Swirl & Pearl, New Hampshire

Swirl & Pearl is a frozen yogurt and bubble tea shop (get it, swirl as in froyo, pearl as in boba), located on the side of Noodle Station restaurant ... an Asian-Italian fusion noodle bar.  In Hanover, NH.

So, in a random small town in New Hampshire, there is an establishment not only mashing up Asian and Italian noodles, but also throwing frozen yogurt and bubble tea into the mix.  Uh, yeah.  Let's just say, I didn't have high hopes for this one.

Now, Noodle Station I haven't actually been to.  The reviews are not strong.  The concept is all about creating your own noodle dish, choosing from 11 different pastas/rice, 10 different proteins, 16 different vegetables, and 11 different sauces.  You have free reign to be your own worst enemy here.  Udon with meatballs, cabbage, and thai red curry?  You got it!  Fettuccine with teriyaki steak and pad thai sauce?  Why not!  Rice with classic tomato sauce and avocado?  Sure!  (Of course, they have reasonable, pre-set options too, including standard pad thai, fettuccine alfredo with chicken and broccoli, cavatappi mac and cheese, General Tso's chicken over rice, veggie lo mein, spaghetti and meatballs, etc, etc.  Salads, noodle soups, and a hilarious array of appetizers to match all those pre-set dishes (garlic bread, egg rolls, spring rolls, chicken wings, meatballs in marinara sauce, peking ravioli, crab rangoon ...).  I'm not making this stuff up.  On the plus side, seems like you could bring any group of people here, and there would be something to match everyone's interests.

I had eyes only on Swirl & Pearl though, owned by the same owners, located just on the other side of the restaurant.  You enter both through the same door, and they share a kitchen space.  There are signs inside Swirl & Pearl saying that if there are no staff around, just go next door to the noodle bar to get their attention.

Frozen Yogurt (Swirl)

The first half of Swirl & Pearl is "swirl", a pretty standard self-serve froyo shop.  Pay-by-weight, only huge cups available.  Toppings bar with all sorts of candy, boba, nuts, sprinkles, sauces, and more.

Interestingly, they offer no fruit toppings (besides canned cherries).  I was really surprised when I saw this, given how many other items they had, but, I guess fruit is more work, it requires cutting, it doesn't keep long, etc.  Once I tried the quality of the other toppings, I think I'm glad they choose not to offer fruit.  While the toppings lineup is extensive, none of it was very good, nor fresh.

The froyo though, is quite good.

8 Flavors at a time.

Swirl & Pearl offers 8 flavors at a time that rotate frequently, including dairy free, vegan options (almond milk based, not just sorbet), fat-free and low-fat, sugar-free, sweet and tart, etc.

I'll admit that I was impressed with the lineup.  When I visited the time I took these photos, the lineup included two tart (California Tart, Pomegranate Zinger), two basic frozen yogurts (Dreamy Dark Chocolate, Tahitian Vanilla), the later of which was also sugar-free, two more decadent frozen yogurts (Strawberry Shortcake, Peanut Butter), and two vegan, gluten-free options (S'mores Almond Milk Swirl and Strawberry Banana Frozen Fruit).

And they source quality product for the frozen items.  The froyo and sorbet comes from Honey Hill Farms, one of my absolute favorites, like served at Prima Cafe in San Francisco (seriously, love the peanut butter from here!), and the almond milk flavors are Almond Milk Swirl brand.

I am not a vegan, and love my regular dairy, but, for the sake of those who cannot have it, I appreciated that they not only had a sorbet, but also the almond milk option.  I tried it, and the almond flavor was strong and it certainly wasn't for me, but, if you need to go dairy-free, I'm sure it is a welcome item.

The yogurt in general suffers from consistency issues.  There are days when it is creamy, smooth, rich, and everything I love about Honey Hill Farms.  And there are times when it is icy and way too runny.  I may have even stopped in twice in one day, and found it amazing in the early afternoon, and really not good at all later in the day (yes, I went back twice for the peanut butter one day, I adore it when it is good!)

