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Because I am disorganized, I didn’t try to book this flight until 4 days in advance, at which point it was sold out in all classes. I really did not want to fly Dragonair or Air China, because I wouldn’t earn any miles. Cathay only has 2 flights a day on this sector (since they are affiliated with Dragonair, I’m surprised they serve the route at all), so my chances weren’t looking good, especially because only the 4:50pm flight fit my schedule.

However, with my AA Gold status perhaps helping my spot on the waitlist, I cleared about 12 hours after listing for Business. Because I like CX’s lounges and inflight service, I pay for the upgrade to J-class on this sector out of pocket. I checked in about 4 hours prior to flight and headed down to the Business Class lounge ( I think the pier) to grab some lunch and take a long conf call. The fresh grapefruit juice and Japanese noodle soup were excellent.

CX, like most Asian airlines, treat Business Class passengers very separately to Economy Class – the Y class boarding line snaked for a mile, yet there was no line for Business Class, and because boarding is mid-cabin, the aisles are clear. F/As distributed pre departure beverages (champagne, Cathay Delight, Orange Juice, Water) and menus. Flying time today to Beijing was about 2:35, on an A330.

Here is today’s menu:

Salad
Seasonal Salad served with French Dressing

Appetizer
Salmon, hot smoked on cucumber with peach and plum chutney

Main Courses

Lamb Chops with leeks in Gravy, Steamed Rice and Jade Melon with Garlic

Pan-fried Halibut Fillet with Olive, Zucchini, and Red Pepper Sauce, Boiled New Potato Wedges with Parsley and Green Peas French Style

Boiled Chinese Ramen with Braised Beef Ribs

Cheese Plate or Haagen Dazs Ice Cream

Assorted Bread and Rolls

Tea and Coffee

Pralines

After departure, the drink trolleys came out to serve beverages with cashews. I enjoyed Cathay’s fresh orange juice. Next came more drinks and then the tray setup with salad and appetizer.

The salad had a variety of vegetables, including tomatoes and bell peppers, and the appetizer was a generous fillet portion of smoked salmon, and the chutney was stuffed in a baby yellow pepper. Excellent appetizer.

Next was the main course, served on a trolley to help you decide – I was leaning towards the Halibut, but the Lamb Chops looked really good, with whole garlic cloves and generous chunks of Jade Melon (a type of Zucchini). My only complaint about the main dish is that it isn’t plated, but served in a casserole dish, but at least it tasted really good (and was a more generous portion than what Virgin served in Upper Class SYD-HKG).

I decided to have a “tasting” of the Mercurey Domaine Louis Max 2001 Burgundy and the Vieux Chateau Landon Cru Bourgeois Medoc 2001 Bordeaux – they were both excellent, but the Bordeaux ended up winning out…

The cheese plate as usual was nicely presented, with dried apricots, dried apples, crackers, and a celery stick. I finished off with a herbal tea and was surprised to see the Pralines appear! On my last trip, no Pralines were offered, but this time we got to pick from a number of varieties (I went with dark chocolate).

Soon after, we landed early in Beijing, and it was the end of this wonderful Cathay Pacific experience. Someday I need to do some longhaul flying on Cathay.

Hope you enjoyed this report.

sftrvlr

Excellent report. Thanks for sharing. It still amazes me how much service is provided on shorthaul flights in Asia! How are the seats on the CX A330?

Teacherflyer

Very thorough report!! I hope to try Cathy Business Class soon.

aristoph

Yes please - tell us about the seats!