BA_Jfan

I'm at LHR T5 waiting for BA297 back to ORD. I wrote a trip report for the first leg of NY journey and plan to post it soon after I land at ORD. This is my first TR, so once it comes up, comments will be appreciated.

Trip Report Contents

ORD Ground Product
ORD-LHR in Club World and menu
LHR Ground Product
LHR-NCE
NCE Ground Product
NCE-LHR
LHR Ground Product
LHR-ORD in Club World and Menu

BA_Jfan

I arrived at the airport around 5:35 for my 8:05pm departure, and found just one person in the Club Check In. As the person in front was taking a bit of time, the agent at the empty First desk beckoned us to her. It took a little while to check in our group of 6, but she was quite friendly. I was surprised to see that our kosher meal request was printed on the ticket She asked us if we knew where the lounge was. We replied yes, as we fly BA about once a year from ORD. As we are Jewish, she checked with the lounge to see that they had our kosher meals. We went to fast track security and were through in 5 minutes. The BA ORD lounge is looked down upon by many here at FT. I'm not a big traveller an rarely fly international business class so I'm more easily impressed.


Club World Check-in


Priority security sign

Lounge review

The BA lounge is right by the BA gate. We were greeted by the lounge attendant who checked our tickets. A dining room attendant then confirmed our kosher meals with us and asked when we wanted to eat. We decided to eat a half hour after arrival to give us tine to settle in. The lounge has been remodeled since our last visit in September. It is much brighter and bigger. FTers always complained about both of those. The lounge was redecorated in light colors with comfy blue couches. The food stations were also redone. Where there used to be a small TV room in back, they added on mire space in to a bigger and larger area. There were also a fee computers added as well as a printer. The lounge has free wifi throughout. The lounge didn't have many outlets though which was very annoying. It took me a little while to find a seat next to a power outlet.


BA Terraces Entrance


Food/drink station


Food/drink station


Lounge bar

We entered the dining room which was packed. The six of us were crowded around 2 tiny tables.


View of dining station


Dining room food station

For the purposes of this review, I took down the non-kosher menu:


Picture of menu

Pre flight supper

Soup - corn and green chile

Salad

Mixed greens
Caesar
Vegetable lo mein
Grilled sesame chicken
Poached salmon
Caesar and balsamic dressing

Entrees

BBQ spiced chicken
Cod cake
Korean cucumber salad
Vegetable Lorna

Starch and vegetables

Roasted vegetable medley

Dessert and cheese

Lemon ricotta cheesecake bars
Chocolate chip cookies
Seasonal fruit (it was just grapes)

Our kosher meals came. They were presented on the regular airline tray in the standard airplane dishes. That was their first mistake. The next mistake is that the food was bad pretty bad. Our "business class steak entree" was teeny. It wouldn't even pass for an appetizer in Y class. The food was mediocre, not really edible.


Our kosher "meal"

There were 2 waiters and a waitress who did pretty well. I hung around the lounge a bit more after the meal. Her is a partial list of alcohol in the lounge:

Jim Beam
Campari
Johnnie Red
Glenlivet
Jack Daniels
Bacardi
Smirnoff
Baileys

There was also sparkling/still water, Coke, Diet Coke, Sprite, Diet Sprite, tea, espresso, and coffee.


For anyone who is interested, a pic of the entrance to the BA F lounge, across the hall.



TV monitor at the gate


Fast track boarding sign


The Boeing 777 that would operate flight 296

BA_Jfan

BA296
ORD-LHR
8:05pm-9:45am
Boeing 777
Club World (J)
Seat 13B


Seat 13B, my home for the next 8 hours

Soon we left to board. We went straight into the fast track line. The gate agent scanned by ticket and greeted me by name "Have a good flight Mr. BA_Jfan". At the door, I was directed, but not shown to my seat. Boarding was thru the door between First and Club. It was annoying to have the passengers in WTP and WT coming thru our aisle. As the flow of passengers started slowing, and FA came around with the PDB offerings of water, orange juice and champagne. I had OJ.


