Review of Etihad Airways flight from Toronto to Abu Dhabi in First

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, welcome to another review. No introduction needed for this one, welcome to the greatest seat commercial aviation has to offer, welcome to Etihad’s The Residence. 

London, Paris, Singapore, and Toronto are the only four destinations currently offering The Residence on Etihad’s A380s. Toronto is our location of choice, since the other three offer half the duration and (especially for London and Paris) double the price. Toronto is the best option and value for money.

From back in the day when one ticket would cost 25,000 USD with an onboard butler, to when I have various arguments with friends refusing to believe this was offered on a commercial airline, this seat has always mesmerized me. I wanted to grasp a general idea of what to expect, and the gloriously positive reviews left me skeptical, as quite often your own experience likely differs. I can set the record straight right from the beginning, this seat was insane.

Without spoiling all the details, let’s get into it. This was undoubtably the review I spent the most time on, me writing this very sentence literally three hours after disembarking my flight. I didn’t want to miss any little detail or feeling I experienced, and I cannot wait to share it with everyone. Looking at the completed version on my word doc I’m nearing 11 pages of pure text… and 141/150 of the image limit..sorry for the long read! On we go!

We begin this adventure at Pearson Airport Terminal 1 in Toronto. I spent the evening at the Sheraton Hotel attached to Terminal 3, with direct access to T1 via a tram. I paid for a runway view room, which was quite exciting until the noise became difficult to fall back asleep in the early morning.

Immediately after arriving at the Etihad check-in area, I walked over to “The Residence & First” area and an Etihad agent welcomed me and introduced the lovely Grace (for privacy purpose, not the real name) who would escort me through the airport. More on her in a bit, she was awesome.  

Since Beijing was my final destination, my bag was checked straight to China. I received my boarding pass within a few minutes with a green Residence holder. Grace took me over through fast-track security and we were in within a few minutes. 

Having flown through Pearson’s US/Canadian concourse multiple times I was quite confused as to why we were here as opposed to the international gates. Now this was the biggest disappointment of the trip, but it had nothing to do with the actual flight experience. Let me explain: It turns out Etihad only offers Plaza Premium lounge access to Residence/F passengers. There is a dedicated space for us within the lounge, and even within this space Residence/F and J passengers are separated, but really we were all there together.

. Despite this “exclusivity”, the lounge is just not great. For comparison, most people avoid this lounge even flying domestic, and clearly Etihad passengers shared this sentiment as I only saw 4 other passengers (J and F) in total.

Some pictures of the buffet options here, I didn’t end up having any. 

I asked Grace if I could go downstairs to buy some food and she shared her business card with me. I headed to A&W for some poutine and chicken strips, oh how heavenly!

Upon returning, I sat down for around 20 minutes where during this time a staff member came by once offering a “salad” and second time some macaroons. The salad was just… at least the macaroons were good. 

I just assumed that our flight was an exception and that we just happened to fly out from the domestic D gates. But when I checked the board, it showed E71 (E being the international concourse) and immediately decided to bail to go check out bigger planes at the international concourse. Having left me her number, I gave Grace a quick call and she was happy for us to dip. She explained that Etihad’s own lounge was under construction, but let’s be honest, whether you fly J or F, an airline like Etihad only offering a pay to use lounge is honestly unacceptable. For reference, Emirates F passengers have access to the exclusive AC Signature Suite, which has been praised as one of the (or the) best lounge in North America.

This was my first time flying out of Pearson’s E gates, and Grace took me down a long corridor. Initially when we first met, she seemed to reserve judgement on the lounge situation, but during our walk we chatted extensively and she admitted how many Etihad passengers have complained about it, and she agrees. I also realized that nearly every single airport employee, whether a wheelchair agent or ticketing agent or anything, seemed to be tight buddies with her!

She was also telling me about how every time a coworker sees her escorting someone, they’re immediately excited to check out who since its extremely common for a celebrity to be her passenger. Some extremely big names were mentioned, think major Toronto based singers with hundreds of millions of passengers. I apologized for not being the most exciting passenger, but she laughed it off and thanked me for helping her avoid paparazzi. I also learned she represents Plaza Premium rather than Etihad, and that any passenger flying anywhere can use their services. Such services not offered by Plaza Premium in Vancouver, I guess their airport is too small to require it.  