• Cookies & Cream (Lowfat): "Our special Low Fat Cookies ’N Cream yogurt is like no other. We have REAL cookies blended into this delicious yogurt. Taste the creamy center and sweet outer cookies. You’ll never go back to plain ol’ cookies and milk as an afternoon treat!". Tasting notes: Very sweet, but nicely creamy [ Update Review: very creamy, not too sweet, decent, but not a flavor I often go for. ]
• Dreamy Dark Chocolate - a bit on the icy side, sorta in a "I can tell this is froyo not ice cream way".  Not my thing.
• Mint Chocolate Chip (Nonfat): "Creamy mint green and specked with chocolate chip pieces, this traditional favorite will move to the top of your list!  Our Nonfat Mint Chocolate Chip combines smooth mint with chocolate mint droplets for frosty indulgence.". Tasting notes: Refreshing, minty, but icy.
• Moon Pie (Nonfat): "Outta this world! Sweet marshmallow and golden graham cracker swirl with a hint of luscious chocolate to make our Moon Pie® frozen yogurt. This tantalizing nonfat treat will leave you over the Moon!" Tasting Notes: Very sweet, nicely creamy.
• Old Fashioned Peanut Butter (Reduced Fat): "Nuts for nuts? Release your inner nut junky when you try our delightful Old Fashioned Peanut Butter yogurt. It’s smooth and creamy!" Tasting Notes: Sooooo creamy, sooo good, the ultimate Honey Hills Farm flavor.  No surprise that it is the highest fat content.
• Pumpkin Pie (Lowfat):  "This flavor is so tasty and authentic, you may want to bring it to Thanksgiving dinner!  We combine real pumpkin puree with nutmeg in our Low Fat Pumpkin Pie yogurt – tastes just like Grandma’s!" Tasting Notes: a bit icy, not the best flavor but not bad.
• Spiced Apple Pie (Lowfat): "This scrumptious mix of apple and spices is a winner for the holidays.  You won’t believe our Low Fat Spiced Apple Pie yogurt isn’t the real thing – and neither will Grandma!" Tasting Notes: great flavor, but still icy
• Strawberry Short Cake (Reduced Fat Gelato): "Strawberry puree, fresh cream and sugar combine to make this tempting treat! Light pink and delicious, our Reduced Fat Strawberry Shortcake will win you over. Scrumptious!" Tasting Notes: Strawberry isn't my goto flavor, but I wanted to try the gelato.  It was good.
• Tahitian Vanilla (Nonfat): "You may have to taste this sweet yogurt again and again (not that you’ll be complaining!) – you will not believe it’s nonfat! Our Tahitian Vanilla yogurt is smooth and creamy. It’s perfect alone or as a base for your favorite toppings!" Tasting notes: Sadly very icy, meh.
• Tahitial Vanilla No Sugar Added: "This delicious yogurt is just like our Nonfat Tahitian Vanilla – except revamped!  Enjoy this nonfat, no sugar added treat alone or with your favorite toppings!" Tasting Notes: very creamy, nice vanilla flavor, better than the regular vanilla. [ Update Review:  I've liked this in the past, but it was very "fake vanilla" flavored this time. ]

Popping Boba, Cherries.

For toppings, the first well is the wet items: popping boba in 4 flavors, and canned cherries.  No other fruit.

The boba is also used in the milk and fruit teas, the staff just scoop it from here.

Dry Goods.

Next comes dry goods, including rainbow mochi, cookie dough, brownie bits, cheesecake bits, and crumble.

The mochi were actually pretty good, soft, not hard, not stale.

Chocolate Candies.

Next up is all the chocolate candy: peanut butter cups, heath bar, snickers, reese's pieces, nestle crunch, M&Ms, chocolate chips, mint chips ...

Nothing surprising here, all your basics are covered.  They tasted as expected, the mint chips let me down though, they were very waxy.

Gummy Candy, Pretzels.

And then the gummy candy (sour patch kids, swedish fish, sour worms, gummy bears), and mini yogurt (or white chocolate?) covered pretzels.

Again, no surprises.

The only item in the entire bar that wasn't labelled was the pretzels.  So of course I went for those.  I still don't know if they were white chocolate or yogurt covered, but I can tell you that they were stale.  Very, very, very stale.

Sauces.

The next set of items is squirt bottles of sauces, including strawberry, peanut butter, marshmallow, and even real maple syrup.

I'll admit that the real syrup impressed me, an expensive item for them, and not a heavy one.

I eagerly used the peanut butter and marshmallow sauces.

The marshmallow was ... just sticky sweet.  As expected.

The peanut butter though let me down.  It was a strange consistency and didn't have a very good flavor.  Almost as if rancid?  I wonder if it too was just old?

Dry Toppings: Cereal, nuts, sprinkles.

And then come the shakes of other dry toppings: Chocolate and rainbow sprinkles, peanuts, graham cracker, cereals (rice crispies, fruity pebbles).  No nuts besides the peanuts.

Hot Fudge, Hot Caramel.

And a redeeming feature, hot fudge and caramel, both kept hot.  This is actually fairly rare for self-serve shops, so, kudos for this as well.

I tried the fudge, it was fine, but not particularly good, not very thick nor rich.

Twirl & Pearl
July 2019
I've never thought Twirl & Pearl was amazing, but, sometimes, you just want to be able to be creative, add a ton of toppings, and not care too much about the whole thing.  Twirl & Pearl fits that bill nicely.  Reliable enough, not earth shattering.

Froyo ... and a lot of toppings. (July 2019)

Yeah yeah yeah, I know, so many toppings, where is the froyo?  It is there, I promise.

In part, this was inspired because I mostly wanted a big bowl of candy, but also, I didn't think any of the froyo was that great.  Several flavors were good, don't get me wrong, but this visit came on the heels of several days in NYC with daily trips to places like Tasti D Lite and Big Gay Ice Cream, and, well, this just doesn't compare.

The froyo I did choose was:

Peanut Butter - Strong peanut butter flavor as always.  Great with hot fudge.  Very peanut butter forward.

Cake Batter - My favorite of the day, sweet but not cloying, very creamy.  Paired well with basically everything, but I really liked the mochi and pie crumble with it best.

California Tart - Very good for tart style froyo.  Yes, it is froyo, and thus not smooth and creamy, but I really like this paired with fresh fruit (I went for blueberries), and it worked well with mango popping boba and housemade crumble too.

Toppings were again all average quality, nothing too stale, nothing too fresh, just, all average.  Mochi was soft, fudge was hot and thick, blueberries were reasonably ripe and juicy.  The cookie dough chunks were the only real losers, just, kinda dry and flavorless.  The house made crumble was hands down winner, great texture, and, well, I do like crumble.