PDB tray

Once the aisles were clear, FAs offered amenity kits and newspapers. The Elemis amenity kits in Club World leave a lot to be desired. They contain socks which barely reached my ankles. There were also eye shades and some creams. Cups from the PDB were picked up just after pushback. Menus were also handed out. The magazine pocket had a guide to using the seat that I had never seen before. While I knew how to use the seat, it was probably nice for those who did not.



Seat guide

There was a short wait for take off after taxiing. Once in the air, hot towels and water bottles were handed out. They tried starting up the IFE system but it failed a few times before it managed to work. They offered a night cap, small meal before bed. Our kosher meal came pretty promptly. We got a chicken sandwich and some odd salad. The chicken sandwich was quite good for kosher airplane food.


KSML tray. I had no picture of the hot dish

They offered me 2 of the small British cans of Diet Coke. Other than that there was no topping of drinks. I tried the newly updated High Life Entertainment System. It had a large touch screen. It was still weakly responsive as I've leaned to expect from BA even in J class. The audio and video quality were good though and the noise canceling headsets improved the quality.


IFE guide


IFE screen (taken on ground)


I tried the famous BA Club World hot cocoa. Definitely good, and a nice touch, but quality of beverage wasn't impressive. The Club Kitchen was nice, offering Fairtrade chocolate, Twix, Maltesers, Walkers shortbread, fruit, and nuts. There were also glasses of juice, water bottles, and a few cans of Diet Coke. Not as impressive as it was a few years ago at launch though. It used to have ice cream, sandwiches, and salad. Breakfast was served about 50 minutes before landing. My KSML included a frozen bread roll, a muffin, and frozen fruit. Once again, BA screwed up our Kosher food even in Club. The non-kosher meal didn't look too impressive either. I guess they figured people would eat in the Arrivals lounge or Galleries if connecting. They cleaned up the meal service pretty quickly. Before landing, they also distributed invitation cards for BA's Fast Track immigration line.
Our FAs did a great job and provided good service, which is my normal experience with them.

Club has been slightly redesigned since I last flew it 9 months ago. The remote was moved, something which I appreciate. As an obese person, the old remote location was hard to access. A USB port was also added so customers could watch movies from tier iPod or other entertainment device on a bigger screen. I used it to charge my iPod which worked well. The new IFE touch screen is larger, but as noted above not very responsive. I had to punch the "pause" button a few times before it did anything.

Leftover service items were collected 20 minutes before landing. We landed at 5C on time in one of the smoothest landings I've ever seen.

Verdict

The hard product is pretty good. Flat bed is comfy. Seat positions are nice. Tray table could be a bit bigger and I wouldn't mind if they brought back the little drink tray, old CW style. IFE offerings were good though the screen could be worked on. The kosher meals need drastic improvement. Unacceptable in long haul J. Crew was friendly and attentive and provided good service.

zcat18

Interesting so far--looking forward to the rest! Always like reading about my home airport.

While I agree that the presentation of the Kosher meal is atrocious, I would imagine that serving it "airplane style" in plastic is the surest way to guarantee that it complies with the laws of Kashrut. Nonetheless, it does not look the least bit appetizing.

BA_Jfan

Here is the menu for the first flight.

NightCap

Miso salmon with soba noodles

Or
Cheese manicotti with shimeji mushroom and leek cream sauce and Parmesan

Peach cheese cake crumble with vanilla sauce and strawberries

Chocolate

Alternatively, may we suggest hot chocolate with warm chocolate chip cookies.

Your choice of coffee, tea, or selection of herbal teas including green tea with jasmine, peppermint, blackcurrant, and camomile with honey.

Club Kitchen

Please visit the galley area in between meal services where light snacks and drinks will be on display. Please ask the crew for drinks not on display.

