Dinner
Modern International
Pre-dining
Caviar
Prawn crackers, blinis, crème faiche
*Our caviar is farmed, in line with our commitment to sustanbility
It is interesting to eat caviar with prawn crackers.
No tray is used for any meal services, and table is set up individually. Individual breadbasket is pretty standard these days in premium cabin, but I still feel it is a bit of a waste. I prefer passengers selecting their own breads.
Appetizer
Asinan Jakarta
Pickled vegetable salad, fried bean curd, crushed peanut
Smoked ocean trout, potato salad
Salmon roe
Cold cut of smoked duck, bresaola
Tomato, ciabatta
Lumpia Semarang
Chicken and bamboo shoot spring roll, sweet and spicy sauce
Soup
Soto ayam
Traditional clear chicken soup, quail egg, fried shallot, chili sambal
Corn chowder
Tomato, black olives
Main Course
Grilled lamb cutlets, Indonesian gulai sauce
Steamed Jasmine rice, sautéed long bean, soy bean cake
Or
Seared beef tenderloin, black pepper sauce
Tomato cheese vol au vent, buttered asparagus, sugar snaps
Or
Roasted chicken breast, thyme jus
Potato dauphinoise, sautéed button mushrooms, carrot, asparagus
Or
Baked cod fillet, lemon chive cream
Grain mustard mash, sautéed asparagus
Or
Three cheese tortellini, cream pesto
Marinated sundried tomato, rucola
Chef’s cheese board
Camembert
Blue
Cheddar
Dessert
Chocolate Vanilla Come Cake
Raspberry Coulis
Warm Apple Pie, Caramel Sauce
Vanilla bean ice cream, blueberry
Dinner was completed within two hours after takeoff and I asked the F/A to set up my bed adjacent to my window seat. They placed a rather thick mattress pad on top of the seats, and I appreciate the large pillow and duvet.
Here is the picture!
A stop in the bathroom before going to sleep: It is interesting to note that Garuda only installs one bathroom in the first class/nose section, rather than two bathrooms like most other airlines. It can be problematic if there is a full load in first class.
Door closed
I felt asleep quickly and had a good five hours nap before reaching India.
As I woke up, two first class F/As came to my side and asked if I wanted breakfast yet, or could they offer anything else? I had a cup of English breakfast tea and then ordered the sate platter, which was delicious. The plate features 1 beef and 2 chicken skewers. I can tell that this dish is really authentic.
In Between Fuel
Selection of snacks for the journey ahead
Indonesian sate platter
Focaccia with mozzarella, tomato
Beef and vegetables pie
Blackberry cheesecake
Cut Fresh Fruit
Nachos, cheese and tomato salsa
The F/As were nothing but attentive and friendly. Similar to Japanese airlines’ crews, they did not make many noises in the galley. They made small chats, but in a whisper mode. Sometimes I feel that their limited ability to speak English prohibits them from saying the right thing, but you can tell that they are genuinely trying to impress you and to make you feel welcomed. They kept on asking me if I wanted more drinks and food. I gave them high scores because they kept their smiles during the flight. Since I was the only one in the cabin, I was able to have my meals at my preferred time.
I finally decided to have breakfast around 3:40pm Jakarta time. Once again the tray was set up individually with utensils and even three kinds of jam. The starters were presented in a beautiful way.
Lovely breads – Cinnamon rolls, Pain Au Chocolat & Cinnamon Raison Roll
Freshly squeezed orange juice
Breakfast menu
Breakfast
Modern International
Appetizer
Cut Fresh Fruit
Yogurt (Strawberry)
Cereal
Main Course
Coconut rice, Balinese Chicken
Marinated fried beef, sautéed vegetables, chili sambal
Or
Bircher muesli, pistachio
Dried cranberry, pumpkin seeds, and honey
Or
Dutch waffle, poached pear
Orange and caramel sauce, silvered almond, mascarpone
Or
Eggs
Freshly cooked on board anyway you wish
My choices were two-fried egg – over easy with all the side dishes except beans. The turkey bacon actually tasted very well.
