October 7, 2021
QR 763 Doha to Montreal Lv0825 Arr1440 Boeing 777-300ER A7-BEL Q-Suite
Album link:
https://photobucket.com/u/Carfield76/a/ ... ed739ff856Soon I spotted the aircraft used on our Montreal flight arriving from Nairobi, which arrived at 6:46am. I was a bit surprised at the short turnaround time too especially given the new Covid-19 cleaning protocol. I double checked and made sure that it was Q-Suite. Here’s the only good picture that I was able to take from gate E1.
Gate E1
Boarding:
Boarding started late at 7:50am because of the late arrival of the inbound aircraft. Priority boarding was strictly enforced. My first impression of the Q-Suite was just amazing. The cabin looks spacious, despite all these “doors”. I really don’t know what to expect but I was “wow”! Without flying ANA, Q Suites is definitely the best business class seat in the market. I will not say that it beats first class (well maybe BA First) but for business class, Qatar really sets a high bar.
Cabin Shot:
Front Cabin
Aft Cabin
The flight was fairly full and front section of business class was full. Most passengers were connecting passengers as expected. There was a large Vietnamese family in front of me and they truly took advantage of the quadruple suites. It was also interesting to see how some passengers requested their pre-takeoff beverage (well soda) to be served in the original can, not using any glassware.
Seat:
I really don’t mind the rear-facing seat, and the check-in agent at HKG even double checked with me and made sure that I was aware that 3A was rear-facing. I prefer the seat to be closer to the window, which allow an amazing view of the scenery.
Each seat came with an amenity kit, a protestive kit, blanket, a regular pillow, and a daytime pillow.
The side storage bin has a bottle of water, as well as a pair of noise-canceling headsets. The bin can be raised and lowered too.
I love the outlet station with Universal and USB power ports.
Tray table
Menu & Wine List
As I was getting settled, a wonderful flight attendant approached me and welcomed me onboard, as well as asking for my choice of pre-takeoff beverage. I chose the mint lemonade again.
Yes hot towels were available on this flight (I presume all long-haul flights have hot towel service now!)
She also told me to check out the menu and wine list, and reminded me that you could order whatever dishes you want at whatever time. She would be back for my choice of beverage and possibly meal or snacks after takeoff.
Pre-select Dining available was available and I pre-ordered the seafood main course, which was a cod and lobster tail dish.
Despite the late start to boarding, door was closed at 8:31am, but sadly ATC delay delayed our pushback to 8:48am.
It was interesting to spot all these planes, including various British Airways’ A380s, as we taxied towards R/W16L.
We took off at 9:09am and our flying time was twelve hours and thirty-two minutes, as we climbed to 32,000ft over the Persian Gulf, and then headed towards Iraq and Turkey, before climbing 34,000ft over Eastern and Central Europe, and then onto the UK. We climbed further to 35,000ft after passing Manchester. We stayed at 36,000ft over the Atlantic Ocean before entering Canada through Byron Bay in Newfoundland, and then Goose Bay Airport. We traveled along St Lawrence River before landing in YUL. It was a mostly calm ride over the Ocean.
I ordered an unsweetened Iced Mint Tea for my first post-takeoff beverage and the warmed bowl of mixed nuts made its appearance.
Here is the transcript of the menu and wine list. I presume this same menu is used on most of the long haul flights to North America during September and October.
A la carte
Dine at any time of your choosing and in any order, from our extensive a la carte menu
Soup of the Day
Created by our chefs from the freshest ingredients
Please ask your cabin crew for today’s choice
[Corn Bacon Soup]
Appetizers
*Signature Arabic mezze
Hummus, tabbouleh and muhammara served with Arabic bread
Wood smoked trout tartare
Fillet of mackerel and compressed watermelon
Mains
Braised Australian lamb shank with jus
Charred polenta and grilled seasonal vegetables
Seared Atlantic cod fillet and poached lobster tail with saffron beurre blanc
Creamy saffron barley risotto, sautéed asparagus and cauliflower
Vegetable Indian Biryani [Vegan]
Mixed pickle and papadum
Artisan bread
Dip your bread or drizzle one of our fine olive oils on your favorite dish.
