No more beer from Chez Léon on Brussels Airlines

[sn26567]

Yesterday I was coming back from Manchester on Brussels Airlines in b.flex. I wanted to accompany my meal with an excellent amber beer at 7° from the famous Belgian mussels restaurant "Chez Léon", and, disappointingly, the stewardess told me that they did not serve that beer anymore.

I then asked for a Stella Artois, which was also available on previous b.flex flights. The answer came: "we have only Maes Pils". I do not consider this as a decent beer, hence I opted for the red wine, a Malbec from Argentina. At least this was acceptable.

However I am still disappointed that b.flex carries only one brand of beer, and not the best one...

As usual, novelties are announced with great noise, but when things disappears the airlines become notoriously silent. Another recent example was the introduction of three new destinations in the UK through a codeshare agreement with bmi. Nobody told that one UK destination was disappearing from the timetable on the same day: Southampton!

[Acid-drop]

They never carried the best pils (from Jupille)

I guess it's like all café's in Belgium, you have only one brewery as supplier and cannot sell the other brands ...

[Bralo20]

Maybe because there was no demand to the Léon beer? It's not that famous since it's only available in the (to expensive and below average quality) Léon restaurants?

Btw: famous Belgian mussels restaurant: only for tourists, there are thousands better places in Belgium to eat mussels that at Chez Leon but indeed, for tourists it is "the place to be" to eat mussels

However, I find it rather strange that the beer isn't available anymore since it is brewed also at the Alken Maes brewery, the same brewer as "Maes Pils"...

Like you don't like Maes Pils for example I detest Stella Artois which is after Jupiler one of the worst beers I ever drank. But then again, this is personal taste I don't drink beer very often but I do like a Palm Royal, a Affligem and even a nice cherry beer like "Kriek Boon" in the summer.

Maybe they changed suppliers from AB Inbev to Alken Maes and that will maybe the reason that they don't carry Stella anymore

[fcw]

You were travelling in B-flex ECONOMY, so be happy with your free beer, whatever brand.

[sn26567]

You were travelling in B-flex ECONOMY, so be happy with your free beer, whatever brand.

I know, but last time I was flying b.flex ECONOMY they served three brands of beer: Léon, Stella and Maes.

[Acid-drop]

For a belgian company, they should have at least 2 pils and at least other REAL beers (specials).
It's the belgian pride, with chocolate and fries (mh).

[Coppelia]

Hello guys,

Acid-drop, in B-Light we sell Maes AND Grimbergen, which has quite a lot of success amongst our passengers.

It was not the case for the beer from Chez Léon in B-Flex; majority of Flex passengers preferred Maes each time I proposed them the choice between the two.

[Acid-drop]

maes and grimbergen seems very logical.
Same brewery as supplier.
One pils, one special.
Small choice, but still fair to me.

[Hedi]

I can understand all points of views here, but we will never satisfy each one of our passengers . I think we put o/b what "generally" our passengers asked us when completing some surveys we hand o/b or we sent via internet. Maes is not your beer, not mine but well her beer, others do not drink beer at all and prefer wine...etc think that we have to satisfy everyone (which is impossible, but we try) and we operate a regional jet with few places o/b to put trolleys full with every ones choice.
Best regards

[Ducatibiker]

-You were lucky to have a meal. I Flew b.flex to Madrid and was offered a sandwich with a little piece of meat and a little piece of cheese ! I don't call that a "full meal".
-For those reminding us that this is ECONOMY, I suggest they have a look at the prices offered by the competition in Business ! I don't care how you call it, for the money we spent, this is unacceptable.
-Don't try to satisfy everyone but put quality products, value for money. The carton box is worth more than the 15 gr of food inside the box...what a waste of paper

[Comet]

The best Belgian pils come from Oudenaarde Romy and Black Hole are wonderful, I wish I could get them where I live.

I agree about Chez Leon beer being very good, though I've only had it once (in Chez Leon). I haven't had beer on a plane for ages, I used to like the 33cl of Maes that was served on VLM, but I haven't had Maes for ages.

Is the Grimbergen served in B-Light the Belgian stuff? I've seen Grimbergen which has been brewed in France and was once tricked into drinking some of this "fake" Grimbergen.

[teddybAIR]

Fcw,

I’m going a little off-topic, but still:

You make a small mistake many consumers display in their buying behaviour: the beer in b.flex economy is not free, it is included. There is a great difference between both: if it where free, Belgian law stipulates it should also be free in the other seating arrangements. Yet, b.flex economy is a separate product, coming at a premium price. Included in that premium price is the beer. It is payed for, since it is included in the b.flex economy price.

