Seat 2A

January 30, 2005
London to San Francisco
British Airways First Class * Luncheon - Snack
747-400 G-CIVM Seat 2A
140p-425p Flight time: 10:21

The shuttle bus dropped me off at Heathrow’s Terminal 1 at 11:30am, two hours in advance of my flight. After checking in at BA’s dedicated First Class check-in area, I sped through security (no annoying laptop, shoe and jacket removal like the U.S.) (no line, either) and headed straight for the First Class Lounge.

I’m not a big fan of Terminal 1. The central commons or waiting area is old, cluttered and claustrophobic – and that’s on a good day. BA’s First Class Lounge in T1 is comparable to the Concorde Room in terms of facilities, but since the only windows are in the bar area, it lacks the bright ambience of the Concorde Room. It does however offer an excellent buffet area featuring a nice selection of sandwiches, crudités, dips, salads and beverages. Like the Concorde Room, this lounge also offers a menu of light meals made to order.

The call for boarding came at 1:15pm and San Francisco bound passengers were advised that the gate was a good ten minute walk away. I gathered up my gear and, after stopping to post some last minute cards, arrived at the gate to find our 747 adorned with a big colorful Unicef Change For Good sticker above the forward windows. I also noticed two aircraft – a 767-300 and an A320 – still sporting the colorful old Tails of The World livery. Sights like this are increasingly rare however. The current corporate makeover is almost complete.

I was greeted cordially at the door of the aircraft and escorted to my suite. There I was presented with a plate of Macadamia nuts and offered something to drink. A glass of red wine might be nice, thanks. Soon I was sipping from a glass of tasty Chivite Coleccion 125 Reserva 1997, Navarra. There were only six of us in the forward cabin and the atmosphere was casual and relaxed. An all-male cabin crew was at our service this afternoon and I would guess the youngest of them to be about forty. A senior crew. I commented on the welcome return of the Macadamia nuts and was told that they only seem to be offered on the California flights. Ah well, California here I come! Aloha!

As we sped down the runway on a lengthy take off roll, the SkyMap just happened to show our speed as we rotated and leapt into the heavens. 186 mph. We climbed quickly through broken clouds and as we emerged into bright sunlight moments later, I reclined my seat, pulled out the menu and perused the wine list. Hmm… so many nice choices today…


WINE LIST

CHAMPAGNE

Laurent Perrier Grand Siecle Champagne
A stunning Champagne with a classic toasty aroma and creamy, fresh lemon flavours – the finish is long and stylish

Alfred Gratien Cuvée Paradis
A remarkably luxurious deluxe cuvee Champagne produced from Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes from, exclusively, grande cru vineyards. This was a big favorite in the Concorde Cellar

WHITE WINES

Chassagne-Montrachet 2002, Marie-Louise Parisot
The wines of Chassagne have a mineral complexity, not always apparent in other appellations, that combines well with the richness and depth of great Burgundy

Steenberg Sauvignon Blanc 2004 – Constantia
Steenburg Vineyards make one of the finest Sauvignon Blanc wines in South Africa – scintillatingly fresh and vibrant with a hint of tropical succulence and a long finish

Calera Central Coast Chardonnay 2000
The isolated, high elevation vineyards of Calera and their lime rich soils produce superb Chardonnay of astonishing depth of flavour and great freshness

RED WINES

Domaine de Chevalier 1995, Grand Cru Classé, Graves
A deep garnet colour and a fine, soft fruit bouquet lead into an all enveloping, mouth filling black fruit flavour or great length and power

Chivite Coleccion 125 Reserva 1997, Navarra
Complex and well developed with ripe, mouth-filling plum and black cherry flavours

Rodney Strong Symmetry 1999, Alexander Valley
A harmonious blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc grapes from the northern end of California’s delightful Sonoma Valley

DESSERT WINES

Opitz Goldackerl Trockenbeerenauslese 2002, Austria
Austria makes some of the finest sweet wines in the world. The effervescent Willi Opitz, from his tiny vineyards in Illmitz near the Hungarian border, produces some of the very best in the country

Warre’s 1988 Colheita Port
Complex, sweet nutty flavours offer an admirable after dinner glass

*** ***** ***

SPIRITS, DIGESTIFS AND LIQUEURS

We offer a complete range of classic and timeless spirits, digestifs and liqueurs including Gonzalez Byass Sherries, Johnnie Walker Blue Label Scotch Whiskey, Tanqueray No. Ten Gin, The Glenlivet 18-Year Old Single Malt Whiskey, Smirnoff Black Label Vodka, Camus XO Cognac and Woodford Reserve Kentucky Whiskey.




