Review of EVA Air flight from San Francisco to Taipei in Business

Airport Experience

Arriving to SFO at 22:00, which was decorated for the holidays.

Inside, the BR counters in Aisle 5 were very quiet despite operating two flights (BR17/BR27). The BR27 crew had just arrived (seen on the right) and were dropping off their bags.

An agent came out to greet me and escorted me up to the Diamond counter. Check-in was very fast, boarding passes and lounge invitation card were handed over, and instructions were provided to ensure that I proceed to the correct gate since BR operates piggybacking flights (BR17/BR27) that depart 20 minutes apart.

Hand luggage was weighed and tagged before I was allowed to proceed.

Security was empty as usual. The wait times were listed as 2 minutes for regular security and <1 minute for PreCheck.

Reaching airside at 22:13, only ~10 minutes after being dropped off in front of the terminal highlighting the fluidity of SFO.

It will be hard left turn towards the lounges.

Air France Lounge

BR uses the AF Lounge at SFO, which is located on the first floor.

The lounge was very full when I entered since it supports both BR flights as well as PR. Here are some pictures taken before I left for the gate when it emptied out.

The buffet, that emphasizes quality over quantity.

The wines on offer with a California intruder to what is usually a French only offering.

I only took an espresso while I waited, with a dinner and better drink selection awaiting on the plane.

Boarding

The announcement was made in the lounge at 22:45 that boarding was starting soon so I started the walk down the terminal.

The FIDS tonight. The traffic to TPE is impressive with 5 flights departing within an hour of each other nightly (2x BR, 1x CI, 1x JX, and 1x UA). We would be the last of the five.

We are departing from Gate A8 tonight, which is one of the few gates aligned with the aircraft. Our plane tonight would be B-16739, their second youngest B77W delivered in August 2017. It has their 77B configuration which has 39J (1-2-1), 56W (2-4-2), and 258Y (3-4-3) seating. The flight would be 100% full in J and ~90% full in W (from what I could tell).

Boarding was on-time and orderly as usual on BR with Zone 1 boarding after the wheelchairs. Entering through L1, I was greeted by a handful of FAs and shown through the galley and to the right. Passing through the larger forward cabin.

Reaching the rear mini-cabin with 4 rows of seats.

My seat for tonight, 11K.

Seat Tour

Pre-placed on the seat are a number of items including the amenity kit, slippers, headphones, duvet, and pillow. The extra pillows are stored above 11K so I always grab an extra.

In front, is the flip out 15" IFE screen on this "newer" cabin that has decent resolution and responsiveness to touch.

The footwell is wide and deep.

It can comfortably store 2 pillows and the duvet for size reference.

The limitation of this seat is closed storage with only these 2 open compartments available.

The side console houses the touch screen IFE remote, reading lamp, AV jack, 2x USB-A ports, and 110V universal outlet.

The self explanatory seat controls.

The side armrest can be raised or lowered.

The seatback features a coat hook and literature compartment.

Pre-Flight Service, Amenities, and Menus

Shortly after sitting down, I'm welcomed on board by the FA working my aisle providing a hot scented towel and asking what I would like to drink: water, sparking water, sparkling wine, or juice. She quickly returns with my orange juice. Menus were pre-placed on the side table, but long gone are the Valrhona chocolates and poems that used to be left for passengers.

Another FA came down offering pajamas. I was excited to see that we would get the new Maison Kitsuné collaboration amenities. From out-stations, the amenities are black. These went straight into my bag, but pictures of the new offering is available on EVA's publicity page here.

The purser came by to welcome me on-board followed by the FA returning to take meal orders. As a late night departure, we get an abbreviated supper service (does not include the Prelude, Soup, or Salad courses) with 3 options for main. There are also a selection of mid-flight snacks and then breakfast is served before arrival (3 options). The FA confirmed my pre-ordered mains and asked what I would like to drink to start each meal.

BR offers online pre-ordering starting 21 days before the flight with an expanded selection of mains for the Supper service.

Breakfast, unfortunately, does not offer any additional choices.

The drinks on BR continue to be amongst the best in the sky with pages and pages of both alcoholic and non-alcoholic options. No Laurent-Perrier Grand Siècle for the US routes and we will retain the 2015 Veuve Clicquot La Grande Dame instead to accompany a good selection of reds. BR also added a non-alcoholic sparking wine to its cellar.

Push Back, Taxi, and Take-Off

The safety video has not been updated in a while and is still the same spy themed one.

We pushed back at 23:59 slightly behind schedule, shortly followed by the iconic GE90 start-up sequence.

The mood lighting was turned on for departure with the starry sky visible.

The cabin artwork is always nice on BR.

We did our taxi out to runway 28R and held for about 15 minutes, which I can only assume was waiting for our arrival slot into TPE since it gets very heavy arrival traffic in the early morning. A view of the UA B77W departing to MNL.

Turning to align on runway 28R.

We finally took off at 00:27 rising up and over South San Francisco before crossing through the marine layer.

After clearing 10,000 feet, the crew started up service on this late night departure as we start our ~13.5h trek across the Pacific..