Monte Vibiano olive oils infused with balsamic vinegar, tomato chili, spicy lemon and pomegranate are available upon request.
Desserts
Classic New York baked cheesecake with strawberry compote
Gooey chocolate and cherry cake with freshly whipped cream
Light options
Braised short rib with red cabbage sauerkraut
Jacket baby potato and sour cream with chives
Afternoon tea
Fresh finger sandwiches, warm scones, clotted cream and French pastries
Lobster claw and avocado open sandwich
Caesar Salad
Cheese plate
Selection of finest international cheese
Served with grainex, lavosh and assortment of accompaniments
Breakfast
Fresh orange juice
Mixed fruit smoothie
Starters
*Seasonal fresh fruits
*Greek yogurt with strawberry compote and toasted granola with nuts
Choice of breakfast cereals – Kellogg’s Corn Flakes or Fruit ‘n Fibre
Assiette of cold cuts
Cherry tomato, goat cheese with chives and boiled egg with caviar
Mains
Beef bacon and cheese omelette with home-made veal sausage
Turmeric roasted potatoes, baked vine ripened tomatoes and sautéed spinach
Shakshouka, baked eggs in fragrant Arabic tomato stew
Saffron potatoes, smoked aubergine, moutabel rolls and grilled Halloumi cheese
*Pongal and dosa
Chutney and sambar
Butter Croissant
*Vegetarian dishes may contain dairy products.
All dishes are prepared according to Islamic principles.
DOH-USA/JC/LDMC/LO4/HBMC/CY3/C1
Wine List
Champagne
Lallier Grande Reserve Brut France
Charles Heidsieck Rose Reserve France
White Wines
Chardonnay
Jean-Marc Brocard Chablis Premier Crus 2016 Burgundy, France
Sauvignon Blanc
Mohua Sauvignon Blanc 2018, Marlborough, New Zealand
Discovery
Oro de Castilla Verdejo de Rueda 2018, Spain
Red Wines
Bordeaux
Chateau Batailley Grand Cru Classé Pauillac 2013, France
Syrah
Chateau Ste Michelle Syrah 2015, Columbia Valley, USA
Discovery
Batasiolo Barbera d’Alba 2017, Itally
Dessert
Sensi
Vin Santo del Chianti 2009, Tuscany, Italy
Port
Graham’s 20-Year Old Tawny Port, Portugal
ULH SEPT-21 V2
When the flight attendant came back, she verified my pre-order main course. I just told her that I wanted to have the main meal (lunch I guess) right after takeoff. I ordered soup, which was a corn & bacon soup, followed by the seafood starter. Of course, I had the seafood entrée, and for dessert, I ordered the cheese plate later. I also asked her about the latest time in getting my pre-arrival meal. She said it was fine up to an hour prior to arrival. If I want to pre-order something, she’s happy to do so now. So I took up her offer and pre-ordered my breakfast. I told her she could serve my breakfast two hours prior to departure and she could wake up if I was asleep. I highly recommend pre-ordering the main course for all the major meals after takeoff.
At around 10am, my lunch was served course by course. Everything was done in the right way. The presentation was amazing, not to mention the quality of the food served. I love every single dish and will be happy to get this meal at a high-end restaurant. Yes, the “candle” was back.
First course served was this lovely Corn puree soup topped with chopped bacon.
For starter, I chose “Wood smoked trout tartare with fillet of mackerel and compressed watermelon,” as I was never a fan of Arabic Mezze plate. The starter was nice, although I preferred the seafood trio slightly on my previous segment. Don’t get me wrong! The seafood was still fresh and delicious.
I don’t really eat lamb, so the cod and lobster tail is pretty much my only choice here. I just love this dish. Both the cod and lobster fillet were cooked and seasoned perfectly. The risotto and saffron sauce went well with the dish. I will order this dish in a restaurant. Qatar really gets top scores for its inflight catering.
