Mint-astic! Full Review: NEW jetBlue Mint Suite, Los Angeles to New York

Background and Booking:

I booked my flight a little over a month before, and at the time there were two flights from LAX-JFK utilizing the planes with the new Mint Suites. The two planes with the new layout are “A Mint Summer Night’s Dream” and “A Neo Mintality“. These are currently the only domestic flights in which you can try out the new Mint Suites; otherwise you would have to fly to London. More jets with this layout should be rolled out soon.

I had a JetBlue credit from a flight I cancelled last summer, so I decided to use it for this flight. The fare for this flight was $898 one way.

 

To see if your configuration is the new plane, the New Mint Suites on the domestic LAX-JFK routes consist of 8 rows, in a 1-1 configuration. The first row has the Mint Studios, with some extra space, a larger TV and for my flight they had a $199 surcharge at booking.

I chose a Mint Suite seat in row 5, which I enjoyed as it was right in the middle of the cabin. I would avoid row 8, because the Core Cabin lavatory is right behind that row and sometimes people would loiter near row 8 as JetBlue does not have a curtain/divider between Mint and the Core Cabin. The Mint Suites Cabin has one dedicated lavatory located at the front of the plane.

Flight Details:

Los Angeles (LAX) to New York (JFK)
jetBlue Flight 424
Date of Flight: September 2021
Seat: 5A- Mint Suite
Aircraft: Airbus A321neo
Plane: A Mint Summer Night’s Dream

I recently posted a summarized version of my experience with my Takeoff Points; you can view that here if you’re interested.

At the Airport:

At LAX, JetBlue operates out of Terminal 5. JetBlue unfortunately doesn’t have any lounge for use which is the (only) negative of flying in Mint in my opinion. At the moment, there are also no Priority Pass Lounges at LAX open and the AMEX Centurion Lounge is temporarily closed.

Flying in Mint does grant you Even More Speed, which lets you use the priority security lane at the TSA Checkpoint. I’m still waiting for my Global Entry interview- so no TSA PreCheck for me right now. The priority security lane saved me maybe 5 minutes or so, as the LAX Terminal 5 TSA checkpoint wasn’t too long on a Thursday at 10am.

Boarding:

My first impression was that the Mint Suites cabin was beautiful! My plane was just delivered in June, so it was pretty new, and the design felt like a cool lounge with hip mood lighting.

The new Mint business class is outfitted in a 1-1 configuration, and each seat has a door so they are all private suites. The Mint Cabin on this configuration has a total of 8 rows, so 16 total seats (with the Mint Studio being in row 1).

The Seat:

I really liked the seat, and the cushions were quite comfortable. I flew on the old Mint product on the way home, and noticed the padding on those seats was a lot stiffer, so that’s a part where the new Mint Suite wins!

I’m on the leaner side, and 5’9 but had plenty of room to stretch out in lie flat mode. The seat is a bit skinnier than some other business class products I’ve been in, but very private with plenty of counter space. I would say the place where you rest your feet is roomier than the old Mint, as this footwell isn’t just a cubby. But, the old Mint “Throne” seat feels much less claustrophobic as it has more shoulder space, and the old Mint “Throne” seat feels longer in the lie-flat position.

Bedding and a memory foam pillow is provided by Tuft and Needle, and it’s pretty comfortable (but I still prefer Casper from American).

You technically have two windows, but one is directly behind the seat- so not much you can do with that one. And, since you’re positioned diagonally with your feet going into the aisle, it’s a bit hard to peek out the window and get a good view. Nonetheless, not a huge issue for me but something to be noted.

Next to the window, JetBlue put a nice hook to hold your headphones during the flight which I found to be a nice touch.

And a really cool feature on this plane was the wireless charging pad! I was able to charge my AirPods without any issues. Unfortunately, my iPhone wasn’t connecting to the pad (probably because of the camera design popping out) but at least I could charge the AirPods.

In addition to the wireless charging pad, there’s also an USB A and a USB C connection port, as well as two 110V Power Outlets. You won’t have any issues finding a place to charge your devices as there are plenty.

Under the TV is a large drawer that can easily store a laptop and other personal belongings.

The seat controls were pretty easy to use, and self-explanatory.