Bubble Tea (Pearl)

The other half of Swirl & Pearl is the Pearl, a bubble tea area, with milk and fruit teas.  Here, the customizations are shockingly few, particularly compared to the other aspects of this establishment.

Bubble Tea Menu.

Your only real choice is milk tea or fruit tea, the flavor, and if you want it iced, hot, or blended.  The only mix-ins are boba and popping boba.

They do have a decent lineup of flavors, but customizations are not anything like I am used to.  No options for how much ice, how sweet, what type of tea, what type of dairy, etc.

The milk teas use black tea as the base, and the fruit teas use green, although you can also ask for water instead (this is not listed anywhere on the menus, but, I asked because I was looking for a no caffeine option).  All use powders for the flavor, and the milk tea has powdered non-dairy creamer (Coffee Mate) as the only option.

Taro Milk Tea, Iced.  $4.75.

There is really only ever one choice for me for bubble tea.  Taro.  I've had this several times from Swirl & Pearl.

The first time, I was impressed.  "Great flavor! Legit!", my notes read.  I noted that the tapioca was decent, soft, not clumped together.  

The next time, I was less impressed.  My drink was not purple, didn't taste much like taro, and was really more like Thai tea, just sweet, creamy, black tea.  The boba was a bit too soft.

The third try, I opted for not just taro, but taro and coconut.  This was a nice mix, I liked the slight coconut flavor combined with taro.  I noted that I should try taro + vanilla next.

But overall, this really is just generic bubble tea.  For Hanover, NH, a lovely option.  But if you are used to higher quality bubble tea shops, like the places around San Francisco offering up 20 flavors of house brewed tea, local organic dairy, house made puddings and jellies, etc, this is not even in the same league.

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Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse, Heathrow

Um, wow?  That is what I have to say about the experience of flying Virgin Atlantic from London Heathrow.  What an experience this was.

The lounge itself is in the top 5 of lounges I have visited, coming in behind the amazing Qantas First Lounge in Sydney and the amazing Cathay Pacific lounges in Hong Kong, but ahead of any other Heathrow lounges I have visited (including the BA Galleries Business or First Class lounges, even the Concorde Room), and most other international lounges.

But, the arrival experience is what sets flying on Upper Class with Virgin Atlantic apart.  You ... regular Heathrow check in and security, entirely.  I've never experienced anything like this before, and honestly, seems like the closest I'll ever feel to being a celebrity.

The food and drinks are ... ok.  The made-to-order dining plates look stunning, but I didn't actually find the food to be great (particularly compared to SFO, where I really did enjoy the food).

Arrival

I'm glad I did my research about flying with Virgin Atlantic.  Yes, I got an e-mail about arriving at the airport, but really, who reads those?  If you are flying Virgin Atlantic Upper Class, um, you should.  Because you have access to a private check-in and security.  And it is entirely non-obvious, as in, you don't even start by going to the regular drop off location at the terminal.  And you have pre-work to do.  But, wow, it is worth it.

First, you must check in online in advance.  Easy-peasy.  Then, you call a special number ahead of your arrival, and provide the details on the car you are arriving in, plus all passengers in the car, and how many bags you will check.

Once you near Heathrow, you turn off before the regular Terminal 3 drop-off area.  You proceed to a gate.  You drive onto some speed humps, wait for them to verify your car, and then proceed through.  You go up a long ramp.  At the top is a circle, vacant when we arrived.  We pulled the car up, and immediately, the place swung into action.  Not one, not two, but three people were immediately at our car side, ready to take our bags, and lead us inside.  It was surreal.

Lobby.

We were lead into a bright, open lobby, with a mini model plane.  It was empty.  In front was a desk, with a beaming receptionist.

She looked at our passports, and handed us our boarding passes.  Wait, what?  We were checked in.  No ticket counters, no lines, no other people ... that was ... it?

In the two seconds she was looking at our passports, someone tagged our bags and took them away.

I couldn't really believe what was going on.  Is this what it is like for celebrities in normal life?

Security.

My amazement continued as walked a few steps to security.  That is, a vacant hallway, with literally no one in it.  It lead to a belt with trays to put our things on, and a metal detector.

Besides the folks working the checkpoint, again, there was ... no one.  No line, no people.

I've never had such a calm security experience.

Once we stepped through the metal detector, real life resumed again, as we were in the regular terminal at that point.  People, noise, crowds.  Duty free.  A bit of a walk to the lounges.

So, this could be better, if the security opened directly to the lounge.  But seriously, what a check in experience!

The Elevator.

The lounge entrance was on the second level.  Since I had a rolling bag, we opted for the elevator.  Even that was ridiculous.  It had, I'm not joking, a bench seat.  Note that this elevator goes exactly one level.  Ojan tried it out.

The Spa

Once inside the entrance of the lounge, I had 4 priorities: ditch my bags, bathroom, book a spa treatment, explore the food options.  In that order.

Dropping my luggage was easy, right inside the door, and I was handed a tag to reclaim it later.  They asked which flight I was on, and assured me that it would be ready for me once the boarding call was made.

Bathroom.

The bathroom was broken into individual little rooms, not really stalls.  Each had its own sink, cloth wash clothes, nice hand soap and lotion, etc.

Hair Salon.

