Seattle Chocolates

Update Review, 2021-2023 Tastings

Truffles

I've previously only reviewed some of the bars from Seattle Chocolates, but I've also had the chance to try many of their packaged truffles over the years.

The lineup is impressive, at least, more than 20 varieties.  They aren't the type of truffles you get when you visit a chocolate shop, rather, are designed for retail and individually wrapped, but, I've been quite impressed with the quality.  I just wish I could find some of the most amazingly sounding varieties, like "Birthday Cake Batter", peanut brittle, or rainier cherry

Sadly, I didn't take notes on most of them, as I really thought I had reviewed before.

"A Super Chocolate", with Coffee Flour.

"Crafted using the newest super food ingredient, CoffeeFlour, made from dried coffee cherry pulp, A Super Chocolate truffle provides a delectable balance of smooth, rich dark chocolate and deep, fruit-forward notes. Loaded with fiber, protein, potassium and iron, this truffle packs a nutritional punch. But that wasn’t enough, so we add a little texture and extra nutritional crunch with roasted cocoa nibs from Colombia."

Well, this one made a lot of claims.  I was skeptical, of course, although I've really enjoyed some products made with CoffeeFlour (interestingly, from a restaurant in the Seattle area as well, The Lakehouse, where I had CoffeeFlour toast, pancakes, granola, and more).

And ... this chocolate delivered!  I'm not sure how much of it was the CoffeeFlour to be honest, but the dark chocolate was very nice, smooth, good quality, rich, complex.  And I loved the texture from the nibs.  All around great.  ****+.

Blackberry Crème.

"Real blackberries in creamy white chocolate, enrobed in dark chocolate."

Another very enjoyable truffle.

The dark chocolate was smooth, clearly quality.  Inside, a very creamy lovely purple filling.  No seeds from the blackberries (phew!), just a bit of fruitiness.  Sweet, but not too sweet.

This piece wouldn't meet your "I want CHOCOLATE" needs, but it was really quite enjoyable for the style it was.  I'd gladly have another.  ****.

Rainier Cherry& Pecans.

"Fresh dried cherries and pecans praline in dark chocolate, featuring 100% Rainforest Alliance Certified™ cocoa. A Northwest favorite."

Somehow in my mind, even though I had read the description, I expected a big juicy cherry inside, like one of those cherry cordial things.  Not sure why, but I think that is my only experience of cherries and chocolate, and is what I wanted.

This truffle did not have that.  But it also just ... didn't have any cherry flavor detectable?  None.  I did like the bits of crunch from the pecan praline throughout though, and the chocolate was smooth, rich dark chocolate.

I enjoyed it, but cherry it was not. ***+.

Dark Chocolate Sea Salt with Toffee.

"A refined twist on an old favorite. Crunchy toffee with a hint of sea salt in our classic dark chocolate".

This was a nice chocolate, once I remembered the toffee component.  I bit in, and it went "CRUNCH" and really took me by surprise.  Then, I realized that was the toffee inside, and it all made sense.  But that first moment I thought "Woah! What is wrong with this chocolate!", heh.

The dark chocolate was smooth and rich, and the toffee added a pleasant sweetness.  I enjoyed this one too. ****.

Bars

Seasonal Limited Edition

We created these special chocolates for a limited time only. Get them while you can!

The Seattle Chocolates winter seasonal line really caught my eye.  I was just grocery shopping, chocolate not on my list, but when I saw a very impressive selection at my local grocery store, I had no choice but to stock up.  I kinda wanted them all.  And, they were limited!

It took me forever to pick just a few.  Sure, I could easily look past the football themed special bar, and even the pumpkin spice (sorry pumpkin spice, I never get that excited for you), but I was curious about Apple Pie a la Mode, which promised to contain both white and dark chocolate, in addition to spiced apples?  And I'm not sure what was seasonal about them, but, as a peanut butter and chocolate combo fan, it was hard to look past the Peanut Butter Crisp (milk chocolate base) or the Peanut Butter Pretzel (dark base) truffle bars.  And then there was the candy cane crunch, the winter orange spice, and others that I *didn't* pick.  Because there were even better options.  

Like I said, hard choices!  I was pleased with my selections though, and continue to really enjoy Seattle Chocolates.

Holiday Spiced Nuts.

"Back for the holidays! Who doesn’t love snacking on gourmet spiced nuts at a holiday party? Ever tried that same recipe of almonds and pecans enrobed in rich, dark chocolate? This salty-crunchy chocolate mix is impossible to resist!"

One bite into this and I knew I had made a good choice!  It was a lovey bar.

The bar didn't say what % dark chocolate it is, but, it was a smooth, rich, um, truffle-ly dark chocolate that just melted in my mouth, particularly if I took it slow.  Almost like a fudge.  I loved the crunch and flavors from the spiced nuts throughout - just almonds and pecans, but they had a touch of spices and sweetness to them.

Truly enjoyable bar, ****.

Hot Buttered Rum.

"Back for the holidays! We’ve captured the warmth and sweetness of an iconic holiday beverage into a creamy-crunchy milk chocolate truffle bar. Contains no alcohol, but a hint of classic Hot Buttered Rum spices and lots of crunchy bits of toffee covered in our signature milk chocolate."

I loved the sound of this bar, but definitely wondered how they would capture the "iconic holiday beverage" and transform that into a chocolate bar.  The answer?  Uh, not very well.  I honestly didn't detect anything that remotely reminded me of hot buttered rum.

But what I did find was a decent enough milk chocolate bar (32%), fairly creamy, but not particularly remarkable.  I found no spices, but the crunchy bits of toffee were certainly present, which created a somewhat confusing eating experience as the crunch was a bit counter to what I'm looking for in a smooth creamy milk chocolate.

It was an interesting bar, and nothing was wrong with it, but if you are seeking real "hot buttered rum" essence, or spices, or anything particularly noteworthy, keep looking.

***.

Original Review, March 2014

Continuing on the theme of chocolate from Seattle, like Theo Chocolates, I present the aptly named Seattle Chocolates. A visiting co-worker from Seattle brought a couple of their very interesting bars for me to try!

Lemon Ice Truffle Bar.

“White chocolate truffle bar infused with lemon oil and sour lemon candy pieces.”

This was really interesting! I generally avoid white “chocolate” as it tends to just be sweet overkill and uninteresting, but this was actually quite nice. The bar had little chunks of lemon candy inside that added a very intense lemon flavor and crunch and the white chocolate was not overly sweet.  Far exceeded expectations!

Birthday Cake Truffle Bar.

“Birthday cake mix center with colorful confetti pieces enrobed in milk chocolate.”

Hmm. This bar was kinda crazy looking on the inside, as it was all different colors. I couldn’t really pinpoint what the filling was though, I wouldn’t have guessed birthday cake, it was sorta just a sweet white chocolate like truffle center surrounded by mediocre milk chocolate. Not my thing, but certainly interesting to look at!

