offerendum

I remember Venice as a real zoo. Very special..... I´m sure if you like a nipple piercing to go you found the perfect place. And if you face any Problems go to the next house: The "doctor" is in I also remember the parking fees, which were outrageous.

Mr. Strong

Enjoying this TR. While I don't miss LA traffic and smog, I do miss the views when driving on PCH. I also miss old haunts like Geoffrey's, Ivy at the Shore and of course, In-N-Out. Glad that you enjoy them as well.

JohnRain

Venice Beach in indeed a bit of a zoo, offerendum, but a fun one.
I did pass on the piercing but was tempted by the "clinics" offering medical marijuana...


Thank you very much, Mr. Strong.
IMO the pros of LA more than outweigh the cons, at least for a tourist but probably also for a resident.

Update: the next installment will be online tomorrow.

worldtraveller73

My best to you and the Mrs; congratulations!

And thank you for this entertaining trip report. I somehow missed the start of it and just got into reading it today.

JohnRain

Thank you very much for your kind wishes, worldtraveller73!
Glad that you're enjoying the report.

JohnRain

Back at LAX, flying west for the first time.




Hawaiian doesn't have its own lounge, which is why I used my Priority Pass card to get access to the Air Canada Maple Leaf lounge. The view is the only impression of the lounge I'll post here, as it is that crappy.




The gate was extremely crowded and the flight was oversold as I soon learned from an announcement. A couple hundred bucks to fly a few hours later? No thanks, I need to be on this specific flight as I have a trip report featuring the new First class to write.




My ride, an A 330-200.




The 09:05AM to Maui is the only flight with the new F cabin, as it has been installed on only one plane for now. I had of course told Mrs JohnRain that the later flight was sold out to convince her to get up early. I wasn't disappointed as the cabin looked stylish and fresh.




If you're driving an Italian sports car from Maranello those seats might look familiar to you, as they're also from Poltrona Frau.







The color combination is pretty daring but it works.




Legroom was fine.







PDB consisted of a Pukana La, Hawaiian's signature cocktail.




Bye bye LA...




...I love your beaches but Hawaii supposedly also has a few of them.




Brunch menus were distributed.







iPad Pro's were handed out.







A G&T to start.




The food had a very un-Hawaiian feel to it; it looked and tasted as if it came straight out of the kitchen of a guy who had been disqualified in the first round of Top Chef.
Chicken apple sausages. Talking about a quirky combination.




Baked Brie with crispy Prosciutto chips. The only question that comes to mind is: why?




Cinnamon-Swirl Danish. We're getting closer.




And finally something I could relate to: pineapple upside-down cake.




Some coffee and a Baileys to finish.




Baileys Pualani.




After verifying that the engine was still in place...




...I decided to get some zzzzz.




A snack before landing...




...and here we go. Hawaii! But, but, where is the sun?




If I hadn't known better I'd have thought that the flight had been diverted to Cornwall.




Mrs JohnRain's luggage had already made it to the island.




A last look at the cabin.



Conclusion: HA new F is a nice product, but someone please tell the chef to go take some cooking classes in France rather than England.
Up Next: Andaz Maui

747FC

Aloha JR: Sorry you had to contend with the food from Chai. Your comments were spot on:

"The food had a very un-Hawaiian feel to it; it looked and tasted as if it came straight out of the kitchen of a guy who had been disqualified in the first round of Top Chef.
Chicken apple sausages. Talking about a quirky combination."

Feel free to add to the discussion here: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/hawai...rity-chef.html

Hope the sun returns to Maui and you have an enjoyable experience!

How did you like the seats for a 5+ hour flight?

SFO777

LOL. That is so LA.
Great pics and humor JohnRain. Looking forward to your pics and take on Maui.

Madone59

HAHAHAHAH. Funny, that is how Mrs. Madone59 packs too!

Bretteee

LOL I like English food. I grew up there.

Roast beef and Yorkshire pudding.
Shepherds Pie.
Banana custard.
Sherry Trifle.
Mince pies.
Scones.
Fish and chips with vinegar. (originally brought from Spain though).

Now "fried bread" is another story. That I would have to agree with you gives "British cuisine" a bad reputation.

At school I would hide it in my pocket so not to have to eat it.

The fried Proscutto must have been disgusting!!!!

Jermyn

Agreed, canary yellow would have been a much safer choice

Congratulations on the nuptuals and thanks for putting together this TR, the new Hawaiian F looks fantastic.

Looking forward to seeing the rest of this TR (and hopefully more audacious shoes).

JohnRain

Aloha, 747FC!
Apparently I'm not the only one who finds Chai's cuisine odd...
I'll post a comment on your thread about it.
We were very lucky with the weather during our stay.
I liked the seats a lot from an aesthetic perspective and they're very comfortable for a 5+ hour flight (even if you're 6'4'' like me). The footrest is on the narrow side and I wouldn't want to spend a whole night in those seats, but for 5 hours they're great.


Thank you, SFO777. I just won a bet with myself that you would comment this particular pic. As the creator of the "Girls of..." section on FT, your professional opinion on this subject is important to me.


I feel for you, Madone59...


I really want to like British food, Bretteee. Really.
And I 've had many great meals in the UK, but almost all of them were either French, Italian, Indian, Japanese or World Food. My only real British experience was at the Savoy, specifically at Simpson's-In-The-Strand.
From their website:
For a true taste of all that’s best in British cuisine, there’s no finer dining establishment than Simpson's-In-The Strand.
Well, it certainly was an interesting meal, but I was glad that I didn't have to pay for it (I used Fairmont dining credits). Enough said.


My thoughts exactly...

Thanks for your kind wishes and your comment, Jermyn.
Hawaiian new F was indeed a great experience, definitely one of the sexier cabins in North America.

offerendum

Top Chef in the sky

TOMFORD

I cannot handle your wife's Gucci slippers.

JohnRain

Indeed, offerendum. Too bad that the chef was on holiday that day (or if he wasn't he should consider a career change.)

Well spotted, Mr (aptly named) TOMFORD...

Update: the next installment will be online on Monday.