And then, to the spa I went.  The selection of complimentary treatments was a bit different from other lounges, as, well, a haircut was one of them.  And all sorts of shaving options for men.  You could also pay for a extensive range of other services.

Unlike the BA lounge, availability was wide open, so I opted to make an appointment for 2:15pm, so I could do my massage right before needing to leave, and could use the immediate time to explore the lounge.  Ojan was able to book a treatment at the same time.

It was really rather amazing to see someone getting their hair cut there ... I can't imagine trusting a random stylist!

The salon area was all branded by Bumble & Bumble, and really did look like a real salon.

Treatment Area.

On the other side is the area for other sorts of treatments: massages, facials, hand and feet, etc.  Sadly, body massages are not part of the complimentary service, not even a chair massage.

My first visit, in 2016, I opted for the scalp and neck message, which was a 15 minute treatment in a massage chair.  I had my choice of products to use (one oil based, another tonic, which I went for) and my choice of "inhalants" (lavender or lemongrass).  It really was amazingly relaxing.

The next year, I went for it again.  I was offered lemongrass or lavender scents on my hands to start, and had a deeply relaxing mostly head massage, with a bit of neck at the end.  I'd still prefer an actual back massage, but this was more relaxing than I imagined it could be.

Seating

The lounge is ... well, huge.  It is arranged into distinct areas, so there really is something for any mood.  The areas are all connected and open, but the overall feel is quite tranquil, not loud and chaotic.  There is light music playing throughout.  While the lounge did have plenty of patrons, it also wasn't crowded, you had your choice of virtually any space to pick from. 

Reading Material, Seating.

Right when you enter, there is a large table with assorted newspapers and magazines.  I didn't peruse these options at all.

This also gives you a bit of a view of the main center of the room, with assorted seating, and gleaming wooden floors. 

Bar.

The very center of the space is the huge, huge bar.

There are many seating options right close to the bar, including comfy leather loungers, and other wing chairs, arranged around round tables for four.  At the bar itself is counter seating.

The Den: Game Area.

Another area features carpet flooring, and a pool table.

This is the start of "The Den", sports and hangout inspired, seemingly appealing to the "man cave" sort.

The Den: Couches.

Adjacent to the game area is large couches, that looked perfect for taking a nap, or hosting a large group.

The Den: Leather Armchairs.

Huge leather armchairs, and chaise lounges, offer other "bro" style seating options in the Den.

The Den: TV Zone.

The Den also houses a large screen area, with sports on TV and video games available.

The Den: Candy Jars.

The final element of the den area is a row of candy jars, with mints and sweets.

Sadly, these no longer existed in 2017.

Play room.

The other play area is designed for a younger audience, a colorful play room.  Interestingly, I didn't see any children in the lounge, anywhere.

The Library: Book Wall. 2016.

A completely different experience awaits in the Library, the only area that did have doors to close it off.  This space had a huge wall of books, and, abundant power chargers, for every style of device.

This space was crazy quiet, not that the other areas were loud, but it did not have soft music playing, and, due to the doors, you couldn't hear any noise from the dining or bar areas either.

The Library: Seating.

The library has several styles of seating, including big couches.  It is a large area, and, while we were there, only one other person was seated in the entire space.

The windows in this area are more normal windows, making it feel a bit more like a library/den in someone's home.

The Library: Workstation.

The library also has individual work pods, some that come with laptops if you dont' have your own.

The Library: 2017.

They did renovations.  And they tore down the wall.  And, well, removed the library entirely, replacing it with more standard dining tables.

I'm not sure why they did this, as the lounge has never been crowded when I visited, and in particular, people don't seem to tend to choose the dining seats.  This area was marginally quieter than the main lounge, but, just barely.

Strange Blue Chairs.

Back out in the main room, along the big light filled window area, is a slew of different seating styles.  Some ... were more practical than others.

Like these, totally uncomfortable blue quasi-chairs.

Window Seating.

I took a seat in one of these chairs, and was shocked by how uncomfortable it was.  Still, there really were options, and plenty of spaces to plug in devices as well.

The Loft.

But that was just the ground floor.  You could go up a white marble staircase to reach "The Loft".

This space was incredible, under a cieling of glass, with views of the airport in action.  It was incredibly tranquil, and I couldn't believe that there was no one in this space, besides me!  I had my own level to myself!

Viewing Deck.

But if you really wanted to see the planes, you could climb up two more flights of stairs, to the viewing deck, an outside area.  Yes, outside.  Fresh air.  In an airport.  What!

The Drinks

After taking a quick stroll through the lounge, it was time to set myself up with a drink.

There are absolutely no self-serve options, besides a water station on the bar.  While I understand the feel they are going for, I really would have preferred to be able to pour my own sparkling water, make a coffee, etc.

I started with a glass of pinot, as my server said it was light and not tannic, but, I didn't care for it at all.  It did have too much tannin for my taste.  I moved on to a cocktail.

Cocktail Menu.

Cocktail menus are located on every table throughout the room, and you can order from anywhere from a server, or just walk up to the bar.

Cocktail Listings.

The first page of the cocktail menu is a mix of some signature Virgin Atlantic drinks you can find in most of their lounges, like the "Virgin Redhead", plus a bunch of classics, like a Cosmopolitan, Manhattan, Margarita, Daiguiri, Bloody Mary, Martini, etc.

Opposite that is the "Spririt of the Clubhouse" selection, speciality drinks just for Heathrow.

