Review of British Airways flight New York London in First

Airline British Airways
Flight BA174
Class First
Seat 2F
Aircraft Boeing 777-200ER
Flight time 07:00
Take-off 28 Dec 15, 18:55
Arrival at 29 Dec 15, 06:55
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BA   #65 out of 96 Airlines A minimum of 10 flight-reports within the past two years is required to appear in the rankings. 960 reviews
airtraveladdict
Published on 14th April 2017
Welcome to the third part of my mini round the world trip.

My itinerary:
- Manila to Hong Kong with Cathay business
- Tokyo to New York with Japan Airlines first class

- New York to London with British Airways first class <<< You are here
- London to Melbourne with Qantas first class Part 1 (London to Dubai)
- London to Melbourne with Qantas first class Part 2 (Dubai to Melbourne)

New York to London
December 28 2015
British Airways BA174
6:55PM - 6:55AM
777-200 First Class
Seat 2F


This flight is on the Atlantic Ocean taxi route, New York to London.
I was looking forward to flying BA First class, particularly using the Concorde Room in JFK.

My flight departed at 6:55PM so at 2.30PM, my driver picked me up from the hotel and we arrived at JFK around 3PM.

Airport & lounge
The BA counter was very quiet at this time of the day and I checked in straight away. Because there was no one around, the agent said “come with me please” and with my passport and boarding pass in his hand, he led me to the priority security area used by status holders and business class passengers.
The agent marched right to the front of the queue and handed my passport and boarding pass to the guard - I felt the eyes of the status holders and business class passengers looking disapprovingly at me what could I do? Haha
The guard checked the details and handed it back to me, the agent bid me farewell and returned to his desk. After security, I walked up a weird sloping hallway turn left and saw the Concorde Room, which was very low key, non grand entrance.
photo jfk-concorde-lounge-1photo jfk-concorde-lounge-2

The lounge was very quiet with only three passengers. I like the decor of the Concorde Room, probably because it reminds me of my grandmother’s house.



I liked Christmas tree!
photo jfk-concorde-lounge-10

A lounge attendant came over to inform me that the kitchen is not opened yet and dining will begin at 5PM. I thought to myself “Great, I arrived already and now have to wait over 1 hour with nothing to eat” Lol
I did some work on my notebook and waited. The lounge started to fill up and by that I mean there were 12 people haha.
The lights in the dining room were turned on and passengers gradually made their way to dining area, but I was there early because I wanted to take some pictures.

The dining room and bar. The alcohol selection was very comprehensive but unlike the London Concorde Room, they do not have the Laurent Perrier Grand Siecle at the bar.


Shortly after 5:00PM, the waiter came with the menu and set the table up. I had not eaten lunch in Manhattan so I was very hungry.


The bread basket.
photo jfk-concorde-dinner-6

My travel companion and I had both had the lobster bisque as a starter.
It was absolutely delicious! Creamy and rich but not overly salty with little bits of crab meat and shredded scallops, the tarragon sour cream added a bit of tart flavour. I lathered butter on my bread rolled and cleaned up the plate!
photo jfk-concorde-dinner-7photo jfk-concorde-dinner-8

I ordered roasted New Zealand rack of lamb, haricot vert, spaghetti squash, onion confit, sweet potato puree, red wine jus for the main course.
The lamb was a bit fatty and but it was tender and cooked just the way I like it, pink! It was not a big rack but that is okay because I am planning to eat onboard! Lol
photo jfk-concorde-dinner-9photo jfk-concorde-dinner-10

My travel companion ordered soy, tamarind glazed Atlantic cod, baby bok choy, Lap Cheong Farro risotto, lemongrass foam.
photo jfk-concorde-dinner-11

Finally I ordered deconstructed New York cheesecake for dessert.
photo jfk-concorde-dinner-12

Followed by cognac.
photo jfk-concorde-dinner-13

Dinner took almost an hour and by the time we finished it was near 6PM and close to boarding.

Soon it was time to bid farewell to the Concorde Room. After a short walk, we reached the gate.

The flight
This was going to a short flight and I was hoping on maximising my sleep but that would mean no trip report.
So I put on a brave face and decided to stay up and have dinner AGAIN!
Boarding was effortless and soon I was welcomed onboard but not shown to my seat. Whilst BA packs in 14 seats in this 777-200 and it doesn’t feel like a real First Class, the mood lighting and atmosphere is very sexy. BA has done a good job to make it look very classy.


