[20-Horse]

Apologies if this has been covered elsewhere, but I am exasperated with BA.

Flying in Club, on Avios
Outbound to Mauritius in January – lovely Kir Royales which is my favoured tipple pre meal
Inbound from Mauritius a week later – no Kir Royales, as there was no Creme de Cassis on board, oversight apparently

Flying in Club, paid for ticket
Outbound to Delhi in February – no Kir Royales – it’s not on the menu so we don’t have it available. You can only have what is on the menu – no more bar? Any Cognac? No, and I was informed that this has even been pulled from First by the manager.
Inbound from Delhi a week later, still no Kir Royales, still not on the menu. However, light main meal to be able to sleep, then looking forward to the later meal option, to be told, sitting in row 3, that all the western options had been consumed and now all that was left was a Indian main. I was left scavenging cheese from the previous lunch service. I said how could you run out I am in row 3? The answer was, ah, but other passengers woke up before you, which I challenged.

Observation:
BA have annihilated the Bar options, sadly, (I wonder if I could have procured a cognac in World Traveller?)
BA are reducing the quantity of options on the meal service
Drinks and Food are the 2 levers they can pull to reduce cost – at the expense of the customer.

Anyone else had similar experiences? Sorry if I am moaning about 1st world problems, but we like what we like.

I am tempted to buy a few creme de cassis miniatures, under 100ml and mix my own.

Best wishes

20-Horse

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scott1nthesky, fqtvgla

[cybertravller]

Considering the prices BA charges for Club World, this is unacceptable. When I was crew, we were proud to make Kir Royales, and they were very popular on board. I am not sure if you can pre-order your meal online when booking. That should prevent disappointment when your first choice is not available.

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scott1nthesky, fqtvgla, 20-Horse, JonathanCohen09, esselle

[esselle]

Must all be part of the package of enhancements Doyle promised when he took over a few years ago, to restore the image and reputation of BA in its premium services.

Go elsewhere.

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maxgeorge, fqtvgla

[FrDougal]

Kir Royals are still very much available. So long as the Crème De Kassis is loaded, its available and perhaps nudge the crew member in the right direction politely. It’s there in the bars. Very possible that the crew haven’t a clue what they are due to inexperience however.

First has Cognac onboard its Otard XO. If the aircraft has a first cabin I dont think it’s unreasonable to ask if it may be possible to try it from First as there is no cognac/brandy in Club at present. Cognac is not available in economy either.

You have made a few assumptions which I will correct. On the flights to the subcontinent you will find that the meals are leveraged towards the Asian vegetarian side of things simply due to the passenger profile. You are unlikely to experience this flying anywhere else on the network. It’s not so much a cost cutting advantage as it is a passenger profile issue. You were unlucky in this regards.

No apologist here, just someone with an insight and knowledge. As for lack of Cognac/brandy outside of First, iv no idea what is going on there. Hope you find it helpful.

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Flyboy18

[DavidSmith2]

I have never found BA to be short of cognac in Club World. But at least twice in recent months I have been advised that they had no Worcester Sauce. Tempted to take my own with me when I fly tomorrow night. I’m in seat 1K so hopeful my first choice meal will be available. But as its a 22.50 departure, I’m more concerned that they produce a tray of something edible before midnight so I can get a bit of sleep afterwards.

[FDOS]

I flew J with SQ recently.

Could pre-order all meals for all flights, nice selection of in between snacks, including Coronation Chicken rolls. Good bar selection, excellent service from very pleasant and friendly crew.

I will not fly BA, when good alternatives are available.

Priced up random dates in April

BA £5695
SQ £4929

Why, oh why, would you choose BA?

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cybertravller

[20-Horse]

Interestingly, the manager on the flight back from Mauritius told me it was not his first Rodeo and he said that he had searched all bars to find the Cassis and there was none loaded, he also mentioned that they are now only really doing the drinks that are named or stated on the menu in Club. A couple of Scotches, a couple of cocktails, a port etc.