No addition security is required between the two concourses, and arriving at the international section Grace offered to take my suitcase and wait at the gate while I did some plane spotting. Unfortunately, AC’s international fleet leave far later during the day, and whilst I did see an Air India jet and a few widebody AC’s they were all parked at angles difficult to snap. I grabbed a coffee and headed over to my gate where a hoard of passengers were waiting to board EK’s A380 to Dubai. It was quite interesting watching the boarding process which must’ve taken a good half hour.

I also caught the first glimpse of my giant, albeit not from a perfectly clear angle.

I was asked earlier if I wanted to be the first passenger on board, and of course I did! With a planned departure of 14:53, Grace and I began lining up at around 13:30. There were a group of wheelchair passengers at the gate, and Grace confirmed we were up as soon as they passed through. We ended up waiting until around 13:50 before being allowed onto the jet bridge, where we were stopped again for a good 20 minutes. This gave me a final chance to yap with Grace, where she shared the most polite and hardest to deal with celebrities. What a lovely lady!

Finally, at around 14:00, I was allowed on board. I bode farewell to Grace as I stepped onto the giant that is the A380. I was immediately greeted at the door and escorted through the gorgeous F cabin.

At the very front, on the left, The Residence, in all its glory. My jaw dropped, I could not believe what I was looking at, I was all but ready to turn around and go to a different seat. This first shot was only 1/3 of it all, and this is the equivalent of what is already an incredible regular F seat.

There were three cushions waiting for me, two blankets, some headphones and Wi-Fi code, and a box of tissues. Many many more amenities were to come. There were times during the flight the Wi-Fi struggled with connection, but for 90% of the journey it worked with no problems. The speed was quite solid, enough to surf the web and even to watch some short videos in certain areas.

Snapping back to reality, I remembered a perk of boarding first, that being the ability to snap shots of the entire cabin empty, which is what I did.  

Right outside my seat, the gorgeous grand staircase.

Back at my seat, my lovely crew member introduced herself and welcomed me to The Residence. After inquiring whether this was my first time, she began doing an extensive seat (or room?) tour.

On the ottoman, the middle and right side open as large storage spaces.

The left side opens up to a minibar filled with coke, sprite, and still/sparkling water. This is the only mini bar on a flight that is chilled and not room temperature. 

Next, she mentioned the left and right sides of the seat mirror each other with both sides opening to reveal charging ports and tray tables.

In addition, two consoles and smaller storage spaces were featured, mirroring on both sides. 

The IFE screen is giant, with more info on the offerings in a bit. 

The two blankets, up close.

A quick glance over near the windows.

My wonderful crew member brought my suitcase into the bedroom and placed it underneath the bed.

The headphone case along with my WiFi card placed inside.

I was then presented with the food and beverage menus. 

Let’s take a look. I do appreciate Etihad condensing everything into a few pages, saves me time and the need to take tens of pictures. The Residence does have the exact same menu as F passengers, however. First up, the "cellar"! 

Next up, the "dining" and amenity list.

Onto the bedroom, I still cannot believe that’s something I can say on a plane. 

There another remote there for the TV in your bedroom, along with charging ports and light switches. A small cup holder is also available with some space to place any snacks. 

Two more cushions and four pillows were placed. A full-on hotel room bed, and it was just as comfortable when sleeping. 

The IFE screen here which I believe is the same size as the one in the living room.

On the left side of your bed lies a massive mirror. I wasn’t quite sure the purpose of it, but I must admit my initial thoughts seeing its location was… “this is the perfect mirror to watch yourself when sleeping (or doing other activities…) while in bed…” Sorry!! Moving on!!! 

The door to the bedroom does have a small "lock" which fully seals it shut, but for safety reasons can also be opened from outside.

There’s also air vents within the bedroom, points for ventilation!

Back to the living room, something about the fact there is a hallway within my seat is just crazy. Just standing in that hallway connecting the rooms offers more space than some airplane seats. What a view, really couldn’t get enough of it. 

My lovely crew member then came by asking for pre-flight beverages, and of course I had to go with the Champagne. Etihad offers Vintage 2009 Nicolas Feuillatte. 

Since I wanted to maximize me time awake on this flight, and the fact it was only 14:00 local time, I ordered an iced americano which came with some dates and a wet towel. 

