ade99

I am a low blue exec club member. I have actively gone out of my way to fly BA as much as possible as when travelling for leisure it's nice to have a nice place to rest before a flight where I can get some good quality food and get to my destination in a comfy seat with on board service.

A lot of my flights are to Southern Europe. My last trip was to Rome. On board we had afternoon tea, sandwich, scone and piece of cake. The onboard service had been cut down, I remember previously for longer afternoon tea flight you would get a warm snack (quiche) as well as the current offering.

I chose to have late lunch in the lounge on my way to Rome and the afternoon tea on the plane landing in Rome around 8pm. By the time I was in the hotel and in room it was close to 10pm. Luckily I had a more substantial lunch and the afternoon tea to keep me going through to the following day.

So now if I want an afternoon flight so that I don't have to rush up and get around to Heathrow the only food in the lounge is the afternoon tea service . which by the looks of pictures is just the same as on the plane but you can choose as many finger sandwiches as you like!

So if I can't find a flight with you that leaves before 3pm then I can either look forward to two lots of afternoon tea, or an option which is much more likely now: use EasyJet, pay for speedy boarding, extra legroom seat, marks and spencer salad and pay for lounge.

It's such a shame I seriously think that this is a mistake. Please reconsider. Surely this may increase your waste and actually not save you money. At 3pm all the left over food is chucked away, along comes the 'afternoon tea' then left overs chucked away and new food cooked to start at 6pm. Food waste and increased workload to change food settings surely is going to have a cost associated with it?

sigma421

Thanks for the update Nicci. Unfortunately this bit strikes me as BA interpreting the answer to a question in its own special way. If you ask someone if they want these things the answer will surely be 'yes' (who wouldn't). That is not the same as them saying 'please take the hot buffet away while you're at it'.

qwest01

If one takes a "High Quality Afternoon Tea" outside one exp[ects quality sandwiches, cakes and a decent cup of tea. tea time is between 4pm and 6 pm as far as I am concerned.

What I experienced in T5GC South last week was not as you describe. No Sandwiches. When I asked where they were a miserable tray of egg sandwiches was supplied and gone within secods as the hordes descended. The cake were acceptable. The tea was disgusting. All of the above compare very very poorly with the previous caterers efforts.

To my mind BaxterStorey are not up to the job and whoever selected them needs to be fired and Baxterstorey either up their game considerably or you fire them as well.

If my next experience of T5GC South is similar in anyway to the one last week - then I will have to decide on my future options as who to fly with.

I will also be flying in F in October and so hope that the improvements in the CCR will have been implemented and settled in by then.

johnaalex

Nicci - let me also thank you for your message, but I am afraid I am still amazed that BS (such a suitable moniker) could be allowed by BA to let things get so bad. I also disagree with the removal of the hot buffet. My observation on the hot food is how hot will it be, leaving on flat open white plates like the breakfast offerings does not seem a good way to keep things hot, why not covered dishes as used in so many other buffet establishments? I am also worried that the topic of hygiene mentioned in many comments here is not addressed.

freshaz

Thank you Nicci.

To echo a few sentiments already shared....

1. My understanding was that many a passenger on an F ticket preferred to use Galleries F because of the quicker (self) service ie buffet. I recall many a time when I have been in the CCR where I had seen pax use it as a gateway to reach the GF. So should the current offering not change, will this obviate the advantage of GF to pax on F tickets and cause a ripple effect in crowding the small(er) CCR and increase the risk in pax having to wait for tables?

2. As has been mentioned by others, this works in a somewhat prejudicial manner for pax who are connecting onto longhauls such as, among others
LHR-LAS: BA275 4.40pm
LHR-CPT: BA43 5.35pm
LHR-JNB: BA33 6.50pm.

(and or those who have slightly longer travel times to reach LHR eg those like myself who have occasionally had to make the trek from Milton Keynes to LHR).

While I am sure BA has done its research it would be interesting to see the typical traveler whom the changes are modeled after.

Hannibal Lecter

I have visited the Concorde Room twice since the changeover, both times food supposed to be served warm was cold,
and to make it even worse the plates were cold.
Both times service was amazingly slow and one waitress even forgot our order,
this is nothing new and have happened several times in the past also.
I asked for a glass of Sauternes (sweet dessert wine) which has always been available before, but there wasn’t any,
so I guess that has also been enhanced away, together with Eggs Benedict…

TRISTAR1979

Thanks for the update. I can't disagree with the new biscuits and cakes, they are very tasty indeed!

I do disagree with the removal of the all day hot buffet though. When i am returning to GLA from a long day in the office I will typically get the flight at just after 6pm (18.05 BA1492) so won't be able to avail of the hot buffet, however by the time I land at GLA, get my bags and drive home it is usually after 9.00 pm and so too late for dinner. This means if i want a hot evening meal I now have to avoid the lounge and purchase something at the airport, which makes lounge access much less attractive or useful to me.

Therefore I would strongly recommend the return of the Hot Buffet, unless of course you intend to reintroduce the hot meal on evening shuttle flights!

LondonAndy

Flying F last week I was really disappointed about the reduction in choice in the breakfast menu - bring back the Eggs Benedict! I think that the only substantial warm choice was a "full English".

klmml

In the past year (while silver) I've been in T3 GC a lot in the early evening (namely, 4-6pm). Having a hot buffet at that time was often a lifesaver, and it was on the strength of this food offering that I aimed for (and achieved) gold.

