LHR-TLV EL AL, LY316 17th November 2005, First Class
Nov 23, 2005, 3:06 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2005
Programs: EL AL Matmid, BA Executive Club GfL, GGL/CCR, Hilton Diamond, Avis President's Club
Posts: 2,085
LHR-TLV EL AL, LY316 17th November 2005, First Class
I have now posted pictures of the food for this trip report at:
http://www.airliners.net/discussions...ad.main/67491/
I fly very frequently between London and Tel Aviv with EL AL, and for the past year have been a Platinum member of their 'Matmid' frequent flyer club. I almost always fly business class, and have occasionally been upgraded to First, and last Thursday struck lucky again (I guess I must have been a highish priority for an upgrade, as I was on a full-fare business class ticket and a Platinum club member).
Over the past few months I have had extensive correspondence with EL AL concerning the poor standard of the First Class food and some of the crews on this route. I was assured that my comments were being taken very seriously and that things were about to change very radically. "Give us 6 months to a year and you will see really big changes" was the usual response. I was a bit sceptical about this, but you never know ...
Well, what can I say: this time it really was different, and I fly enough to notice when I am simply lucky and when something more significant has happened.
I was called on Tuesday to be offered an upgrade, which I was happy to accept! Upon arrival at security, I joined the queue for Business and First. The first security guard asked (as usual) if I was flying Business Class. I replied "Sorry, not this time, I have been upgraded to First". He immediately put me at the front of the queue and assigned me a security guard to perform the usual pre-flight security checks/bag scans etc. My cases were taken at checkin, tagged as 'First' and put aside in order to ensure they could get off the plane first. From the checkin I then went to the EL AL lounge.
The EL AL lounge at LHR is very comfortable and always has a good supply of freshly made sandwiches, savoury snacks, cakes and beautifully prepared sliced fresh fruit. There are plenty of drinks available, both alcoholic and not, a good variety of 'regular' and herbal teas, and a new coffee machine which makes a variety of different fresh brews. A new feature is a free Wireless Internet connection, which works well, but seems to time out every few minutes, which necessitates reentering the lounge id and password - this is a bit of a nuisance, and I hope it gets fixed soon. The First Class section of the lounge provides the same selection of food and drinks except that it is much quieter and they always ensure that there is plenty of food around. A good supply of newspapers and magazines is also available.
From the lounge and onto the aircraft, which was a 777 this time. The First Class section is roomy and features fully flat seats, arranged 2-2-2. On the EL AL 744s which have 2 rows arranged as 2-2 the word 'roomy' is an understatement, as there is so much room in First that it is difficult to believe, but the 777s are perfectly adequate ...
As one would expect, the crew were very helpful with bags etc and they immediately proceeded to hand out amenity kits, slippers, and sleep suits. The sleep suits may not sport a famous brand name as on some airlines, but they are of excellent quality, as I can vouch for after many machine washes! The usual pre-flight drinks then followed, with the crew noticing that I liked to drink plenty of water and refilling my glass all the time. As far as the crew were concerned, they were excellent - very helpful when needed, and leaving us alone when not needed. I think that they allocate 2 crew members to the 6 First class passengers, which is a very generous ratio.
The main change for the better is the food. Whereas I have complained about the poor quality of the food in the past, this time I was to be served with the best food I have ever had on any airline. It is a shame I didn't have a digital camera with me, as the presentation was also very impressive. One of the crew told me that they had been sent on a special course before the new style meal service was introduced. (I just hope that the improvement filters down to the business class cabin, as the b/c food from London has been quite awful over the past months - if anyone at EL AL is reading this, please take note!).
