Don’t be surprised if you’ll receive, while flying, Cherry Garcia ice-cream, sushi or dried apricots. Food on airplanes was the worst you could get up until now, when airlines are trying to revamp their food in order to satisfy the needs of their demanding customers or hoping that they might encourage buying food in the sky. We as customers have grown tired of food with long shelf life but tasteless and unhealthy.

Trying to squeeze profit out of the food from coach, airlines will soon offer light, healthy foods, brand-name products or business class menus. While some airlines offer free meals on domestic flights, others are trying to stand out with extravagant menus you can buy on board. It won’t be as profitable as over charging for your baggages but it might bring some much needed profits to some companies.

“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.

Airline food served on Eos Airlines

Delta Airlines has already started to introduce new coach food created by celebrity chef Todd English, like almond-butter-and-grape-jelly sandwiches or chicken gyros. One of their most popular on-board items is a $6 fruit-and-cheese plate with grapes, dried apricots, smoked Gouda, Havarti and Derby cheeses. American Airlines also added some new items to their menus such as Boston sandwiches and salads, priced just a tad higher than in the store.

“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.

Another airline food offer that stands out is that of Hawaiian Airlines, offering a meal upgrade for 10$ that includes Caesar salad with grilled chicken, satay chicken in vermicelli noodles or sushi rolls with teriyaki chicken.

According to officials from Hawaiian Airlines, 4% of their customers buy airline food on day flights while 6-7% buy it on evening runs. On the long run, they are planning to add a special selection of wines to their premium wines. (via WSJ.com)

So, would you pay for such delicacies on your flight?