The tray table slides out from the side ensuring good aisle access even when deployed.

It is bi-fold in design, but large and very sturdy (laptop for size reference).

Linens are laid.

Preludes have been removed from the late night departure service protocol and we are instead given a small bowl of mixed nuts and dried fruits. This will be accompanied by a pour of the 2015 Veuve Clicquot La Grande Dame. 

The crew then proceeded to distribute water bottles. They have retained Evian, but increased the bottle size to 500mL, which greatly improves hydration to reduce jet lag.

The crew then sets the table for our supper service.

The setting includes bread bowl, French butter, balsamic/olive oil, and salt/pepper shakers.

Drinks were refilled and the starter was presented.

Crab and Smoked Salmon Cucumber Cannelloni. A very nice starter, perfect for a late night meal.

Breads were offered from a basket, I opted for the olive stick.

The main course was then delivered with another refill of drinks. I opted for my favorite pre-order option: Stir Fried Lobster with Ginger and Scallion, Egg Fried Rice. Another delicious and light late night dish.

The table was reset as the dessert offering was presented accompanied by a pour of Hennessy XO. The plate contains a Selection of Fresh Fruit and the Cheesecake with Candied Orange. Surprisingly, no hot towel was offered after the meal.

Lavatory

After eating, I went to the lavatory near L2 that was large and clean. There is a fold-down bench for changing clothes and an abundance of Ideology amenities (facial mist, hand soap, body lotion, and aroma mist). They do not stock single-use items any more (toothbrushes, mouth wash, combs, etc.)

Mid-Flight Part 1

Returning to my seat, turndown service was completed. BR has recently upgraded its mattress pads and they are a lot better than the thin cotton sheets previously used.

The FA offered more drinks so I took an Oolong tea that was served with a small chocolate.

The lights were quickly dimmed as the service concluded just over 1.5h into the flight and I converted the seat to bed mode. BR's duvet is the best in my opinion, with good quality fabric and weight. Despite the hard product's age, it is still one that consistently enables me to get good sleep so I can overlook its lack of modern flair.

Snack Service

I woke up after a solid 5h sleep and pressed the call button. The crew was at my side in seconds and I ordered their dim sum off the Sky Delight menu and a cup of Oolong tea. I like how they set the table with linens even for snacks.

Selected Cantonese Dim Sum with XO sauce. A nice little trio and better than most dim sum I have had on a plane.

A glass of the Johnnie Walker Blue Label to sip while I work before settling into another nap as we cross the length of Japan.

In-Flight Entertainment

BR has Panasonic Wi-Fi, which is definitely not the fastest. However, BR currently offers complimentary unlimited access to all passengers, which is rare.

This plane has the new IFE interface for Star Gallery.

The interface is decent for navigation and the content is above average with a large portfolio of Asian content.

Mid-Flight Part 2

The crew was also through the cabin periodically offering more water bottles and snacks from a basket. There is always a good selection of Taiwanese snacks available.

Our route today took us along the western coast of Honshu.

Flying over Kitakyushu, one of my favorite cities in Kyushu. You can see the Kanmon Bridge just left of the engine that connects Kyushu to Honshu.

Second Meal Service

The mood lighting turned on as we left Kyushu signaling less than 2h left in the flight.

Linens were laid and hot scented towels were handed out.

Pre-ordered drinks were then distributed. My espresso was served with a stirrer with rock sugar.

The breakfast is served by tray starting with a fruit plate and accompaniments.

On the left is a muesli topped with pumpkin seeds and strawberries and on the right is a yogurt with citrus.

Breads were offered from a basket and I took a warm, flakey croissant.

The fruit plate is removed and then the main course is brought out. I had bravely opted for the Eggs Benedict, Canadian Bacon, Hollandaise Sauce.

Not bad execution for a poached egg on a plane, but clearly not as good as on land. I like the healthy serving of vegetables (spinach, asparagus, peppers, and tomatoes) since I only ate the egg and Canadien bacon and left the muffins.

Meal service concluded with another hot scented towel and a cup of Pu'er tea.

Arrival into Taipei-Taoyuan

As we approached Taiwan, the mandatory pre-arrival videos played.

I was in the bathroom changing when the purser came by with the candy dish, but she had left me one of each at my seat.

View of the cabin as we complete our u-tun to approach TPE from the southwest.

Low visibility on approach with dense fog and rain.

First sight of land as we drop into Taoyuan.

BR's pilots are good and it was a kiss landing on runway 05R at 06:02 slightly behind schedule followed by a short taxi over to T2.

Impossible to spot anything as the rain continued to fall.

We pulled into our gate C3 at 06:07, just 5 minutes after landing.

A warm goodbye from the crew as we head into the terminal.

Taiwan is part of OSS, so we are shown directly back into the gate area with an onward boarding pass. The connections board is visible with all gate information.

I'll leave off this series here as I start my layover in Taoyuan, thanks for stopping by!

Flight Information

EVA Air, BR17
Equipment: Boeing 777-300ER [B-16739, delivered August 2017]
Departure: 23:50 (ATD: 00:27)
Arrival: 05:55 (ATA: 06:02)
Flight time: 13:36