I also received a champagne refill, because how couldn’t I? Arabic coffee was also offered, piping hot!

The purser then came by to introduce herself and to welcome me on board. I didn’t see much of her until the second half of the flight when she took over service from my initial crew member. Both ladies were the perfect combination of being personable and professional. I genuinely don’t think I can think of any room for improvement for either of them.

Let’s take a moment to explore the final room, my own lavatory in the sky.  Etihad does not slack with the amenities even knowing no one else will be using it, fully stocked with amenities.

It also features a private shower. 

The walls are also finished with Etihad’s branding, beautiful. 

I also checked out the F lavatory shortly after take off, and it had essentially the identical layout to mine. 

Sitting back down in the living room, my lovely crew member, from here on out I’ll refer to her as Anita, returned with a ‘refreshment set’ featuring some facial spray, tissues, mouthwash, and an envelope which contained a face mask and some hydrogel.

Then she returned with slippers and a massive Giorgio Armani amenity kit featuring co-branded pajamas. 

These looked excellent, I love the black color scheme which resemble the duvet’s Etihad offer in business. 

Inside the amenity kit there was a dental kit and a pouch which opens to reveal some basic amenities. 

Looking out into the cabin, you can tell The Residence’s walls stand slightly higher than the other F seats, adding an extra touch of privacy when I can’t hide away in the bedroom.

I then checked out the IFE.

 Etihad has an extremely extensive offering, with films and TV shows from multiple genres. First up lets check out some shows. 

Next up we have our movies!

I also realized they were playing live TV and sat back to watch some Premier League. Hopefully Arsenal don’t win the league… sorry for any Gooners out there. 

The noise cancelling headphones looked identical to those offered in J but only with a slightly different color scheme. It would be nice if they added an extra layer of exclusivity investing in branded headphones for F passengers like EK does. Regardless, they worked very well throughout the flight and never did my ears feel discomfort.

The safety video then temporarily cut off my football match, and we began taxing nearly an hour after boarding. 

One last look at the snowy Toronto, and hey it’s another big A380 in the distance! The contrast between that and those smaller jets, it’s like a parent and their child. 

I then realized I could watch a different show on the big screen while simultaneously watching something else on the controller, time to watch two games at once! 

One of my favorite features on the A380 is the tail camera, I could have this on in the background the entire flight.

Just when I thought we would begin to takeoff, the captain came on the PA and mentioned de-icing. This held us back another hour. 

But honestly, I was most definitely not complaining. An extra minute in this seat is a win in my books. Eventually, we were finally cleared to take off at around 16:00, nearly 2.5 hours after the official boarding time. How incredible the A380 is, its sheer size allows you to barely feel anything when taking off. Onward and upwards to our 11-hour journey!

Immediately after taking off, the old fashioned I previously ordered was brought over along with some snacks: wasabi peas, olives, and mixed nuts. I asked Anita if she had anything else to replace the olives, and she gladly brought over some chips.

She then returned with a snack basket reminiscent of that offered on EK, I wonder who came up with the concept first. The jellybeans and mixed nuts seemed to be packaged in the exact same bottle as EK does, only with different exterior branding. I didn’t end up eating any of these snacks but rather took them with me upon landing.

Anita then complimented the Jellycat plushies I brought on board with me, and upon hearing they were gifts from my girlfriend, she offered to provide an extra amenity kit and pajama set for her to bring home. What a generous touch, points in the bag for soft service!

I then headed to use my personal lavatory for the first time, orange being my favorite color I love how the bright color compliments the general dark shade of black. 

Now then, time to eat! One of the distinctions between flying in the Residence vs in F is the elevated plates. This was the most beautiful plate I’ve seen in the skies, resembling something you would see in a Michelin starred restaurant.

Up first was the caviar course with all the traditional garnishes, along with Baltic salmon. I’ve read reviews of Swiss F where customers believe caviar should always be offered in F over their salmon course, I guess Etihad decided why not just provide both? I’ve never really had salmon of this sort before, and it was extremely fresh. I’ve never been the biggest fan of caviar but the bellinis were oven-fresh and extremely toasty, excellent.

I took a quick snap of the air vents up above; I really like the tiles they use for the overhead lights. The same patterns also featured in The Residence bedroom. 