Breakfast in Bed

Chilled fruit juice
An energizing fruit smoothie
Fresh seasonal fruit
Fruit yoghurt
Warm bacon roll served with tomato ketchup
A selection of warm breads and breakfast pastries
Your choice of coffee or tea

Wines

Champagne Cocktail

Kir Royale
Bucks Fizz
Crisp, dry champagne and naturally sweet orange juice

Champagne

Lanson Black Label Brut NV
Ayala Brut Majeur NV

White

Sancerre 2010, Loire Valley, France

Esporao Reserva 2008, Alentejo, Portugal

Tangent Albarino 2009, Edna Valley, California

Tokara Sauivgnon Blanc 2010, Western Cape, South Africa

Red

Chateau Barateau 2006, Bordeaux, France

Crozes-Hermitage 2008, Rhone, France

Villa San-Juliette Merlot 2008, Paso Robles, USA

Chono Reserva Syrah 2008, Elqui Valley, Chile

There will be a complimentary bar available serving alcoholic and soft drinks.

BA_Jfan

BA Galleries Club
J Lounge
T5 South and North


Access policy sign


Escalators up to Galleries South

Our flight landed at the new extension 5C. We got off and headed to train. We were at T5 in minutes. Fast track security was quick, but 2 of our bags were searched, slowing down the process. As it turned out, I had the water bottle BA handed out on the plane. They tossed it. Seriously? There needs to be a more efficient way to run security. On to the lounge though. I chose the South lounge because of the Elemis Spa, as I wanted to take a shower. I didn't realize that the North lounges also had showers.

The South lounge had plentiful seating and food stations. We arrived during breakfast. As we eat kosher all we could eat wad cereal. There was yogurt, salads, and breakfast meats available. The Silver Bar had a nice selection of alcohol. There was also a Diageo bar serving the brands signature cocktails which has opened for a short time as a promotion. the snacks on offer were Walkers cookies, Lays chips, and Kettle chips. There was also bountiful Highland Spring Mineral and Sparkling Water.


Dining menu


Drink fridge


Some seating and a food station


Diageo bar

Elemis Spa - Showers


As soon as I arrived at the spa desk, I was told a shower was open. I headed straight for shower 1. The shower rooms had a shower and a toilet. above the sink was Elemis soap and Hand Cream. In the shower was Elemis shampoo and body wash. The shower had a rain head. Water pressure was good, but water was still only warm even when set on hottest setting. The towel was nice and comfy but I would have liked it to be a but bigger. The South lounge had about 20 showers while the North had 6 or 8.


Elemis spa sign


Elemis concierge


Shower cabana room

The South lounge had daily British newspapers, but a bad magazine selection. The North lounge had the same British newspapers, but a more varied selection of magazines. Both also had free wifi, though I found it slow from my iPod touch. The computers were only marginally faster. The wifi password has to be posted more prominently in the lounge. The North lounge allowed passengers to check their carry on bags with a lounge attendant. The South lounge offered shelves but not an attendant to watch the bags. One thing that annoyed me about both North and South was the lack of variety in the Walkers choices. They offered 2 or 3 types none of which were among my favorite. They used to have large selections and it made my experience better, almost every time.

BA_Jfan

BA354
LHR-NCE
2:15-5;20pm
Club Europe (J)
Airbus A321
Sets 2C (Aisle)