For dessert, I decided to stay with the cheese plate, which was definitely more first class than business class cheese plate. It came with various fruits and garnishes, and that basket of crackers definitely made the service stood out even more compared to all its competitors.
Of course I ended the meal with a cup of hot mint tea.
After lunch, we were over Iraq.
I took these lovely engine shots at 7A, the window seat after Door 2.
The lovely F/A also told me that they have a bed turndown service on these ultra-long haul flights and just let them know after lunch so they could set it up.
I had a wonderful sleep on this really comfortable bed. I had plenty of room for my feet to move around. I kept my mask on but honestly would have no issue going without masks especially if most of my fellow seatmates were fully-vaccinated. (Seriously people, please go get vaccinated!) With the door closed, the bed/seat felt really private. I also want to add that the pajama was super comfortable too. I was actually wearing it here at the quarantine hotel in Hong Kong earlier this morning. When it comes to onboard products, catering and amenities, Qatar Airways is top notch.
In terms of entertainment, they no longer have Live TV on the two flights I was on. They have the normal array of movies and television programs, but I just played with my laptop and read my kindle. Their Super WIFI pass was $10 and it was a fair price. So I bought one for my phone and one for my laptop. They had a few blind spots but while I would not call it “super-fast,” it was acceptable.
At around 3:30pm Doha time, I decided to have a light snack from the light option menu. I settled on the “Lobster claw and avocado open sandwich with Caesar Salad,” which was actually nice. I heard nightmare stories about Qatar’s sandwiches, but this open-face sandwich worked pretty well. The bread was not dried out and the side salad was lovely.
As request, my breakfast was served at 12:30pm Montreal local time, and it was served in two courses.
The first course came with a fruit bowl, yogurt parfait, croissant, and a lovely cold cut platter. The menu did not list these three items – air-dried beef, salami, and sardine fillet.
The omelet was served later, and it was delicious. Honestly the omelet was moist and tasty. It was not dried out or rubbery. The food was just amazing.
I had a cup of tea afterward.
Hot towel and a box of Godiva chocolates were offered after the meal was completed.
Descent soon began at 2:16pm local time. It was a beautiful fall day here in Montreal.
We landed on R/W24L at 2:41pm. The airport was fairly quiet at this time, but there were plenty of international arrivals.
This Swiss Airbus A330-300 HB-JHF arrived slightly earlier than us from Zurich.
We parked at gate A59 seven minutes.
I did not take any pictures in the arrival hall for obvious reasons, but wanted to give you some insights about the arrival procedures. Every single passenger has to download the “ArriveCan” app and that is the version of filling out the arrival forms now. Deplaning is fairly normal, and before reaching the escalator towards the arrival hall in the basement level, there were two checkers, who made sure that we filled out the ArriveCan form. You have to show the QR code and I highly recommend you to make a screenshot of the QR code page in case your phone did not work on arrival. That is also the only time that they check your QR code too.
There was a queue manager in directing us to the lines of machines, where you verify your passport and information. I really miss not having my up to date NEXUS card. Thankfully that issue was resolved and my cousin brought me my new NEXUS card. Then we had to go through another queue in answering inquiries from the immigration officers. This stop will also determine if you will have to get a “mandatory” Covid-19 test on arrival. Given I came from Hong Kong, I got my blue sticker. By the time I got to the baggage claim and the bags were already coming out. Custom was no issue and I headed to the Shuttle stop in the departure level. Maybe I was expecting worse but my arrival experience here in Montreal was reasonable. My cousin arriving into Vancouver from the US has the opposite experience and the whole process took her two hours including being selected for Covid-19 test on arrival. However, just remember to download the ArriveCan app prior to arrival, and you will have a decent experience.
Qatar Airways is truly impressive in the air. The Q Suites are truly ground-breaking. Even the normal suites on the A350s are nice. I love the upholstery and color scheme that the airline chose for the aircraft. Burgundy red and grey work well together. I honestly was looking forward to the return flights, which will post on a separate thread.