Modern Botany Cocktails.

The final pages of the cocktail menu are a collaboration with the "International Bartender of the Year", with a bunch of botany inspired cocktails.  I'll admit that some sounded interesting, but, I'm not really into floral elements, so I didn't try any.

Mexican Greyhound (2016).

"James Wyld Patron tequila, grapefruit juice, lemon juice, black peppercorns, agave syrup. Shaken."

My cocktail was quite successful.  I really was in a tequila mood on this trip, I'm really not sure why, but it was a theme throughout.  I ordered the Mexican Greyhound hoping it would remind of the really amazing, also Mexican named cocktail I had at The Blind Pig (review coming soon).

I liked it.  It wasn't as amazing as the Blind Pig cocktail, but it was very balanced, a bit tart, a bit sweet, and had a great tequila flavor.

Concrete Sazerac from Dandelyan, London. (2017).

"Stone washed Dewar's 12 scotch, fermented biters, absinthe, chocolate stones."

I ordered this to get the opportunity to try out a cocktail from the famous Dandelyan.

It was pretty fascinating, and no light drink.  At first it looked like a small cocktail, but, I assure you, it did the trick.

Whiskey forward, as, well, there wasn't anything to make the booze, unless absinthe (!) counts?  The bitters gave it even more a touch.

Nice to sip on, and I liked it, but I think I'd prefer it as an evening drink.

In the base of the cup was the chocolate stones.

Three stones.  I thought they were just whiskey stones, that had been soaked with chocolate perhaps?  It didn't occur to me that they would be something I could eat until one of the spa members asked me, "are they edible?".

Well, huh.  I wasn't sure.  And I certainly didn't want attempt to bite into an actual stone and chip my tooth right before a flight.

It made me want to drink my cocktail even faster to reach them, but, with this cocktail, that was not the right thing to do.

Chocolate Stones!

Finally, I got to them.  I very, very tentatively bit into one.  Yup, chocolate!  Hard candy coated chocolate.

These were fairly remarkable, and looked very realistic.  All three stones were a different style.

I liked the shell on the chocolate stones, but didn't particularly care for the mediocre chocolate itself.  I'm also just not sure how they enhanced the cocktail?  I don't think much chocolate got through the shell in order to actually infuse the drink.  Fascinating though.

Decaf Americano (2016).

Later on during my stay, when I ordered dessert, I also opted for a decaf Americano.

It was actually pretty good, and didn't seem instant.  It wasn't as hot as I'd like, mostly likely due to the time it took for someone to make it, a server to come collect it, and then to come find me.  Again, a self-serve option for basic coffee really would be nice.

Decaf Americano (2017).

The next year, I again opted for a decaf americano alongside my dessert.  It was fine, unremarkable, and like many things, lukewarm.

The Food

Of course, this is Julie's Dining Club, and you are likely wondering about the food, right?  I'll get to that soon, I promise.  There are two main food options, made-to-order meals, or, a "Deli".  Neither are self service.  Besides the candy jars in the Den, there is actually nothing self-service.  Again, I sorta wanted an option to grab a bag of chips or a bowl of snack mix.

Dining Area.

I appear to have not taken a photo of the dining room, but, there is a whole section with standard dining tables of assorted sizes.

Place Setting.

Tables in the dining area came pre-set with plates, napkins, and silverware, plus salt and pepper shakers, sugar, and fresh flowers.

You can also opt to order food from anywhere else in the lounge, where servers are constantly roving, and they will bring you silverware and everything you need.

Each table has a number on it, in the dining area and throughout, so that other servers know where to bring each food or drink item as it is ready.

Ojan and I choose to sit at a regular table for our first full meal, but I sat in the library for dessert, and had another snack and cocktail up in the Loft.

Dining

Besides the deli, the food is all made to order, like a regular restaurant, and you order from a fairly extensive menu, ranging from tapas, starters, mains, salads, and desserts, plus a few items for children, that I'm sure adults can order too.  The first page of the menu is breakfast, but, alas, breakfast is only served until 11:30am, so, all I could do is drool over the thought of pancakes.  The menu also contained the Afternoon Tea selection, served from 3-5:30pm, with finger sandwiches, scones, cakes, and a large tea selection.

Ojan wasn't feeling well, and was in a rush to order some food in hopes it would calm his stomach.  As such, we ordered quickly, which meant I really didn't have time to think through the options.  I do blame some of my dislike of the meal on my ordering choices, as they were made hastily.

Overall ... I didn't really like any of the food.  It was beautifully plated though, truly, "restaurant quality".  The food in the SFO Clubhouse was far more enjoyable.  That said, the Deli was great, I just didn't realize it until too late.

While the food looked like fine dining, the service experience wasn't that.  Ojan and I ordered hot tapas, two hot starters, and two entree salads, and they all arrived at once, which isn't exactly what we wanted.  Our table was quickly filled with food that was lukewarm when it arrived, and it got cold quickly.  If I was in a rush though, I would have appreciated how quickly the food all came.

Tapas

"Our Menu of small bites.  We suggest two for a snack, or four as a main meal."

Tapas Menu (2016).

The first section of the menu is Tapas.  How these are really different from the starters I'm not sure, I guess slightly smaller portions?

