SFO-HKG-SFO F Class on UA and SQ
Oct 21, 2005, 11:19 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: San Francisco, CA
Programs: UA Mileage Plus, BA Executive Club
Posts: 44
SFO-HKG-SFO F Class on UA and SQ
After consulting with the good folks at the UA and SQ forum, this intrepid traveller commenced her journey on October 10th at SFO on UA 869. Check-in and security was a breeze. I have seat 2A as requested. I headed for the First Class Lounge. Reception was somewhat frostly but efficient. There were two receptionists, one of whom barely acknowledged my presence because she was busily immersed in some complicated computer inquiry into some PAX's convoluted itinerary.
I took the elevator down one floor to the lounge which proved to be airy and elegant. There were maybe 10 to 15 people there. It was very quiet with the TV on low. Reading material was sparse, mostly newspapers. There was an unattended bar and the food consisted of finger sandwiches, breads, danishes, salads and petit fours. All of the food including the few pieces of sushi looked tired and picked over. I got a bottle of water out of the refrigerator and picked up a dish of edamame, the healthiest snack I could find. Next, I checked out the bathrooms. There were shower suites in the same area. The ladies' washroom was immaculate.
After a while, I went back up to the reception area to check on my flight since it was past the boarding time printed on my boarding pass. I was told to wait a few more minutes and decided to hang around rather than head back downstairs. Just then a PAX came out of the elevator and asked about his flight to Nagoya, he was told that it was boarding. He asked for an escort but was told that there was none. However, the receptionist offered to walk him over to the gate. I waited for another 5 minutes and then decided to hoof it to the gate rather than wait for the first receptionist to return. In the meantime, the second receptionist is still working on the computer, oblivious to my presence.
When I got to the gate 99, there were tons of people milling around and the others were lined up in 4 different lines by the counter. It was obvious that the boarding process had begun a while ago. There was a long line of passengers that snaked around the perimeter of the waiting area and a much shorter line that merged with it to the side. One of the UA forum members had warned me about the pandemonium and the virtues of having an escort from the F class lounge. There was no special line for C or F PAXs.
After boarding, I was met by a very genial female FA. She introduced herself and asked me for my name. From that point onwards, she addressed me by my (first) name. I noticed too that she addressed the PAXs around me by their first names, even the elderly lady in front of me in 1A. First class was full. The menu was as follows:
Appetizers:
Hot shrimp and scallop purse with Choron Sauce (the filo dough was not flaky or crispy enough and it was not hot enough temperature-wise)
Asian BBQ pork lettuce wrap (served cold, it had a funny, "industrial" taste)
Olive and feta cheese stuffed mushroom (served cold, the cheese was very "clumpy")
Sweet ginger chili sauce (not memorable, not enough taste)
Salad:
Fresh seasonal greens with cucumbers, tomatoes and croutons
Hot Jamaican jerk chicken
Balsamic Dijon vinaigrette or country ranch dressing
(the salad tasted better than it looked --- the chicken was flavorful and tender; quite good)
Main course:
Applewood smoked bacon wrapped filet mignon with wild mushrooms
Tilapia fillet with cornbread crust and pomodoro sauce
The above entrees include your choice of:
Oven-roasted fingerling potatoes, wild rice with sauteed shallots or steamed rice
Green beans with shallots and almonds
or a broccoli, artichoke or pepper medley
Mongolian lamb chops with onion sake sauce
Braised egg noodles with asparagus in garlic oil
Stir-fried chicken and peppers with chili pepper sauce
Sugar snap peas in garlic oil and steamed rice
(I had the Tilpapia. The fish was mushy and lacked taste even with the tomato sauce. The side dishes of wild rice, green beans were well seasoned. The beans, in particular, were "al dente" which is a hard thing to achieve given the way it was heated.)
Dessert:
International cheese selection
Camambert, Stilton and Black Diamond Cheddar cheese
Ice cream with sundae toppings
Fresh seasonal fruit
(I tried the Cheddar which was acceptable. The strawberry ice cream was great, the other scoops was vanilla.)
Midflight Snack:
Assorted treats, hot sandwiches or noodles upon request.
(The FA made me some cup ramen noodles and I grabbed a pre-made cucumber sandwich from the center island by my seat. Both were nothing to write home about.)
Prior to arrival:
Chicken and cheese frittata with a mixed vegetable stew
Fresh fruit appetizer
or
Fresh seasonal fruite plate with creamy yogurt
(I had the fruit plate with yogurt -- adequate but not special.)