Here is the menu:
================================================== =====================
Aperitif served with Corn Chips, Spicy Bell-Pepper Dip and Olives
Bread 'n Spread
Warm Bread Selection
Sun-Dried Tomato Spread
Eggplant Spread
Appetizers
Tuna Steak with Tomato Salsa
Spinach-Stuffed Rolled Breast of Chicken
Three-Bean Salad
Soup of the Day
Basil-Scented Roasted Tomato Soup
Main Courses
Breast of Duck in Ginger and Garlic Sauce
Beef Bourguignon
Poached Salmon in Teriyaki Sauce
All served with wild rice, potatoes and vegetables
Salad
Assorted Baby Greens with Fresh Vegetables and Pine-Nuts
Balsamic Dressing or Olive Oil & Lemon
Dessert
Passion Fruit Sorbet with Fresh Fruit
Pear Tart with Forest Fruit
Regular and Decaffeinated Coffee, Espresso, Assorted Teas
================================================== =====================
The warm rolls have always been good from London, but I decided to skip them this time and just try the dips. I cannot vouch for the eggplant spread as it is never one of my favourites, but the sun dried tomato spread was excellent. As a starter I chose the Tuna steak, which was very tasty, although it would have helped if the tuna would have been cooked a touch less, as it was a bit dry.
However, the soup was just wonderful. It tasted fresh and had just enough basil to add a touch of elegance without being overpowering. It was garnished with toasted pine nuts and a sprig of fresh thyme. I was fortunate that some of the passengers decided to skip the soup as I ended up asking for two further helpings - it really was that good! The crew added freshly ground pepper as it was served (and if it was wanted).
EL AL now serve an excellent selection of wines, all Israeli. Those readers who have not yet tasted the 'new generation' of Israeli wines may not be aware of the revolution which has taken place in this area over the last 15 years or so, but Israel now produces a huge variety of excellent wines, and the selection on board is pretty representative.
For the main course I chose the Salmon, which was perfectly cooked and beautifully presented, with freshly ground pepper round the edge of the plate to add an extra touch. The vegetables were served in a sort of miniature saucepan about 3 inches in diameter, which was quite cute. At this point I began to feel that the hype in the EL AL website about the food in First being like that served at a smart restaurant was not just hype, but had a good deal of substance in it!
The fresh salad was fresh and plentiful, and the dressing was good.
For desert I chose the pear tart, which was delicious, and again beautifully presented. After my usual fruit tea and Cointreau the place setting was cleared, and I was able to get back to some work after what was a really enjoyable (and relaxing) meal. I should add here that the new tablecloths and napkins are very smart indeed, as is the new china and cutlery.
All too soon we arrived, and my cases came out very quickly. Despite having stuff to declare at the 'red channel' I was out so quickly that I surprised my wife by arriving before her!
All in all, a wonderful experience, and a major improvement (transformation?) for EL AL. It may be a bit extravagant for a 5 hour flight, but for my next trip (with my wife) to the USA ... (Tel Aviv - New York is 12 hours!)
http://www.airliners.net/discussions...ad.main/67491/
I fly very frequently between London and Tel Aviv with EL AL, and for the past year have been a Platinum member of their 'Matmid' frequent flyer club. I almost always fly business class, and have occasionally been upgraded to First, and last Thursday struck lucky again (I guess I must have been a highish priority for an upgrade, as I was on a full-fare business class ticket and a Platinum club member).
Over the past few months I have had extensive correspondence with EL AL concerning the poor standard of the First Class food and some of the crews on this route. I was assured that my comments were being taken very seriously and that things were about to change very radically. "Give us 6 months to a year and you will see really big changes" was the usual response. I was a bit sceptical about this, but you never know ...
Well, what can I say: this time it really was different, and I fly enough to notice when I am simply lucky and when something more significant has happened.
I was called on Tuesday to be offered an upgrade, which I was happy to accept! Upon arrival at security, I joined the queue for Business and First. The first security guard asked (as usual) if I was flying Business Class. I replied "Sorry, not this time, I have been upgraded to First". He immediately put me at the front of the queue and assigned me a security guard to perform the usual pre-flight security checks/bag scans etc. My cases were taken at checkin, tagged as 'First' and put aside in order to ensure they could get off the plane first. From the checkin I then went to the EL AL lounge.
