12/10/19 | VA83 | SYD to HKG
My first experience of The Business on a long-haul international journey and it did not disappoint! Started off with a pre-departure beverage, the fabulous Ayala Brut Majeur champagne...
Menus handed out soon after.
Once we were in the air I opted for a gin and tonic, served with Parmesan biscuits and almond-filled olives.
Bread basket was brought around just before the starters. Never turn down a slice of their garlic bread!
For my starter I ordered the Beef wonton soup with Sichuan pepper and bok choy. Really great dish full of flavour and perfect start to a holiday in Asia! For the wine accompanying the meal I went with my favourite Hardys The Magic Stick Shiraz, there was an extensive menu of three whites, three reds, two dessert wines, champagne and then a range of spirits, champagne coughtails, liqueurs, beers and non-alcoholic options.
For the main I went with the braised lamb with pea purée, pearl barley, radish and pea tendrils. Admittedly does not look great in the picture and wasn't as good as the fantastic starter, but still a very pleasant and well-cooked dish in its own right and I'd happily have it again!
Was quite full by this point but decided to go with a cheese platter to end the meal. Consisted of three different cheeses; cheddar, brie and blue accompanied by grapes, crackers and truffle honey. My travelling companion was not a fan but I really enjoyed it! Usually have had quince paste when travelling with VA domestically and trans-Tasman but the truffle honey is actually a game changer, works so well with the crackers and cheese! The accompanying drink is the Grant Burge Aged Tawny, which I find works really well as an after dinner beverage. The flight attendant in my aisle, Kim, was lovely and served me a huge glass of it!
After a movie and a short rest I had a mid-flight beer and some chips from the pantry...
And finally shortly before arrival into Hong Kong the light dinner meal was served. Our FA made a point of mentioning at the start of the flight that the pre-arrival meal was a smaller and lighter meal but I found it was still very substantial! I had the steak sandwich with cheddar cheese, caramelised onion and tomato relish, along with a bread roll, muffin, fruit salad and orange juice. Steak sandwich was excellent with plenty of steak in it. Wasn't a huge fan of the bread roll but the muffin was tasty.
The pre-arrival meal also included dessert, an orange and frangipane tart with crème anglaise (Nespresso cappuccino in the background). The tart was excellent!
All in all a really good experience from start to finish, we were well looked after by our flight attendants throughout the flight, sleep-suits and amenity kits were distributed at the start of the flight and beds made for those who wanted to get some rest, whilst others were free to watch movies or catch up on some work. In-flight Wi-Fi was fast and worked well, I felt the $25 cost for the full flight was quite reasonable considering there weren't any data usage restrictions. Service was very personal with the cabin manager coming around to each passenger to greet them personally, thank the frequent flyers for their loyalty and offer any assistance. FAs Kim and Roxe were also excellent and in my opinion provided service above and beyond the already high standard I find when flying with VA.
I feel VA are certainly the market leaders in the J product on the Australia - HK route, sad to see speculation that they may shut down the route or reduce frequency but the load both in J and Y seemed reasonably strong so I hope they might be able to pull through and make this route profitable. Would definitely be keen to fly with them to HK again!
Will make another post for the flight home.
www.australianfrequentflyer.com.au