Meal orders were taken from front to back starting with seat 1A while the meals were served from back to front. Service was friendly and requests were met efficiently. Once the meal service was over, the FAs disappeared into the galley. I overheard that some FAs from either the C or Y class had to be drafted to help out during meal time in F class. From time to time, the FAs appeared and circulated to check on the PAXs, most of whom were asleep or were getting to sleep. The seat controlls were difficult to manipulate --- it was hard to just recline the back of the seat without the leg/foot rest being raised at the same time and entire seat being slide forward. While in the full recline position, my feet were somewhat "trapped" underneath the small shelf area. On top of this, the seat was fairly narrow. I am not stocky but I found that it was difficult to sleep on my back. One UA forum member suggested sleeping on one's side, that seemed to do the trick. I slept for a good 4 hours. By the way, the lumbar support and circulation on my seat did not work.
We had very strong head winds so not only was the flight bumpier than normal but it took a full 15 hours to get to Hong Kong. I watched a movie chosen from the box, The Upside of Anger. I overheard other PAXs complain that the movies were lousy. I lucked out because I was one of the few to have chosen this movie since I was amongst the first to board and got first dibs from the box. Otherwise, the audio and video entertainment was fairly substandard.
At one point, I asked about snacks and my FA took my menu to show me something. I had scribbled notes about each dish that I'd tried right on the menu and she saw them but she was discrete and did not comment.
Another interesting thing that happened was shortly after takeoff, PAXs in the C and Y classes found that many of their overhead and reading lights did not work. On top of that, the audio system was also not functioning. An FA came on the PA system to say that she had tried resetting the system but to no avail. She said that the captain was going to contact HQ in Chicago to get a "special code" to reset the entire system. Lo and behold, a short while after, the problem was solved. I can't imagine a 15 hour flight without illumination or a working entertainment system!
Another personal observation was how much an FA struggled to make announcements on the PA in Mandarin. All announcements were made in English and Cantonese Chinese. The Mandarin announcements were made very hesistantly. I feel sorry for the person doing this because she paused at every other word. I guess UA really needs to test and verify that the FA is truly fluent in a certain language/dialect before sticking that person with the duty. It was painful to listen to it.
We arrived in HKG a full hour late. Customs and immigration were not and have never been a problem. Getting luggage was another matter. Just like my previous experience with UA, the bags of the F class PAXs were mixed with the other classes. One would think that the purpose of tagging the luggage with Priority tags would cue the staff to unload them first but Nooo, that was not the case. I waited for 15 to 20 minutes for my bags to come out.
The Hong Kong airport was lovely --- grand, spacious and well organized. Though I must admit that I miss Kai Tak with its hustle and bustle and most of all, the sheer adrenaline rush from the E-ride landing.
More to follow .....
I took the elevator down one floor to the lounge which proved to be airy and elegant. There were maybe 10 to 15 people there. It was very quiet with the TV on low. Reading material was sparse, mostly newspapers. There was an unattended bar and the food consisted of finger sandwiches, breads, danishes, salads and petit fours. All of the food including the few pieces of sushi looked tired and picked over. I got a bottle of water out of the refrigerator and picked up a dish of edamame, the healthiest snack I could find. Next, I checked out the bathrooms. There were shower suites in the same area. The ladies' washroom was immaculate.
After a while, I went back up to the reception area to check on my flight since it was past the boarding time printed on my boarding pass. I was told to wait a few more minutes and decided to hang around rather than head back downstairs. Just then a PAX came out of the elevator and asked about his flight to Nagoya, he was told that it was boarding. He asked for an escort but was told that there was none. However, the receptionist offered to walk him over to the gate. I waited for another 5 minutes and then decided to hoof it to the gate rather than wait for the first receptionist to return. In the meantime, the second receptionist is still working on the computer, oblivious to my presence.
When I got to the gate 99, there were tons of people milling around and the others were lined up in 4 different lines by the counter. It was obvious that the boarding process had begun a while ago. There was a long line of passengers that snaked around the perimeter of the waiting area and a much shorter line that merged with it to the side. One of the UA forum members had warned me about the pandemonium and the virtues of having an escort from the F class lounge. There was no special line for C or F PAXs.
