BR service has a distinct native Taiwanese feel; CI service is more pan-Chinese to the point where Taiwanese-ness is de-emphasized. BR corporate color is green (duh), whereas CI has no green in it whatsoever. This is no accident, IMO -- people who are familiar with internal politics should know what I am talking about. I think this difference in corporate culture goes into FA selection as well. IMO, BR female FAs are encouraged to speak Mandarin with a Taiwanese twang, almost schoolgirl like, that I would expect to be frowned upon on CI. They at CI still think that they are "classier" by speaking Nanking Mandarin.

Little of these matter much to the Westerner, but it's fun to try and observe the differences.

I wholeheartedly recommend Royal Laurel over UA. The food is pretty good, not as good as NH or OZ, but completely not at the same depth as UA. The Rimowa amenity kit is a plus. The lie-flat seat is comfortable, but the footwell angles into a narrow space that gets into the way of my feet. I prefer UA's seat and IFE, but other than those, I can't say much negative about BR.