Cutting up with the crew (Nelson, Charlene, Amirah, Mei Xin, Ting Ting) on Singapore Airlines flight to Hong Kong (Chris McGinnis)
Last month Singapore Airlines invited me to check out its brand new business class seat on a roundtrip flight between San Francisco and Hong Kong. I prepared a Trip Report (part 1) about that journey here. In that post, I focused primarily on the new plane, seat and entertainment system.
This report (part 2) is more about the food and service onboard.
If you like (or are able) to sleep on planes, Singapore Air’s schedule between SFO and Hong Kong is perfect– flights in both directions depart very late at night (around 1 a.m. on the way over and about 11:30 p.m. on the back back to SFO).
Due to the late hour, the first inflight meal service on those late night flights is abbreviated– everyone of course wants to get to sleep right away. In business class, you can choose to have an elaborate service, but few passengers do- none on my flight did. I took the advice of flight attendants and chose light Asian meals in both directions– and ended up with some of the best sleep I’ve ever had on a plane. (See part 1 for more on that!)
Due to the nighttime departures, flight attendants take food and drink orders before take off so they can do a quick service, and then have everyone go to bed.
Let’s take a look!
Did you miss Part 1 of this Trip Report? Click here to read it
A total of eight (!) ice cold utensils come rolled up in a linen napkin (Photo: Chris McGinnis)
Mesclun salad and chicken-and-pistachio terrine with dried apricot chutney was the starter on SFO-HKG (Chris McGinnis)
A very nice California chardonnay described on the menu as “soft on the palate with flavors of apple tart and pear, oak toast and spice.” (Chris McGinnis)
Check out the exotic cocktail offerings! (Chris McGinnis)
Maybe I should have opted for one of those cocktails…even if I was not in the mood for booze, it would have made a good photo!
My main course SFO-HKG: Prawn dumplings in superior soup with leafy greens and mushrooms (Chris McGinnis)
Other main courses included a crispy seared chicken thigh with pork chorizo sofrito or a warm pastrami sandwich. For dessert (which I passed on to keep it light) was a black cherry flan. There was also a cheese cart, from which I did not partake, that included camembert, roquefort and cheddar served with crackers and fruit.
After my bowl of superior soup, I nabbed a full eight hours of sleep, so I missed taking a look at any of the midflight snacks, that included three different noodle dishes (plain, tom yam or vegetarian). Also a roasted vegetable or salmon sandwich served on focaccia or a croissant with creamy chicken and tomato. There are also Hershey’s cookies and cream bars and Pepperidge Farm Milano cookies for late night snackers.
Related: How airlines make inflight food beautiful
Fresh sliced fruit to start the breakfast service– served two hours before landing at 6:30 am in HKG (Chris McGinnis)
Did you miss Part 1 of this Trip Report? Click here to read it
My dim sum breakfast included pan fried radish cake, pork dumpling, prawn dumpling and vegetable dumpling (Chris McGinnis)
Western breakfast options included scrambled eggs with smoked salmon, poached eggs with hollandaise sauce and assorted rolls and pastries.
So that’s it for the flight over… now let’s take a gander at my meals on the flight back from HKG to SFO. Again, this was a nighttime flight, so I opted for a lighter meal.
Taking off at 11:30 pm from Hong Kong for the 13 hour flight to SFO (Chris McGinnis)
Starter: Marinated scallop, prosciutto with endive, bocconcini (cheese) and tomato (Chris McGinnis)
I alway appreciate seeing this smart buttonhole in the napkin which helps keep my shirt stain-free (Chris McGinnis)
Related: How airlines make inflight food beautiful
For my main course, Wanton noodle soup: Egg noodles in rich broth garnished with shrimp-pork dumplings and chives (Chris McGinnis)
Other mains included: Seared tournedos of beef with rosemary jus or pan roasted duck breast on sautéed savoy cabbage with bacon.
Green tea mousse almond Genoise cake (Chris McGinnis)
Interesting: Cheeses differ on the east and west bound flights. On this flight flight attendants offered Tomme, Manchego and bleu d’Auvergne.
Overnight snacks on the eastbound flight included seafood, plain or vegetarian noodles, a roasted Mediterranean vegetable wrap, chicken salad on ciabatta or salmon on focaccia.
After the noodle soup, I was fast asleep for six hours and awoke to breakfast.
Oh- and the movies I chose for this flight were: Entourage (not much better than a TV episode, but a fun way to pass the time). And then there was The Age of Adaline– a fantastic tear-jerker that takes place in San Francisco. Is it just me, or is everyone more easily brought to tears on flights? Must have something to do with the oxygen in the air!
Did you miss Part 1 of this Trip Report? Click here to read it
Breakfast on HKG-SFO starts with fresh sliced fruits (Chris McGinnis
Check out the broad selection of Illy coffee! Amazing. Also at least 6 teas to choose from (Chris McGinnis)
Dim sum for breakfast on HKG-SFO: Glutinous rice parcel in lotus leaf, asparagus dumpling, beef dumpling, har kow and siew mai (Chris McGinnis)
Other breakfast selections included griddle pancakes with caramelized banana or poached eggs with hollandaise sauce.
Since I was already trying to adapt to California time (where it was dinner time) it was a big incongruous to have breakfast, which is why I chose the dim sum. But Singapore Airlines has that incongruity covered … see the note below.
Two options for timing of breakfast (Chris McGinnis)
Hot towels: On most flights, flight attendants offer hot towels once, or maybe twice during a long flight. On these flights, they offered nice hot scented white washcloth-like towels four times! Before AND after each meal. Nice.
While it’s difficult to improve upon Singapore Airlines’ inflight product, I’d say that it once again has raised the bar for inflight comfort and service with its new business class seat and warm, friendly and efficient inflight service.
Have you ever flown Singapore Airlines? What did you think? Share your experience below in the comments!
Did you miss Part 1 of this Trip Report? Click here to read it
(Disclosure: I was a guest of Singapore Airlines on this round trip flight. Currently, business class fares on nonstop, roundtrip SFO-HKG flights run in the $4,500-$6,500 range.)
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Food like this is why I have such a hard time fasting on long flights, even though when I do fast I can walk off the plane feeling refreshed without the slightest hint of jet lag. Typically I choose the food and jet lag because everything tastes so good in business class (on some airlines).
But if I take this splendid flight, I’ll just ask for a triple ration of Pepperidge Farm Milano cookies and skip everything else. Give me those cookies and the flight cannot fail no matter what, even if the airplane crashes.