I decided to watch some Friends during dinner. Although Etihad has lots of TV show options, they all feature select episodes from each season. Although not a huge inconvenience, it does make it difficult to follow from one episode to the next. 

Up next was my first of two plates of the lobster, with a second coming later on in the flight. As it lists on the menu, the poached lobster with baby gem lettuce, avocado, espelette pepper, wasabi cream and teriyaki sauce. This was wonderful, everything extremely fresh and the sauces helped an otherwise slightly bland lobster gain a rich flavor. 

Before my main course, I was served a raspberry sorbet. A nice palate cleanser, and the first airline I’ve seen offer this.

I then ordered a Coffee Negroni and a sweetened black tea from the beverage menu. Anita warned me the negroni was extremely strong, but the small portion helped with the alcohol content. The black tea was listed as being a sweet tea but was rather bitter. 

When ordering dinner, I asked about the portion sizes and if Anita thought I could do both the Steak Frites and Mushroom pasta. She suggested to place the pasta in the oven and bring out the steak first, having it ready if needed. As soon as she brought out the steak I was sure I could stomach both. 

First off, the actual steak was probably one of the best (I would have said 100% the very best, but Starlux’s ribeye is a strong contender) steaks I’ve had in the sky. After asking for medium rare, Anita admitted they would try their best but the Canadian beef cuts they receive often come out moreso medium well. Regardless, it was so extremely tender and flavorful, the highlight of the meal. Unfortunately, the frites were underwhelming. Cutting them open, the potato wasn’t fully cooked, and it was raw with crunch. I ended up just finishing off the steak. Not ideal.

The pasta too was slightly underwhelming. It just felt like something was missing, a sauce. The filling itself was fine, and the mushrooms and cheese pieces were very tasty. The issue is that actual pasta felt dry and when I asked about the “brown butter sage sauce” it was meant to come with as listed on the menu, I was told it was just some oil drizzled over the dish. With a rich sauce this would have been perfect but unfortunately left much to be desired.  

From a few reviews of the Residence that I’ve read, many have criticized the catering to some extent, and unfortunately, I must agree. The pasta wasn’t too dissimilar from the one I received in Etihad J back in October, if anything that one was more flavorful with a marinara sauce.

As the windows were closed, my meal came to an end, and I concluded with a chocolate ice cream paired with some Port wine.  Etihad’s the only place (on air or land) I’ve seen serve ice cream in this shape, I’m not complaining, it was solid and so was the wine.

As I finished eating, Anita offered to set up the shower. Your personal hairdryer located in the storage area. 

The amenities offered inside the shower suite. 

And a first for me, my own robe in the sky! 

Just like EK’s showers, you get five minutes of water. 

I washed my face and brushed my teeth before deciding to hop in, but by then the lights had turned off and after checking with Anita she informed me that she needed to do a shower reset as the lights turn off after a while of inactivity. My apologies! Fitting in body wash and shampoo within 5 minutes isn’t easy, but it helped that the water pressure was significantly stronger than on EK. I had also asked Anita how often I was allowed to use the shower suite, and after checking with the purser she gladly shared she managed to haggle two showers for me, so I had another one coming near the end of my journey!

After my rinse, Anita had already completed turndown service and placed another Old Fashioned for me in the living room.

I still couldn’t believe a full bed and bedroom was available on a plane. 

 Lying down, this looks nor feels nothing different than a hotel room anywhere on the ground. Although the Residence can accommodate up to two passengers in the bedroom, I must admit that sleeping with a partner will feel slightly cramped. I opened the IFE and for a few quick moments fully forgot I was on a plane.

The bed was heavenly, so incredibly comfortable. If this was a night flight I could easily have slept a good ten hours.

Since this was essentially a daytime flight, being early evening in Toronto, I was only able to get two or so hours of sleep. I woke up with around five hours to go, and headed back to the living room for some more food. I didn’t eat too much of the pasta during dinner so I was curious how other entrees would be. After ringing the crew bell a few times I realized I didn’t get a response. After heading over to the galley, my purser came by and did some technical masterwork before realizing my button was broken . She also informed me that she would be replacing Anita for the remainder of the flight.

For my second round of food, I kicked things off with a glass of champagne and a ginger ale. 

I then asked whether there was a spare portion of the lobster appetizer, and it was gladly offered. 

