Trip Report: LOT Polish (B787-8) Business WAW-ORD

The Details

Flight: LO3
Aircraft: B787-8
Class: Business
Seat: 1B
Route: Warsaw Chopin (WAW)-Chicago O’Hare International (ORD)
Distance: 4,739 miles
Duration: 9hr 39min
Departure: 5:17PM
Arrival: 7:40PM

The Preflight

My connecting flight from Frankfurt landed at 12:30PM local time at Warsaw which gave me 4.5 hours until my final flight of the trip to Chicago O’Hare. This trip had originally began in Tokyo and I was ready to return home to Chicago.

I headed towards the flagship LOT Polish Business Lounge. The lounge itself actually felt crowded and tight with seats packed closely together.

Food options included a variety of local Polish foods which I loved. There was a delicious red cabbage stew, rice, and chicken dish.

There was also a build-your-own noodle station.

Snack options included peanuts, croissant, fruit, and chocolate wafers.

There was a refrigerator with an assortment of cold cuts, cheese, salmon, hummus, and olives.

Drink options included a self-serve coffee machine, sparking water, wine, and hard liquor.

Another refrigerator contained juice, beer, and dessert.

To start, I had a plate of cold cuts and cheese. I appreciated the variety available.

Then I had a bowl of mixed hot food including cabbage, carrots, and chicken.

For dessert I had a a strawberry chocolate cake and vanilla cake. Both were excellent.

With about an hour until boarding was scheduled to begin, I went to take a shower. The shower room was basic.

After passing through the Schengen customs area, I made my way to the gate. There were quiet a few LOT Polish regional jets including this baby E170.

Our beautiful B787-8 Dreamliner, registration SP-LRE, was delivered to LOT Polish in 2013.

The Flight

LOT Polish has Zodiac Aura Lite aboard their B787-8s/9s. Seats are arranged in a 2-2-2 configuration.

These seats are very similar to Qatar Airways’ older generation business class seats. While not all seats have direct aisle access, the benefit to this particular seat is that there is infinite leg room. This seat is extremely comfortable in bed mode because of the lack of any restrictive foot cubby.

When fully lie-flat the bed length is 79″. Each seat is 23″ wide. One negative to the seat is a lack of privacy. It felt very exposed, especially in the aisle seat.

There are a total of 18 business class seats in a 2-2-2 configuration spread across three rows. In addition, there are 21 premium economy seats in a 2-3-2 configuration and 213 economy seats in a 3-3-3 configuration.

Under the center armrest was a small storage space with a water bottle holder and IFE remote.

There was a power outlet and USB port under the armrest as well. The seat controls in the center armrest included lumbar support.

The tray table emerged from the center table and was massive.

Awaiting each business class passenger at their seats was an amenity kit which was well provisioned. There was a sock, eye mask, hair comb, shoe horn, ear plugs, dental kit, mouth wash, facial tissue, and nail file.

There was also a pair of LOT branded headphones that were not as good as my pair of Bose headphones.

Once I got situated, flight attendants came through the cabin with predeparture beverages. Option included champagne or water. I went with a glass of champagne.

Then flight attendants came through with a small amuse bouche.

Menus were distributed as well.

As well as the drinks menu.

Doors closed at 5:17PM and we pushed back on time. After a very short taxi to the runway we blasted off towards Chicago.

Once we reached 10,000ft I popped out the IFE screen from the center armrest and I pulled up the flight map.

Inflight service began with a round drinks accompanied by a ramekin of cold nuts. I opted for a glass of champagne.

For my first course, I went with the pork tenderloin served with parsley pesto and green lettuce. It was accompanied by a mixed salad with Jantar cheese.

Then I had the beef tenderloin with plum sauce that was beautifully plated. The sauce was very flavorful however the beef was cooked medium.

To finish dinner, I had both the cheese plate and a refreshing lime dessert.

Stuffed full from the big dinner, I set up my bed for sleep. I must have fallen asleep immediately because I awoke to the flight attendants preparing the cabin for the pre-landing service.

Since our flight would be landing in the evening in Chicago, dinner was served again. This time the dishes were fixed and there were no other options. All of the dishes were served together on a tray.

The roast beef with caramelized apples and pomegranate was surprisingly delicious. The salmon in teriyaki sauce was also delicious. For the main, it was lemon risotto which was flavorful as well. There was a small fruit salad for dessert.

We had a smooth approach to runway 28C at O’Hare and landed at 7:40PM. After a brief taxi to Terminal 5 we got into the gate. I quickly made my way through Customs thanks to Global Entry and was finally on my way home.

I must say this was a flight that I went into with low expectations and emerged impressed. While the seat lacked direct aisle access and privacy, it was extremely comfortable for sleeping in and felt like an actual bed. Not to mention both dinner services were fantastic. I loved all of the flavors the LOT Polish incorporated into the meal and was probably one of the best business class meals I have had. Well done!