With Breakfast Side Dishes
Seared vine cherry tomatoes
Roasted field mushrooms
Baked beans
Chicken Sausage
Lyonnaise potato
Sautéed asparagus
Roasted turkey bacon
Peppermint tea after a nice breakfast, especially the breakfast pastries, which were delicious
As we got closer to Indonesia
Descent soon began at 4:55pm, but due to ATC flow control, we did not land on R/W7R at 5:32pm.
We taxied towards gate E7 and parked there at 5:43pm.
Transit at Jakarta:
For first class passengers, transit at Jakarta is as simple as it can, as there is an agent escorting you and taking care of all your need. Plus there is no security checkpoint till before your departure gate. A lovely female agent was welcoming me at the jetway. As the only first class passenger, it was easy for her to recognize me. She wanted to help me with my carryon, but I insisted on carrying it myself. It was not in my nature to let anyone to carry my bags, but I noticed that other first class passengers actually let those first class agents handling their carryon. It was strange to see a tall European man, followed by an Indonesian guy rolling his suitcase but I guess it was part of the VIP service. The agent just showed my boarding pass to a staff at a checkpoint, and then we took the escalator to the departure level. The agent was very friendly, and we had a casual chat about the new terminal three and a few things. The first class lounge was empty, when I arrived, and the flight from Jakarta to Singapore had only two passengers this evening, and I was the first one to arrive at the lounge. I did not take picture of the restaurant menu, but it was expanded with more choices of snacks.
Restaurant
Piano
Main seating area
Recline seat area
Sleeping chairs
TV station – all equipped with smart TV and I can watch my own TV using my USB
Restaurant – I had a spicy ramen and a really lovely dim sum platter, which was pictured here.
Bathroom – I took a shower there, while there were nice L’Occitane amenities and towel, they should use a floor mat and hair dryer.
I had the lounge to myself for most of the three hours, and the other passenger did not arrive till an hour prior to departure.
August 18, 2016
GA 88 CGK-SIN Lv2105 Arr2350 Boeing 777-300ER PK-GIE
I did not take many pictures on this flight, as it was a relatively short flight. Plus it was on the same plane.
However, I wanted to note that the crews were actually friendlier on this flight, and despite being a short flight; they offered me all the amenities. The service procedure was similar to previous segment, but I was surprised that no menu was offered on this segment. Plus the menu that was provided to me was the incorrect one. In the end, it was okay, as there were four different main courses for me to pick from.
Pre-takeoff champagne again – Laurent Perrier Pink champagne & macadamia nuts
Newspapers/Magazines & amenity kit
Meal – supper service – all served together, but no tray was used
Potato and kidney bean salad with shrimps, choices of Ravioli, Roasted Chicken Breast, Fish, and an Indonesian dish
I chose the chicken breast, which was okay.
It was a short flight. Despite a late start, we landed at Singapore Changi Airport Terminal Three at 11:49pm and parked at gate B9 at 11:56pm.
To my surprise, there were two teams of agents welcoming me and the other passenger. It was easy for the other guy, as he was going onward to Amsterdam. The agent, who picked me up, asked me where I was going. I told him that I would fly onward to Bangkok in the morning, and was staying at the Aerotel in Terminal One. I told him to drop me off at the Singapore Airlines’ transit desk, which was okay, but he insisted on taking me to the transit hotel at Terminal One. Thankfully things were quiet at this time, and I got my boarding pass within five minutes. I had a nice chat with Dnata ground service agent, which told me that Garuda’s flights were very popular, and they went out full every night for both business and economy class. First class struggled a bit, but business and economy were doing well.
In conclusion, Garuda Indonesia First Class is a great premium product, especially in the aspects of ground service and inflight service. All the staffs are extremely friendly and polite, and they are obviously proud of their first class product. White the suite is no longer something that is super fancy, like Etihad apartments, they are comfortable and I like the enclosed design. The free WIFI is a nice touch, and I did not lose connection at most parts of my journey, and the speed was actually better than some of my previous international experiences. Onboard service was wonderful and most the amenities, except pajamas, are good quality. The catering was okay, and maybe it just needed some magic touch, like their Japanese and Indonesian menus. They need to differentiate more from business class. I definitely look forward to Garuda flying to the USA, and that will be a cool inaugural flight to fly. I hope you enjoy this trip report.
Carfield