I’ve enjoyed a lot of good service lately, but want to give a special shout out to Diane, who took great care of me and other business class passengers recently on a United Airlines flight from San Francisco to London.
Flight Attendant + Sommelier + Barista
I love a flight attendant who cares about service and specifically providing a great product. In the case of United Airlines, this is still difficult as Kirby Kutbacks blamed on COVID-19 “safety” concerns continue to limit the soft product. Still, Diane showed that when you think ahead you can really make the product better.
Last Friday, I traveled from San Francisco to London on UA901. I ordered beef short ribs and was asked what beverage I would like with it. Usually I will not bother with red wine on United, not because it is bad, but because it is kept in the same refrigerated cart as the white wine and Champagne. I don’t know about you, but I do no like consuming cold red wine.
I explained my predicament to the flight attendant taking meal orders and she said, “Don’t worry. One of my colleagues pulled out the red wine last night so it would not be cold today.”
And while drinking wine out of a plastic blue cup is not great (I forgot my glass this time), it was so much better when not served at the same temperature as chilled white wine!
Before landing, I ordered coffee with breakfast. I enjoy the illy coffee on United, though it is often weak. On this flight, however, it was very strong…and very delicious. I asked Diane if she had made the coffee and she nodded furtively, perhaps thinking I was going to complain.
But when I commended her for making it so strong, you could see the smile under the mask. She stated that this was something she had started doing because “most passengers prefer strong coffee.” Indeed we do and I cannot believe what a difference a double batch makes in making the coffee go from acceptable to so tasty I had a second full cup.
After changing out of my pajamas, I saw Diane and her colleague who took meal orders in the galley and thanked her again for the wonderful coffee. Her colleague chimed in:
“Isn’t it great? I’ve been enjoying it the entire flight!”
And then she added:
“Diane is also the one who took the red wine out yesterday. She’s always thinking ahead.”
Thinking ahead indeed. Other than the marginal cost of a bit more coffee, the gestures of pulling the wine out early and brewing a strong pot of coffee cost United nothing…but made for a very happy passenger and I’m sure the other passengers onboard too.
CONCLUSION
Thank you Diane for the lovely gestures you made to improve the passenger experience. You made the wine and coffee so much more enjoyable and I hope other flight attendants will follow your lead.
Now United, it is time to bring back wine glasses and ceramic coffee cups.
How does a FA pull red wine out of the chiller the night before the flight?
Maybe she flew LHR-SFO the day before?
But if she flew in from LHR the day before, what did she do – take it off the plane, store it, and bring it back? Seems like UA would frown on that (and, from a US Customs perspective, is likely not allowed – it’s why open bottles are dumped before landing and the liquor carts bonded). It’s note like the aircraft that arrives from LHR on Monday stays on the ground to operate the Tuesday flight back (even during COVID).
I suspect the FA – who sounds great, btw – likely took some artistic license and, instead, the wine was removed from the cart when they got to the aircraft so it could come to temperature before service.
I was flying from Manchester, UK (MAN) to Newark about two years ago – the FA explained that the alcohol (and other drinks) is double catered ex EWR (or whatever other US airport the flight leaves from), and only food is loaded at European outstations. As it happened out flight left at 8:50am so there wasn’t any need for alcohol, but she said that she’d crewed the 10:35 LHR-EWR frequency the previous week (the pandemic has since cancelled this flight – IIRC it was a 767-400ER, as was my MAN-EWR flight), and they’d totally ran out of wine just before lunch service started. Pretty embarrassing, when you think about it.
The FA was partially correct. Liquor minis are boarded at the hubs and round-tripped, but the wine and beer are boarded in both hub and line stations for most flights. Field locations remove all of the equipment on an arrival and replace everything, not just meals. The equipment is washed, and unused beverage stock from the arrival is reworked in the kitchen and combined with local stock to get the flight back up to the required level of product. United ships wine, (and Diet Coke) all over the world to support this.
Pulled the wine out the night before? Yeah right. What a foolish inaccurate statement!
united sucks. warm or cold, there wine is worse than 2 buck chuck at tradrer joes.
Not true. The wine isn’t bad when served at the proper temperature.
In a plastic cup.
Uh, what elementary grade are you in?
Still working on your spelling skills I see.
Run along now!
I’m glad Diane provided good service, but this is indicative of why US carriers are generally considered inferior. Why would United, who seems to market premium wines in Polaris, serve reds chilled?
If there’s consistent feedback that coffee is too weak, why isn’t this fix just considered normal.
Agreed, but still great to see a FA think outside the box.
Great to hear positive travel experiences…nice change of pace! Usual travel blog fare of shock, outrage, complain, shame, repeat is just so boring and repetitive by now.
Once in a while, there is a very good FA who seems to think about how to deliver.
Oh, Diane is not really a barista, just acts as one on board. I once met a LAX based United FA that says that she gives massages on the side. She did not explicitly say so but implied that it was nude and not therapeutic (but did not imply any prostitution). Ohhhhhh! Am I supposed to ask for her number? I did not. That was 10 years ago.
