Coming off an initially disappointing first class experience on the outbound flight, I was hopeful that the flight – originating from a British Airways hub – would be more to my expectations. I was well fueled by an incredible time at the Concorde Room and a more frantic one at the British Airways Galleries First. Read on for my British Airways first class London Heathrow to Washington review to see if this flight met my high expectations of this first class product!
As a reminder, for internal “house” reviews, we score on the same 1-3 scale we use elsewhere. A 3 indicates that a given category exceeded reviewer expectations, a 2 indicates it met expectations, and a 1 failed to meet expectations. We evaluate the categories we believe are most relevant to the flight, hotel, or lounge experience.
Details
Flight Number: 293
Flight Date: 10/21/19
To/From: LHR to IAD
Carrier: British Airways
Class of Service: First
Duration: 8:10
Aircraft: 747-400
Seat: 3A
Price: ~$10,000 for a last-minute first class fare
Seat – 2/3
For this leg, I was lucky to grab a window seat, and got to experience “the world’s best business class” seat. Unlike the insanely exposed middle seat from my outbound flight, this seat was much more to what I expected. Although it wasn’t as sizable as the suite-style seats I’d experienced on Asiana’s now-defunct first class (although the seats are still there in their business suites), it was far roomier than a normal business class seat. I really enjoyed the window shades that I had read about – they added a nice classy touch and made the experience feel more exclusive.
IFE – 2/3
The IFE was identical to my last leg. The screen was a little on the small side, and while crisp, not a true HD screen. The selection was the same, above average but nothing special. I ended up watching John Wick 2, which I had downloaded onto my device.
Drink – 3/3
The drink selection remained top-notch. In addition to the wonderful Laurent Perrier Grand Siecle and Johnnie Walker Blue, the wine selection was quite nice. I enjoyed the Bordeaux quite a bit. I also was quite happy with the port (Colheita Port 2009) paired with my dessert.
Food – 3/3
Literally every course of the catering on this trip beat my last trip. The nuts and canapes were quite good. There was a bit of a gap – 90 minutes between canapes and appetizers – but then things got going quite quickly. The bread was great – warm, although the butter was a bit cold. The gravlax was good but a bit on the salty side, though not unenjoyably so. The soup was good with an aftertaste I couldn’t place – not bad, just notable.
I was very, very happy with the pork cheeks. They were tender and delicious. The accompanying vegetable basket – of which I had liked the concept on the way out – was also quite good, without the odd taste from last time.
The cheese plate (not pictured – it was too blurry, which reflected upon my sobriety level) – oh how I love my cheese plates – was delicious. And the desert – rhubarb and ginger timbale – was outstanding – partly because it was so different than anything I’ve seen in the air (and not a common desert on the ground, either), as well as the fact it was simply delicious.
At this point I was beyond stuffed and opted for a nap – and unfortunately missed the afternoon tea service. More on that below.
Service – 2/3
The service was much better than the leg out, with the crew being competent and polite. I wouldn’t say anything stood out either good or bad, which, after the last flight, I’ll take. The one thing I will nitpick is when I did wake up, the flight attendant asked if I wanted “anything else” and did not specify, “By the way, your drunk ass slept through tea, would you like some?” (or the polite British equivalent of this question) – so I told him no. We were probably 60-75 minutes from landing, so I assume I could have quickly had my tea and didn’t completely miss the boat. I probably couldn’t have eaten it if I tried, but I do love me some afternoon tea. Oh well. I own this one 100%.
Other Categories
Bedding: 2/3 – Again, it was acceptable, and didn’t trigger any feelings of amazingness or dislike in any way.
Lavatories: 2/3 – As it was a 747, there were two small lavatories, and they were in acceptable condition.
Amenity kit: 3/3 – I really liked the amenity kit as I did on the way out, and I’m using the eye mask as my new travel eye mask.
WiFi – Not reviewed – I did not purchase it for this flight.
British Airways First Class London Heathrow to Washington Review Bottom Line – 2.5/3
This was the flight I was expecting with British Airways first class. At the expense of being a jerk, I knew it wasn’t going to be like the top-rated ANA, Lufthansa, or ME3 carriers, but I expected it to be a worthy first class experience. And it was. It really is amazing how different this flight was – the crew was much better, getting out of the awful middle seat was clutch, and the catering was notably improved coming from LHR as opposed to IAD. This flight was a family treat, so not a regular occurrence, but if this was the level of quality, I could see why someone with means would choose this over a business class experience on say, United.