I decided to try a glass of the Rodney Strong Symmetry. This was presented with BA’s traditional plate of canapés, today featuring roasted spicy halibut on toast, salmon and cream cheese on fois gras and, for the vegetarians, asparagus and red pepper on toast. As for the wine, it was delicious and full-bodied, perfect for sipping with a second plate of different canapés as we headed toward our initial cruising altitude of 34,000 feet.

Four years ago, I had the good fortune to fly out of London on a fine, spring day. It was sunny and warm and as we climbed westward through clear blue skies, I was exhilarated by the stunningly beautiful views of England and Ireland, all emerald green against the brilliant indigo blue of the Atlantic Ocean. It’s a beautiful planet we live on and I do so love the views from above it! Today unfortunately, a large cold front had blanketed the entire eastern Atlantic with a thick cloud cover and so I had to content myself with enjoying the bright sunlight flooding through my window. I hadn’t seen the sun since leaving Australia, so it was nice to bask in its warmth.

I love the first forty minutes or so of a long flight in First Class. Now that you’re finally airborne, you’ve adjusted your seat to a comfortable position, gratefully accepted that first glass of your favorite libation and can now begin to truly relax and unwind. As your First Class cabin crew moves unobtrusively about the cabin delivering drinks and taking meal orders, from the galley come the faint clinks of glass and cutlery as the promise of the wonderful inflight service ahead begins to be realized. Taking another sip from your drink, you gaze out the window and revel in the wonder of it all… Ah… it’s a good life, indeed.

David, the Flight Attendant serving my side of the cabin, was simply excellent. Polite, courteous and efficient, I think the best word to describe him would be “polished”. He stopped by my seat now to inquire as to my luncheon choices. Let’s have a look at that menu, shall we?


London to San Francisco

LUNCHEON

Appetizers
Lobster and crayfish with pink grapefruit
Gruyere cheese and red onion timbale with red pepper coulis

Soup
Wild mushroom soup with truffled gnocchi

Salad
Fresh salad leaves with your choice of roast garlic vinaigrette or Pommery mustard dressing

MAIN COURSE

Michel Roux’s Grilled Fillet of Beef
Marinated in red wine and served with garlic mashed potatoes and green beans

Vineet Bhatia’s Southern Indian Chicken
With pureed coconut and served with spiced noodles

Duchy of Cornwall Free Range Pork Sausages
Served with creamed mashed potatoes and roast red onion gravy

Poached Salmon
Presented with cucumber and potato salad

LIGHTER FARE

Bacon roll served with tomato ketchup
Wild mushroom soup with truffled gnocchi with a side salad
Fresh Pasta topped with your choice of tomato, artichoke and smoked paprika or roast mushroom and thyme cream sauce
Duchy of Cornwall biscuits
A selection of cheese and fruit

** ***** **

DESSERT AND CHEESE

Pineapple Tarte Tatin
Served with vanilla ice cream

Bitter Chocolate and Orange Delice

Cheese Plate featuring:

Shropshire Blue – Shropshire Blue contains an underlying hint of rich, buttery caramel while maintaining a smooth, Blue taste

Worcester Gold – This rich Jersey cow’s milk cheese has a long piquant taste that leads to a clean finish

St. Nectaire – St. Nectaire features a soft, supple texture and earthy, fruity flavour

A Basket of Fresh Fruit

Chocolates




I had a light breakfast this morning in anticipation of the feast to follow aboard this flight. Even in the First Class lounge, I once again exhibited admirable discipline in limiting myself to only a small fruit salad and a cup of coffee. As a result, I was now, at two in the afternoon, well and truly famished.

I decided to begin with the lobster appetizer, followed by both the soup and the salad. Dressing? I’ll have the Roasted Garlic Vinaigrette, please. For the main course, I decided upon the Southern Indian Chicken. I’d seen this entrée served on a previous trip and thought it looked pretty good. How fortuitous that it should show up once again on today’s flight.

Everybody knows that First Class offers more space and better food. What a lot of people may not appreciate however is how relaxed and unhurried a proper International caliber service is. Whereas back in Economy and even in many Business Classes the meals are served all on one tray, in the best First Class cabins the meals are served course by course with the pace dictated by the passenger, not the airline.