Margarita White Chocolate Truffle.

“The perfect blend of sweet and sour lime margarita with a coarse salt 'rim'. White chocolate.”

As I opened the wrapper, my first thought was, "wow, this does sorta resemble a margarita!", based on the aroma alone.  That thought continued as I bit in.  Yes, they did really channel a margarita on this one!  The salt coating and the lime flavor were both good, and fun flavors to have with chocolate, but the white chocolate itself had a bit of funk to it.  I did like the white chocolate in the lemon ice truffle bar, but here it really reminded me of just standard bad white chocolate.

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Bernal Bakery

Another day in the office, another co-worker bringing in treats from somewhere to share.  This time, my co-worker came yielding goodies from a bakery I hadn't heard about: Bernal Bakery.  As a daily consumer of baked goods, I was certainly curious, and wondered how I'd missed out on hearing about the place. 

"It started off small, just baking a few loafs of sourdough for the neighbors. As word spread about our story and goods the community almost instantly adopted us and started pouring in their support. Within just a few days Bernal Bakery was up to its neck in orders! We expanded our menu to offer sourdough cinnamon rolls, brown butter chocolate chip cookies and a seasonal crumb cake. "

Bernal Bakery is a pandemic-born business that still does not have a physical storefront.  They bake in a commissary kitchen, and show up on Fridays at Charlie's Cafe, and farmer's markets on the weekend.  My co-worker grabbed goodies at Charlie's Cafe, and said he's a regular there to get them.

The lineup from Bernal Bakery is relatively small, with a few different styles of bread, a couple cookies, croissants (plain, chocolate, chocolate hazelnut, ham & cheese, almond), donuts, cinnamon rolls, and seasonal danishes, including signature croistocks (croissant-bostocks).   No cakes, cupcakes, pies or items like that.

It doesn't seem like Bernal Bakery has one item that people love the most.  Some folks go for the bread.  Others adore the slightly unique brown butter cookies or sourdough cinnamon rolls.  Others rave about the donuts.  I don't see any "signature" item, just, well, everything gets good reviews. 

Sourdough Cinnamon Roll, Apple Cider Donut (Left).
Savory Danish, Pear & Pomegranate Croistock (Right).

My co-worker brought in a few items, and had them already cut up into pieces.  This meant I was able to easily try all 4 items, 3 sweet, 1 savory.  

Seasonal Savory Danish.  $5.

"Whipped Brown Butter Ricotta, Delicata Squash & Fried Sage."

The first item I tried was the seasonal savory danish.  I heated it up lightly.

It was fantastic.  The pastry itself was outstanding - perfectly laminated, so flaky, and nicely crispy.  If this is what their croissants are like too, I'd love to try them.  Top notch danish base.

In the middle was a gob of ricotta, not just any ricotta, brown butter ricotta.  It was creamy, not too rich, and had a lightly nutty flavor.  It provided a softness that was a nice contrast with the flaky pastry.  And then, rings of roasted delicata squash, that paired nicely with that ricotta.  My hunk didn't have any of the fried sage, which was a loss, as I think it would great on here.

Overall, this was just a beautiful item.  Excellent pastry, flavorful toppings that went together well, and it was nice to have a savory pastry to mix it up.  I think it would be great with some caramelized onions or toasted pumpkin seeds to jazz it up even more, but, it didn't actually need them.  My favorite of the items, and yes, I picked a savory for first place.

****.

Apple Cider Donut. $2.50.

Next up, alongside my coffee in the afternoon, the apple cider donut.  Since I don't generally love cake donuts, I took just a small hunk of this one, so I could focus on the other sweets.

It was good though - a fairly dense cake donut, a bit of depth of flavor to it from the apple cider, and well coated in cinnamon and sugar.  It was remarkably not greasy, and nearly tasted healthy.

I liked it dunked in my coffee, and it was exactly the kind of old school donut that brought back nostalgia for me (yes, I grew up near lots of apple orchards!).  **** calibre, although kinda just a ***+ from me as it isn't the type of item I get that excited for.

Seasonal Croistock. $5.50.

I moved on to the one I was most excited for: the croistock!  I expected it to be a hybrid croissant-bostock, and the looks of the caramelized edges drew me in, even if the toppings (seasonal pear and pomegrante) weren't the most exciting.  It had been several years since I had a bostock anywhere, and I still drool thinking over past ones I had elsewhere, like the one from Neighbor Bakehouse.

It was ... ok.  I didn't really understand the "crois" part of it, as the dough didn't seem to be laminated like a croissant, or really mirror a croissant in any way.  It was just a thick slice of toast really.  It also didn't seem to have any almond or frangipane component, that I kinda thought most bostock should?  The edges were lightly caramelized, but mostly actually just tasted a tad burnt.  The entire thing was quite dry, it didn't seem to have a fruity soak either.

So ... a thick slice of decent enough toast, with lightly burnt edges, and a scattering of pomegranate seeds and slices of pear on top?  Not compelling to me, even when I warmed it up and added ice cream.  I wished I had skipped it and opted for more of one of the others instead.  My least favorite.  **+.

Sourdough Cinnamon Roll. $5.

"Sourdough culture, sweet and salty cream cheese frosting."

And lastly, the cinnamon roll, one of their first items Bernal Bakery offered (after bread), one people love, and ... the one I approached with apprehension.  Sourdough.  Sigh.  I just truly don't like sourdough.  (Yes, it is possible to live in San Francisco, and not like sourdough.  I'm also allergic to avocados, so you can guess how I feel about brunch menus filled with artisanal sourdough avocado toast.  Puh-lease!).  

I took one hunk, and wished I had taken more.  It was even good at room temperature!

The dough was lofty and, uh, dough-y, and did NOT taste like sourdough.  It was perfectly baked - lightly golden on the outside but not burnt nor dried out on the edges, and nicely moist in the middle but not under-baked anywhere (picture Paul Hollywood poking at it here).  The folds of cinnamon were flavorful, and the frosting was great, sweet but not cloying, and a decent amount of it.  It tasted more complex than standard cream cheese frosting, and I was expecting to see use of brown butter here too, but it seems it really was just sweetened cream cheese with a touch of salt.

Overall, very good, nothing sourdough about it, and an item I'd gladly get again. My second favorite of the items.  ****.

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Isa Restaurant

I generally like French cuisine, being sauce heavy and all, but for some reason, I haven't explored many French restaurants in San Francisco.  After loving my (delivery!) French food from Brasserie du Parc in Houston during a recent business trip, I decided to try a new (to me) French place in San Francisco that had been on my list for quite a while: Isa.

"Nestled in the heart of San Francisco's Marina District, Isa is a Cal French small plate restaurant.  Executive Founder Chef Luke Sung, who is talented beyond his years, created the types of satisfying combinations one can eat every day. His food is deeply flavored, elegant, yet straightforward."

