Review: Singapore Airlines First Class 777-300ER Singapore to Hong Kong

Introduction
Planning & Booking
American Express Centurion Lounge DFW
Emirates A380 First Class Dallas to Dubai
Al Maha Desert Resort & Spa Dubai
Emirates First Class Lounge Dubai
Emirates 777-300ER First Class Dubai to Male
Transfer to Park Hyatt Maldives Hadahaa
Park Hyatt Maldives - Resort & Park Villa
Park Hyatt Maldives - Water Villa
Transfer to Male
Singapore Airlines 777-200ER Business Class Male to Singapore
Grand Hyatt Singapore
Singapore Airlines The Private Room Singapore
Singapore Changi Airport 
Singapore Airlines 777-300ER First Class Singapore to Hong Kong
Singapore Airlines 777-300ER First Class Hong Kong to San Francisco

We made our way over to the gate and through security (done at individual gates) around 5 minutes prior to the scheduled boarding time.  Boarding was delayed maybe 10 minutes so we had a 15 minute wait in the gate area.  Not the worst thing in the world but because the airport and lounge are so awesome, you want to delay getting to the cramped (with no services) gate area as much as possible.

Boarding was called and we were the first people on the plane.  We had both been expecting Singapore's "old" 777 first class as we thought they had been flying the "new" 777 first class solely to London.  We were pleasantly surprised to find the new version of the seat upon entering the aircraft!  To make it even more exciting, this flight is tagged SQ2 which to complement the SQ1 tag  we flew to Hong Kong last year.  Pretty awesome to have flown flight 1 and 2!!!

Singapore Airlines 777-300ER "New" first class

We were warmly welcomed by the crew and very impressed by the new cabin.  Quilted leather is so hot right now. 

Seat 2F

Singapore Airlines first class cabin shot

Singapore's removed the somewhat ugly light brown color scheme and replaced it with a heavy dark chocolate colored quilted leather.  The other seating materials seem to be updated as well.  The core of the seat remains the same.  The 8 seat cabin seems much more refined and "club like" now.  

New tv

Storage and vanity

Plenty of underseat storage

Seat controls

There is also an updated vanity mirror and additional storage in the front compartment.  The television seemed to be the same size but the resolution was far better than I remember.

Ferragamo amenity kit

Slippers and eyeshades were waiting in one of the closed compartments.  Amenity kits were delivered and remain Salvatore Ferragamo branded including full size perfume/cologne.  Next up came my favorite first class interaction:

Crew:  "Good evening Mr. Berlin.  Welcome board.  Can I get you something to drink?"

Me:  "Yes.  Champagne would be great."

Crew:  (With giant smile) "Of course.  "Would you like Dom or Krug?"

Me:  (With giant smile) "Krug, please."

Singapore is the only carrier that I'm aware of that serves both Dom and Krug.  They open both on the ground in Singapore - you may not be so lucky in other parts of the world given the tax implications.

Dom or Krug?

Krug

My glass of Krug arrived a few minutes later as did my pajamas.  While Singapore's pajamas are still pretty nice, they have removed the Givenchy branding.  Not entirely sure why but it seems that partnership has ended as the china (formerly Givenchy) has been switched out.

We were seated on the right side of the aircraft in 1F/2F so we could both have a window seat.  I headed over to Emily's seat and we relaxed together (plenty of room for 2 in these seats which are 35" wide) before the door was shut.

Hanging in 2F

More 2F fun

Emily was able to get some "overhead shots courtesy of the selfie stick.  

We pushed back right on time despite the boarding delay.  Our taxi was short and we were soon rocketing off for the quick flight up to Hong Kong.  I had "Booked the Cook" and reserved the amazing lobster thermidor which I highly recommend - especially ex Singapore.  The crew confirmed by order and was soon setting the table for what would be an outstanding dinner.

While we weren't flying Suites class, the fact that this flight left at dinnertime was a great advantage over the morning departure on the A380.  We were able to get a full day in Singapore which we spent at the airport.  We had lunch in the lounge and were hungry by the time we had dinner on the plane.  The flight lands at Hong Kong around 10:30 and then you have plenty of time to shower and change into pajamas for the flight across the Pacific.  That portion of the flight leaves around 11:40 local time so it's nearing bed time.  After a couple of great meals and lots of Krug, it's easy to get a great night's sleep.

I started the meal off with a lobster appetizer and a salad.  Oh and garlic bread.  And finally an amazing lobster thermidor.  No caviar on this sector or the next which I guess could be considered another "downside."

Garlic bread

Lobster starter

Soup

Salad

Lobster Thermidor

Dessert and JWB

By the time meal service was finished we were only 45 minutes out from Hong Kong.  We relaxed together in Emily's seat before the seat belt sign came back on.  We were soon smoothly gliding into Hong Kong's International Airport to transit and hit the lounge for a bit before continuing on SQ2 to San Francisco.

Final Thoughts:

While I love flying on the A380 and the double bed that comes with it, I much prefer this flight departure time.  The fact that we ended up with the "new" 777 first class was a bonus and we very much enjoyed the new cabin design.  Singapore is among the best airlines in the world when it comes to hard and soft product.  This crew was no exception - service was outstanding as was the food and amenities.