This was published 6 years ago
United Airlines to serve deep dish pizza on board US domestic flights
Deep dish, Chicago-style pizza will soon be served on United Airlines' domestic flights.Credit: iStock
United Airlines will be making pizza deliveries above 30,000 feet starting next month -- but sorry, New Yorkers, the airline is sticking to its hometown deep-dish.
The pizzas -- personal spinach-and-garlic pies from Uno Pizzeria & Grill -- are among a handful of additions to the menu of meals and snacks passengers can purchase on flights from the US lasting longer than 3½ hours, United spokesman Jonathan Guerin said.
United changes up that menu a couple of times a year, and customers had been requesting pizza, Guerin said. The airline reviewed a selection of pizzas, and Uno's -- the only Chicago-style pizza in the mix -- emerged the winner because it has national brand recognition and tasted best, he said.
It also fit in a skillet United had already designed for cooking other in-flight food items, which solved the problem of how to make a satisfactory pizza in an plane oven, Guerin said.
"We didn't want to serve this iconic item in a dish that wasn't going to do it justice," he said. "It ensures a nice, crisp crust."
The pizzas will sell for $US9.99 ($13.14), or $US13.99 for a pizza and Miller Lite beer combo.
It's not the first time an airline has served deep-dish. Uno Pizzeria has also worked with American Airlines, said David Freije, the chain's director of marketing.
Spinach and garlic with a mix of cheddar, feta, mozzarella and Romano cheeses will be the only topping offered on United, Freije said. Depending on how customers respond, the pizza chain and United would consider offering additional options, he said.
"Chicago being our home, we're very proud to partner with them," Freije said. The pizza company is based in Boston but got its start in Chicago.
United's revamped menu, which will be available starting July 1, will also have a Thai-style chicken ciabatta sandwich, an egg white flatbread, and a protein box with pretzel sticks, almonds, hummus and tabbouleh salad, Guerin said. The airline is also tweaking the mix of items in its tapas snack box and kids' snack box, available on flights at least two hours long.
But United isn't going on too much of a health kick -- a cheeseburger and a sausage, egg and cheese breakfast sandwich will remain on the new menu, Guerin said.
Whether passengers' desire to chow down on pizza and burgers outweighs their seatmates' annoyance at cheesy aromas wafting through the cabin is less clear, but Guerin said United hasn't heard complaints.
Any passenger can purchase from the buy-on-board menu on flights where it's available, but it's the only option for economy passengers on domestic flights looking for something more substantial than United's complimentary stroopwafel or snack mix.
Both American and Delta Air Lines announced plans to start serving free meals in coach on certain coast-to-coast flights earlier this year. United also announced plans to serve free hot meals on some transcontinental routes starting in July but only for passengers in Economy Plus.
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