on flights between the mainland U.S. and Hawaii, but now has added a meal-upgrade program. The airline redesigned its free offerings so they are all natural without preservatives, and then wondered if coach passengers would spend $10 on a meal upgrade.

Passengers can get free manicotti with chocolate cake, or pay $10 for Caesar salad with grilled chicken or satay chicken in vermicelli noodles. The best-seller is a sushi bento box with California rolls, edamame and teriyaki chicken.

"It's been a success," said Louis Saint-Cyr, vice president of in-flight services. "Quality sells."
On average, about 4% of customers buy the premium meal on daylight flights, and 6% to 7% on evening runs, and Mr. Saint-Cyr hopes to move it up to 10%. The premium-meal programs ends up partially subsidizing the cost of free meals. That allows for better quality on the free meals so passengers don't feel that the free option is so bad the airline is forcing them to pay for decent food. "We are having the two compete with each other," he says.

Hawaiian plans to develop combination deals where wine selections from a specialty vineyard are paired and sold with premium meals. Customers could rent a personal digital entertainment player and have a semi-business-class experience in coach.

Airlines have found that length of a trip, percentage of connecting passengers, time of day and even quality of airport restaurants at a departure city can all affect how much food travelers will buy on board. American and other airlines have eliminated cash for purchases in-flight and now require credit cards. One reason: Credit-card readers rapidly report exactly what gets sold to the airline, enabling quick changes based on trends of what's selling well and what's not.

Optimizing what gets loaded onto each flight to sell with as little waste as possible is the key ingredient for airlines to succeed as food retailers, says Keith McGrath, a vice president at airline caterer Gate Gourmet. "When you get that right, that's when you can start to make money," he says.

United Airlines used to spend $100 million a year on coach-cabin food when serving free meals, but now spends $20 million and brings in $20 million in revenue, Dennis Cary, former senior vice president of marketing, said at a conference in March. This summer, United began rolling out a new "Choice Menu" with items such as a Mediterranean salad; Caprese sandwich with tomatoes, mozzarella and basil; smoothies; and yogurt parfaits. The rollout will be in all markets by February.

In some markets, the number of customers buying food on a flight doubled in the first few days of the program, the airline said in an internal message to employees.

Mr. McGrath at Gate Gourmet says some airlines are looking at letting travelers pre-order high-end meals, loaded on a flight only when there is a guaranteed sale aboard. U.S. carriers are also studying hot meals to sell. A hot breakfast sandwich is popular with easyJet customers in Europe, he noted. One reason: The aroma of the hot sandwich entices other passengers to buy.