Anyway, this section had a number of interesting items, really something for every palette, ranging from a warm sausage roll, chicken wings, and chips for more bar food style dining, to hummus and veggies, smoked salmon and avocado salad, and squash soup for the healthy diners, and crispy cockles, confit duck, and gyoza to go a bit more upscale.

I did want to try the sausage roll, but, alas, I was only there for one meal, so, it got cut.  If I had ordered just one more item, that would have been it.

Steamed vegetable gyoza / dark soy sauce. (2016)

The gyoza came in a small steamer basket, served with metal chopsticks on the side.  A nice presentation.  The order contained two gyoza.

The gyoza just ... weren't good.  The wrapper was slimy but also dried out and hard on the edges.  The filling was just veggie mush.  I did not like these at all.

Credit for the serving vessel though.

Tapas Menu: 2017.

The next year, the tapas menu was entirely different, no dim sum, and this time some interesting choices like breaded olives with truffle honey and harissa mayonaise.

Crispy Squid / Chili and lemon salt (2017).

This came from the tapas menu.  Crispy fried squid.

It was ... fine.

It arrived very quickly.  It was lukewarm.  Fairly oily

Not particularly seasoned, and not served with any dipping sauce.

Lackluster really.

Main Menu

Starters / Main Courses / Salads / Desserts (2016).

Next was the main menu, containing starters, main dishes, salads, and desserts.

There were only 3 starters: the same soup as we saw on the tapas menu (perhaps a larger portion?), a chicken bao bun, and smoked haddock fish cakes.  I opted for the fish cakes, Ojan for the bao.

Next were 3 mains: an indian chicken curry with rice, raita, pickles, chuntney, pappadom, and naan, steamed mussels with fries, or the Signature Clubhouse Burger.  We skipped all of these.

I had read many amazing reviews of the indian cuisine served in the Clubhouse, but, alas, it was chicken.  I clearly read through the menu too quickly though, as I didn't notice the fine print until much later: "a vegetable curry is also available".  Doh.  I would have loved veggie curry, particularly since it comes with naan, chutney, pickles, and more.  Next time.

I also missed the fine print under the burger: "a field mushrooms, brie, and truffle burger is also available".  I didn't really want a beef burger, as I assumed it wouldn't be cooked to my liking, but, brie and truffles?  Yes!  I was clearly too excited to read the menu closely.  I wished it was available online so I could have made my decisions in advance.

Then, 3 salads: a Greek salad, a Caesar, and a French bean salad.  These were all large entree salads, and none were standard at all, as in, the Caesar came with bacon and a poached egg, the Greek with tapenade.  I opted for the caesar, trying to at least have some vegetables, and Ojan went for the Greek, just as he did in the SFO Clubhouse.

The dessert menu was a bit sad, Country & Cream ice cream in assorted flavors (you had to ask what they were, and the ice cream was just packaged ice cream), fruit salad (also on the tapas menu, and totally not a dessert), a lemon tart (boo, lemon), and a strange sounding strawberry & cream option (which I ordered, later).

Starter: Smoked haddock fish cakes / pickled cucumber and fresh lemon. (2016).

My starter was the fish cakes, served perched on top of pickled cucumber, and with a lemon wedge on the side.  Like the tapas, it came two to an order, so I really don't understand why they are in different sections of the menu.

The fish cakes were only marginally better than the gyoza.  For one, they were lukewarm.  The cake was a bit crispy on the outside, but mostly just mushy and and a bit fishy inside.  One cake had a dollop of something creamy on top, but there was no aioli or other sauce for the other.  The cucumber was very pickled, crazy tangy.

So, uh, cold, mushy fishy cakes with no sauce?  Yeah, not for me.

For his starter, Ojan had the "Crispy chicken bao bun / spring onion, coriander, and wasabi mayonnaise", but, he got into it before I could take a photo.  He knows better, but, he wasn't feeling well, so I forgave this transgression.  I also wasn't intending to try it, because it was chicken.  But, shockingly, he offered me a chunk at the end, saying I needed to try the sauce.

The bao was warm and fluffy, but it didn't have a bit of sweetness I usually like the bun.  The wasabi mayo however was indeed tasty, creamy, and with a bit of kick.  I see why he offered it to me.  Of all the prepared food we had, the bao with wasabi mayo was the tastiest bite.

Salad: Caesar / anchovies, crispy bacon, poached egg, and parmesan. (2016).

This was a very interesting interpretation of a caesar salad, and certainly not what I was expecting.  Remember when I said I didn't read the menu very carefully?  Yeah, I didn't.  A poached egg on my salad?  Meh, I don't like eggs!

 So, what did we have here, besides the poached egg?

Huge chunks of little gem lettuce.  Crispy parmesan chips.  A huge long crispy crostini.  A long crispy slice of bacon.  A handful of anchovy filets.  A tiny drizzle of dressing.  Micro greens to garnish.

Uh ... caesar salad?

I didn't like this.  The lettuce was fresh and crisp at least, but, the large chunk format was a bit annoying to deal with.  It would have been fine, if it had some dressing, but the salad was entirely undressed, save the little drizzle of dressing on top.  Plain lettuce is not my thing.

Instead of croutons, there was the long, crispy crostini, again, an element that was a bit annoying to deal with. Instead of shredded parmesan, there was two crispy parmesan frico.  They were crunchy, salty, and intensely parmesan, so they were ok.  The bacon was also crazy crispy.