The EL AL lounge at LHR is very comfortable and always has a good supply of freshly made sandwiches, savoury snacks, cakes and beautifully prepared sliced fresh fruit. There are plenty of drinks available, both alcoholic and not, a good variety of 'regular' and herbal teas, and a new coffee machine which makes a variety of different fresh brews. A new feature is a free Wireless Internet connection, which works well, but seems to time out every few minutes, which necessitates reentering the lounge id and password - this is a bit of a nuisance, and I hope it gets fixed soon. The First Class section of the lounge provides the same selection of food and drinks except that it is much quieter and they always ensure that there is plenty of food around. A good supply of newspapers and magazines is also available.
From the lounge and onto the aircraft, which was a 777 this time. The First Class section is roomy and features fully flat seats, arranged 2-2-2. On the EL AL 744s which have 2 rows arranged as 2-2 the word 'roomy' is an understatement, as there is so much room in First that it is difficult to believe, but the 777s are perfectly adequate ...
As one would expect, the crew were very helpful with bags etc and they immediately proceeded to hand out amenity kits, slippers, and sleep suits. The sleep suits may not sport a famous brand name as on some airlines, but they are of excellent quality, as I can vouch for after many machine washes! The usual pre-flight drinks then followed, with the crew noticing that I liked to drink plenty of water and refilling my glass all the time. As far as the crew were concerned, they were excellent - very helpful when needed, and leaving us alone when not needed. I think that they allocate 2 crew members to the 6 First class passengers, which is a very generous ratio.
The main change for the better is the food. Whereas I have complained about the poor quality of the food in the past, this time I was to be served with the best food I have ever had on any airline. It is a shame I didn't have a digital camera with me, as the presentation was also very impressive. One of the crew told me that they had been sent on a special course before the new style meal service was introduced. (I just hope that the improvement filters down to the business class cabin, as the b/c food from London has been quite awful over the past months - if anyone at EL AL is reading this, please take note!).
Here is the menu:
================================================== =====================
Aperitif served with Corn Chips, Spicy Bell-Pepper Dip and Olives
Bread 'n Spread
Warm Bread Selection
Sun-Dried Tomato Spread
Eggplant Spread
Appetizers
Tuna Steak with Tomato Salsa
Spinach-Stuffed Rolled Breast of Chicken
Three-Bean Salad
Soup of the Day
Basil-Scented Roasted Tomato Soup
Main Courses
Breast of Duck in Ginger and Garlic Sauce
Beef Bourguignon
Poached Salmon in Teriyaki Sauce
All served with wild rice, potatoes and vegetables
Salad
Assorted Baby Greens with Fresh Vegetables and Pine-Nuts
Balsamic Dressing or Olive Oil & Lemon
Dessert
Passion Fruit Sorbet with Fresh Fruit
Pear Tart with Forest Fruit
Regular and Decaffeinated Coffee, Espresso, Assorted Teas
================================================== =====================
The warm rolls have always been good from London, but I decided to skip them this time and just try the dips. I cannot vouch for the eggplant spread as it is never one of my favourites, but the sun dried tomato spread was excellent. As a starter I chose the Tuna steak, which was very tasty, although it would have helped if the tuna would have been cooked a touch less, as it was a bit dry.
However, the soup was just wonderful. It tasted fresh and had just enough basil to add a touch of elegance without being overpowering. It was garnished with toasted pine nuts and a sprig of fresh thyme. I was fortunate that some of the passengers decided to skip the soup as I ended up asking for two further helpings - it really was that good! The crew added freshly ground pepper as it was served (and if it was wanted).
EL AL now serve an excellent selection of wines, all Israeli. Those readers who have not yet tasted the 'new generation' of Israeli wines may not be aware of the revolution which has taken place in this area over the last 15 years or so, but Israel now produces a huge variety of excellent wines, and the selection on board is pretty representative.
