The LSS made a mistake right at the start of the meal service – did she not realise there was an F logo on the table cloth? I had to turn it around myself (I must have a slightly compulsive personality) No satay, so we went straight to the starters – I had chosen the baked scallops and, considering the inflight meal aspect, it was not too bad (but the sauce turned a bit stodgy as it normally does). It was quickly gobbled down with my 2nd glass of Dom. Then the salad came, and unfortunately the balsamic dressing that I had chosen was a bit overpowering, and the lettuce was not at its freshest (and not a patch on the SIN-ICN segment). The next course was the soup which was quite enjoyable if a bit salty, and there were batons of asparagus at the bottom which I didn’t know was there. I didn’t finish it though, as I knew I had to leave room for the famous lobster thermidor which came next, alongside my glass of Meursault which was very good indeed. The lobster? Hmm. I wouldn’t say it was particularly memorable save for the novelty factor of having it in-flight, but it looked better than the other options in the menu so I was glad to have ordered it in advance. The side vegetables were quite fresh but a bit undercooked, the mashed potato was a fairly standard issue, and the lobster itself was not bad but there was too much sauce and too much salt. I seem to remember this from my last flights in Raffles when I ordered the same dish ex-SIN – maybe it’s catered to a different taste.
After all that, I was getting quite full but I was curious what the fruit plate consisted of. The fruit plates on airlines such as NH and JL tend to be elaborately pre-prepared (unpeeled, sliced and decorated) but I was a bit taken aback when the IFS set the small plate and knives, then brought a basket of… fruits! It only had whole fruits that were unprepared, so either I was going to get my hands dirty unpeeling them etc, or I was just going to eat everything. In any case, I chose just an apple but the IFS also suggested I try the Chinese apple – certainly unique but not quite sweet enough. I declined the cheese because I really only had room for the dessert. By now my 2nd glass of Meursault was finished and I decided to try the Saint-Julien with the dessert course of vanilla ice cream and warm chocolate fondant. It was probably the best course of the meal overall – everything just worked. Once the dessert was finished, there was roughly 1h10m of the flight remaining.
One difference I really noticed comparing the meal service on the 77W to non-77W is the size/design of the plates. Because the 77W plates are bigger and more of an open design, it allows a much better presentation of the food and makes them look much less like an inflight meal. For example, the rack of lamb on SIN-ICN would have looked fine even if it was presented on the ground, whereas all the dishes on the772 looked like inflight meals.
Another thing I noticed during the meal service was that the LSS was starting to warm up to me. She was smiling more, less in a hurry and generally more pleasant as the flight went on. But I still preferred the IFS and the LS – they were much more personable.
After everything was done and cleaned away, I didn’t want to fall asleep prematurely so I went to talk to the FS in the galley while buying some aeroplane models from Krisshop. We had a good chat, talking about future plans, my travel patterns, him not having been on an A380 yet, etc. He actually said he was going to leave quite soon so he wasn’t going to get to train on the A380 which was a shame. After a while it got quite busy in the galley so I went back to my seat and worked on the trip report for a bit.
When things seemed to quieten down a bit towards the end of the flight with about 15 minutes to go before seatbelt signs being switched on, I also had a chat with the IFS about the Suites on the A380 and F on the 77W amongst other things. He really seemed nice and also enthusiastic about his job and the flight which, again, was good to see and a sharp comparison to the IFS on SQ16. I thanked him and the FS for the great flight.
Then it was time to prepare to land and the usual routine of collecting headsets and so on took place. I discovered that someone had taken my menu while I was in the toilet, so I had to ask the IFS for them just as the seatbelt sign came on, and he said he would bring it to my seat. We landed after a spectacular night cityscape over Singapore and taxied to our gate in Terminal 3.
As the seatbelt sign was turned off, I reminded the IFS that I wanted to take the menus which he brought. On my way out once the doors opened, I wished the crew well and made my way to the airport transit hotel at T3.
Overall, I must say this flight was so much better than the OZ flight, but not as good as the 77W flight. The seats and the entertainment systems were all a bit of a let-down but luckily I was on this aircraft for 3 hours, not 13. The crew were a mixed blessing – a much better IFS than my previous flight, LSS who was not as good, and the LS was good for both flights. I preferred the food on the SIN-ICN flight (perhaps it’s natural given that SIN is the hub) but both SQ flights were still better than the Asiana flight although, to OZ’s defence, the OZ flight was a brunch flight and the menu for the return sector HKG-ICN looked much better (lobster offered).
I had a realisation on the SQ flight HKG-SIN: On my way from LHR to ICN, I flew the two newest and latest aircraft, the A380 from London to Singapore and the 777-300ER from Singapore to Seoul. On the way back, I flew an ancient 747-400 Combi on ICN-HKG, an old 777-200 for HKG-SIN, and will be flying a (no doubt ancient) 747-400 on SIN-LHR. It has been effectively a contrast of the “old and new” of air travel I suppose, and the difference was more than I expected.