Hawaiian Airlines Introduces New Meals, Designer Uniforms

Hawaiian’s newest meal program, Pau Hana Cafe, includes bistro-style complimentary meals. PC: HA

Hawaiian Airlines, the only U.S. carrier to offer travelers complimentary meals on all transpacific flights for over three decades, is cooking up something new.

Hawai‘i’s hometown carrier will introduce new elements in both food and fashion tomorrow by launching a new meal program for its North American routes while debuting uniforms by local designer Sig Zane across its network.

Guests in the main cabin on Hawaiian flights between Hawai‘i and Western U.S. gateway cities will be treated to complimentary meal service exclusively created for the airline’s new Pau Hāna Café brand. The new service, based on guest feedback, is being launched in preparation for the roll-out of Hawaiian’s new fleet of A321neo aircraft early next year.

“Our complimentary in-flight meals have been a hallmark of the authentic and warm hospitality our guests have enjoyed for decades,” said Avi Mannis, Hawaiian Airlines’ senior vice president of marketing. “In adapting our meal program for the narrow-body A321neos, we found that our guests highly value opportunities to interact with our in-flight crew, so we added more service touch-points during their travel.”

Hawaiian’s Mahalo Service includes a Koloa Breeze cocktail and its signature Pau Hana snack mix. PC: HA

The Pau Hāna Café, branded meals made exclusively for the airline, consists of a continental breakfast box for brunch and hot sandwich and side for lunch. Pau Hāna, a Hawaiian term for “finished work,” is a time to relax and unwind after a long workday.

The meal service will be followed by coffee and a sweet treat for dessert. A parting Mahalo Service features the carrier’s popular Koloa Breeze cocktail, featuring Koloa Rum from the Island of Kauaʻi, and Hawaiian’s signature Pau Hāna snack mix.

As Main Cabin guests enjoy The Pau Hāna Café, the airline’s extremely well-received Featured Chef Series overseen by Hawaiian Airlines Executive Chef Chai Chaowasaree will remain in place for First Class guests traveling from Hawaii to North America.

Hawaiian welcomes its newest featured chef, Wade Ueoka of MW Restaurant, on Friday, Dec 1, 2017. PC: HA

Hawaiian welcomes its newest featured chef, Wade Ueoka of MW Restaurant, on Friday, Dec 1, 2017.

Chef Wade’s meal cycle runs through June 2018 and includes island-inspired dishes such as a cold tofu salad with kimchee, watercress, kaiware sprouts, yuzu kosho vinaigrette appetizer and a ground beef and Portuguese sausage meatloaf with home-style gravy, sautéed mushrooms, potatoes and kale entree.

Hawaiian Airlines crew members sport new uniforms designed by Hilo’s Sig Zane. PC: HA

The updated meal program coincides with the debut of new uniforms for over 5,000 of Hawaiian’s front-line staff globally. The pieces by Hilo-based designer Sig Zane were unveiled during last year’s HONOLULU Fashion Week as employees from Airport Customer Service, Cabin Service, Cargo, In-Flight, Line Service, Maintenance, Ramp, and Supply walked the runway. The print’s theme, Kū Mākou, or Together We Stand, is represented by the lehua blossom and ‘ohe kapala (bamboo stamps) through every piece of each work group’s uniform, as applied in different scales and tonalities to prints, linings and woven elements.