For the main course I chose the Salmon, which was perfectly cooked and beautifully presented, with freshly ground pepper round the edge of the plate to add an extra touch. The vegetables were served in a sort of miniature saucepan about 3 inches in diameter, which was quite cute. At this point I began to feel that the hype in the EL AL website about the food in First being like that served at a smart restaurant was not just hype, but had a good deal of substance in it!
The fresh salad was fresh and plentiful, and the dressing was good.
For desert I chose the pear tart, which was delicious, and again beautifully presented. After my usual fruit tea and Cointreau the place setting was cleared, and I was able to get back to some work after what was a really enjoyable (and relaxing) meal. I should add here that the new tablecloths and napkins are very smart indeed, as is the new china and cutlery.
All too soon we arrived, and my cases came out very quickly. Despite having stuff to declare at the 'red channel' I was out so quickly that I surprised my wife by arriving before her!
All in all, a wonderful experience, and a major improvement (transformation?) for EL AL. It may be a bit extravagant for a 5 hour flight, but for my next trip (with my wife) to the USA ... (Tel Aviv - New York is 12 hours!)
Last edited by mikebg; Dec 26, 2005 at 1:59 am
Nov 23, 2005, 6:24 am
#2
Join Date: Feb 2002
Location: Agoura Hills, CA USA
Posts: 2,662
Great report. Thanks for one of the first EL AL trip reports in long haul first class that I have read here in a long time. How was the in flight entertainment? My family and I will be taking LY albeit for a short trip from CAI-TLV next month.. Once again thanks...
Nov 23, 2005, 7:56 am
#4
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2005
Programs: EL AL Matmid, BA Executive Club GfL, GGL/CCR, Hilton Diamond, Avis President's Club
Posts: 2,085
Originally Posted by RTW4
How was the in flight entertainment? My family and I will be taking LY albeit for a short trip from CAI-TLV next month.. Once again thanks...
Mind you, from CAI-TLV you won't have much time even to listen to IFE, as it really is a very short flight!
Nov 23, 2005, 8:55 am
#5
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: SAN
Programs: UA 1MM/1K, HH Diamond
Posts: 6,832
Originally Posted by mikebg
The in flight entertainment is adequate, but not stunning. The 744 and 777 aircraft have individual screens (the 777 screens in business and first are huge) and the smaller aircraft do not. I don't usually watch films, and I have an iPod with noise reducing headphones and loads of music, so I don't listen to the music anyway!
Mind you, from CAI-TLV you won't have much time even to listen to IFE, as it really is a very short flight!
Mind you, from CAI-TLV you won't have much time even to listen to IFE, as it really is a very short flight!
(Which reminds me of a "funny" story: Once, about 10 years ago, I went to the Cairo airport to meet an incomming passenger. The flight was delayed hours and hours. It got to the point where I just wanted to know what the deal was. So I wandered around the bowels of the airport at what must have been 2am, looking for the El Al office. Of course no one had a clue what El Al even was, much less how to find the office. Seriously I must have asked 10 people and got ten different answers. So I finally find what has to be the most ridiculous El Al office on the planet: A grungy back room with two Egyptians smoking sheesha and hanging out. I ask about the flight, and they have no idea. I explain I just want to know if I should wait or not, and if you can believe it, they said "Why not just look at the passenger manifest and see if they're on the flight." So they looked at the list, me peeking over their shoulder, and the people I was waiting for were on the flight. There's security for you...
)
Nov 26, 2005, 11:19 am
#7
Join Date: May 2005
Location: tlv
Programs: AA Platinum, LY Matmid
Posts: 804
Originally Posted by as219
CAI-TLV is a wild trip... I think it wins my prize for the highest ratio of pre-flight screening to actual flight time. IIRC, taking into account the security checks at Ben Gurion and the obligatory random delay, it was 6 hours on the ground for less than an hour in the air.
