Miso-glazed black cod with kimchi fried rice, bound for Tokyo-Narita. That is what Alaska Airlines is now offering Suites passengers, courtesy of self-taught, James Beard Award-winning Seattle chef Brady Ishiwata Williams. Alaska and Hawaiian Airlines have refreshed their international Suites dining venue programs, matching specific chefs to specific routes and extending the concept across multiple cabin classes. The food doesn’t just accompany the trip. It starts it.
Chefs Matched to Routes, Not Just Cabins
Each chef is paired to a destination, turning the meal itself into a preview of where the flight is headed.
The logic is worth noting. Williams’ Japanese American heritage and Pacific Northwest roots anchor Alaska’s Seattle–Tokyo and Seattle–Seoul services. James Beard Award-winning chef Renee Erickson handles Seattle–London, and is planned for Alaska’s Athens and Paris routes when those launch in May 2027 — a future commitment, not a current menu. On Hawaiian’s side, Dell Valdez — behind Honolulu’s Vein in Kakaʻako, Dell’s Kitchen & Bakery, and Mio PASTALOGY — leads international Suites menus, while Keaka Lee of Kapa Hale contributes island-rooted dishes on Hawaiʻi-departure flights. Sheldon Simeon extends the culinary identity further down the aircraft with Main Cabin pre-order options.
Here is what the program delivers in practice:
- Hawaiian international Suites menu refresh launches Oct. 21, featuring Ahi au Poivre with celery-root purée, Huli Huli barbecue chicken with kimchee fried rice, grilled pork medallions with a soy-balsamic honey glaze, and blackened tofu with Brussels sprouts and orzo
- Alaska Suites passengers flying to Tokyo get Williams’ miso-glazed black cod with kimchi fried rice; Seoul-bound guests get his galbi-glazed chicken — both available for pre-order
- Keaka Lee’s Hawaiʻi-departure menu includes loco moco at breakfast and braised beef with roasted ʻulu for dinner
- Wine selections include Paul Hobbs West Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir and Viña Cobos Cocodrilo Corte cuts of steak-paired Red Blend from Argentina
- Eligible Suites guests choose from up to five entrée options via the airlines’ mobile apps, from two weeks out to 20 hours before departure
Pre-Order Window Closes the Guessing Game
Selecting your entrée before boarding shifts premium cabin dining from a gamble into a guarantee — at least on paper.
The pre-order mechanics matter as much as the menus themselves. Locking in a selection days ahead removes much of the uncertainty that has long shadowed premium inflight dining. “This fall menu brings together culinary perspectives from Seattle and Honolulu, celebrating the flavors of our home communities at altitude,” said Mark Krolick, Alaska’s Managing Director of Inflight Product & Experience, in the airline’s announcement.
As of publication, independent reviews of onboard execution are not yet available. The chefs are credible, the routes are specific, and the pre-order window is genuine — but whether the experience holds at altitude remains to be tasted. Travelers tracking chef-driven restaurant openings on the ground may find the same culinary momentum now reaching the skies.
On Hawaiian’s routes, the meal departing Honolulu already carries the island with it. On Alaska’s Tokyo and Seoul flights, a Japanese American chef’s cooking frames the journey before the city appears below. That is the ambition here: the destination begins well before the seatbelt sign goes off.