If I had walked into T3 GC at 4pm and wasn't able to get some decent salad and simple hot food I'd probably have walked out and never bothered with BA again. Certainly, not spent the requisite amount on J tickets to amass the tier points needed for gold. I always considered the welcoming and satisfying hot buffet and salads in GC the thing that set it apart from nasty J lounges elsewhere with four wilted lettuce leaves and a bowl of flavoured water labelled 'soup'. Oh well.

Flying SK and connecting in CPH (as I have done for my current trip to SVG) is not nearly as bad as I had expected. Time to aim for *G I guess. So much for BA.

TravellerFrequently

Nicci, many thanks for your response to the many, many disappointed posts.^

Let me start by saying that I have not flown in the last few weeks but will be in LHR 5 (AM) and 3 (PM) in the coming two weeks, so will see for myself shortly.

I would be very interested to know more about the research/feedback that was provided to BA that has led to the changes, and in particular, the strong feedback from those who objected to the provision of an all day buffet. I would like to think that the powers that be will also be using the FT feedback along side the other feedback. Please note my feedback that I do want the option to have a hot meal between these times.

With so many travellers arriving from far away time zones, the provision of food needs to flexible.

The strong message on the various threads has been that the quality and choice has suffered, so it is good to read that improvements will be coming. I should be grateful if you would please keep us regularly informed?

I hope that the quality and quantity of feedback here is being considered fully in Waterside and that the costs savings, which are suspected by many as the cause of the changes, can be balanced with the potential loss of business - as reported by some posters here.

I am sure that we will all allow BA and BS some time to respond and get it right, although BA should not be under any illusion that a poor quality provision for its premium and most frequent passengers will be acceptable.

Dave_C

Nicci,

Thanks very much for posting BA's response. You personally do a huge amount for the community here and I wanted to take another opportunity to thank you for all the hard work you do.

I'm not going to repeat the criticisms of the offering itself as that has been clearly and eloquently done by many others.

To the British Airways management who have specified this level of catering, the message is simple, unanimous and unambiguous, it's rubbish. To Baxter Storey, I think your company initials spell out the new offering quite appropriately.

It will be interesting to see if BA or BaxterStorey come off worse from this débâcle.

RB211

Clearly? One has to wonder how that information was obtained / what the question was that was actually asked. As has already been pointed out, the question that was asked can be more important that the answers!

Anyway, let's not forget that just because it is 4pm in London, doesn't mean that everyone's body clock is at 4pm. Some have come from somewhere, and everyone is going somewhere! So while it may be 4pm in London, maybe it's much earlier or much later for me (because of where I've come from and/or where I'm going) and I'll want something appropriate for MY time of day, not London's time of day. This seems to have been ignored, which is pretty sad for a company that makes its money taking people from point A to point B!

The rest I won't comment on, I don't have the patience. But "improved choice and variety" should mean just that, not less choice and variety, which seems to be what we are getting.

I went in T5 GCS earlier this week (Tuesday) and walked straight out. It was a zoo. Was going to try GCN but couldn't be bothered. I'm wondering how much longer I will think Lounge access is worth it.

rb211.

Genius1

The statement doesn't read like Nicci's usual style - it reads like a corporate BA line written by somebody without any grasp on the situation or understanding of the concerns expressed on FT.

The main issue for me is the removal of the hot buffet between 3pm and 6pm. BA should be offering the afternoon tea in addition to the hot buffet.

There is absolutely no excuse for the removal of the hot buffet in the afternoon - people flying out in ET at 5.30, for example, will arrive at the lounge at 4 expecting to be able to eat before getting onboard.

Also, the removal of hot breakfast items between 10am and 12pm leaves a two hour gap of rubbish choice. This was generally the case with Compass Group, but now that Baxter Storey have taken over, the bacon/mushrooms/tomatoes seem to be disappearing from 9.30am with nothing other than bits of cold white toast left - at least Compass maintained a pastry selection.

The cookie jars are miserable - 2 different options, where before there were at least 6 different Walkers varieties to choose from, that you knew hadn't been mauled by somebody else.

There are also multiple hygiene issues with the new options - cookie jars and jars of nuts open to hands, preserves for all of that cold toast that are open communal pots with risk of contaminations, a lack of tongs.

Nicci's post makes reference to changes to come for the Galleries First lounge - but Galleries Club has the same, if not more, problems. Galleries Club, the most frequented premium lounge at BA's home hub, seems to be forgotten...

A picture paints a thousand words... Utterly miserable. Utterly unacceptable.

LTN Phobia

Do people eat hot food every meal? To me, non-availability of hot food during certain hours isn't such a serious problem. I guess I'm too used to lounges without even a packet of sandwiches ("crisps and nuts only" types) and that's what I tend to expect from a "business class" lounge.

Anyway, LHR T5 is not somewhere that makes people desperate for hot food - if anyone wants hot food, there are plenty of places to go, except one has to pay for it. I know what I'd do if I encounter a situation where I can't find what I want in a lounge. Heading off for a bite to eat elsewhere first.

If it was at an airport with no other facilities, I would think of this differently, but in this situation it seems fine to me.

edionwards

Having passed through EDI and LHR T5 Flounge recently, I thought the improved catering at EDI was a good step in the right direction. What a great addition!

Imagine my disappointment at LHR T5 Flounge where the experience has been less positive. I just put it down to some teething issues and actually quite stupid decisions like jars for cookies, milk jugs where the residual milk on the spout looks unhygienic etc.

I thought BA would eventually get it right, but reading this from Nicci, it looks like it won't!

If pushed to give up something, I'd give up improved options at EDI for full service at LHR. I really don't want to travel via AMS, CDG or FRA as I used too!

Poor decision BA.