Once I settled down, a glass champagne Lauren Perrier Grand Siecle was offered, which I happily accepted.

Menus were handed out


Shortly after take-off the cabin crew came through to take the order.

I decided against my better judgement and three course meal I had at the lounge just over 1 hour ago to order another three course meal! So that is six courses dinner in 2-3 hours!

I decided to continue with the champagne and cabin crew informs me she has to open new bottle. She brings the bottle to me and opens the bottle, pop! But when she goes to pour the champagne, the bottle slips off her hand and she tries to juggle to save it but the bottle dances in the air and the champagne spills all over!

I had my first shower on BA F class but not the same kind on Emirates. She was very apologetic but I was soaked in champagne. But we couldn’t move seats because all 14 seats were occupied lol

Later she came back with a glass she already poured at the galley haha just to be safe.
photo ba-f-onboard-meal-1

The table was set with salmon pre-starter.
photo ba-f-onboard-meal-2photo ba-f-onboard-meal-3

For starter, I ordered the king prawns on papaya carpaccio with truffle vinaigrette and crispy prosciutto. It was fine, the prawns were not overcooked.
photo ba-f-onboard-meal-4photo ba-f-onboard-meal-5

For main course, I ordered tandoori spiced cod and black lentils with coriander and Indian spiced okra with mango. I wish the tandoori had more kick in it, it was very tasteless and the lentil on the right side look like dog poo! Lol
photo ba-f-onboard-meal-6photo ba-f-onboard-meal-7

For dessert, I ordered dark chocolate fondant with salted caramel and coconut. To be honest this is not a fondant, I make fondant at home and its supposed to runny chocolate in the center. This is more like a chocolate mousse cake. It very sweet.
photo ba-f-onboard-meal-8photo ba-f-onboard-meal-9

OMG finally, after six courses in 3 hours I am ready for bed. The crew make up my bed for me while I go to the toilet.

I ask the crew not to wake me for breakfast because we would land in London in about 4 hours, due to favorable headwinds.

Before landing the cabin crew who showered me with champagne came and apologised again, offering to give me a bottle of champagne as an apology. But I couldn’t accept it because I was transiting in LHR to CDG. Damn! I could have had some Laurent Perrier Grand Siecle!! Ah sigh.

The transit in LHR was a nightmare, if I can avoid transiting in LHR next time I would avoid it.
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Verdict

British Airways

7.3/10
Cabin7.0
Cabin crew8.5
Entertainment/wifi7.0
Meal/catering6.5

British Airways Concorde Room - 7

8.4/10
Comfort10.0
Meal/catering8.5
Entertainment/wifi7.0
Services8.0

New York - JFK

8.6/10
Efficiency10.0
Access8.0
Services8.5
Cleanliness8.0

London - LHR

5.1/10
Efficiency0.5
Access5.0
Services5.0
Cleanliness10.0

Conclusion

I’ve never tried other lounges in JFK but the BA Concorde Room in JFK is probably one of the best ones. Although there are no celebrities or famous chefs associated with the lounge like Alain Ducasse for Air France, the meals were still delicious.
The BA F cabin is not as private as other airlines but the mood lightning made up for but the onboard meals were not as good as on the ground.
The lounge attendants and waiter were proactive and the onboard crew were great despite me getting showered by champagne, at least it wasn’t cheap champagne :)

Information on the route New York (JFK) London (LHR)

Les contributeurs de Flight-Report ont posté 36 avis concernant 5 compagnies sur la ligne New York (JFK) → London (LHR).


Useful

La compagnie qui obtient la meilleure moyenne est Virgin Atlantic avec 8.2/10.

La durée moyenne des vols est de 6 heures et 54 minutes.

  More information

9 Comments

If you liked this review or if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to post a comment below !
  • Comment 393425 by
    757Fan 632 Comments
    Thanks for sharing. It looks like you had a nice flight with BA in F. The food looks good for the lounge and how nice that it was so empty and you had the place to yourselves!