The A321 operating BA354


Gate sign


Kosher meal

I got to the gate a few minutes before boarding. The fast track line was a bit longer than I think it should have been. In intra-Europe J, all business class means is an empty middle seat with immovable armrests. We got to board thru an actual gate which at T5 is a rare privilege. When arriving at the door I was directed, but not shown to my seat. Shortly after take off, it was announced that the service would begin shortly. After my abysmal experience with BA's kosher food out of ORD, I was looking forward to this flight. On flights out of LHR, BA serves kosher meals from Hermolis, a renowned, London based kosher caterer. However, the "afternoon tea" consisted of a salmon wrap and lox sandwiches. The other members of my group liked it, but I'm not a fish eater so I have no opinion. I didn't get a good look at the non-kosher offering, but it looked equally mediocre. As on the last flight, FAs never refilled drinks. The plane also had no IFE, but as I was sleeping I didn't find it to be a big deal. We touched down at NCE at 5:15pm, 5 minutes early. But we still got great views of the Mediterranean Sea. We were in front of the plane, and made it to adapter control as first in line. The border agent just stamped our passports and gave us a menacing look. Very different then the inefficient system back home. Our (PRIORITY) bags cane out pretty late, which was again disappointing. But at least BA didn't lose any of them.

Verdict

I want to preface this by saying that I'm not an FTer who flies long haul F or J every week so I'm much more easily pleased. For a 2 hour, 600 mile flight, the product is pretty good. FAs are friendly and provided good service. Food offerings seemed decent.

BA_Jfan

NCE Ground Product


We arrived at 5:45am for our 7:30am departure. No one was in line for Club Europe check in so we were checked thru pretty quickly. Check in agent didn't mention fast track security and we saw no signs so got in the regular, long, line.

[IMG]http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n600/BA_Jfan/93dc255a.jpg[/IMGEmpty Club check in


General security line

Security here is so well managed compared to America. My passport and BP were checked, I emptied my pockets, took off and was right thru after a 15 minute wait. No shoes and liquids shenanigans like the US. No Apparently there was a fast track to the right of main security. Check in agent never mentioned it. Immigration took about a minute as I was again first in line. I don't know if it's usually this way, but I could not find lounge signs and had to ask the immigration officer for directions.


Immigration booth. There were 2 of these


Lounge enterance


Credential check

The lounge could be accessed by elevator or stair case. My credentials were checked and was in in under 30 seconds. Nice chairs, and free wifi provided by airport. Other than that, worst excuse for a lounge I've seen in years and I'm used to domestic red carpet clubs. only food were crackers and some breakfast rolls. Coffee offered espresso and "Cafe long". There was a refrigerator of soda.


Soda fridge


Food/drink station


Food/drink station

Alcohol:
2 types of wine
Heineken in a can
Smirnoff vodka
Beefeater gin
Clan Campbell whisky
Champagne upon request but no brand was posted.


Champagne upon request

\Lounge seating


Lounge seating

The only reading material was the NCE airport magazine and a vacation home sales magazine. No newspaper. Not even a French one. This lounge also didn't have much of a view of the Tarmac (apron) which was a bit annoying as I like lounges with a view.
Emirates and Qatar fly to Dubai and Doha, respectively out of NCE. I don't know how they send J or F pax to this lounge. Both flights are about 6 hours, nit exactly short haul.
However, my annoyance with the lounge were not so bad as I had a 7 hour layover at the LHR T5 Galleries Club coming up.


Gate sign


The A321 operating BA354

BA_Jfan

BA341
NCE-LHR
7:30am-8:35am
Club Europe (J)
Seat 1C
Aircraft: A321

I did OLCI about an hour after it opened to snag the aisle in the bulkhead, frequently said to be the best spot in CE here at FT. There was a fast track boarding for CE and BA/OW elites.


1AC in the bulkhead


The obligatory leg room pic

There were newspapers on the air bridge. My boarding pass was checked, and the FA said "Good morning, Mr. BA_Jfan". Curiously, those not in CE were greeted as "Good morning Sir/ma'am". There was a middle pocket with a safety card and magazines despite no middle seat. An FA took jackets from CE pax after boarding was complete. Pushback was at 7:35am. The captain blamed the delay on some problem loading luggage. Entertainment consisted of the moving map, and my iPod. Hot towels were offered soon after take off. Meals were soon served. Kosher food is not served on the NCE-LHR route, so I only had coffee. Non-kosher meals was an English breakfast, which looked good. The tray had strawberry jelly, crunchy strawberry yogurt and a strawberry-banana smoothies. Hmm.. an emphasis on strawberry. The purser apologized for the lack of kosher meals and told is that we should have ordered them. I found that interesting as the BA website said they were not, as well as BA's response to my email requesting them. Shortly after the service I went up to the glass to request water. It cane with a lemon, a nice touch I was never offered in long haul or mid haul Club World. He came to my seat 2-3 minutes later to offer a top up.