Isa isn't quite classic French, as they draw heavily on local Californian ingredients and trends, but, the essential French sauces are most definitely still a focus.  I get the impression the restaurant is a fairly cute, cozy bistro, although I never visited in person, as I don't frequent the Marina.

I've ordered online via DoorDash every time, and the experience was mostly good - the menu was out of date, so I did receive a main dish with different sides/garnishes than as described (same with an appetizer I ordered another time), and I did ask to have a sauce on the side and that note was not followed, but, otherwise, the ordering and delivery process was straightforward, and it gave me a chance to get an excellent meal from the other side of the city.

Side note: Stuck doing a lot of takeout and delivery these days? Want to try some free food and new pickup or delivery services?  Here are some codes for free money!

• Nextdish: ($10 off your first order) [ Delivery only ]
• Door Dash ($15 off, $5 each of your first 3 orders) [ Delivery or pickup ]
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• Ritual ($6 off) [ Pickup only ]
• Delivery.com ($10 off) [ Delivery or pickup ]
• Grub Hub ($10 off) [ Delivery or pickup ]
• Seamless ($10 off) [ Delivery or pickup ]
• Allset ($5 off) [ Pickup only ]
• Nextdish: ($10 off your first order) [ Delivery only ]
• Uber Eats ($20 off - use code eats-lejw5 at checkout) [ Pickup or delivery ]

Food & Drink

The menu at Isa is an interesting combination of classical French technique and cuisine, with a flair towards local Californian.  I was drawn in by many things, mostly seafood, like the grilled local calamari, the seared scallops, and the potato wrapped seabass (!), but also by classic French goodness like the sweetbreads friacassee.  Most dishes come with potato in some form (mashed, rosti, au gratin), and truffles show up in many dishes.  People rave about some of the lighter, more Californian things too, like the raw Japanese hamachi starter, and of course, local oysters, and Dungeness crab salad.

In addition to the food, the drink list is extensive: they offer far more wines than most by the glass, and have a full bar with cocktails, aperitifs, and the like.  And, protip, this is all available for takeout and delivery - every wine they have, by the glass or bottle, every cocktail, even just a single pour of your favorite spirit.  I was really impressed with the takeout drink offerings.

Drinks

Kir Royale. $12.

Ok, I don't know why I ordered a Kir Royale.  This is one, and exactly one, place I ever order a Kir Royale: on board British Airways flights.  I'm fairly certain, that until this day, I never had ordered one elsewhere.  My reason for the Kir Royale on those flights is simple: 1) it is a BA signature thing, and 2) I don't care for champagne generally, so, the Kir Royale is at least a little better, when I want something to sip on as I settle in / go with appetizers.  So yes, on British Airways flights, I get a Kir Royale (as you've read about before).

But in "real life", I don't.  So why did I get one from Isa?  For takeout of all things?  Honestly, I don't know.  I saw it on the menu, and thought, "oooh, that's fun!"  Spoiler: um, it wasn't really fun.

First, the "fun" part of a Kir Royale is the bubbles.  Do you know what happens when you take sparkling wine, put it in a plastic cup, and then put it in a Dasher's delivery vehicle for 45 minutes?  Yeah, it sloshes all around, and entirely loses all its sparkling nature.  This was as flat as can be.  A flat Kir Royale is dramatically less good.

Second, I suspect it wasn't particularly good sparkling wine in the first place.  Hard to evaluate really, but, it was basically just flat lackluster wine, lightly casis flavored.  Even though I did pour it in to a proper champagne glass, and try to make this more lively, um, it just wasn't.

Bad order on my part, and I clearly wouldn't do that again. *+.

Bonneau Demi-Sec Chardonnay. $8.

To go along with my dessert at home, I got a glass of a dessert wine (the list had several, including a port, muscat, peach flavored wine, and a few others).  I drink wine regularly at home with my meals, but, I don't open a bottle of dessert wine just for me, so this was a nice treat to be able to get just a single glass.  Er, cup.  I'll admit, I did pour it into a proper wine glass, I couldn't quite get past sipping out of this takeout cup.

I liked it - it was slightly sweeter than I'd really want with a meal (although, with the scallops and bacon, it wasn't too sweet, really), but paired beautifully with my dessert.  It wasn't a super sweet wine though, nothing like a sauternes or port.  It was slightly buttery, smooth, and not too dry, super low acid.  Very drinkable.  The pour was a standard size, and the $8 price was quite reasonable.

I was happy to have this delivered to me, and if I wanted a dessert wine again that wasn't over the top sweet, I'd get it again.  ***+.

Six Grapes Port. $9.

"Aged for two years in seasoned casks before being bottled, Six Grapes is a youthful, bright, and complex reserve port. Known for its finesse, Six Grapes is full-bodied and marked by its fresh aromas of blackberry, liquorice and cassis. Generous black fruit flavours on the palate make it perfect for pairing with dark chocolate."

The next time I ordered, I also added a drink to my order, this time opting for something I knew would be pretty safe, a glass of port, to go along with my massive glazed jelly donut I had at home, that I planned to warm up and serve a la mode.  Port sounded like *just* the thing to go with it!

Like the other drinks, it came in a plastic cup that just felt wrong to sip port out of, but that was easily remedied.  It arrived warm, because it was packaged with the hot food.  I put it in the fridge while I ate dinner, and it was a nice temperature once I was ready for dessert.  It was a fine port, one I've had on airplanes many times, and did pair nicely with my dessert.  The $9 price was fairly reasonable, and it was a generous pour.

***+.

Appetizers

The appetizer lineup at Isa is fairly large.  Lots of local focus, lighter dishes, ranging from several salads (one with Dungeness crab, one with local baked goat cheese, etc) to soups (including their signature lobster broth), to raw seafood (oysters, hamachi) to cooked seafood (grilled calamari, sauteed prawns, steamed mussels).  Interestingly, there are no dishes with meat of any kind - no foie gras, but not any pork or beef either.  This section really is the lighter fare.

Grilled Local Calamari. $17.

"with honey spice, flageolet beans, lemon zest, and arugula." -- Door Dash

"with red bell peppers, spice, flageolet beans, arugula & red aioli." -- Their Menu

I was pretty excited to see the local calamari on the menu, particularly as it was grilled, not fried.  I had been really craving calamari (yes, really) and so I was thrilled to see it, although I was less excited about the rest of the dish ... as it came with flageolet beans.  

Or, that is, it was supposed to come with flageolet beans.  The DoorDash menu said it would have those beans (nope), arugula (also nope), and honey spice (uh ... not sure?).  When I looked it up on their own website, the description was different, and was slightly a closer match, as it mentioned red bell peppers, which I did have, but, it too claimed there would be the beans and arugula, and, even better, red aioli.  I had none of those things.  I did have some wilted frisee ...

Anyway, I didn't mind the missing beans, since I don't care for them anyway, and I don't mind the frisee rather than arugula, but I wasn't into the red bell peppers, and really did wish it had honey spice or red aioli.  The frisee was fine, although fairly saturated in dressing / liquid, and thus, quite limp by the time I got it.  So, kinda "eh" to the sides.

