Cathay Pacific First Class to Hong Kong
CX 879
SFO-HKG
747-400
November 4, 2012
11:50A-6:50P +1 (sked)
12:30P-6:50P +1 (actual)
Departed 9/9
Seats 2K
Bored with the lounges after 3 hours, I headed down to Gate 3 at about T-50.
Said it before and will keep saying. CX should have worked out a deal with BA to renovate the Terraces lounge, where both F and J can board directly without dealing with gate lice. And CX boarding continues to underwhelm, especially at a cramped Gate 3. They did change the boarding lanes, moving F&J to against the window didn't improve anything. Yo CX, would it kill you to board your 9 F pax and instead of F & J?
But once on board, I relaxed pretty quickly. A mix of old and new pics...
And the first of many glasses of Krug. Although FA Iris forget the PD nuts.
Either someone missed 2K or we are just keeping the same now tired orchids as the inbound.
Great views of the tarmac and 28R approach.
OK, we'll wait for AF before we roll...
Our turn...
Spectacular views today on our climb out...
Showtime!
While our three FAs provided outstanding service overall, it just wasn't quite as polished and as "on" as some of our other CX flights. Believe it was an SFO-based crew if that makes a difference.
The caviar and salad is always a winner, especially with Krug. 
CX regulars will notice a glaring omission from the set up.
Yup. No hand written welcome and thank you note. First time I haven't received one.
I love mushrooms and mushroom soup, and this version was excellent. And more Krug.
On the other hand, the mesclun salad with grilled shrimp and balsamic vinegar was not very good. The dressing was dreadful.
Another glass of Krug. The Vincent Girardin Puligny was nice although it would have been better if it hadn't just been opened.
Interesting turbulence show with the wine!
The steamed lobster with ginger scallion and imperial soy sauce is always good, although the presentation and taste was not quite as good as previous occasions.
Excellent cheese plate, accompanied by the Ramos Pinto Quinto 10 year Tawny
The chocolate cake, vanilla ice cream and raspberry coulis was delicious.
And pralines to finish part one.
The usual mid flight wontons in noodle soup.
Dinner service began about two and half hours out, with the usual fruit plate.
Still no hand-written note. 
The grilled kurobuta pork chop with red wine jus was outstanding.
The Shingleback McLaren Vale Shiraz was OK. Nothing special like QF.
More dessert of course. The mango and white chocolate cake and raspberry sauce was very good.
Our 14+ hours passed pretty quickly as I watched three movies and 4 (rerun) episodes of my favorite TV show Suits... all of which was probably way too much on the old 747 Studio CX version. Didn't realize how much I missed the 77W system.
Overall another very good CX flight. I do love CX and, next to SQ, it's my favorite airline. But I know how good it can be, and it just wasn't 100% tonight.