After boarding, I was met by a very genial female FA. She introduced herself and asked me for my name. From that point onwards, she addressed me by my (first) name. I noticed too that she addressed the PAXs around me by their first names, even the elderly lady in front of me in 1A. First class was full. The menu was as follows:
Appetizers:
Hot shrimp and scallop purse with Choron Sauce (the filo dough was not flaky or crispy enough and it was not hot enough temperature-wise)
Asian BBQ pork lettuce wrap (served cold, it had a funny, "industrial" taste)
Olive and feta cheese stuffed mushroom (served cold, the cheese was very "clumpy")
Sweet ginger chili sauce (not memorable, not enough taste)
Salad:
Fresh seasonal greens with cucumbers, tomatoes and croutons
Hot Jamaican jerk chicken
Balsamic Dijon vinaigrette or country ranch dressing
(the salad tasted better than it looked --- the chicken was flavorful and tender; quite good)
Main course:
Applewood smoked bacon wrapped filet mignon with wild mushrooms
Tilapia fillet with cornbread crust and pomodoro sauce
The above entrees include your choice of:
Oven-roasted fingerling potatoes, wild rice with sauteed shallots or steamed rice
Green beans with shallots and almonds
or a broccoli, artichoke or pepper medley
Mongolian lamb chops with onion sake sauce
Braised egg noodles with asparagus in garlic oil
Stir-fried chicken and peppers with chili pepper sauce
Sugar snap peas in garlic oil and steamed rice
(I had the Tilpapia. The fish was mushy and lacked taste even with the tomato sauce. The side dishes of wild rice, green beans were well seasoned. The beans, in particular, were "al dente" which is a hard thing to achieve given the way it was heated.)
Dessert:
International cheese selection
Camambert, Stilton and Black Diamond Cheddar cheese
Ice cream with sundae toppings
Fresh seasonal fruit
(I tried the Cheddar which was acceptable. The strawberry ice cream was great, the other scoops was vanilla.)
Midflight Snack:
Assorted treats, hot sandwiches or noodles upon request.
(The FA made me some cup ramen noodles and I grabbed a pre-made cucumber sandwich from the center island by my seat. Both were nothing to write home about.)
Prior to arrival:
Chicken and cheese frittata with a mixed vegetable stew
Fresh fruit appetizer
or
Fresh seasonal fruite plate with creamy yogurt
(I had the fruit plate with yogurt -- adequate but not special.)
Meal orders were taken from front to back starting with seat 1A while the meals were served from back to front. Service was friendly and requests were met efficiently. Once the meal service was over, the FAs disappeared into the galley. I overheard that some FAs from either the C or Y class had to be drafted to help out during meal time in F class. From time to time, the FAs appeared and circulated to check on the PAXs, most of whom were asleep or were getting to sleep. The seat controlls were difficult to manipulate --- it was hard to just recline the back of the seat without the leg/foot rest being raised at the same time and entire seat being slide forward. While in the full recline position, my feet were somewhat "trapped" underneath the small shelf area. On top of this, the seat was fairly narrow. I am not stocky but I found that it was difficult to sleep on my back. One UA forum member suggested sleeping on one's side, that seemed to do the trick. I slept for a good 4 hours. By the way, the lumbar support and circulation on my seat did not work.
We had very strong head winds so not only was the flight bumpier than normal but it took a full 15 hours to get to Hong Kong. I watched a movie chosen from the box, The Upside of Anger. I overheard other PAXs complain that the movies were lousy. I lucked out because I was one of the few to have chosen this movie since I was amongst the first to board and got first dibs from the box. Otherwise, the audio and video entertainment was fairly substandard.
At one point, I asked about snacks and my FA took my menu to show me something. I had scribbled notes about each dish that I'd tried right on the menu and she saw them but she was discrete and did not comment.
Another interesting thing that happened was shortly after takeoff, PAXs in the C and Y classes found that many of their overhead and reading lights did not work. On top of that, the audio system was also not functioning. An FA came on the PA system to say that she had tried resetting the system but to no avail. She said that the captain was going to contact HQ in Chicago to get a "special code" to reset the entire system. Lo and behold, a short while after, the problem was solved. I can't imagine a 15 hour flight without illumination or a working entertainment system!
Another personal observation was how much an FA struggled to make announcements on the PA in Mandarin. All announcements were made in English and Cantonese Chinese. The Mandarin announcements were made very hesistantly. I feel sorry for the person doing this because she paused at every other word. I guess UA really needs to test and verify that the FA is truly fluent in a certain language/dialect before sticking that person with the duty. It was painful to listen to it.
We arrived in HKG a full hour late. Customs and immigration were not and have never been a problem. Getting luggage was another matter. Just like my previous experience with UA, the bags of the F class PAXs were mixed with the other classes. One would think that the purpose of tagging the luggage with Priority tags would cue the staff to unload them first but Nooo, that was not the case. I waited for 15 to 20 minutes for my bags to come out.
The Hong Kong airport was lovely --- grand, spacious and well organized. Though I must admit that I miss Kai Tak with its hustle and bustle and most of all, the sheer adrenaline rush from the E-ride landing.
More to follow .....
Oct 26, 2005, 2:47 pm
#7
Join Date: Jul 2002
Programs: UA MM
Posts: 6,984
Originally Posted by cesco.g
Thanks for a great report, spiced up with some personal observations.
Looking forward to your return report (assuming there is one).
Looking forward to your return report (assuming there is one).