The calamari was ok.  It wasn't still warm when I got it, so I did have to heat it up, and I could tell it suffered a bit doing so, even though I tried to gently warm it in the oven.  It got a bit tough, I suspect it was better originally.  I did try a few bites cold, and it was actually better that way.  It didn't have a smoky grilled nature to it though, which I was hoping for.  I also didn't see any grill marks.  Given all the liquid in with the dish, it seemed like it might have just been sauteed?  I did like having the mix of bodies and tentacles, and it was all properly cleaned.

Overall, this was solidly boring, but fine.  The dish lacked seasoning, as it had nothing to make it pop.  It desperately needed a touch of acid (luckily I had some lemon wedges on hand), and a pinch of salt.  I wanted some kind of aioli or something to dunk my calamari in.  And the soggy frisee ... eh.  But the calamari was fine, really, and some of this I'm sure was just lackluster due to takeout.  I wouldn't get it again. ***.

Mains

The mains at Isa really drew me in.  Their signature dish is a potato wrapped seabass that looks pretty phenomenal - crispy potato outside, brown butter, capers, and tomato confit ... awesome.  They also always have a seasonal seared fish (often halibut), and seared scallops.  There are multiple poultry options (not just chicken, also a duck breast), red meat (rack of lamb, steak), vegetarian options (truffle risotto, pasta), and even veal sweatbreads.  Many of these dishes come with mashed potatoes, although some don't come with much of anything besides sauce/garnish.

Seared Scallops.  $30.

"with mashed potato, white corn, english peas, cherry tomatoes, and truffle sauce." -- Door Dash & Restaurant Menu

"with mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, white butternut squash, bacon & topped with truffle sauce". -- Actual Dish

The first main I tried is one I always get when offered: scallops.

What I got clearly didn't match the online menu, neither the one on DoorDash, nor the one on their website.  I know they change out the vegetables with the scallops seasonally, with brusssels sprouts with bacon in the winter, asparagus in the spring, and the expected corn/peas/tomatoes in the summer, and I clearly hit a seasonal boundary.  I was slightly disappointed, as I really did want the corn and peas mix, but I still dug in eagerly.  The aroma from the truffles as I opened it was enticing.

The base was mashed potatoes, nicely creamy, but not remarkable.  They didn't seem particularly seasoned, but, there was enough sauce and other elements to the dish they didn't necessarily need to be.  I'd call them absolutely acceptable mashed potatoes, but not extraordinary.  They were however a really nice base for the dish, and perfect to soak up the sauce.  ***+.

Next up, the vegetables.  Not corn/peas/tomato, but I what I thought was cubes of more potato (?) and butternut squash.  I thought it was possible they were another root vegetable, perhaps yams, perhaps parsnips or turnips, but, they didn't actually have any taste I could distinguish, which was fairly surprising, as I generally think I have a decent palette!  They were neither firm nor soft, again, no hints as to what these vegetables actually were.  Like the mashed potatoes, they also lacked seasoning.  *** mystery veggies.  I later followed up with the restaurant, because I was so curious, and learned that the white cubes were white butternut squash (!) and the yellow were sweet potato.  

And then ... bacon!  This was quite unexpected, so, beware if you order this as a pescatarian or otherwise not one who eats pork, but, the bacon really was quite excellent with the dish.  There is a reason bacon wrapped scallops are a thing ... Anyway, the bacon was well prepared, crispy like I like it, and added a bit of needed salty element.  The bacon paired well with the scallops, and with the mash, and tied the dish together nicely.  Not entirely necessarily, but, certainly added to it. ***+.

Now, for the main protein, the scallops.  Four large sea scallops, very, very well prepared.  You can see just from looking, a light sear on one side.  They were tender, not over cooked, not rubbery, just, very nicely done.  I was very impressed with the cook on the scallops.  I can only imagine how fantastic they would be fresh at the restaurant!  ****.

And finally, the truffle sauce.  This was lovely.  It was not quite what I was expecting, I was thinking more of a buttery style sauce, maybe a cream sauce, and this was more of an au jus it seemed, darker.  It reminded me a bit of southern style gravy that you get on shrimp & grits sometime (not the white style gravy), and, it worked that way with the mash too.  The truffle flavor was strong.  It was really quite tasty, although, as you might be able to see, it was kinda oily, and had clearly broken (perhaps suffering from being in transit?).  The oil may have all come from the bacon?  Just slightly off putting to see so much separated oil, but, the sauce really was tasty, truffle-tastic, and great to have smothering the mashed potatoes.  I suspect bread would be good dunked in it too.  ****.

Since it was delivery, and Isa is located fairly far away, the dish was lukewarm, and I did opt to heat the mashed potatoes/sauce/veg up in the microwave for a moment, and stuck my scallops in the pre-heated toaster oven.  It heated up well, and I really, really enjoyed this dish.  It felt like fine dining, from my house, and really was a nicely executed dish that ate well.  My only minor feedback is that it could use with some seasoning (which, was easy to add at home, and I'd much rather they err on the side of too little than over salted!), and, I still would have preferred another vegetable to those mystery cubes.  Overall though, a fantastic dish, and I'd gladly get it again.

****.

Seared Fresh Alaskan Halibut. $29.

"with fresh citrus orange, grape fruit, cucumber, cilantro, micro green, champagne vinegar, and aioli." -- DoorDash Menu

The next time I ordered, it was hard not to just get the scallops again, but I was still pretty excited by other options, like the halibut.

Well, my heart sank when I opened my delivery box.  I was really looking forward to the halibut, with light, fresh sides of citrus/cucumber/etc, and, I do love aioli.  And what I had ... while it was halibut, so I knew I got the right dish, um, there was no citrus nor cucumber, no micro greens, and certainly no aioli.  The Isa menu on the restaurant's website has a "seared fresh seasonal fish", but that comes with au gratin potatoes (yay!) and sauteed spinach, so clearly that wasn't this dish either.  What I seemed to have was sauteed spinach, artichokes, olives, and a tomato sauce.  Caponata-like.  

I would have never ordered this if I had known what the accompaniments were.  Not only were they not the dish I was in the mood for with the light and fresh elements, I don't like artichokes, nor olives, nor tomato sauce.  Sigh.  The dish was also stone cold when it arrived.

I ditched the artichokes and olives, and scraped off as much of the tomato sauce as I could, and set about re-heating the fish and spinach.  Luckily, I had some leftover mashed potatoes and corn succotash in my fridge, and fresh asparagus, so I quickly assembled a meal I actually wanted, and drizzled it with pesto.  It was a fine meal at that point, but, besides the lackluster spinach and the salvaged fish, entirely my own stuff.  The halibut was a large portion, and was nicely seared, but it is hard to evaluate it all that much, as it was cold, and served with things I didn't like.  

