Post #283705 by PremEx on Tue, Feb 6, 2007 7:31 PM

[i]On 2006-11-30 20:45, PremEx wrote:

I'm headed to Honolulu on January 23rd on United for a quick 3 nighter Waikiki trip. I'll try to pay better attention to what they're serving in Economy and give an updated report for you on my return. :)

Here's that report I promised:

Back in Economy on United they are serving the exact same Mai Tai as I described above in First Class...only in the standard plastic cocktail cup instead of a Mai Tai glass. Five bucks a pop. Darn good Mai Tais for an airline.

Back in Economy you have to pay $5 for any meal you order, but according to reports I've heard and read about on flyertalk.com...the Trader Vic's boxed meals are getting pretty darn good reviews. Here's some info from United's web site on those Economy meals:

Sandwich
Served on flights departing from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Trader Vic’s Turkey Wrap
Sliced mesquite turkey breast topped with crisp iceberg lettuce and sliced cucumber surrounded by a wasabi mayonnaise spread in a fresh tortilla wrap.

Trader Vic's Maui Chicken Sandwich
Grilled Oriental sliced chicken breast topped with provolone cheese, sliced red onion, and crisp iceberg lettuce with Trader Vic’s chutney mayonnaise blend, served on an Asiago cheese roll.

Trader Vic’s Roast Beef Sandwich
Thinly sliced roast beef, topped with Swiss cheese, sliced fresh red peppers and crisp romaine lettuce with a whole grain mustard mayonnaise, served on a Ciabatta roll.

Each served with a bag of chips.

Salad
Served on flights departing from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Chinatown Sesame Chicken Salad
Crisp romaine lettuce and radicchio, topped with sliced marinated sesame chicken, mandarin oranges, cucumber and sesame seed, served with an Asian sesame ginger dressing. Accompanied by a selection of fresh seasonal mixed fruit.

Harvest Moon Chopped Turkey Salad
Crisp Romaine lettuce topped with roasted turkey breast, chopped walnuts, Granny Smith apples, tomatoes, crumbled blue cheese, bacon, dried cranberries and olives, served with an Asian sesame ginger dressing. Accompanied by a selection of fresh seasonal fruit.

Hawaiian Chicken Salad
Grilled Oriental chicken breast, toasted macadamia nuts, pineapple, sliced red onion, tomato and hearts of palm, served atop a bed of crisp romaine lettuce, served with a honey Dijon dill vinaigrette dressing. Accompanied by a selection of fresh seasonal mixed fruit.

United also does a "Halfway To Hawaii" game onboard...where you can win some prizes if you come closest to guessing the time at which your plane hits the geographical half-way point to Hawaii.

So, other that the pretty good Mai Tais, decent Vic's food items, and the halfway game...there's no other "Aloha" business going on. The flight attendants used to have special alohawear...but no more. Still, it's a lot more than any other major does.

Now...from an inquiry I made on your behalf on FlyerTalk asking "Who's got the best economy service to Hawaii with Aloha spirit?"...the general consensus other than United Airlines, was Hawaiian Airlines. That alternative was based on local flight attendants and alohawear that gives a bit of island flavor to your flight. But Hawaiian Airlines Mai Tais were pretty much panned as awful...the kind that's pre-made with booze already in it outta a can or something.

So I think your best bets would be United or Hawaiian.

One more thing about United though. They have the forward section of the Economy cabin designated as "Economy Plus." This special section has a few more inches of legroom at each seat, than the rest of Economy. Seats in this section are available for no extra charge to elite members of their Mileage Plus program (those that fly more than 25,000 miles a year). However...they do sell the ability to snag one of these Economy Plus seats to the general public, for a $49 surcharge per flight. Just something else to consider.

Hope this helps a bit.