Gold card meal ordering?

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  • Anonymous
    Guest

    goldaviator
    Participant

    BA crew used to take meal orders from Gold Members first to ensure first choice of meals but on a few of my flights recently in CW, I have chosen to sit at the rear of the fwd cabin A380 upper deck to be closest to door to get off first and have been left to last to have meal order taken.

    Anyone in the know have any insight as to whether this has been removed from the service standards?


    openfly
    Participant

    Depends on the crew, some do, some don’t. Inconsistent.


    goldaviator
    Participant

    Thats what I thought.


    NTarrant
    Participant

    I was told that they mostly take the orders and then check in the galley who is gold and who’s not going to get their choice


    MartynSinclair
    Participant

    flying outbound to HKG recently, I did not get my first choice of meal – wrote to BAEC with the ‘observation’ – result, sufficient avios for a free return to FRA..

    I know which I preferred….


    seasonedtraveller
    Participant

    My understanding (and I may be wrong these days, who knows what has changed) from an ex BA Captain who is a personal friend, is that they do outbound from the front & inbound from the rear (or vice versa).

    I would also agree, like most things, it’s crew dependant on the day.

    I have to say however, that on 2 recent flights in CW with BA, the CSD has sought me out (and others I’m sure) whispering to me that “as you are a GGL, I wanted to make sure you got your 1st choice”

    LCY to JFK – did not happen on the return
    LHR to PHL – both sectors


    747foreverforus
    Participant

    Once again very inconsistent as with all elements of BA service these days. A crew member from LGW did tell me that it had been stopped some time ago, however I was asked first last week when travelling in F from LGW to BGI – who knows what will happen on the return flight


    stevescoots
    Participant

    BA gold and I have not been asked on a BA flight now for maybe a couple of years. in fact the last flight I was told my option was now not available, I wanted to sleep and eat a little later so I specifically wanted a dish I could have later (knowing BA doe snot do on demand) so I went for the only one left to then be told sorry we cannot save it for you. not enough crew to heat up again later. the was A380 to HKG)

    on the other hand on Cathay and AA I get asked first as OW gold


    NTarrant
    Participant

    My experience on CX is that they have the dishes on the trolley so you can see the food and choose. It’s good idea, but I thought the lamb was with white rice, but it was risotto which I hate!!


    KarlMarx
    Participant

    NTarrant – 09/07/2015 20:12 BST

    I believe you are correct in how the process should work, not from personal knowledge, but from posts here and on other travel websites made by BA cabin crew.


    rferguson
    Participant

    NTarrant is correct. The standard is to take the meal order from front to back on all flights (in CW).

    The numbers are then collated in the galley. if there is any shortfall in a particular choice priority will be given to card holders (even if sat in the last row). Obviously we use common sense in this area (well most of us). For example if a non status passenger has ordered a starter and main neither of which we have left we will not decline both. If two non status passengers are travelling together and order the same main, neither which we have available, we will not decline both.

    There are rare occasions (for example in F or on a Hi J 747 evening JFK flight) that there will be such high volumes of status card holders that one or two may go without their first choice. It isn’t rare for a JFK on a Friday night to have 70% of passengers as either silver/gold card holders. This occasionally presents a challenge but is usually overcome by seeing what’s left in First for example.

    Thankfully on many routes F/J/W customers can pre order their main and eventually this will be rolled out across the network.

    seasonedtraveller AA use the ‘Front outbound rear inbound’ concept on domestic F. BA has never used this method. But you can pre order your main course on all their domestic routes serving a meal.

    On CX i’ve had my meal order taken first a couple of times – I guess as a OW Emerald? Maybe they only do this when loads are high and catering particularly tight? In the main, it’s just been front to back from the trolley. I have noticed on MH that they take their own top tier orders first (although again they have a system where you can pre order anyway). On Qatar it’s front to back. QF the same (although once during the ‘meet and greet’ from the CSM he asked for my order in advance). LAN also seemed to prioritise Emerald status pax when I flew them.

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