Sigh.  I do think Isa is a quality restaurant, and this likely would have been good if it was warm and if I liked the components, but, I do need to dock them for not having updated menus ever, as I truly would have never ordered this with these sides.

*** for the fish I guess, but, *+ overall.

Sides

The sides lineup at Isa is pretty minimal: bread with butter, mashed potatoes, or, mushrooms.  No green vegetables available.

Local Mushrooms. $9.

"with garlic, jus de veau, and parsley."

To go along with my calamari that first day, I got the mushrooms.  I wasn't entirely sure what to expect, but hoped that "local" meant they'd be interesting.  

And they were!  It was a mix of several kinds of wild mushrooms, stems and tops, cut into easy to eat pieces, sauteed with plenty of garlic and veal stock.  They were not too soft, had a nice chew, were fairly meaty (likely enhanced by the veal stock), and quite flavorful.  I think they'd be great spread on some crusty bread.

I quite enjoyed these, and I think they'd go great with mashed potatoes too.  ****.

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Galleries First Class Lounge, Terminal 5, Heathrow

Update Review, Lunch & Afternoon Tea

Lunch Buffet

My visit was mid-day, so the buffet was serving lunch, with a selection of both hot and cold items.

Hot Carbs & Veg.

The first section of the hot buffet contained mostly carbs, all of which I skipped.  Buttered new potatoes & chives, herb roasted parmentier potatoes, pea & sugar snaps, spicy tomato pasta, and white rice.

Hot proteins: Madiera chicken, cod & pea fish cakes.

Next came the warm proteins, a chicken madiera stew, and fish cakes.  I skipped the chicken stew, but happily grabbed a fish cake.

The fish cakes weren't good.  The outside wasn't crispy, the fish part was ... quite fishy, and inside was filled with mushy peas.  It was kinda cute in the sense that it was fish and chips in portable form, mushy peas and all, but wow, not good.  The tartar sauce on the side had no real flavor, besides mayo.

Hot Dishes.

The other side of the hot proteins section had two more stew like dishes, chili and mushroom stroganoff, both of which I tried.

The chile con carne was made with ground beef and beans.  It really was not not bad.  I wished I had some sour cream or cheese to mix in though.

The mushroom stroganoff was the highlight of the buffet.  This was actually really good.  Creamy sauce, nice mushrooms.  Quite tasty, although it did randomly have beans in it, which I'd rather it not have.

Salad Bar.

The salad bar had basic mixed greens, cucumbers, and tomatoes, along with peri peri chicken salad and potato salad.

The potato salad had more mayo than I could really fathom.  I've heard of overdressed, but this was bonkers.  More mayo than potatoes.  The potatoes were decently cooked though.

Deli salads, Condiments.

Next we had more deli salads: a beetroot & butternut squash salad, ruby cole slaw, 5 bean salad, and some condiments like salsa, lemon wedges, and shredded cheese.

I love good deli salads, or even, really, generic mediocre ones, but these weren't even that.

The slaw was sooo mayo flavored, I couldn't taste anything else. I like a mayo slaw, but, this was swimming in it (and, it was swimming, it was an oddly thin mayo).

The beetroot salad was ok, the bits of beet fairly flavorful.

More condiments.

Dressing, hot sauce, more garnishes came next.

Tomato Soup with croutons and rolls.

Token pot of soup, tomato was the soup of the day.

Tea Time

Later in the afternoon, the spread turns into afternoon tea, because, England.

Cheeses and cold cuts.

If you just wanted a nibble, there was a small cheese and cold cut station, with coastal cheddar, bleu, or camembert cheese, and ham, along with crackers and apple & cider chutney.

Tea Sandwiches

And of course, assortment of tea sandwiches: salt beef with mustard mayo, Atlantic prawns & watercress, chicken & bacon with rocket, egg mayonnaise & sun-blush tomatoes.  

Scones & Sweets.

To complete your tea time, there was the essential scones and sweets: scones with jam and clotted cream, plus red velvet cake and sticky stem ginger slice.

I skipped the scones, even though I kinda wanted them, since I knew I'd be getting scones on my flight in a few minutes.

But I couldn't resist trying the other desserts, even though the British aren't exactly known for their desserts.

The red velvet cake was ... lackluster.  The cake was dry and flavorless.  But the cream cheese frosting was sweet and quite enjoyable.

The sticky stem ginger slice was less good.  Also dry, fairly boring cake.  The ginger flavor was quite strong  The top was sweet and sticky.

So, I ate the sticky top of one, and all the frosting of another, but still, not very satisfying desserts.

Desserts.

Alongside the tea sandwiches I found a treasure.  More desserts!

I skipped the lemon & amoretti slice since I don't like those things, but tried the chocolate one, labelled chocolate chilli omere. Not really sure what that is, but, rich chocolatety dessert it was.

I took one bite and was blown away.  Woah!  When they said there was chili, there was chili.

Once I recovered from chili shock however, there wasn't much to care about here.  Yes, chocolate mousse top, yes chocolate cake bottom, but it wasn't great.

Snack Mixes.

At the very end, snack mixes.

First was a snack mix with pretzels and a few types of crackers.

Next, assorted dried fruit.

And finally, spiced jumbo corn.  I went for the jumbo corn.  Crunchy, slightly spiced, but not particularly interesting.

BA doesn't win in the snack foods department.

A La Carte

I was fairly happy with the buffet after discovering the stroganoff, but of course, I wanted some of the made to order items, a feature of the First Class lounge.

They didn't make it easy though.  There were literally 2 menus present in the entire dining area.  If I didn't know I could order a la carte,  I would have never noticed these, and there was no other signage implying you could order other things.  Certainly no one ever asked if you wanted to order something.  I had to track someone down and essentially demand to order.

A La Carte Menu.

The menu was fairly simple:

• Soup of the day. 
• Greek Salad.
• Kiln roasted salmon sandwich. 
• BA Burger. 
• Red Thai Chicken curry. 
• Macaroni Cheese

I find it interesting that soup is on the a la carte menu, rather than in the buffet.  That seems like such an easy buffet item.

The salmon looked good as I saw it going by.  And the burger looked epic, but Emil had warned me not to get it.  I trusted him, but the chips that came with it, thick wedges, were irresistible.  I could order just a side, right?  He didn't tell me not to get the chips ...

Macaroni Cheese.

"Chifferini pasta with a rich Red leicester, British Cheddar and English mustard sauce."

I opted for the mac and cheese.  Sorry, "Macaroni Cheese".  I laughed when I stuck my fork in.  It was, well, exactly like it looked.  80% cheese sauce.  Where was the mac?

The mac was large noodles, decently cooked, but really, there was more cheese sauce than mac here.  But that didn't matter.  That cheese sauce was incredible.

It was thick, it was creamy, it was cheesy.

And to seal the deal, on top was a bunch more cheese.  Some shredded, some flaked.  So. Much. Cheese.

It was heavy.  It was creamy.  It was so comforting.  It was ... well, delicious.

