My EVA Royal Laurel experience
 

So I finally flew EVA LHR-BKK-TPE, I'm not quite sure yet whether I would say good or bad but I will highlight both in my experience first, then add further to this thread later.

Good:
- Food quality is overall excellent, far better than EY or EK. Grand Dame and Kavalan also blow EY and EK out of the water in J. The food is better than EY and EK F, only the lack of caviar makes for any redemption on EK's part.
- Special mention to the Lobster in Black Pepper Teriyaki sauce. This was without a doubt the best airline meal I've had in many many years. Also loved the foie gras and prestige curves champagne in J.
- United Club in LHR was a nice space and loved the cocktail bar. Food was ok, but just snacks really no a la carte like EY.
- Service on board is polite and efficient, however I do have to mention that they are a bit curt and don't really wait for you to answer or anticipate your needs. They are better than EY/EK in J but not at EY's F level. Considering BR don't offer F, I feel its fair to compare J & F to Royal Laurel.
- Luggage delivery was the best in ages, both times first bag out and looked after my Rimowa Topas Titanium very well.
- Seat is comfortable, better than EY's J 777/320/330/340 seat but the EY 380/787 J seat is better.
- Blanket is comfortable but too thick.
- Bathroom amenities are nice.
- Rimowa ammenity kit is also nice.
- WiFi is excellent.


Bad:
- LHR check-in agent wasn't helpful, didn't explain BKK transit, didn't explain which lounge to use. When I asked why I was given an Air Canada lounge pass as opposed to any Star Alliance Business class lounge, she said that was only for SA Gold. This didn't turn out to be true. I was able to use the United Lounge without any problem.
- Lobster and Cod in Vanilla sauce was excellent quality but the sauce was bad.
- TPE airport is actually a bit ridiculous. There is no premium terminal like DXB/AUH/DOH, let alone priority security as in LHR. I had to queue for a very long time for something that takes 3-5 mins at max in most cities.
- EVA TPE lounge as so over crowded on both sides (Infinity and Garden?) it was a horrible experience, although it seemed like it would be an ok lounge if it was less busy. I moved to the SQ lounge.
- Getting flight attendants attention to top up drink or anything else wasn't as easy as it could have been, they don't make eye contact and you have to call out for them.
- Meal service is very rushed, they don't seem to care about your pace of eating, they want to clear your tray when its 'their time to clear it'. On one sector (TPE-BKK) I was too tired to stay awake for meal service, and to their credit they did not wake me up, however, the crew herself offered to keep the meal for me in case I wanted it later. Yet despite waking up 2.5 hrs before landing, I was not offered anything, not even a drink and I was actually very thirsty. The stopover in BKK however allowed me to quickly get a ginger ale in the lounge.
- Crew are very overzealous with safety checks. Etihad for example manages to do pre take off and pre landing checks without being intrusive.
- Too much food on the BKK-LHR sector, now I know this is not a bad thing, but there could have been more to eat on the LHR-BKK sector, and not only that but every course (appetiser, soup, salad, main, cheese, dessert) was all served without asking or waiting to hear whether I wanted them or not, and ended up totally stuffed after the main meal.
- Pillow is rubbish.
- No XL size for pyjamas is ridiculous and perhaps the worst thing about the airline.
- Cabin was hot and dry compared to ME3 airlines.
- LHR T2B is a pain when getting off the flight, its way too far. I didn't mind when leaving from T2B but off a 16+hr flight its the last thing you want. Some may argue the terminal isn't the airlines problem, but in my view it is and makes a big difference to the experience. Etihad use T4 at LHR and its very compact and quite which makes for a great experience, Emirates T3 at DXB is fine, but other airlines use T1 and its pretty bad.

Nice review. I've never flown BR out of LHR so I can't comment on the outsourced LHR agents. I find the BR FA's to not be as proactive as other airlines in beverage refills but I also don't have any issue using the call button if I need something and they always respond quickly when called.

Is that really your view? :)

Yes. Do you think a tight pyjama is a good thing? Or do you think European people have to suffer because people from Taiwan have smaller builds? Their large isn't even a European large.

You had nothing to drink for those 2.5 hours? you didn't use the call bell or go to the galley to get anything?

No, I was still quite tired, also take away about 40 mins for decent/seatbelt sign being on.
I could have gone to the gallery, but I guess I'm used to other airlines noticing when I've been sleeping the whole flight and actively offering me something when I wake up.
In the end it was fine, I got a drink when I got to Bangkok, it wasn't a huge bother that they didn't offer me anything, but it is common on other airlines I've flown.

How is it fair to compare one airlines F to another's J because one of them doesn't have F?

This is one of the many things that bugs me about this review, along with the fact that OP is comparing it to ME3 airlines as some sort of gold standard. Perhaps lower the bar a little bit and compare BR to BA or LH.

The other parts are a little bit trivial. Also, those "overzealous safety checks" are the reason why BR is the third safest airline in the world.

You srsly use the bell? I find it very impolite especially when most of the cabin is asleep.

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@OP BR is unfortunately more of an self service airline. They aim for lower fares and better capacity unlike other asian airlines like NH/JL who price higher but less loads.

I was awake for over 4 hours once and not once did the crew stop by asking if I wanted an drink or snack. I had to go up to the bathroom and request my self.

I would say that over the past 10 years flying EVA is the only airline that is concerned about womens purses being cuddled during take off. Even if the effort is made to hide it with an jacket.

For at least 60-90 minutes the OP was thirsty there would have been considerable activity in the cabin - meal prior to arrival and preparing the cabin for landing. Plenty of opportunity to use the call bell if they didn't feel comfortable going to the galley when the crew are busy during a meal service.

Use of the call bell is accepted (even encouraged) on most non-USA carriers.

Agree for call bell use for service, especially for Asian carriers. Personally, if situation allows (ie aisle seat, aisle is empty etc), I'd go to galley to request myself, give myself a chance to walk around and stretch my legs. Other times I use the call bell (on Asian carriers) is because I'm stuck in the middle seat and the aisle passenger is sleeping (in Y class) or travelling with kids and urgently need some help.

That aside, my one and only experience on BR J, the service was not fantastic. It was meal service and no one offered to refill my drink or porridge/congee. Will be taking BR J in 2 months' time, see how it goes, but as always, if you want something, feel free to ask for it.

I was the only pax on NH F NRT-SFO and the FA seemed mortified after meal service when I got up to the galley and asked for some sparkling water. Essentially she said to please use the call button and I can have anything I'd like taken to my seat.

EVA flight attendants are trained not to roam the aisles unless they need to get to some other part of the plane. It minimizes noise in the cabin from the curtains and walking. Pressing the call button is encouraged and it doesn't disturb others since the chime only rings in the galley and the noise drowns it out a lot.

Often, if you go to the bathroom, they will notice you are up and ask you when you come out or when you are back at your seat if you would like something.

It's an good idea if EVA chooses non-evasive service but that doesn't mean to not offer beverage refills during meal service.

They serve too much food..... so you ended up "totally stuffed"

Why did you eat it all then????? Who forced you to do that?

What a strange review.....