I finally managed to secure a Lufthansa First award ticket with United miles from Shanghai to Frankfurt and then on to London. They usually release these about 2 weeks before departure.

Right up until the day before departure the F cabin was booked to three but ended up going out with seven. I booked the exit row although as LH F on the 744 comes with a seperate bed, this doesn’t make much difference.

Boarding was a scrum, with little or no priority for First or Business passengers. Once upstairs my trolley bag went in the back closet and my shoulder bag in the overhead quite easily. There is a small drawer under the bed at the feet of the chair.

After take-off, the Purser came around with the menus and talked briefly to each passenger. He took main menu orders.

There was an amise-bruche of shrimp:

There was a choice of Hors d’oeuvres:
Caviar
Slow Roasted Beef Carpaccio with Pesto and Parmesan Shavings

Pan-fried Cod with Wasabi Mayonnaise
Carpese Salad, Basil Oil

Salad
Green Garden with Cherry Tomato and Pine Nuts

Main Course
Roast Lamb in Red Wine Demi-Glace with Lemon, Gratin Potato, Broccoli and Baby Carrot

Grilled Seabream Fillet with Eggplant Caponata and Parsley Potato
Ricotta and Spinach Canneloni, Tomato Concassee

Cheese and Dessert

Cheese

Warm Apple Tart and salted Caramel Sauce

Fresh Fruit

The food was tasty, if not plentiful. My recollection of the last time I flew LH F was that the Flight Attendant allowed you to have more than one starter. However, this seems to be based on status now. As a non-LH member I was offered only one starter, whereas Senators and above seemed to receive the rack of 3.

The Movie and TV Selection was poor so I had a sleep on the most incredibly comfortable bed that I have ever had in the sky. I sleep well until about two hours before landing when they came around to take meal orders for the second meal.

Hors d’oeuvres

Cured pan-fried Tuna Loin, Olive Tepenade, red Pepper Jelly and Mango Salsa
Smoked Chicken Breast, Goat Cheese, red Pepper and Cucumber

Pork Belly with Vegetable Roll, Soy Chilli sauce

Entrees

Braised Beef Cheek Ravioli, Porcini Mushrooms with Mushroom Sauce

Pumpin Cake Dim Sum, Watercress Cake and Xiaolong Sanquan

Dessert
Carrort Cake

Fresh Fruit

Again, status passengers were offered extra Hors d’oeuvres.

Lufthansa provide a sleeper suit for passengers in F, which comes in different sizes for tops and bottoms. It was very comfortable and I am glad that I changed shortly after departure.

Arrival was a mess. We landed and taxied to the C gates but had to disembark in to buses to be take to the A gates. The F passengers, were met with some seeming to be taken to the F Terminal and others to the A gates but in a mini-van rather than waiting for the bus. As I had to get back to the B gates for my connection, I then had to take the train back to the B gates and the First Lounge there.

The lounge was empty when I arrived, after going through the B gates security check. There was a First and Business line and no one was there. In fact the staff were waiting for their next customer. The lounge was nice, although no Spa facilities were open due to the time of night I was there. The agent confirmed that my connection was on time and the barman arranged a drink for me. I decided not to eat although regretted this in the end as my connection was delayed, but only after I got to the gate.

Overall
A nice flight, but I had really hoped for it to be magical.