I devoured it. My companion was planning to share with me, but he went to take a shower and the food arrived while he was gone.  He didn't stand a chance.  Uh, oops?  Sorry not sorry?

Sure, at this point I felt horrible.  Huge breakfast on the plane.  Buffet grazing.  Ridiculous mac and cheese.  I was full of oil, butter, mayo, cream, and cheese.  And I was really jetlagged.  But wow this was good.

Side of Chips.

Even though I didn't order the burger, I couldn't resist the chips.  I should have.  They looked great, thick, thick steak fries, but, sadly, they just weren't good.  I guess they are baked rather than fried, although they were plenty oily.  They just ... weren't good.  Served with a little pot of Heinz ketchup.  Guess I should have listened to Emil after al ...

Greek Salad.

"Yellow cherry tomatoes, baby plum tomatoes, cucumber, olives, mint and creamy feta cheese finished with a Greek dressing".

My companion opted for the Greek salad, a safe, simple choice.

Drinks

Drinks are all self serve, which I appreciated.

Soft drinks.

The soft drinks were not cold, you had to add ice if you wished for a cold drink.

Champagne, White Wine.

Luckily the white wine and champagne were appropriately chilled.

Champagne Bar.

There was another chilled wine bar, this one with champagne only.  The champagne bar was deserted, but it looked like at other times of day it could be a happening place, it seemed like it was designed to be a focal point.

Bar.

Red wine and basic spirits.

Gin and Tonic Bar!

A bit random, but there was also a gin and tonic bar, with 4-5 types of decent quality gin, and both regular and light tonic.

Update Review, September 2015 Visit

After a quick flight from Paris, I arrived at Heathrow airport for a 3 hour layover before I boarded flight 287 to San Francisco.  

Three hours may sound like a long time, but given that we had to go through border control and back through regular security before we could even begin our airport stay, the start of the 3 hours quickly passed.  Also, we were going to be flying on the A380, which only departs out of the far away C gates of Terminal 5.  Getting to our gate, plus boarding time, would cut out a significant chunk of the later part of the layover.  So for actual time in the lounges, we were looking at 1.5 hours at most.  That isn’t much time when you have an agenda as I did.  Yes, I had just been there two weeks prior, but this time, it was earlier in the day, so the offerings were different.  I wanted to see the differences!

We arrived at 10:40am, which meant that we could catch the end of breakfast service (the switchover is at noon).  Last time, I was only able to experience lunch and afternoon tea.  And of course, I was eying some of the lunch items. Oh, and of course I was really hoping to get a spa treatment this time, as they were fully booked last time.

My first order of business was clearly to try to book a spa treatment.  I was met with success, a 12:40 appointment was available.  I needed to leave for my flight at 1pm, exactly when the treatment would end.  Excellent.

Massage lined up, I headed to the Galleries First (and later, the Galleries Business class) lounges, to see if the breakfast offerings were still the same as they were several years ago when I visited (short version: yes, they were). 

Breakfast

Now, I didn’t need breakfast, at all.  I already had 4+ breakfasts that day (yes, for real: my day started at 7am at the Sheraton at CDG where I had a huge breakfast buffet at the restaurant, then I explored the American Airline’s Admiral’s Club lounge offerings at CDG around 8:30am, followed by the Cathay Pacific lounge’s choices at 9am.  My flight from Paris at 10am also included a light meal.  Was I remotely hungry?  No.  But … I was curious.

I first checked out the made-to-order breakfast menu.  I knew that I really shouldn’t order a full breakfast, so I didn’t, but it was hard to resist.  A sausage, egg, and cheese biscuit sounded great!  And all around me were folks devouring eggs benedict.  I love hollandaise so much ...

But I stuck to the buffet, where I could take smaller portions, just to nibble and of course, to get details to provide to you, my dear readers.

Cereal.

The simplest option was cereal: Kellogg’s cornflakes, branflakes, muesli, and tropical crunch granola.  I tried a little granola, and it was ok, but not awesome.  I liked the banana chips in it, and the cluster sizes, but there wasn’t much flavor to it.  The chocolate hazelnut granola I had that morning at the Sheraton was much better.

Hot Porridge.

For hot cereal, there was a porridge, just like I had several years ago when I visited.  

It looked gross, gloopy, with a film on top.  It looked this way last time too, and I still loved it then, so I tried it again this time.  It was … fine, not bad really, but not remarkable, and certainly not memorable as it was before.  The only mix-ins available were raisins, cinnamon, sugar, and golden syrup.  Sadness, this one will have to go down in the memory banks as once great, but alas, no longer.

Interestingly, they also have a porridge on the made-to-order menu, I assume it is different in some way?  Next time I'll try that.

First Class Lounge: Cold Baked Goods.

I moved on to the main buffet, which started with baked goods.  Croissants, Pain au Chocolat, and Pain aux Raisins.  All served cold.  Slim pickings at this point.  

I love my baked goods, but I had already had a croissant in each lounge in CDG and at the hotel previously, so I did skip the croissants. The huge raisin swirls however looked fairly good, so I couldn’t resist.

They were … mediocre at best.  Sorta flaky exterior, but the dough itself was not very fresh tasting and greasy.  There was some custard and soft raisins inside.

Hot Breakfast.

Next came the hot foods, which was quite the lineup.  There was:

• Two types of toast
• Pork sausage, bacon, black pudding
• Roast tomatoes, roast mushrooms, hash browns
• Baked beans and scrambled eggs

The scrambled eggs I initially thought were actually polenta, the consistency was that strange.

I tried the potato cake, and it was actually decent, very crispy, formed from individual chunks of potato mashed together into a cake.  It would have been great with some maple syrup!

Yogurt and Fruit.

Next came yogurt and fruit.  I didn’t try the Greek yogurt, but the berry yogurt was unremarkable.  Fruits were grapefruit or orange segments, and two different fruit salads.  I stayed away from all of this due to my watermelon allergy.  No berries nor premium fruit.

Jams.

The end of the bar had a few different jams, marmalade, and honey, plus rolls.  Ketchup and HP sauce were also available.

Lunch

When I returned to the lounge after checking out the business class lounge too, it was 11:45am, and the buffet was being swapped out.  It was nearly identical to the buffet from my prior visit

Hot Foods Buffet.

The hot lineup was pork sausage (leftover from breakfast?),  madeira chicken, steamed white rice, primavera penne pasta, peas and sugar snaps, herb roasted potatoes, sautéed new potatoes & chives, mushroom and white bean stroganoff, and chili con carne.  There were no fish cakes this time around, although the tartar sauce and lemons were there, so presumably they replaced the breakfast sausages with the fish cakes at some point.

This time, I decided to try the "Primavera Penne Pasta".  It was fine, just penne with a few veggies and a light cream sauce.  Not very interesting.

I also had more of the mushroom and bean stroganoff since I’d liked it before.  The mushrooms and flavor were again decent, but it wasn’t really that good.