Under the footwell, is an extra storage space when I actually left my shoes. It wasn’t large enough to put my backpack under there, but if you have a smaller backpack it could be a good spot for it.

There’s a nice basket dedicated for the storage of your shoes as well on the side of the seat.

Headphones provided are Master & Dynamic’s MH40 noise-isolating headphones. I found them of pretty decent quality. On this flight, they collected the headphones 10 minutes before landing which was nice as some flights take back the headphones way too early like 30 minutes before landing.

I love that JetBlue provides free Fly-Fi WiFi from ViaSat for all customers, regardless of cabin. It was pretty quick, and I only had a little bit of connection issues at the beginning of the flight but it was smooth sailing from there.

The 17 inch TV was quite large and very clear. It had DIRECTV, movies on demand and games. It was very responsive as well.

You even have the option to connect your phone to be the remote instead!

Here’s how the cabin looks with the door closed from the outside. Pretty sleek!

And here’s how it looks from the inside. 🙂 Overall, time will tell if the hard product is sturdy, but currently my seat was still in good condition. I do feel like it could get a bit worn out soon.

The Wellness Kit from Wanderfuel didn’t come in the nicest bag, but the contents were quite practical to say the least. It came with supplements to boost your immune system, recovery cream, socks and lip balm. Pretty hipster if you ask me! I actually tried the perfect attendance immune support chew after arriving and liked it.

Food:

Now the food is the major highlight of the Mint experience.

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They didn’t do a welcome drink upon boarding like on my flight in the original Mint a few days later. But once we hit cruising altitude, I had to try the famous Mint Condition cocktail. It was pretty refreshing and I enjoyed it. You can get it with either gin or vodka, and James recommended vodka, so I opted for that. It has ginger, lime, cucumber and mint. The breadsticks were really tasty as well and fun to chew on.

JetBlue’s Mint meal service is tapas style, so you get to choose 3 of the 5 small plates.

I opted for the Flat Iron Steak, Chicken Paillard and the Roasted Cherry Tomatoes. The steak was very flavorful and went well with the potatoes. I felt like I actually ordered the steak from a nice restaurant! The chicken was solid but a bit dry if I had to be picky. It was saved by the onions and arugula mix. My least favorite of the bunch was the Roasted Cherry Tomatoes as the goat cheese wasn’t too tasty and the tomatoes were much too soggy.

The vanilla gelato was a nice finish to the meal, but I found it kind of interesting that they brought it all out at the same time. I’m quite a slow eater, so I was worried that the gelato would have melted by the time I finished my main courses, but thankfully that did not happen. 🙂 Overall, this was the best domestic meal I’ve had in business class.

Snacks were served a bit after the meal service, and I opted for some Pop Corners and Chocolate Chip cookies. Sadly, they don’t have Terra Blue Chips at the moment, and no word on their return currently. Hopefully the iconic JetBlue snack comes back soon!

I’ve seen reviews raving about the cappuccino onboard. Cafe quality coffee on a plane? You bet! The Cappuccino I ordered was delicious. A great way to finish off my meal.

The chocolate covered cashews were a little parting gift given before landing.

Service:

James and James provided good service throughout the flight (made it easy to remember just one name!). One of the James’ was super friendly- he came over during boarding and walked me through the features of the seats! He said there are only 2 in service and even they are still learning about the seat features, the aircraft and working out the kinks.

From takeoff to touchdown, the flight was only 5 hours, and it went by really fast in the Mint Suite that part of me didn’t want to leave!

The Verdict:

I was very impressed with the JetBlue Mint Suite. While I loved my experience with the old Mint “Throne” seat as well, the fresh cabin and updated technology make the Mint Suite an amazing experience that I hope to fly again in the near future. The food was top notch, quite honestly the best airplane food I’ve had in business class. Additionally loved the 1-1 configuration, and the seat design with a suite door allows for a private experience. I highly recommend trying the JetBlue Mint Suite.

 

Have you flown on the JetBlue Mint Suite before? Comment below!

 

Cheers,

Ty

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Have any questions? Comment below or email me at takeofftotravel@gmail.com. You can also view all my other posts here! Thanks for stopping by!