Best regards,
bAIR

[regi]

Btw André, how was your flight?
And how does Manchester airport look today? It has been some years I was there. Better than Notthingham East Midlands, but worse than the rest?

[Comet]

Not aimed at me, but I can comment on MAN vs EMA - MAN is bigger with more viewing facilities and more eating on the landside (if you ignore that disgusting outlet Harry Ramsden's - EMA is all the better for not having one of those disgusting dumps on its land!) and also more flights.

EMA is mainly a cargo airport, and always will be, but the viewing on airside is easier than it is at MAN.

As for "worse than the rest" - no airport anywhere in the UK is worse than Newcastle. The city is a vile dump and so is its airport, the staff there are idle and useless and I would like to see the place swallowed up by that vile open sewer known as the River Tyne. I hate that place.

[sn26567]

Btw André, how was your flight?
And how does Manchester airport look today? It has been some years I was there. Better than Notthingham East Midlands, but worse than the rest?

My flights were OK: on time and without problems. MAN airport is slowly improving: the hand-baggage scanning area has just been moved to a brighter facility.

[euroflyer]

Have been to Manchester in October, honestly at the moment the airport is a big mess in my eyes! Half of it is just horrible and the other half is a construction site

Arrived with SK from CPH late evening, cannot remember in what "Terminal" (well, that is what they call it ). Took me 15 minutes to find my way to the car hire desks which are at the moment on top of the car park on the 11th floor or so (you have to walk through the rain ...).

On my way back it was a horror to find my way to the car hire return car park for Terminal 3 (and all the desks there were closed so you had to hand back the keys by simply dropping them into a letter box ). The final disaster was the flight back, booked by somebody in my office with flyBE, first and last flight with them. Had to pay extra for my luggage which our travel agent had not informed my office of before (I shot them as well ), PLUS it took them 15 minutes at the check-in baggage drop to find out via several phone calls if I could take a football with me in my checked-in luggage and finally I ended in an Embraer 145, only the very bumpy ride to FRA was probably not their fault, but even here I am not sure . The departure area is just ugly and old

That was at least my experience, returning to Manchester Airport for the first time since 1995 ...

[regi]

to euroflyer:
sad to hear that you had a bumpy flight on a "needle" Embraer. My experiences were that it cuts like a knife through butter.
But OK, it is your experience.

Things like returning a hired car back can be stressful, I know. Berlin Schönefelt ( and before Tempelhof ) had very clear entrance ports. No mistakes possible. And gentle and cooperative staff as well.

That hick up with that flight booked by somebody else: don't rely on other people, even if it would be a part of their job. Too many things can go wrong. If you book it yourself through the internet, you will learn all the details, and it will make you think about some points like insurance, meals, luggage, preferred boarding,...
The first time it takes some time. But if you have done some online bookings yourself, you know the pittfalls. And you do it in 5 minutes, much shorter than your secretary does ( in a sloppy way )

[Comet]

Use Newcastle (NCL or more accurately NCHell!) and then you'll know you've come to a real sh*thole.

The check in staff work in slow motion (that's when you've actually managed to find out where to check in, they don't believe in updating the information screens in NCHell).

When you make it through to the departure area, you then have the fun of trying to find out which gate your flight departs from (as I said, they don't believe in updating the screens there).

When you land at NCHell, you have to hope that the luggage carousels will be working, they have a habit of just jamming, which the stupid staff find so amusing (but then again, knowing what the inhabitants of Newcastle are known for, they're probably blind drunk most of the time anyway).

And when you are lucky enough to get out of NCHell and into Newcastle centre, you find you are in the biggest sh*thole in the north of England, that's if you don't get caught up with a gang of lager louts, (the locals are proud of their drinking exploits and making life hell for people when they head off to their towns for one of their "drinking holidays" - just ask the residents of historic York what Geordies on tour are like!)

EMA and MAN are like dreams compared to that vile dump.

[Desert Rat]

I went to Newcastle three time in my life ,back in the nineties and it was a very nice place for shopping, friendly inhabitants, no probs at the airport...

[regi]

hey , hold on, Newcastle isn't so bad.
They have one of the most impressive land marks of the entire UK. Well, if you come by car and not by air, you can't miss it because it is along the high way A1. ( they didn't put it in the city centre because nobody would bother to come look at it )
I am proud about myself that I made it so far up north , and came back in 1 piece, even after a business visit .

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angel_of_the_North

The first time I saw it, I was quite suprised about it.
But I was also surprised about the massive factories of Vickers ( now BAE systems ), where they build the Challenger 2 tanks.

My only contact with local cuiine was a visit to the local Road Chef. That says enough.