pegasus8228

dont expect much, the food sucks for a FL lounge....only some cheap sushi.
(i spend 12pm-7am there when Palmdale ATC was closed last week)

IMHO ord probably has the best selection for food among FL's.

the listening "stations", only have some 5-6 channels, i wish they simply connect it to a radio -- at least there is news and K-Mozart (the classical channel at LA). the seats there are quite soft and comfy, so i used those Listening Station as couches instead. other than that...it is nothing, not even an internet station (u have to head out to AC), the LAN lines plugs are for decoration if u have a laptop --- use dial up.

Swanhunter

i was there very early on Friday morning and there were croissant, pancakes and bagels available. Amusingly enough, so was the Moet! I had to remind the agent that OW Emerald = Flagship lounge.

I'd agree the lack of any form of P.C's is a real let down - I am in the ORD FL now and both P.C's are in use inspite of there only being 6 people in the entire lounge! Proof there is plenty of demand for them,

pegasus8228

i dont normally view cold food (bagel, croissant) as real food. but pancake is hot, so sounds good )
i was expecting hot, protein-rich (ie meat) objects for food.
so please forgive my biased commentary about food. i was spoiled by the freshly fried eggs in the Wing.
in fact, i remember in the evening there was some hot snack in LAX AA -- meat like thing on a stick, which i didnt (bother to) know what it actually was.

and i am not into alcohol either. to me there are 3 types of champagne. Krug, normal (like D-P, Moet), repelling taste(i forgot the brand).
and champagne vs non-champagne.
i am sure there are champagne experts here in FT to enlighten me on the champagne grade -- appreciate your tips and thanks in advance

i like the choloate they used to have in BOS/ORD FL. Godiva at ORD, beautifully packaged, average taste, but still good. the FL labeled chocolates in BOS are a lot better. not sure if they still have them

[This message has been edited by pegasus8228 (edited 11-01-2003).]

thanks for pointing out my mistake. somehow i just keep making the same mistake again, the (invalid) excuse is that it is french...

i was asking for tips about the which brands taste better, very roughly, as i can't distinguish tiny difference in wine

[This message has been edited by pegasus8228 (edited 11-02-2003).]

1K-SFO

Do YYZ flights count as international and thus allow me as an EXP Flagship access?

I'll be through LAX this week to YYZ, and I'd sure love to check it out!

flipside

Sorry, Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean don't count.

Flipside

JohnG

Well, the first tip I would give you is that it is spelled "champagne". I thought you may have just made a typing error, but as you spelled it 5 times..

Main Entry: cham·pagne
Pronunciation: sham-'pAn
Function: noun
Etymology: French, from Champagne, France
Date: 1664
1 : a white sparkling wine made in the old province of Champagne, France; also : a similar wine made elsewhere
2 : a pale orange yellow to light grayish yellowish brown

ACfly

Forgive the newbie here.. I just got Gold for flying on Cathay last week... so here goes:

What's the difference between the Flagship and the AC?

I guess by the post Flagship = 1st class lounge on AA, given to F or EXP and can't be bought like AC?

azmmza

correct

HeHateY

Not if the EU has anything to say about it!

Swanhunter

pegasus8228 - you do have a point about the lack of meat based product. And I'm afraid what I thought were pancakes turned out to be a muffin - I think you might know it a biscuit? I just remind myself that the Wing is the standard all other lounges aspire to and that makes it better!

I won't dribble on about champange, but imho Moet is a the bottom of the 'branded' Non-Vintage catergory. There is cheap swill beneath that, but is generally pretty nasty.

N.B Champagne only comes from the Champagne Region of France. Anything else is sparkling wine made by the methode champagneoise. AA and UA's attempts to pass of Californian sparkling wine as the real thing are very naughty.

Fly Boy

Basically most Champagne houses/brands have at least 3 general types of wines that they produce:

1 - A non-vintage 'brut' which is the entry-level wine of the vinyard. Examples are the basic Laurent-Perrier, Krug Grande Cuveé, Pommery (blue label), Möet & Chandon or the Mumms Cordon Rouge.

2 - The next step up are the vintage champagnes, which generally are more crafted and will have the vintage year on the label. Generally they will have the brand's name on the label and a year (eg 1993).

3 - The top champagnes are deluxe cuveés. They are generally made with grapes sourced from the best vines on the actual estates, and are usually either vintage wines or blends of a very small number of specific vintages. Examples of the vintage ones are Clos du Mesnil (Krug), Grande Siecle Millésimé (Laurent-Perrier) Cuveé Louise (Pommery), Dom Perignon (Möet & Chandon). Example of blends are Grande Siecle la Cuveé (Laurent-Perrier/3 vintages), Clos du Moulin (Cattier/3 vintages).

Obviously there can be vasy variences in quality and price, not always in a logical way, at both ends of the scale. Also, many Champagne houses produce specialty versions such as Chardonnays, Rosés, and the like. Hope this helps...

bpauker

Tom! Were on you AA 1943 on Friday night, too? I was flying to LAX that night, and I went to hang out at the AC. When I walked in, I overheard a conversation going on at the counter on the right side about someone not getting into the FL. Was that you?

tom911

Yes, that was probably me, as I used the position on the far right after I came down from SFO (around 2030). They paged me back to the counter 5 mins later and told me they made a mistake, and showed me the two pages of rules they have on who can get in, and who can't, and I gather it was a bit confusing for them being that the Flagship Lounge is new to LAX. Hopefully any other EXP's won't have to deal with thos down the line. I found it rather embarrassing to have my knoweldge of the rules questioned, having been in other Flagship Lounges before, when the error was on their part for thinking I was a platinum flyer rather than EXP.

Were you within sight? I had a FT tag on my carryon, and I'm always alert for others that might.

bpauker

I didn't see your FT tag, or I certainly would have said hello. Unfortunately, I wasn't travelling with my usual bag that night, so my tag wasn't with me. I was the 6'7" guy, though, if you happen to remember seeing anyone that tall in the area. I don't recall seeing anyone else my height around there at that time.

tom911

Well, at a foot taller than me I'd definitely be looking up to you I didn't really look around the counter, as I walked right up to the first available agent, and then wandered off in misery after our discussion. Hopefully our paths will cross somewhere again.

Tom still in London where the Christmas decorations are starting to go up at Harrods and Krispy Kremes are 90 pence (Brits seem to like them)