The egg was actually decently poached, the yolk ran out nicely, the white wasn't under, but, I didn't really want a (cold) poached egg in my salad.  I ate it, and some anchovies, to ensure that I had enough protein.  Had I known how great the deli was though, I certainly would have just abandoned this.

Overall, yes, it was beautiful, yes it was a fun play on a caesar, but, it just wasn't what I wanted.

Salad: Greek / broad beans, tapanade, and crispy red onion. (2016).

Ojan went for the Greek salad, which, was only a Greek salad in name.  Yes, it had lettuce (very little), cucumber (mandolined and rolled up), tomato (sundried), olives (as tapanade), and a couple large pieces of feta.  It also had chunks of green pepper in addition to the broad beans and crispy red onions mentioned on the menu.

Ojan wasn't really into this, and wanted a regular Greek salad.  I tried the crispy onions and a sundried tomato, both of which were fine, but nothing special.

Main Menu (2017).

The menu in 2017 was entirely different for the main dining as well, although the signature burger and curries remained.

I skipped the starters, since I started with tapas instead, but my companion had the tuna poke.  I was at my spa appointment when it arrived though, so I wasn't able to try it.

Butter Poached Cod / Mashed Potatoes / Spinach / Caper and Parsley Hollandaise.

Well, this was a lovely plate.  And it was fine.

A bed of raw spinach, topped with mashed potatoes and a piece of cod, smothered in hollandaise, and garnished with crispy capers and some kind of micro green.

The raw spinach was a bit odd of an accompaniment.  Rather hard to eat.  But fine, baby spinach.

The cod was decently cooked, although not as delicate as I'd like.

The mash was crazy rich.  Like way too rich, and over whipped, almost glue-like.

The hollandaise was fine, likely the same as they use on the eggs benedict, but the plate was smothered.  I love this kind of sauce, but, on the already too rich mash, it was just too much.

I did love the crispy, salty, fried capers.  They were great.  

Dessert

The dessert menu was always meager, fruit salad, cheese, and ice cream, and 2 other items.

Strawberries and cream / strawberry jelly, clotted cream and shortbread ice cream. (2017).

Well, this is not quite what I was expecting.  That said, uh, I guess it was what the menu said.

Yes, a cocktail glass full of ... strawberry jello, topped with a few strawberry halves, a sprig of mint, and a scoop of ice cream.

I was expecting clotted cream somewhere, but I realize, it did say "clotted cream and shortbread ice cream".  And I guess I thought that the strawberry component would be, well, something more than just jello.

Anyway, the jello was, jello.  Um, yeah.  I didn't want it, but, Ojan, who wasn't feeling well, actually gobbled it up.  I guess that is what they serve you in hospitals, so, why not?

The strawberries on top weren't particularly good, they were red, but, didn't seem particularly ripe nor flavorful.

And finally, the ice cream.  This was ... ok.  I am pretty sure this was the "Cream Tea" flavor by Cream and Country, as they provide the other ice cream options.  The description of that ice cream reads "Our indulgent clotted cream ice cream receives a luxurious swirl of strawberry compote and is finished with shortcake pieces. This is not your average scone and jam."  This sounds like what I had, and kinda matches the "clotted cream and shortbread" description from the menu.  Anyway, it was ice cream, fairly standard, and yup, it had bits of biscuit in it.

I can't say I was satisfied by this dessert option.

Warm dark chocolate fondant / Chocolate and cherry ice cream. (2017).

The dessert menu again failed to inspire.  Lemon tart or chocolate fondant?  MEH!

Still, I'm not one to resist a warm dessert with ice cream.

Just like the main, it came plated beautifully, garnished with a crumble of some sort, mint, and powdered sugar.

The ice cream said it was going to be chocolate and cherry.  This was not chocolate and cherry.  This was salted caramel.  Way too sweet.  Way, way too sweet.  But decently creamy.

Warm dark chocolate fondant: Inside. 

The dark chocolate fondant was ... fine.  Are we noticing a theme here?

It was a classic molten chocolate cake, nice liquid center, but, the cake was very dry, and the entire thing didn't have much flavor at all.

Very lackluster, and served only lukewarm at best.  I guess it was a nice pairing with the way too sweet salted caramel ice cream?

Deli

The deli area is separate from the main dining area.  At a glance, it looks like a self-serve station, but, like everything else in the lounge, it is not.  Most items are not labelled in this area, and the staff seemed annoyed and somewhat unwilling to tell people what the items were.  Nearly every person I saw go to the deli asked some question, and got back a slightly surly response.  "What is that salad?", someone would ask, pointing at one of 6 salads.  "Salad", was the response.  Um, thanks?  Some signs would really help here.

Deli Menu.

The main menu mentions the deli, and we had walked by it on our way to the dining area, but it just said that at lunch time the deli has cheeses, smoked salmon, charcuterie, salads, and chutneys.  It didn't sound particularly exciting.

It undersold itself.

I honestly wished that I had just chosen to eat from the deli rather than the made to order menu.

Breads, flatbread, cookies (2016).

The first section of the deli is fresh baked breads, in all assorted varieties.  If you want any, the staff member behind the counter slices it to order for you.  None are labelled though, so if you care to find out what they are, you have to ask.

I tried a walnut raisin bread, after hearing another guest rave about it.  It was fine, yes, fresh bread, but, not particularly notable.  Still, much better bread than you normally find in an airline lounge, for sure.