There was no First Cabin coming back from Mauritius nor to or from Delhi. On the way out from LHR to Delhi, I opted for the Butter Chicken, but my colleague in Row 10 was out of luck with that, which added to my thoughts about the lack of available choices.

They were absolutely firm that there is no Cognac on board when I could not have a Kir Royale, that was the second choice and they were adamant, none on board. Had to settle for the 6 grapes port, which was delightful with the cheese.

20-Horse

[20-Horse]

Lucky you on the Cognac, they were clear with me. Good luck with the Worcester Sauce, I suggest you take a small quantity with you if it is a must have.

20-Horse

[20-Horse]

I love SQ, but have many Avios that need to be used and a company policy for paid travel, so, BA it must be.

20-Horse

[cybertravller]

Could you burn the Avios with Qatar instead of BA?

[superchris]

and yet their parent company IAG post record profits…….

[AlanOrton1]

They did indeed superchris. In that respect you have to take your hat off to them, as even if there have been ‘enhancements’ it’s not hurting their bottom line.

If F&B are a key consideration, of the OW carriers, Qatar are (IMHO) easily top of the pile. Not only in the air but in their own branded lounges too.

I can’t say, having taken my last J flight with BA earlier this month (JFK), that I was disappointed with their F&B. Food was good, though their white and red wine offerings aren’t what they were, say 10 years ago.

On another post from today there is comment about BA’s relatively high prices to TLV, as well as above to SIN. There must be an audience for these and while there is, it’s unlikely prices will drop or onboard offerings change too much.

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superchris

[superchris]

Its true they are doing very well financially and that should be applauded. But surely there’s a way of achieving economic success without constantly penny pinching and diminishing the one thing you are trying to sell; service.

[AndrewinHK]

Fantastic earnings. I have to say I have no idea what Creme de Cassis or a Kir Royale tastes like. I assume what is in demand gets loaded, and on an aircraft I don’t expect anything that isn’t on a menu to be available, or is that just me? I enjoy an Aperol Spritz, on a recent SQ flight that wasn’t on the menu, nor was it available, but I could get it on a BA flight back from Dubrovnik during the summer, that certainly didn’t taint my view of SQ.

[FDOS]

AndrewinHK

Let me act as advocate for those you are taking a swipe at, even though I would not go near a BA aircraft unless I had no alternative.

Your comparison of BA/Kir Royale and SQ/Aperol Spritz is a logical fallacy, although it sounds plausible at first reading.

The signature cocktail on SQ is Singapore Sling/Krissflyer Sling and the two are almost synomous, whereas for many years, BA promoted Kir Royale as a signature and for many BA flyers, that association sticks.

That signature drink was removed, along with other small, but noticeable items (e.g. flower in the 1st lav) and their result is that some long time BA flyers feel a cognitive dissonance that cost cutting/service reduction is ‘in their faces’; Is this a rational reaction, no, but then again brand marketing understands the power of emotional associations very well and they do influence buying decisions to a degree that persuades brand owners to invest heavily in promotionsl activities.

BA still has a strong brand from the days of King/Marshall, who created a world class airline in the 1990s and some people look back with fond memories and are then disappoointed by the current mediocrity that has emerged from ‘Cost Cutting is in our DNA’.

I don’t feel any emtional attachment to any airline and buy on a combination of schedule and value, however I can empathise with others and suggest you might like to try to see the world through their eyes, rather than projecting your own views on them.

Housman captured this feeling of loss in a famous poem.

A Shropshire Lad

Into my heart an air that kills
From yon far country blows:
What are those blue remembered hills,
What spires, what farms are those?

That is the land of lost content,
I see it shining plain
The happy highways where I went
And cannot come again.

A E Housman

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IanFromHKG, superchris, theflyingnurse, cybertravller, MartynSinclair, cwoodward

[Author]

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