Salad Bar.

The salad bar was also basically the same, basic greens, tomatoes, cucumbers, slices of cornish beef bresola, and (very overdressed) coleslaw and potato salad, beet salad, and bean salad.  There was a leek and cheddar quiche this time too.  Since I’d tried all these before, and they were crazy overdressed last time, I didn’t bother this time.

Spiced Root Vegetable Soup

The soup of the day was Spiced Root Vegetable Soup.  I didn’t try it.  Croutons and bread alongside.

Sandwiches, Desserts.

There were four types of sandwiches: Atlantic Prawns & Watercress, Chicken Caesar with Rocket, Salt Beef with Mustard Mayonnaise, Free-range Egg Mayonnaise & Sun-dried Tomato with Spinach, and two desserts, exactly the same as before: Chocolate Chili Omere and Lemon & Amoretti Slice.  Side note, what is an Omere?

If I was hungry, I might have tried the shrimp sandwich, the filling with mayo and spices looked good.

I didn’t like the chocolate chile omere before, so I tried the Lemon & Amoretti Slice this time, even though I don’t generally like lemon desserts.  I didn’t have other options.  It was … lemony.  The crunchy, but slightly soggy amaretti cookies on top were fine enough.

September Lunch Menu.

Menus were placed on the tables, now with the made-to-order lunch items.  My previous visit, while only two weeks prior, was in August, and now it was September 3rd, so the menu had changed, although only slightly. 

The chicken curry changed from a Red Thai Chicken Curry to a Korean Chicken Curry, and the salmon dish I was hoping to get was replaced with … a falafel wrap.  Doh. The other items remained unchanged (macaroni cheese, BA burger, Greek salad).

Falafel Wrap.

“Tortilla filled with falafel, roasted red peppers, jalapeño hummus, and spinach served with a Greek yogurt dip.”

My companion opted for the falafel wrap.  I picked it up, confused.  Where was the falafel?  It certainly wasn’t falafel balls, rather, just some chickpea mush, which wasn’t clearly distinct from the hummus.  Neither of us tasted any jalapeño.  The Greek yogurt dip was sorta like tzatziki.

The pita was nicely toasted, and the only redeeming element of the wrap.  My companion also didn’t like it.

*+.

Macaroni Cheese.

"Chifferini pasta with a rich Red Leicester, British Cheddar and English mustard sauce."

During my last visit, I adored the mac and cheese, so I was really glad to see it on the menu still.  I think it is considered a lounge staple.

When it arrived, I was surprised.  What was the green stuff on top?  It didn’t have that last time.  And where was all the thick shreds of parmesan cheese that I loved?  But still, it looked the same otherwise, so I dug in.

It was hot and fresh.  It had the same ridiculous ratio of tons of cheese sauce to pasta as before. The pasta was cooked fine.  The sauce mostly tasted the same.  But … it wasn’t nearly as good.  No crispy top, and the extra parmesan really had made a difference.  I never figured out what the green stuff was, no matter how much I tried to isolate and idenfity the flavor.

This was fine, don’t get me wrong, but it wasn’t anything I’d get again, and wasn’t nearly as good as last time.  Perhaps just because I was so full?

***.

Vanilla Ice Cream.

To close the “meal”, I also ordered ice cream.  Only chocolate or vanilla were available, I oped for vanilla.

You may recall that last time I wanted to get it, but ate way too much other food and decided not to.  And you may recall that several years ago I discovered the ice cream freezer in the business class lounge, and loved that ice cream (and making an affogato from it).  But, that ice cream freezer was removed at some point.

This time, I was determined to get my ice cream.

It was … exactly what I was hoping for.  Creamy, rich, nice vanilla flavor.  It melted well.  Plain old vanilla ice cream is boring of course, and I wanted toppings or a different flavor, but, it was good ice cream.

I ate about half of it plain, and then turned the rest into an affogato.  I was a happy girl at this point.  Happy, and very, very full.  Thus, ready to make a few gin and tonics, and go get a massage.

***+.

Original Review, Dec 2014

On my first visit to Heathrow while en route to Barcelona, I didn't have much time to spend lounge hoping, as my friends were waiting for me to sit down to a (dissapointing) formal lunch in the Concorde room, as you read about two weeks ago.  But I couldn't leave my curiosity unsatisfied, so I did a very quick swing through the other First Class lounge, the Galleries.  The First Class Galleries lounge is located directly next to the Concorde room, on the other side of the spa, so it was easy to pop over there, but I really had only a few minutes to quickly snap some photos and take brief notes.  Sorry, I didn't get a chance to try all the cuisine!

My next visit to Heathrow was longer, and once I realized that the Concorde room, though lovely, didn’t have food offerings I was interested in for breakfast, I decided to check out the Galleries again.  When I breezed through briefly on my previous visit it was daytime, so I had no idea what they’d have for breakfast. 

When I presented my boarding pass to enter, I was of course informed that I could use the Concorde room.  I acknowledged this, and said I just wanted to see the lounge.  I was welcomed in, and told I could go back and forth as many times as I wanted.  I was glad to hear that I wasn't being strange for wanting to check out both lounges!

The Galleries First lounge has a lot going for it.  It was more my style than the Concorde room in many ways, allowing me to help myself to things and sample what I wanted, when I wanted.  The selection is large, for both food and drinks.  And if you prefer made-to-order plated options, they do that too.  The lounge is huge, and well laid out into separate sections, so it never felt crowded.  The only real downside is that it doesn’t contain all of the premium food and beverage options from the Concorde room.  If I’d never been in the Concorde room, I would be completely satisfied with this lounge, and it was definitely steps above the Business lounge (more on that next week).

Seating Area.

The Galleries lounge is much larger than the Concorde room, and was largely vacant, on both my visits.  I guess most people flying in First use the Concorde room, and those flying in Business use the Business lounge, so this lounge really is just a catch-all for those with status not flying in First class on that particular day.  The decor and furniture were nice, but didn’t have quite the same relaxing feel as the Concorde room.  That said, it was spacious and just as calm, as there was barely anyone inside.

Bar and bar snacks.

The far end of the room is a bar and snack area.  It was the same at both breakfast and daytime service.  An impressive bar selection, plus two types of Kettle chips and bar snacks to munch on.

Bar Snacks.

The bar snacks were Taiwanese Crackers, "BA Savory Mix", BA Dried Fruit Mix.  I tried all of the snacks, and found them all very standard.  The jars were cute, but rather obnoxious to open and close.

Coffee Bar and cookies.

The coffee bar area was also the same on both visits.  A few magic coffee machines, a large selection of tea, soft drinks, and jars of cookies.  The cookies were hard style, and didn’t look appealing, even to a sweet tooth like me.  I didn’t try any.

Champagne bar.

The champagne bar and wine bar were well stocked at all times of day.  I didn’t look into these areas much however.

Drinks at Breakfast.