Meal tray, without the main coursehttp://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n600/BA_Jfan/4f5c4ffa.jpg

The A321 has 2 bathrooms in CE. One closer to the cabin and one closer to the cockpit. The one closer to the cockpit seemed a bit bigger than standard airplane bathrooms but the curved shape of the plane's body made this slightly bigger space irrelevant. The bathroom had Elemis soap and body lotion, though it was for some reason against the back wall with the generic BA stock soap next to sink. I didn't notice Elemis amenities in the bathroom coming over.
The Purser told me that we had an airbridge at the main T5. I cheered. He smiled. The pilot announced a 10 minute landing delay. I didn't flinch as delays at LHR are more the rule than the exception, but I was a bit annoyed as it cut in to our lounge time.
The purser advised me that we could go straight to the lounge as we already had our boarding card and there was no need to clear security again. That was great as even in Fast track, security could still take 20 minutes and be very annoying.
We passed 2 Qantas A380s parked side by side. 2nd and 3rd ones I've ever seen. I got a pic, though it was pretty bad.


Qantas A380

BA_Jfan

LHR Ground Product

After deplaning I followed signs to flight connections. While the FA said we skip security this wasn't the case. It didn't make much of a difference as we were fast track and moved thru quickly. We deplaned at 8:30an and by 9:10am, I was showered and eating breakfast at the Galleries Club.

Elemis Spa

I went to the Elemis Spa first after I entered the Galleries South complex. A shower room was immediately available and I was sent to shower 15. I guess I I shouldn't complain as the shower is nicer than the one I have at home. However, the drain's slurping sound was annoying. I also would have appreciated some more amenities in there like maybe cologne. BA's long haul F pax also use those showers so I'm a but surprised BA didn't put in a bit more work. Towels were nice, big and fluffy. I also would have appreciated more counter space to store my stuff.

Lounge


Cool clock on the F level, of Galleries South

I entered and immediately went to the buffet after getting reading material. I wanted raisin bran but didn't see any so I asked a dining attendant who told me that the closest thing they have to it was muesli. I don't know if it exists in America, but I had never had it. It was surprisingly good. I grabbed a big, half empty, bottle of Highland Spring water. I drink a lot and didn't want to run back and forth. An attendant saw me carrying my glass, the bottle, and the cereal and asked me if I wanted help. I declined, though it was a nice gesture. I wandered around a bit more than went down to the terminal. I picked up Polo mints at WHSmith (love them) and headed to the Galleries North lounge. For some reasons, Galleries North has a better selection of magazines and Walker's cookies. Also, the bathrooms had a constant attendant. I think they cleaned them after each use. I also noticed that this time the ice cream freezer actually had ice cream in it. There was Green & Black chocolate and vanilla ice cream. I had chocolate, which was good



I didn't see champagne on display at the Silver Bar or any other area serving alcohol in the lounge.

Diageo Bar
Diageo, a large alcohol producer set up a bar in the GC to promote it's drinks with one free cocktail per customer.

Drink menu:

Ketel One Cosmopolitan
The Flying Scotsman
Grape Caipiroska
Singapore Sling
Ron Zacapa on the Rocks
23 Old Fashioned
T10 Earl's Sour
Lion Blanc Cocktail

I had a 23 Old Fashioned. It was pretty good. The bartender provided fast service and as I was the only one at the bar, it helped.