When I first boarded, Anita helped me take a short video of the business cabin and I noticed there was a lounge area between the F and J cabins on the second floor. When I visited earlier on in the flight, it was packed and so I couldn’t get any good shots. I asked the purser if she had some spare time to help me snap some pictures of it and quite a few times she regretfully told me it was occupied. Eventually, our luck kicked in and it was empty, here are some shots of it courtesy of her! 

IT’s a very cozy area, the dark lighting reminds me of an upscale bar. It seems like a nice place to chat but could start to feel cramped due to the limited space. I guess a point in EK’s favor for the onboard bar.

I then ordered the Arabic seafood soup. The purser apologized for the presentation as some of the soup seemed to have escaped from the top, impacting its visual appeal. Genuinely, this soup might have been the most flavorful dish I had all fligh I love something on the saltier side, and this delivered. I usually never plan to have bread when it’s a la carte but I devoured both pieces dipping it in the soup. My only issue was one of the pieces of seafood hadn’t been cooked thoroughly and was cold in the center. Otherwise, I genuinely thought this was the star, despite its appearance. 

Enter text here…

Another raspberry sorbet soon followed. 

For my main on this second round, I went with the chicken. I enjoyed this mainly because it had a sauce! The chicken was a bit dry, I couldn’t really tell if I was eating the skin or the meat since they sort of merged, which isn’t a great look since the skin is always the tastiest. Chicken is hard to get right on a flight, the sauce did wonders to improve the dish.

Finally, I ordered another glass of the Port wine and grabbed the cheese plate and a vanilla ice cream. I finished off the cheese plate leaving only my arch nemesis the blue cheese. When the purser came by to clean things up, we had a nice bonding moment over our mutual hatred towards blue cheese. 

A glass of apple juice to accompany.

By this point we had just under three hours until landing, around 9:30 am Abu Dhabi time. The purser inquired when I would like to have my second shower, letting me know the latest would be 11:15 for her to set everything up, as service had to conclude around 12:00. She also asked if I might want some breakfast, oh the thought of having breakfast in bed was appealing, but I genuinely couldn’t eat any more. I told her I’d set an alarm for 11:10 and be out and ready for my second show. A funny side note I wanted to mention was that when I first boarded the plane, Anita mentioned that she had to poke her head into my bedroom once in a while just for safety measures and please not to be alarmed if I saw her. I don’t think I ever ended up seeing either of them do so, I guess they’re quite discreet with it.

I couldn’t head back to sleep, so I began working on some reviews. To my surprise, Anita returned with some fruits, and I requested an Iced Americano.

I mentioned I thought I’d never see her again! She quickly helped me set up the shower again for my second round. Something I wanted to note: despite the incredible water pressure, one very minor issue with the shower suite is due to the positioning of the water nozzle, you will always be hit with a good second or two of freezing cold water when you first turn on the shower. Since you can’t turn the water on without shutting the door and fully being inside the suite, the splash of Antarctica is unavoidable. During my second shower I opened the door mid-rinse to grab a tissue, I was told the water shuts off when the door opens, but it kept going. I wonder if there’s a way not to be hit with the cold if I just stood outside with the shower door open for the first few seconds. I guess we’ll never know.

Once I finished up, I was back in the living room as the captain came on the PA to announce the painful imminent conclusion of this incredible journey. Anita and the purser then took turns to come by and thanked me for flying with them. We had a nice chat and upon mentioning I was going home for Chinese New Year, they flexed some Mandarin and we had a nice laugh.

I had asked for a tote bag or some sort of way I could store all the goodies and amenities offered during the flight. The crew apologized for not having anything larger and offered some paper duty free bags, specifically informing me that the amenity kits will not fit in them. I did some reorganizing and managed to stuff some clothing into the duty free bags to clear space in my luggage for the amenity kits.

My best buddy kept pressuring me throughout the flight to ask the crew whether they’ve ever caught anyone doing the devil’s tango, and I kept trying to delay asking until the very end. Finally, I apologized to Anita in advance and prefaced my idiot friend is peer-pressuring me to ask, and she just had a great laugh and responded that “well being 40,000 feet in the sky some people do like to experiment… hahhaha”.