Hope that flight attendant who offered you a massage , isn’t the same skank United Flight attendant that offered my husband herself and a bj on a layover out of Houston!
Also, if anyone from United is reading this… huge shout out to Bal, an international United purser who was phenomenal in my UA polaris flight from LHR-IAD earlier this month — as well as Neriman and Andrea at the global services/1k check in at LHR, who were also fantastic.
Chilled red wine is far better than room temp red wine.
You’re free to ask for ice cubes. I don’t like it cold.
And you are not alone in liking red wine not chilled!
I hope you emailed United to let them know about her service?
Absolutely.
Chilled red wine is definitely becoming more of a thing. Especially in Australia during the summer. Not freezing, just lightly chilled.
Add ice to it? tsk tsk
That’s interesting. Definitely not my thing and it is usually very cold on UA, not just slightly chilled.
Wines have their ideal temperatures. Most reds do well at cellar temperature — think 60-64 degrees (18C to me), and some can even be a little cooler. Whites generally do better a little warmer than refrigerator temperature. Champagne is best cold. At home, the trick usually is to put the red in the fridge an hour before serving, and take the white out.
But the right temperature and a decent glass can make a mediocre wine taste great and the wrong temperature and glass can make a great wine taste mediocre.
Glad to hear you had a nice experience. But your comment about Diane taking the wine out the night before really puzzled me.
Last Friday, UA 901 was flown on a 789, N29968. This aircraft flew in from Delhi earlier in the day. Was Diane also on the Delhi flight? Do they not replenish the catering carts? Or does Diane also work for the airline catering and showed up at the catering facility to take the red wine out?
Fair question. That’s just what Diane’s colleague told me. I didn’t ask for clarification.
I mean talk about first world problems. The fact I had to waste my time reading this. I’m an FA, next time let’s post articles about the important stuff
I mean when customers are paying thousands of dollars to fly with you I think they are allowed to expect an experience that meets that price point. Drinks served at the correct temperature/strength seems like the bare minimum.
J Beck- Important stuff like how FAs can improve the customer experience rather instead of sitting in the galley chatting and playing games on their phones?
Shows how inferior US airlines are that good service on United merits a whole post.
Not saying your post isn’t lovely and that Diane’s service wasn’t tremendous. But if you were flying, say, SQ and received this level of service I don’t think you’d blink twice.
Well, it’s good to call out something positive even where mediocrity is expected!
Regarding red wine temperatures, although it should not be served cold, it also should not be served at room temperature. I keep my red wines between 61 and 65 F which is usually colder than room temperature.
As for the coffee, “
Isn’t it great? I’ve been enjoying it the entire flight!” Wondering if FAs should be enjoying Illy coffee the entire flight while working. That is probably why we don’t see Nespresso machines on planes.
What kind of reply is this?? She shouldn’t be allowed to drink coffee on the plane? FAs are allowed to stay hydrated and caffeinated on flights and how the heck is that an issue? They usually work crazy hours and don’t get as much sleep as they should. I can assure you that flight attendants and pilots drinking cups of coffee or water are not the reason there aren’t fancy espresso or nespresso machines on their planes.
How did she make the coffee stronger? Put an extra coffee bag in the pot to steep like tea?
Correct.
Americans tend to drink white wine that is far too cold and red wine that is too warm. It is easier to warm up red wine that is served too cold than to cool it down. Ice cubes in wine? Perhaps that is how Californians who wear tshirts under sport jackets roll.
I was being snarky.
Yes, and so was I.
I am laughing at your clear lack of any fashion vision. As an example, a nautical style tee under a Cucinelli travel blazer in Navy blue, paired with white jeans and off-white summer bucks is a fantastic look made for anywhere and any occasion in warmer climes. I guess if you’re someone who wears dad ties and poorly tailored suits you might think otherwise.
It is amusing that Stuart remembers so clearly one of the outfits under question. I don’t think that is the only time Matthew has worn such a tshirt/jacket ensemble. It is also amusing that he imagines I wear “dad ties and poorly tailored suits.” Maybe he is a Californian at heart. Californians are world-renowned for their unimpeachable fashion sense.
Amusingly I have no idea that Matthew wore that. It is though one of my particular favorites for summer travel though.
I’m guessing that Diane took the wine out of the beverage cart on her previous flight(s) as well. That’s what her colleague meant.
LHR based flight attendants are lovely and they are passionate about giving great customer service.
“Don’t worry. One of my colleagues pulled out the red wine last night so it would not be cold today.”
Not sure how you would interpret the quote as saying the wine was taken out on a previous flight.
Thank you for your lovely comments Matthew. Flight time from SFO to LHR is about 10.5 hours and covers several time zones. In FA lingo, “last night” can refer to the time zone in which you boarded the flight. Since all bonded liquor/wine must be boarded in the same locked cart, the galley FA most likely removed the reds to an non-chilled cart as she set up her galley. It would be room temperature by the time the service starts a little over an hour later. Hope this helps.