While not exactly an "Airline story" I did experience ridiculous Egyptian security and bureaurocracy while crossing the Egyptian Israeli border in Rafah a few years ago.. In a closed access corridor about 200 feet long there were no less than 4 checkpoints each manned by a uniformed guard asking to see your passport. What did they expect? Someone to come in through the walls? A lot of it is just make work for the millions of unemployed and in Egypt you just have to get used to it
Nov 26, 2005, 11:37 am
#8
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Sep 2000
Programs: UA Million Miler (lite). NY Metro area.
Posts: 15,086
The Barkan brand of wine is readily available in the US. The basic Cab Sauv is $10; and the reserve Cab Sauv is about $20.
It's one of the best sellers at our Passover wine sale.
It's one of the best sellers at our Passover wine sale.
Nov 29, 2005, 1:48 pm
#9
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: WAS, FLL
Programs: AA, B6, CO, DL, FL, UA, US Gold (only took 10k miles), WN, Amtrak
Posts: 1,299
Originally Posted by as219
CAI-TLV is a wild trip... I think it wins my prize for the highest ratio of pre-flight screening to actual flight time. IIRC, taking into account the security checks at Ben Gurion and the obligatory random delay, it was 6 hours on the ground for less than an hour in the air.
Nov 29, 2005, 10:27 pm
#10
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Midwest
Programs: AA, UA, DL, LUV, SPG, HHonors, Avis, Hertz
Posts: 3,033
Originally Posted by GWU ESIA STUDENT
When I flew LY TLV-CAI-TLV about 5 years ago I found that the security was no more or less strict then NYC-TLV.
There are people who will easily sail through an LY interview, and there are those who won't. I'm not trying to be cheeky about it. It's just how it is. And contrary to popular belief, it's not all about racial profiling.
Nov 30, 2005, 12:30 am
#11
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: TLV now - formerly LAS
Programs: King of Rental Cars, BA Gold, Virgin Gold, AA MM Gold, A3 Gold, SK Gold, Hotel SuperElite
Posts: 7,357
Originally Posted by as219
So I finally find what has to be the most ridiculous El Al office on the planet: A grungy back room with two Egyptians smoking sheesha and hanging out. I ask about the flight, and they have no idea. I explain I just want to know if I should wait or not, and if you can believe it, they said "Why not just look at the passenger manifest and see if they're on the flight." So they looked at the list, me peeking over their shoulder, and the people I was waiting for were on the flight. There's security for you... )
)BTW, is this still an unmarked plane or does it now carry an El-Al logo on it?
Nov 30, 2005, 4:14 am
#12
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Join Date: Sep 2000
Programs: UA Million Miler (lite). NY Metro area.
Posts: 15,086
Originally Posted by Jakebeth
There are people who will easily sail through an LY interview, and there are those who won't. I'm not trying to be cheeky about it. It's just how it is. And contrary to popular belief, it's not all about racial profiling.
Nov 30, 2005, 7:55 am
#13
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: SAN
Programs: UA 1MM/1K, HH Diamond
Posts: 6,832
Originally Posted by Mrp Alert
I wonder if they passed the sheesha around on the return leg's aircraft?
BTW, is this still an unmarked plane or does it now carry an El-Al logo on it?
BTW, is this still an unmarked plane or does it now carry an El-Al logo on it?
About the plane, it was certainly unmarked when I flew several years ago, but I have no idea if it is now. Undoubtedly it's still a middle of the night flight, though. (Has anyone ever arrived CAI in the day? Methinks it's impossible!
)
Nov 30, 2005, 7:36 pm
#15
Suspended
Join Date: Nov 1999
Posts: 24,153
Originally Posted by dhammer53
They really grilled my Rabbi once. When he checked in for a flight out of JFK, he wasn't wearing his keepa. Security wondered 'how can a Rabbi not be wearing his keepa'?