For those who’ve never flown a quality International First Class before, I decided to note the timing of each aspect of my luncheon service. Although I chose to dine right away, remember that the crew would have been happy to serve me this meal at any time. Following is the breakdown of the meal presentation timed in minutes from the moment we took to the air:


:13 Drink order taken

:17 Wine and Canapés delivered

:35 Luncheon order taken

:46 Table Set

:52 Bread presented

:53 Appetizer served

1:09 Soup served

1:23 Salad served

1:35 Entrée presented

1:56 Table cleared

2:03 Coffee and chocolates served




The lobster and crayfish appetizer was delicious. The grapefruit made an interesting accompaniment but what I really liked was the light pesto dressing that accompanied the greens. By the time my plate was cleared, I’d practically licked it clean! The mushroom soup was also quite nice, though exceptionally rich. I was served quite a large portion and decided to only eat about half, given that I still had the salad and main entrée to look forward to.

When my entrée was presented, I was amazed at how large a portion of food it was. It included a good six to eight ounces of chicken in a wonderfully spicy sauce atop a big plateful of noodles. It was one of the biggest plates of food I’ve ever been served on an airplane and I couldn’t help but wonder if this were a pre-plated entrée or if the crew had just decided that I looked hungry! Regardless, it was quite good and should any of you be offered this dish while flying BA’s First, I highly recommend it!

After such a large meal, it was clear that the cheese and dessert courses would have to wait until later in the flight. Much later. The SkyMap indicated that we were perhaps three hundred miles east of Iceland and with a little over eight hours to go in the flight, I decided to check out the entertainment options.

With thirty-five movies to choose from, I selected the 1953 WWII classic From Here to Eternity. I’d never seen this movie before and was amazed at how closely parts of the story line were later duplicated in the movie Cool Hand Luke. It made for enjoyable viewing though and by the time the final credits rolled, we were over the Davis Straits just off the western coast of Greenland. I raised my window shade to a frozen world of gray and white clouds. The outside air temperature was a frosty –81 degrees Fahrenheit but we were making good time, speeding westward at 573 mph against a 24 mph headwind. In San Francisco, conditions were listed as sunny and 64 degrees.

This is a long flight and many passengers choose to sleep through the bulk of it. Were it a nighttime flight, I would have joined them. I wasn’t really that tired however, and so after the movie I decided on a small plate of Shropshire Blue cheese and crackers with a glass of the Warre’s 1988 Colheita Port. Pure decadence!

I read for a bit and the next time I checked the SkyMap, we’d skirted the northern end of Hudson Bay before banking slightly to the south and over flying Canada’s newest territory, Nunavut. Opening my window shade, I was thrilled to see that the clouds had disappeared. Beneath us was the bleak expanse of the Canadian Arctic. I briefly watched for caribou in hopes that a 70,000 strong herd might be able to be seen from 34,000 feet, but alas, my efforts went for not. Oh well. Back to the book.

About two hundred miles northeast of Edmonton, we encountered an impressive patch of turbulence. You could hear as well as feel the winds buffeting the aircraft. Up in the nose of the 747 it was quite an exciting sound, if not a bit scary as well. Interestingly, despite our southwesterly heading we were now being propelled along by an 89 mph tailwind, bringing our ground speed to 615 mph. The map indicated that our planned routing would take us directly over Banff National Park. Further inspection of the map revealed that if we’d just keep this heading for another six hours, we could continue all the way to Maui. Maui no ka oi!

We entered American airspace just north and a tad east of Spokane, Washington. There was only an hour and forty minutes left in the flight and the crew could be heard back in the galley preparing the Afternoon Tea service. Here’s what was offered:


AFTERNOON TEA

Sandwiches
A selection of sandwiches featuring lemon pepper chicken, smoked salmon with cucumber, roast beef with horseradish and Cheddar cheese

Patisserie
Farmhouse fruit cake, lemon meringue pie and coffee choux bun

Warm fruit scones with clotted cream and strawberry preserve




Despite the long flight and the fact that I’d finished lunch almost seven hours ago, I found I wasn’t all that hungry. Even so, this would be my last go round with BA’s First Class cuisine for a good long while so I requested a plate of the sandwiches. Rather than indulge in the pastry selections, I asked for a serving of the Bitter Chocolate and Orange Delice dessert from the luncheon service. Served with a cup of cappuccino, this second meal made a delicious ending to yet another wonderful culinary experience courtesy of British Airways.

Our approach into San Francisco brought us down to the west of the Golden Gate Bridge and the Marin Headlands. The views of the bridge, the bay and the city were absolutely spectacular for those sat on the left side of the airplane. We made a big U-turn over Palo Alto and, after gliding over the South Bay, the San Leandro Bridge and past Foster City, touched down lightly on a beautiful afternoon at sunny San Francisco International.

As I left the aircraft, I took a moment to thank the crew for yet another excellent First Class experience with British Airways. I’ve flown over one hundred and ten different airlines and BA is, without a doubt, my favourite way to fly. Well done, BA!