I asked a concierge for my gate and was informed that it was at Terminal B, which I feared and delayed 35 minutes. I didn't mind the delay much as I would be spending it in the Galleries Club and wasn't in a rush to be anywhere.
The bathrooms have paper towels that rip as soon as you touch them with wet hands. They need better quality ones that actually allow you to dry your hands. The sane sub-standard towels were also in the on board bathroom.
In front of the lounge there is an area that just has rocky floors with nothing in it. I asked the guards if I could go there to take pics of some aircraft parked out there. I was told it was off limits to all including BA staff. I asked why is was put there. A guard jokingly said "they were going to build an extension of the lounge. Maybe they will start it in 10 years from now". There was a model in front of the GC of what looked like an A380 with BA livery. As far as I know, BA won't fly the A380 for 2 or 3 years.



Galleries 5B

Around a quarter to 3 we decided to leave the GC and head to 5B. We got there quickly and I led my family straight to the 5B GC. As we ascended the escalator my mom said "another lounge?". I said "better than waiting downstairs". Curiously, even at 3pm, no indication of the delay was made on the departure monitors. The only way I knew was by asking a concierge for gate info. At 3:26pm, 1 minute after scheduled departure, flight was still listed as on time and leaving at 3:25pm.
I was only in the 5B lounge once, but it feels much nicer then the main lounges at T5. I guess it's because of the amazing tarmac views. It's also smaller so it feels a bit more intimate.


5B Lounge seating


Food station


Wine storage. They also had onein the Galleries South lounge


Caary on storage room. Had this in Galleries North at T5 main, but not South

We left the lounge to board and found the fast track line mobbed. Apparently they were gate lice as GAs were kicking people out and repeatedly announcing it was fast track only. There was a slight wait on the air bridge before we were able to get on.


Gate sign

By the way, I took a pic of the CCR private entrance by security. One day, I'll go thru this door.

ual902

Very nice pictures, nice report and thanks for sharing!

BA_Jfan

LHR-ORD
3:25pm (scheduled) - 6pm (scheduled)
5:17pm (actual) - 7pm (actual)
Club World (J)
Seat 16A


16A, my home for the next 9 hours

I chose the window in 16 as it has direct aisle access. I normally only fly aisles to have direct access, but as this option was available, I took it. My BP was checked at the door and I was greeted, though not by name, and directed but not shown to my seat. A few minutes later, an FA offered newspapers. Shorty after, FAs offered Lanson champagne, juice, or water as a PDB. No refills were offered on champagne. The pilot also apologized for the lack of info on the delay offered to the passengers. My window had a few drops on it and I wondered if it was raining as is didn't look like airplane washing was going on. I was worried it would further delay take off. Literally seconds later, the captain announced that we would likely be delayed by the rain. About 10 minutes later FAs distributed menus and the Elemis wash bag. I forgot to wear my own comfy socks, and the ones they give barely reach my ankle so I was resigned to wearing sandals. 16A has two full windows and one which is mostly blocked by the edge of the seat which I found to be a bit annoying.


Club World, shortly after boarding completed

IFE
One annoying thing about BA, is that IFE and in seat power isn't activated till after take off. BA has AVOD in the New Club World Cabin. The touch screen is very non-responsive though. The movie selection was average. The "current" films were not so current. Most available titles I didn't want to see and the rest I had already seen. I still love BA's headset though. Another complaint about the IFE: before watching a movie you have to watch 2 minutes of ads.


