view by sfflyer123, on Flickr

I flew from Istanbul to San Francisco in TK’s business class. I connected from ZRH on the 8am flight, and because IST airport was under construction, there was significant connection time problems. We did not park at a gate, but rather at an off-site parking spot, requiring a bus. Then, there was a huge shlep to go from there, through the massive security line, and then through the terminal to the IST-SFO flight. I had a 2 hour lay-over, and I barely walked on with enough time to get on the plane. This was with a lot of running, along with a bunch of other passengers. I was so late on the plane, that I didn’t even get a pre-departure drink. Of course, there was no time for the lounge, which is supposed to be one of the best in the world for business (not first) class.

For the entire report, you can see the video (no commercials or ads) here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=naRVa7TXaXw

For those who want the text report, it is below:

View of the plane getting on board.

view of plane by sfflyer123, on Flickr

Once on the plane, however, you are transported to a world of luxury. The seat is so big that I could barely put my feet on the foot rest, and I am 6’1” tall. When I did, I had to stretch my leg there, and it was uncomfortable, so it was better just to rest my feet on the floor.

leg room by sfflyer123, on Flickr

After take off, we had a very nice glass of Bordeaux. The Turkish wine selection is excellent. They are all extremely high caliber wines, better than most wines I have had on UA, LX, and LH. I had nuts to accompany the wine.

nuts by sfflyer123, on Flickr


We then started off with an amuse bouche, which was 3 big pieces of food. Bigger than most appetizers you get in San Francisco.

amuse bouche by sfflyer123, on Flickr

Afterwards, I got the appetizer, which was delicious. I was about completely full after that appetizer and amuse bouche.

appetizer for dinner by sfflyer123, on Flickr

Then, I elected to have the soup which was good, but not great. I could not eat the bread with the tapenade since it was too much food. I did change to the Turkish red which was equally as delicious, if not better than the Bordeaux.

soup by sfflyer123, on Flickr

I then ordered the kebab since we were on a Turkish flight, and it too was delicious. I could only take about 2-3 bites before giving the rest back since it was simply way too much food.

kebab by sfflyer123, on Flickr

Afterwards, I wanted to try some dessert since it looked so delicious off the cart.

dessert by sfflyer123, on Flickr

After that, I then went and got some good sleep. The flight was about 13 hours, and I think I slept 8 hours on this flight. It was very restful and the cabin was not too hot (unlike LH) nor was it too cold (like UA).

Afterwards, I awoke, and we had our pre-arrival meal. We first had an appetizer which was so big, and it was more food than most pre-arrival meals are in many airlines. It was delicious and healthy, a very Mediterranean type diet.

appetizer by sfflyer123, on Flickr

I then chose the prawns and pasta. I should have chosen the Turkish pastry instead, but oh well. It was still good.

Pre arrival prawns and pasta by sfflyer123, on Flickr

Overall, TK has an outstanding product. If convenience were not the issue and if they gave the same elite qualifying miles as LH or LX or UA, I would fly TK all the time over the other airlines. However, the two things which make me still fly UA or LH is that they are shorter flights and the times are more convenient, and I get 2x elite qualifying miles no United. Otherwise, TK is a far superior product.

Once again, the entire video report is here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=naRVa7TXaXw

I hope you enjoy it, and thanks for watching!

Wow what wonderful service you had there, the food service looked way better than some airlines First Class service.
TK is certainly a superior product, lucky you.

Quoting readytotaxi (Reply 1): Wow what wonderful service you had there, the food service looked way better than some airlines First Class service. TK is certainly a superior product, lucky you.

thank you so much. I agree with your comment about it being better than some airlines' first class service. Thanks.

That is really some outstanding looking food service. You should've saved that kebab, there's another trip report guy on here and he only eats meat on every airplane ride and at every meal. I bet he would've been thrilled if you'd Fedexed that to him.

Their meal services is identical to mine back in October 2015.

I've never seen an airline serve more food than Turkish Airlines. Their Business Class looks amazing!

Thanks for sharing.

Matthew (767747)

Quoting readytotaxi (Reply 1): Wow what wonderful service you had there, the food service looked way better than some airlines First Class service. TK is certainly a superior product, lucky you.

Ain't that the truth! I thought CX F was the ultimate in luxury - but WOW. That is just stunning. TK sure have their act together. I swear your first meal was probably more food than AA serves total, even on their longest flights! Unreal.

Thanks for sharing!