Anita then returned with a tray featuring a cold towel, some chocolates, and a souvenir Arabic coffee cup was provided. I appreciated the souvenir, but upon second look it seems to be commemorating an inaugural flight from September 2025. Interesting  

Anita then shared that on page 8 of the magazine there lies a QR code if I wanted to share some feedback on my experience, and I couldn’t wait to offer all my compliments to the crew, with some comments on the food ….

Eventually, to my dismay, we landed at Zayed International Airport, meaning my time in the Residence was to a close. It’s not the end of the review though, as I’ll do a quick tour of the First-Class lounge. We passed by the gorgeous silver F1 livery Dreamliner.

Two members of Etihad ground staff picked me up at the gate as I bode farewell to my dynamic duo. We took a buggy over to the security check where for you guys who read my review from October on Etihad J might remember, I was yelled at by a drunk chap . I shared this with one of the ground staff members and she just sighs and admitted people are getting into arguments and even fights almost every day at the airport. Wow I wasn’t expecting that.

Since it was now deep into the night Toronto time, I was absolutely knackered. I was informed there are rest areas in the lounge but no bedrooms, so they suggested I check out the AUH hotel in the Terminal. Both staff members kindly guided me over to the hotel and waited as I checked in. I believe I paid 120 USD for 6 hours. Upon informing them I planned on sleeping until 20:00, 25 minutes before boarding my next flight, she told me an Etihad staff member would wait for me in the hotel reception area and escort me to the gate at 20:00. More on that in a little bit.

I really appreciated that they both came with me to the hotel before escorting me to the lounge, this was definitely not something they had to do and despite me insisting I could head over to the lounge myself, they were set on waiting for me to check-in. 

We then headed over to the First Class lounge which was a short 5 minute walk from the AUH Hotel. 

The two staff members bode farewell as I sat down in the dining area. Here was the a-la-carte dining menu. With the majority of EY’s flights taking off in the evening, the terminal was peacefully quiet at this time. The lounge shared in this feel as I was literally one of two guests in the dining area. 

After placing my order, I walked around to take some shots of the lounge. It’s far smaller than EK’s F lounges which encompass an entire floor, but I prefer EY’s décor and the overall atmospheric feel. 

There are three separate dining areas, all of which were almost fully empty. There’s a small buffet section featuring some finger food, but everything else was a-la-carte.

I didn’t end up using the shower suite as I was genuinely too sleepy. I also inquired about The Residence’s private rooms but was told they were only available for outbound Residence passengers.

For my meal I started off with a Coke Zero and glass of still water.  

Just like on the plane, I began with a lobster appetizer which was more or less identical to the one onboard, just without the various sauces.

I followed up with the Hainanese Chicken, both dishes were extremely fresh and a pleasantly small portion size so it wasn’t over filling. 

This felt like a full on dine in restaurant as a gentleman who resembled a restaurant maître d in a sharp black suit came around to recommend dishes and inquire on feedback. I was then presented with another menu card, an “all day menu”. 

I decided on one final dish, taking inspiration from the gentleman who just finished up his meal earlier when I first sat down, the lamb chops. 

A waiter came by and struck up a conversation with me asking what types of alcohol I usually drink. I answered by saying my pick of poison usually Whisky, but not today since I’m desperately sleep deprived. I guess I’m quite the pushover since immediately after he suggested a 21-year-old masterpiece whisky compliments the lamb chops perfectly, I folded and exclaimed “sounds good let’s do it!”, oops…

This is the resting/quiet area of the lounge at the very end. The lounging space all offer great views of the tarmac. 

This was the small buffet section at one of the dining areas, some fruit and desserts alongside the finger food.

Finally, I decided it was time to get some sleep, and I wandered back to my hotel, not before snapping this a different A380 bound for London Heathrow.

After a solid five hours, I woke up ten minutes before 20:00 to meet up with my agent. Unfortunately, when I arrived downstairs and saw an Etihad representative waiting, I stood across him not fully certain whether he was here for me. As soon as the clock hit 20:00, he got up, didn’t seem to look around at anyone or at me, let out one of the deepest sighs I’ve heard in a while, and marched away. I ended up sharing this feedback with the lounge agent when passing by on my way to my next flight. When I first approached him, he didn’t seem at all professional. He was sitting on one of the couches at the hotel reception, leaning back, and playing on his phone. Although I was not 100% sure he was there for me, I have a pretty good inclination since he was the only one wearing an Etihad uniform.