The alcoholic selections were quite impressive, but so were the non-alcoholic.  Many choices for soft drinks, juices, and assorted waters.  I saw people constantly grabbing drinks, yet this area magically stayed replenished at all times.

Drinks during day: sandwiches, desserts.

During the day, the bottom tier of the drink station converted to have some pre-made sandwiches and desserts.

The sandwich selection rotates, but on my visit it was chicken and guacamole, poached salmon & rocket, egg mayonaise & sun blistered tomatoes.  I didn't try these.

Desserts were chocolate profiteroles and blackcurrant cheese cake, neither of which I tried.

F Lounge Breakfast Menu.

Since I wasn't planning to actually sit down and spend time in the lounge, I was in the lounge for one reason: to do a little "research".  I was shocked to discover that on the tables were dining menus, with made-to-order items.  There were still buffets, there were also many dishes available to order, just like in the Concorde room, albeit without the formal dining room to go along with it.

The breakfast menu contained a subset of the items available in the Concorde room, nothing extra (darn it!  I was still hoping for pancakes or french toast to show up somewhere!). The menu had a few of the same egg dishes, and none of the premium offerings, like smoked salmon.

F Lounge Daytime Menu.

During the day, the menu was more varied, and the Galleries First lounge had things like mac and cheese that were absent on the Concorde room menu.  On my visit the menu was:

• Soup of the Day
• BLT: A warm sandwich of British back bacon, tomato, lettuce and mayo served with lightly-salted kettle chips.
• Smoked Salmon: A deli plate of Severn and Wye smoked salmon, cream cheese, salad leaves, and grainy bread.
• BA Burger: Made with Birchstead 21 day aged beef burger, and served in a glazed bun with twice cooked chips. Ask your host if you would like the addition of crispy back bacon or Emmental cheese. 
• Chicken Ramen: A Japanese-inspired soup with chicken, chillies, water chestnuts and fresh coriander in a warming chicken broth
• Caesar Salad: Baby gem leaves with Parmigiano-Reggiano, croûtons and a creamy Caesar dressing. Ask you host if you would like the addition of a smoked chicken breast
• Macaroni Cheese (v): Pasta with a rich Red Leicester, British Cheddar and English mustard sauce glazed with a fresh herb crust.

The soup of the Day, the smoked salmon plate, and the burger were the same as in the Concorde room, but ramen and mac and cheese replaced the fancier main dishes, and caesar replaced the tomato and mozzarella salad.  Honestly, the mac and cheese sounded quite tasty, and if I wasn't planning on a formal meal with my friends over in the Concorde room, I most certainly would have ordered it.

Breakfast Hot Buffet

The lounge had a large hot buffet, with toast, grilled tomatoes, baked beans, mushrooms, hashbrowns, scrambled eggs, grilled British back bacon, Dingley Dell pork sausage, and black pudding.  These items were all available in the Concorde room as an English Breakfast platter, so presumably you could have ordered just a few items individually as well.

Of the hot items, the only thing I wanted to try was the hash browns. I love good hash browns.

As you'd expect from a buffet, they were completely unremarkable, about the same as any I’d buy frozen and bake at home.  Clearly not pan fried or crispy, although they were oily.  I always love my hash browns with maple syrup on them, but because they had no pancake/waffle/french toast items, they didn’t offer any syrup.  I settled for ketchup.

The hot buffet seemed very skippable, although the business lounge has no hot food offerings, so this is a step up for the First Class lounge.

Breakfast Pastries.

On one end of the hot buffet was an array of pastries: croissants, chocolate croissants, cranberry twirls, raisin swirls, and brioche.  Finally!  This is what I was really missing in the Concorde room.

But ... they were not warm.  They didn’t look good.  (Interestingly, I’d later discover that the business class lounge had some of these same items, but there, they are kept under a heat lamp.  Why would business class get warm pastries, and not First?  It made no sense).  Of course, business had a smaller selection of pastries, but, in both cases, none looked very good, and even baked goods loving me didn't try any.  The brioche roll was the same one I ordered in the Concorde room.

Lunch Hot Buffet.

At lunch, the hot buffet was loaded with options.

Front row:

• Mustard
• Warm jus
• Dingley Deli pork sausages with candied red onion
• Mashed potatoes
• Parmentier potatoes
• Cabbage, leeks and peas
• Steak and ale pies

Back Row:

• Pasta dish ... don't know what it was.
• Thai green chicken curry
• Another curry
• Vegetable rice

Since we were having a formal meal in the Concorde room, I didn't try any of this, but it didn't look particularly good.  If dining in the First lounge, I'd certainly recommend ordering a made to order dish.

Breakfast: Porridge, crackers, jams, meats, cheese.

At breakfast, along the wall opposite the hot buffet was a selection of cheeses, sliced meats, crackers, and jams.  Some of the cheeses actually looked quite good, and, if it was later in the day, or if I was in the mood for cheese, these would have been a nice option.  Business class did not have these items, nor did the menu for the Concorde room.

Next to the cheese and meat was porridge.  I found the placement of this a bit odd, but it looked hot and fresh, and had a few items available to mix in (raisins, cinnamon, honey).  The business lounge also had this offering, which you'll hear about next week.

Lunch: Soup, Meats, Cheese.

During the day, the setup of this station was nearly identical, with the same deli meats and cheeses, but the porridge subbed out for soup.

Breakfast: Cereal, Fresh Fruit.

On the other end of the meat/cheese area at breakfast was 4 types of cereal, and some whole fruit.  I tried some of the granola, and actually quite liked it, it was crunchy, a tad sweet, and loaded with dried fruit.

It was interesting to later see that business lounge had only two types of cereal offered.  It makes sense that the business lounge has reduced offerings, and leaving out the hot food and meats and cheeses made sense, but cereal and pastries?  Those can’t be premium items.

Daytime: Scones, Cakes.

During the day, the fresh fruit remains, but the cereals are replaced with a dessert station featuring sliced cakes, scones, and jam.  I wish I'd had time to try those, although of course, BA served me plenty of scones on all my assorted flights, like the afternoon tea service on my Club Europe flight from Healthrow to Barcelona.

Breakfast: Fruit and yogurt bar.

The final section at breakfast was yogurt and fruit: one plain yogurt, one fruit yogurt, and a couple of types of sliced fruit to mix in.  In fear of melons, I skipped all of this, because the label just said “fruit salad”, and I had no idea if there was melon included, and I am deathly allergic.

Daytime: Salad Bar.

During the day, the fruit and yogurt was replaced with a salad bar.  It contained:

• Poached salmon
• Grilled chicken
• A bunch of composed salads: coleslaw, five bean salad, beetroot and carrot and pumpkin seed salad, Morroccan bulgar wheat and chickpea salad, and pasta salad
• Basic salad ingredients: mixed lettuces, cucumbers, tomatoes
• And ... lemon wedges?

I only tried the coleslaw.  It was creamy,  with a bit of tang from horseradish.  Not bad.

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