The flatbread/crisp things were loaded with seeds of all types, far more exciting than standard crackers.

The cookie options were oatmeal raisin and chocolate chocolate chip.  I tried the oatmeal raisin, after not being satisfied with my jello dessert.  It was ... fine.  A large cookie, buttery and sweet, not too crispy but not super soft.  But you know I don't tend to love cookies.

An idea for the future though: get cookies from the deli, and order ice cream, and make an ice cream sandwich.  That has potential.

Deli: Breads, Crackers, Cookies. (2017).

The lineup was about the same the next eyar, although the cookies were oatmeal raisin, and chocolate chunk).

My companion had a bunch of the breads, and he enjoyed them, sliced to order.

Cheese, Charcuterie, Chutney. (2016).

"British farmhouse cheese, fine charcuterie from France and Italy, pickles and chutneys."

I didn't get a great angle here, but, this section had several types of cheese in huge blocks, sliced to order, plus a number of different types of charcuterie, and a bunch of pickles, spreads, and chutneys in jars.

I tried the triple cream, and I was rather blown away by how good it was.  Super creamy, great flavor, nice bloomy rind.

I also tried the onion marmalade, and it too was quite tasty, super flavorful.

I realized at this moment that I would have been far happier with these selections rather than the meal I had settled on.  Doh.

Cheese, Charcuterie, Chutney. (2017).

I really liked the brie last time, and I certainly would have gone for it again, but, there were too many things to try, and I never got to this section.

I admired it though, a nice looking selection of both cheese and meat, and some tempting spreads.

Salads (2017).

Next were a bunch of salads, none labelled.  Some were greens based, others grains based.  This is where I heard many others asking for explanations of what the salads were, and getting totally unsatisfactory responses.

I didn't try any salads.

Salads (2017).

The salad line up was different, this time with:

Back row: roasted carrot with cream (not pictured, it was being replenished), a ceasar-ish kale salad, cabbage slaw.

Front row: Orzo salad, cous cous salad, plain greens (no dressing), cucumber and tomato salad.

Shrimp salad, Smoked Fish (2016).

This is where things started to get interesting.

In the little glass jars in front was shrimp salad, lightly dressed with mayo.  I didn't try it because I really wasn't hungry at this point, but I really wished I had that instead of the proteins from my salad!

There were other firm, smoked fish here too, not really sure what they were, I didn't try them.

Assorted Smoked Salmon. (2016).

 Well, geeze.  They weren't messing around here.  4 types of smoked salmon, on wooden boards.

The red one caught my eye, it looked sorta like tuna.  I asked what it was, and I was told "beetroot".  Clearly, it wasn't actually just beetroot, it was some kind of seafood.  Confused, I asked, "like, marinated with beetroot?"  "Beetroot", was the only response.  "Is it salmon?", I asked, again, trying to figure this out.  "It is good, try it" was the response.

Uh, ok.  So, I said I'd try a little.  It turned out to be crazy delicious.  This was seriously good smoked salmon.  Firm, smoky, wonderful.  I tried a bite of one other as well when Ojan got a plate full, and, yup, it too was great.

So if I were to do the lounge again, I'd make some major changes.  Perhaps I would have ordered that veggie curry, or the mushroom/brie/truffle burger.  But really, I would go straight to the deli, load up on excellent cheese, spreads, and smoked salmon, and just call it a day.

Smoked Fish & Prawn Cocktail (2017).

The smoked fish lineup was again impressive.

Nothing labelled, and again really unhelpful staff, I heard several people ask about the beetroot cured salmon, and be told simply "Beetroot", and then be very confused.  "But, its not just beetroot right?  Its fish?", they'd ask.  "No, beetroot, Americans call it beet."  Um, thanks?

Still, a beautiful lineup.

Raisin walnut bread, onion chutney, brie, seeded flatbread, beetroot smoked salmon. (2016).

My hodgepodge platter, assembled not due to hunger, but mostly just out of curiosity, which turned out to be the most delicious stuff from the lounge.

The cheese and smoked salmon in particular were just top notch.

Beetroot Smoked Salmon, Kale Ceasar, Slaw, Prawn Cocktail (2017).

One drawback of the deli is that you can't just get a little of anything, since the servers make your platter for you.  They didn't know that I already had a starter and main with sides, and that when I said, "Please, just a little" of each thing, I really meant it!

Thus, I got a full plate of food.  Sigh.

Since I liked the beetroot smoked salmon last time, I had it again.  And I again liked it, the beet flavor, and color, were great.  It was much better than the salmon.

I also got to try the prawn cocktail that I had wanted to try last time.  It was in a cute jar at the deli, but the server dumped it onto my plate, a pile of shredded iceberg, tiny prawns covered in louis-style dressing, and a lemon wedge, now covered in sauce, and hard to actually use.  This too was just fine.  Not fishy, but again too much dressing (and believe me, I like this kind of thing!), standard ice berg.  Fine.

The thing that looked like kale ceasar certainly didn't seem to be.  Yes, it was frilly kale, it was large shreds of parmesan, it was croutons, but ... the dressing was way too tangy, and just lemon.  No anchovy, no parmesan in the dressing.  Meh.

And finally, slaw.  It was ... just cabbage and carrots, crispy enough, but not particularly interesting, nor dressed.

So overall, this platter was a bit lackluster.

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