Again, the obligatory leg room pic

Unfortunately, I didn't see hot cocoa and chocolate chip cookies on the menu. I was looking forward to it. A bag was loaded on the plane even though it was supposed to be loaded somewhere else which delayed departure by another 10 minutes. She returned about 20 minutes after i had asked her and confirmed they were on board. At 4:44pm, and hour and a quarter after scheduled departure, we hadn't even moved. I asked an FA to double check that my kosher food was on board. She said she would let me know, but 10 minutes later there was no sign of her. We finally pushed back at 4:56pm. The privacy screen was raised about 15 minutes before take off. The window seat feels like a private cabin with that screen up, if only it had higher walls. We took off at 5:17pm after a tiny Aer Lingus jet. Behind us in the queue were 4 BA planes, an AA plane, and an SAS plane. Just after take off, I glimpsed the Qantas A380, likely one the 2 I had seen coming in.
The seat belt sign went off pretty quickly. Immediately, there was a flurry of activity around the cabin. I found a USB port above the left arm rest which I didn't notice on the flight over. Much more convenient for iPod charging than using the one at my feet. I think the cabin was designed mote for cosmetic appearance than for ease of use. For example, remote sits behind your jabs and you need to lean back awkwardly to get it. Also, my tray table got stuck each time I tried to put it down. Shortly after take off, FAs offered hot towels. They were hotter than usual, I guess they heated extra because of the delay. I unwrapped my blanket just after take off. BA wastes too much plastic. Both the headsets and blankets are wrapped. Additionally, the duvets are too short for tall people. As I had no socks, I asked an FA if I could get some slippers or longer socks. Longer socks she said weren't offered, period. Slippers, she said were not available "in this section," giving me the impression that they were available in F. 20 minutes after take off, IFE wasn't turned on yet. It went on at 5:40pm. Soon the first drink service was offered. I had bitter lemon, and they served macadamia nuts. The nuts were packaged, and obviously not warmed. Just after drinks were served, FAs took orders.


Pre-meal snack. Macadamia nuts and bitter lemon

A female FA looks over the privacy screen and says "Mr. BA_Jfan, we have your kosher meal". Drinks were topped up about 10 minutes later. The first course finally came. Kosher customer don't get the white linen table cloth non kosher customers do. Tray had hot bread, salmon, salad, a chocolate, and some chocolate coconut thing. I had the salad and touché nothing else. They offered me a drink with the meal.


Kosher tray, with dessert and appetizer


Kosher main, turkey and potatoes

I asked for a Diet Coke. They said it would come soon, though 10 minutes later, still no sign. When the FAs came to collect trays, I asked about it. The FA said try forgot and apologized. It came 3 minutes later with my main. I got 2 cans and a glass cup the glass cup had no ice though. It consisted of stuffed turkey with potatoes. The turkey was good, and some of the potatoes were slightly over cooked. Interestingly, my food was labeled "business class dinner", not "business class lunch". I don't know if they were going to serve it either way or if they switched meals and loaded it on once they realized we would be delayed. There was some slight turbulence during the meal. My tray was cleared quickly, which I appreciated. I went to the galley just to take a walk. I met te Purser, a wonderful women named Kerrie. I inquired about the availability of hot cocoa and she told me it's only on night flights but said se would double check. She food some leftover, which was good to know. We had a nice chat before I returned to my seat. Shortly after returning to my seat, I was offered a bottle of water. About an hour after the meal cabin lights were turned off and the Club Kitchen was not set up. They were also out of Shweppes Bitter Lemon, which didn't make me happy. As BA flights are the only times I get it. I checked back at the Club Kitchen and found it fully stocked. On this flight there was ice cream and salad!


Club Kitchen

I also enquired about kosher champagne. An apologetic FA said Rey didn't have any. BA seems to have an emphasis on Fairtrade chocolate, at least in Club. The lounges in LHR had Fairtrade chocolate chip cookies. On board they have Fairtrade chocolate bars, and Fairtrade hot cocoa.
Halfway thru a 2nd movie I decided to get some rest. I woke to PA announcements about landing and I realized just how close we were. The entertainment screen showed 1 hour, 13 minutes of flight time. I think I missed the Afternoon Tea service, or it just wasn't served as I saw no FAs serving or cleaning it. I saw some FAs coming down the aisle and thought they were serving Tea. They were handing out boarding cards.
Afternoon Tea arrived 59 minutes before landing. For kosher customers, it consisted of a salmon sandwich, and a bread roll. I ordered a green tea, which came a few minutes later.


