American Airlines' First-Class Regional Breakfast Contains 70+ Grams of Sugar
Last week, I took an early-morning flight from Charleston, South Carolina (CHS) to Dallas (DFW) on a regional Embraer ERJ-175LR American Airlines jet operated by Envoy. Although there was plenty of first-class space, upgrades weren't processed until four hours before the flight. Thankfully though, this was at least enough of a heads-up to know that I'd be getting a meal on board, so I wouldn't have to eat before the flight.
According to a couple of flight attendants I asked, while these jets can service an onboard heating element, American didn't elect to install ovens on these regional jets. That said, I've had some surprisingly good lunches and dinners on past first-class regional flights. So, I was interested to see what was on offer for breakfast.
When breakfast was served, I was initially struck by the number of packaged items. However, at first glance it looked rather healthy; there are fruits, low-fat milk, low-fat granola, "FlyFit" yogurt and a tasty cinnamon roll for dessert.
As I'm on a low-sugar diet, I turned to the nutritional labels. That's when the issue came to light:
- Granola: 18 grams of sugar
- Yogurt: 14.2 grams of sugar
- Banana: 14 grams of sugar (sugar content for a medium banana)
- Milk: 12 grams of sugar
- Grapes: 4 grams of sugar (sugar content for 10 grapes)
- Crackers: 0.2 grams of sugar
- Cheese: 0.1 grams of sugar
- Cinnamon roll: unknown
Even before we added the roll, the subtotal is already 62.5 grams of sugar. Considering how sweet it tasted (after all, I had to take a bite for research), the cinnamon roll conservatively puts the total over 70 grams — although the total is likely closer to 75 grams of sugar. And that's just the food; if you add a cup of orange juice, your total quickly approached 100 grams. That's a ton of sugar to start your day off.
The good news is that if you skip the roll and the granola, most of the sugar in the meal would be considered by the FDA as "naturally occurring sugars" — rather than "added sugars" now targeted by the FDA.
Since we have seen plenty from American Airlines about improving its first/business-class meals, we reached out to AA about this meal. While we know that it's impossible to have meals that fit everyone's diet and taste, we wanted to ask about the amount of sugar in these meals and check if improvements were going to be made. The good news is that, yes, AA is working on improving breakfast meals on these regional jets, although there's no guarantee that they'll have less sugar. According to a spokesperson:
We're working to refresh our regional menu offerings in spring 2017. As with all of our menus, we're consistently evaluating how we can update our food offerings while providing the highest quality, most nutritional and tasteful meals that our customers will enjoy.
Bottom Line
If you're on a low-sugar diet, you're going to want to make other breakfast plans when flying first class on American Airlines regional jets — at least until AA refreshes its menu in the spring. Hopefully then AA will add some less-sugary options to breakfast onboard regional jets.
TPG featured card
at American Express's secure site
Terms & restrictions apply. See rates & fees.
| 3X | Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases. |
| 1X | Earn 1X Miles on all other eligible purchases. |
Pros
- Delta SkyClub access when flying Delta
- Annual companion ticket for travel on Delta (upon renewal)
- Ability to earn MQDs through spending
- Various statement credits for eligible purchases
Cons
- Steep annual fee of $650
- Other Delta cobranded cards offer superior earning categories
- Earn 100,000 Bonus Miles after you spend $6,000 or more in purchases with your new Card within the first 6 months of Card Membership and an additional 25,000 bonus miles after you make an additional $3,000 in purchases on the Card within your first 6 months, starting from the date that your account is opened. Offer Ends 04/01/2026.
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card Members receive 15 Visits per Medallion® Year to the Delta Sky Club® when flying Delta and can unlock an unlimited number of Visits after spending $75,000 in purchases on your Card in a calendar year. Plus, you’ll receive four One-Time Guest Passes each Medallion Year so you can share the experience with family and friends when traveling Delta together.
- Enjoy complimentary access to The Centurion® Lounge in the U.S. and select international locations (as set forth on the Centurion Lounge Website), Sidecar by The Centurion® Lounge in the U.S. (see the Centurion Lounge Website for more information on Sidecar by The Centurion® Lounge availability), and Escape Lounges when flying on a Delta flight booked with the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card. § To access Sidecar by The Centurion® Lounge, Card Members must arrive within 90 minutes of their departing flight (including layovers). To access The Centurion® Lounge, Card Members must arrive within 3 hours of their departing flight. Effective July 8, 2026, during a layover, Card Members must arrive within 5 hours of the connecting flight.
- Receive $2,500 Medallion® Qualification Dollars with MQD Headstart each Medallion Qualification Year and earn $1 MQD for each $10 in purchases on your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card with MQD Boost to get closer to Status next Medallion Year.
- Enjoy a Companion Certificate on a Delta First, Delta Comfort, or Delta Main round-trip flight to select destinations each year after renewal of your Card. The Companion Certificate requires payment of government-imposed taxes and fees of between $22 and $250 (for itineraries with up to four flight segments). Baggage charges and other restrictions apply. Delta Basic experiences are not eligible for this benefit.
- $240 Resy Credit: When you use your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card for eligible purchases with U.S. Resy restaurants, you can earn up to $20 each month in statement credits. Enrollment required.
- $120 Rideshare Credit: Earn up to $10 back in statement credits each month after you use your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card to pay for U.S. rideshare purchases with select providers. Enrollment required.
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card Members get 15% off when using miles to book Award Travel on Delta flights through delta.com and the Fly Delta app. Discount not applicable to partner-operated flights or to taxes and fees.
- With your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card, receive upgrade priority over others with the same Medallion tier, product and fare experience purchased, and Million Miler milestone when you fly with Delta.
- Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases and earn 1X Miles on all other eligible purchases.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees. Enjoy international travel without additional fees on purchases made abroad.
- $650 Annual Fee.
- Apply with confidence. Know if you're approved for a Card with no impact to your credit score. If you're approved and you choose to accept this Card, your credit score may be impacted.
- Terms Apply.
- See Rates & Fees