Thanks for the trip report. I totally agree that IST airport is a mess. It is far too crowded with long lines and not enough gates. In general, FRA and IST are my least favorite airports to transit for star alliance hubs. The Turkish lounge is great, but the rest of the airport is a crowded disaster.

It looks like you had a great meal service. Last year I flew Turkish IST-YUL and felt that the meal service was a bit clunky disorganized and slow. While the food is exceptional and there are so many courses to keep you full, a little bit of turbulence and the whole service drags on and gets messy. I did not like spending 3 hours eating. I think a Turkish meal service uses more knives, forks, spoons, cups, plates, utensils, etc than I use in my house in a week. It is a lot of work for the crews. Some love it, but I found the crews were not able to ensure we had water and anything other than wine and they took too long to clear away the plates.

Thanks for the report.
You win some, you lose some. TK, like others finds that it is very hard to please everyone but I think at least they are trying more than they can chew. Can't blame them for trying.
I just don't mind the extra plates, serving and such. Why not? Last year IST-JFK, I was told I finished two bottles of champagne myself. Didn't even feel it, had a great time.
About IST, well hard to believe it is still growing, 8 more gates coming soon.
The new airport is two years away (fingers crossed). Here is the latest construction video a.net member LAXintl posted in Turkish Aviation thread :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRYGx8N9wOE

Quoting TK787 (Reply 8): Why not? Last year IST-JFK, I was told I finished two bottles of champagne myself. Didn't even feel it, had a great time.

Did you visit your health counselor afterwards? Having two bottles of wine without feeling it may indicate a serious health issue!

Quoting rabenschlag (Reply 9): Did you visit your health counselor afterwards? Having two bottles of wine without feeling it may indicate a serious health issue!

Since when is a high level of alcohol dehydrogenase a health issue? And if the meal service indeed has taken several hours, it's even less of a problem.

Quoting roseflyer (Reply 7): Last year I flew Turkish IST-YUL and felt that the meal service was a bit clunky disorganized and slow. While the food is exceptional and there are so many courses to keep you full, a little bit of turbulence and the whole service drags on and gets messy. I did not like spending 3 hours eating.

Yes, it may be a problem on TK36 departing YUL at 23:05. One would like to sleep. However, I definitely wouldn't mind a long meal service on TK35. BTW, was the MLL available until the boarding started?

I'm finally flying TK this summer. The routing is YXU-YYZ-YUL-IST-BUD-IST-YYZ-YXU. The long flights are TK36 and TK17, so I'm about to experience a TK 333 and a TK 77W.

Quoting wingman (Reply 3): That is really some outstanding looking food service. You should've saved that kebab, there's another trip report guy on here and he only eats meat on every airplane ride and at every meal. I bet he would've been thrilled if you'd Fedexed that to him

Good suggestions! Thank you.

Quoting 767747 (Reply 5): I've never seen an airline serve more food than Turkish Airlines. Their Business Class looks amazing! Thanks for sharing. Matthew (767747)

thank you, Matthew. Yes, I know. so much food!

Quoting 9w748capt (Reply 6): Ain't that the truth! I thought CX F was the ultimate in luxury - but WOW. That is just stunning. TK sure have their act together. I swear your first meal was probably more food than AA serves total, even on their longest flights! Unreal. Thanks for sharing!

Thanks so much. Yes, tons of food!

Quoting roseflyer (Reply 7): Thanks for the trip report. I totally agree that IST airport is a mess. It is far too crowded with long lines and not enough gates. In general, FRA and IST are my least favorite airports to transit for star alliance hubs. The Turkish lounge is great, but the rest of the airport is a crowded disaster. It looks like you had a great meal service. Last year I flew Turkish IST-YUL and felt that the meal service was a bit clunky disorganized and slow. While the food is exceptional and there are so many courses to keep you full, a little bit of turbulence and the whole service drags on and gets messy. I did not like spending 3 hours eating. I think a Turkish meal service uses more knives, forks, spoons, cups, plates, utensils, etc than I use in my house in a week. It is a lot of work for the crews. Some love it, but I found the crews were not able to ensure we had water and anything other than wine and they took too long to clear away the plates.

Yes, I think the meal is the highlight of their business class product. You would be best served if you were a 300 pound man who just finished working out and have a massive appetite!