Kosher afternoon tea

Quick Notes on Kosher Food:
Very skimpy offerings from BA. It's kosher food has been largely unimpressive. Especially it's ORD ground product? Seriously? Serving me all 2 teeny pieces of mediocre, over cooked meat in the original meal tray? And BA's inability to special order us kosher food for our 4 hour and 7.5 hour layovers at LHR also baffled me. I got better kosher service flying Y on OS. F had kosher champagne and I was actually a bit surprised that they refused to serve it to me, despite the 2 bottles on offer being mon kosher.

I enquirer about the availability of an Arrivals lounge as I thought I passed one every time a flew internationally from ORD. An FA said there was one though he didn't know exact location. I wanted to check it out because I've never been to an Arrivals lounge and I also wanted to look for some Bitter Lemon as Club, WTP, and WT were all out and we don't get access to the F galleys.

Just before landing, the regular announcements were made about connections.
We touched down at just about 7pm, or exactly one hour late. Our priority tagged bags arrived quickly though hard to tell if it was first as we shared the claim with an LH flight from
Munich. Interestingly, LH offloaded priority bags separately and put them in a special area. LH operates out of T3 so I think it's ridiculous to shuttle pax to T5 for bags.


LH priority bag pick up

On the ground, I couldn't find the Arrivals lounge, and saw no signs, or BA staff to ask. Immigration was quick. At 7:17pm I was on the curb awaiting my ride.

Verdict

BA's overall product is pretty good. Service is great and staff are friendly. Most of the cabin is good, but despite bing new could still use some upgrades.

BA_Jfan

Lunch

Starters

Beef bresaola with rocket and Parmesan (BA Classic)

Or

Trio if tomato salad with Laverstroke Park Farm Mozzarella and basil

Salad

Fresh seasonal salad served with vinaigrette

Main

Fillet of beef with Choron sauce, British runner beans, and Lyonnaise potatoes (BA Classic)

Crab cake with fragrant coconut cream sauce and stir fried vegetable noodles

Vegetable moussaka

Chilled main course Caesar salad with chicken and anchovies

Dessert

Summer fruit trifle
Ice cream

Bleu d'Auvergne and Barber's 1833 Cheddar served with biscuits

A selection of fruit

Chocolates

Drinks

Complimentary bar service, including alcoholic beverages, ad soft drinks is available throughout the flight. See wine list for today's selection.

Ground coffee, decaffeinated coffee or tea

selection of herbal teas including green tea with jasmine, peppermint, blackcurrant, and camomile with honey.

Club Kitchen

Please visit the galley area in between meal services where light snacks and drinks will be on display. Please ask the crew for drinks not on display.

Afternoon Tea

Snacks

An individual selection of sandwiches featuring coronation chicken and egg with watercress

Sweets

Plain of fruit scones served with clotted cream and strawberry preserves (BA Classic)

Drinks

Ground coffee, decaffeinated coffee or tea

selection of herbal teas including green tea with jasmine, peppermint, blackcurrant, and camomile with honey.

Wine

The wine was printed on a separate card which I lost but champagne on offer again was Lanson Black and Ayala Brut.

matthandy

Hi BA_Jfan, I read your report and thought that I would answer some of your questions/points.

You were lucky enough to fly on one of the new 777-300 aircraft, with the new IFE system. It's not that Club has been re-designed as such, it's just ever so slightly different on the 777-300, as you have pointed out.

Sorry, but that's a truly silly comment.

In business class, BA does not show passengers to their seat as routine, this only happens in First class.

Champagne is available on request, just ask one of the lounge attendants.

You can fast forward the ads, luckily.

Slippers are handed out in F.

roylee9

Thanks for all the photos in the trip report ... especially the ones of the lounge in ORD.