    All best,

    Matthew
    • Comment 393565 by
      airtraveladdict AUTHOR 117 Comments
      Thank you for taking the time to comment :)
      Yes it was empty, was like my own private lounge haha.
      The food in the lounge was great, much better than on board meal. The fish main course and lentil that look like dog poo wasn't very good at all.
    • Comment 393568 by
      airtraveladdict AUTHOR 117 Comments
      Thank you for taking the time to comment :)
      Yes it was empty, was like my own private lounge haha.
      The food in the lounge was great, much better than on board meal. The fish main course and lentil that look like dog poo wasn't very good at all.
    • Comment 393569 by
      airtraveladdict AUTHOR 117 Comments
      Hi Matthew, thank you for taking the time to comment :)
      Yes it was empty, was like my own private lounge haha.
      The food in the lounge was great, much better than on board meal. The fish main course and lentil that look like dog poo wasn't very good at all.
  • Comment 393428 by
    KévinDC TEAM SILVER 6668 Comments
    Another very good report!

    The BA Concorde Room JFK does look quite nice and spacious. Too bad that despite those large windows, the shades hide views of the tarmac. Food and table service in the lounge is consistent with a First class experience.

    The cabin is another story. The BA F seat isn't much of an upgrade over one of the better J seats like the Cirrus. Such a dense F cabin feels more like a super-Business class than a true F class. I will say, however, as you and many others have said, that the cabin is sexy. It's quite aesthetically stunning, especially the new-new F on the 789. BA F tends to be a good value compared to other carriers' F pricing, so for what it is it seems fine.

    "I had my first shower on BA F class but not the same kind on Emirates."
    - You know you're fancy and you've made it in life when you've had a champagne shower ^^
    Too bad you were connecting and couldn't take advantage of the free bottle of Laurent Perrier Grand Siècle offered by the crew.

    The catering looks decent, but the lack of caviar or more high end items feels less F than your JAL F experience.

    Thanks for sharing!
    • Comment 393567 by
      airtraveladdict AUTHOR 117 Comments
      Thank you Kevin.
      Yes I agree with all your views, BA F is more like Business Plus, not First Class.
      It is very dense F cabin, 14 seats in 777-200 does not feel very exclusive, especially when all 14 seats are occupied. But compared to the USA airlines, I think I would chose BA, although I haven't tried United GlobalFirst or AA First, so I can't compare.
      Also the lack of caviar doesn't make it special, so it feels like you describe it, Business Plus.
      But BA is not stupid, they make up for their average F seat with the sexy lightning, it feels like going to a nice expensive bar.
      Yes I know! I wish I wasn't transiting to CDG, i could have celebrated at my hotel with free bottle of Laurent Perrier Grand Siecle, it is one of my favorite champagnes.
    • Comment 393571 by
      airtraveladdict AUTHOR 117 Comments
      Hahaha yes of course, my Laurent Perrier shower was much better than Emirates first.
      Very expensive $AUD 300 shower.
  • Comment 393482 by
    Razza_Pr 215 Comments
    Hello, Airtraveladdict, and thank you for this FR.

    The BA Concorde Room at JFK looks like a time capsule in my opinion. The design isn't timeless like the Concorde Room at LHR - moreover, the floor tiles aren't very well-cleaned. The bread basket and the deconstructed cheese cake both look superb, though!

    "But when she goes to pour the champagne, the bottle slips off her hand and she tries to juggle to save it but the bottle dances in the air and the champagne spills all over!"
    -Yikes. Was it turbulent at the time when she offered to pour the champagne? Lovely gesture to offer a full bottle, though.

    Thanks again for sharing. Cheers!
    • Comment 393575 by
      airtraveladdict AUTHOR 117 Comments
      Thanks Razza,
      The decor in JFK lounge is a bit like my grandmother's house. Its nice but it is very old haha
      The bread basket was fantastic because I used the bread to clean up the seafood bisque, I sent my plate back to the kitchen cleaner than when it came out of the dishwasher.
      Deconstructed cheese back was a good idea because it was a light dessert. Cheese cake can be very heavy.
      It was turbulence, she apologised profusely and said she was just tired. The crew had to get napkins from the galley and put it on the floor to soak up all the champagne.
      Fortunately I always travel with spare shirt, pants and underwear in my roller case (just in case my luggage is delayed).
      She was so horrified when it happened, I told her not to worry about it, I'm not one of those people who want to cause drama. Accidents happen, plus I never had shower with $300 champagne before :) its most expensive shower I ever had lol
      When she came back and offered me a free bottle to take home, I didn't expect that at all! and when we were disembarking she said "I hope to see you again and I promise not to spill champagne on you next time"

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