Quoting TK787 (Reply 8): Thanks for the report. You win some, you lose some. TK, like others finds that it is very hard to please everyone but I think at least they are trying more than they can chew. Can't blame them for trying. I just don't mind the extra plates, serving and such. Why not? Last year IST-JFK, I was told I finished two bottles of champagne myself. Didn't even feel it, had a great time. About IST, well hard to believe it is still growing, 8 more gates coming soon.

Thanks. Sounds like a great time!

Quoting rabenschlag (Reply 9): Did you visit your health counselor afterwards? Having two bottles of wine without feeling it may indicate a serious health issue!

LOL!

Quoting WildcatYXU (Reply 10): Since when is a high level of alcohol dehydrogenase a health issue? And if the meal service indeed has taken several hours, it's even less of a problem.

LOL!

Quoting sfflyer123 (Thread starter): We did not park at a gate, but rather at an off-site parking spot, requiring a bus. Then, there was a huge shlep to go from there, through the massive security line, and then through the terminal to the IST-SFO flight. I had a 2 hour lay-over, and I barely walked on with enough time to get on the plane.

This seems to be an issue in IST. Last year we had this same problem. The terminal is so full that there is no way to run to your next gate at all. It was shoulder to shoulder and traveling with the flow.

Quoting WildcatYXU (Reply 10): Quoting rabenschlag (Reply 9): Did you visit your health counselor afterwards? Having two bottles of wine without feeling it may indicate a serious health issue! Since when is a high level of alcohol dehydrogenase a health issue?

I wrote MAY, not IS. But nevertheless:

A genetically high level of ADH may create problems because it may promote regular overconsumption. High ADH --> fewer hangovers --> fever punishment for maltreatment of the body. Evidence indeed suggest that people who rarely get hangovers have a higher risk of alcohol related health problems. As in the current example: if your body does not punish you for indulging more than 120 grams of alcohol at a single occasion, you may consider doing this frequently. And if you do so, you'll fry your liver, stomach, pancreas and brain. In other words, tolerance is a problem if it PROMOTES frequent consumption.

Also: a high level of alcohol tolerance may indicate an health issue if it RESULTS from frequent consumption (and it often does). I'd say being able to down two bottles of wine (champagne), that is, indulging 120 grams of alcohol, without being totally wasted makes it a possibility that this may have happened before and rather often than not. Otherwise you'd may not have a tolerance like this (except for genetically high levels of ADH, but this also comes at a risk, see above).

Safe drinking limits are 20-30 grams per day for healthy men (but better stay below this).


Cheers,

r.

Quoting rabenschlag (Reply 13):

Well i have feeling you're reading too much into one sentence. But just btw, thre are many of us who have high alcohol tolerance and yet no drinking related health problems. One simply has to know when to pull the brake.

That said, I will drink rather sparsely on TK36. I have to drive 270 kms after arrival to BUD. I know, there is a safety cushion given by the flight time, connection time in IST and flight time to BUD, but still. Better safe than sorry.

Quoting WildcatYXU (Reply 10): Yes, it may be a problem on TK36 departing YUL at 23:05. One would like to sleep. However, I definitely wouldn't mind a long meal service on TK35. BTW, was the MLL available until the boarding started?

I don't know what MLL means.

Quoting roseflyer (Reply 15): I don't know what MLL means.

Maple Leaf Lounge. AC's business and frequent flyer lounge. Since you were flying J on a Star Alliance carrier, you should be able to use it.

Funny the nonsense about drinking two bottle of champagne.

2 bottles over 10+hr flight, plus preboarding time is hardly much. That is essentially sipping 8 glasses over maybe 11+ hours.

Anyhow one should relax and enjoy the fantastic journey on TK and a champagne compliments the experience well.

Quoting WildcatYXU (Reply 16): Quoting roseflyer (Reply 15): I don't know what MLL means. Maple Leaf Lounge. AC's business and frequent flyer lounge. Since you were flying J on a Star Alliance carrier, you should be able to use it.

I flew IST-YUL-LGA on my return. On the way over to Europe, I was on American, so I never flew TK out of YUL. I did use the Maple Leaf Lounge in YUL on the flight back.

I flew DEL-IST-STR last year and I was flown away by TK catering; by far and away the best and most filling J catering of any airline.

Quoting cricket (Reply 19): I flew DEL-IST-STR last year and I was flown away by TK catering; by far and away the best and most filling J catering of any airline.

Wait a second, TK sounds great but you either flew and got blown away or you blew and got flown away. The catering can only do so much my friend, so I'm guessing it was the former.