Review: American Flagship Lounge JFK and Flagship First Dining

This American Flagship Lounge JFK and Flagship First Dining Review is a video review from my recent evening visit before my Cathay Pacific First Class flight from JFK to Vancouver. I'll be adding lounge access policy, additional photos and impressions soon, but in the meantime, here is the YouTube video. You can also subscribe to TravelSort on YouTube  to be alerted to additional first class lounge, first class and business class trip reports, and luxury hotel reviews.

American Flagship Lounge JFK Access Policy

The following passengers have access to the AA Flagship Lounge:

• Flying international First Class or Business Class on AA or a oneworld partner (allowed 1 guest)
• Flying American Airlines First Class or AA Business Class on a nonstop JFK-LAX or JFK-SFO flight (no guest allowed)
• AAdvantage Executive Platinum, Platinum Pro and Platinum frequent flyers departing on or connecting to an international flight on AA or a oneworld partner (allowed 1 guest)
• AAdvantage ConciergeKey frequent flyers departing on or connecting to any AA or oneworld partner flight (allowed immediate family including spouse or domestic partner and children up to 18 or up to two guests)
• oneworld Emerald or Sapphire frequent flyers departing on or connecting to any AA or oneworld partner flight (allowed 1 guest)

American Flagship Lounge JFK Location and Hours

The new American Flagship Lounge and New York JFK is located at Terminal 8, after the Concourse B security checkpoint, on the mezzanine level.  Take the stairs or elevator up to the lounge. The lounge is open daily from 4:15am-1am. The hallway leading to the lounge is lined with a lit photo panorama of the NYC skyline.

American Flagship Lounge JFK Amenities

While the AA Flagship lounge page touts “expansive seating” as a perk, my evening visit, at around 7-9pm, seemed to coincide with peak lounge usage as there was scarcely a seat to be found in the entire lounge, large as it was. I don't know that I've ever been in quite so crowded a first class lounge. See my video above for footage on just how crowded the lounge was.

There was a quiet room, but I could tell just peeking in that it too was crowded, nor were there any real beds in the area.

One of the best amenities of the lounge are the shower rooms. These have rain shower heads, and also a handheld shower that is accessible for passengers in wheelchairs.

CO Bigelow Lime and Coriander Shampoo, Conditioner and Body Wash were available in pump dispensers:

There's a buffet in the main part of the American Flagship Lounge, although it was rather picked over during my visit and didn't seem to be replenished that frequently.

The wines and spirits were in far more abundant supply.

American Flagship First Dining

If you're flying in First Class on American or a oneworld partner, such as Cathay Pacific First Class, you're invited to enjoy a la carte dining in the Flagship First Dining section. This area has 4 booths, which were popular: three of them were occupied during my visit, and I had use of the fourth.

There are also four circular tables for two, and eight square tables for either solo diners or couples, that are near the windows overlooking the tarmac.

Here was the dinner menu during my visit:

I ordered a glass of Sauvignon Blanc, which wasn't bad, but was more acidic than I prefer. Our usual New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc from Trader Joe's is more balanced.

I started with the potstickers, which were delicious, although honestly no more delicious than the ones we've occasionally gotten from the frozen section of Trader Joe's and cooked at home.

Although not on the menu, the eggplant caponata with polenta sounded tasty, so I ordered it. I liked the polenta, but I stopped eating the caponata pretty quickly as there were too many onions for my taste, especially compared to the amount of eggplant.

The Verdict

The American Flagship Lounge JFK could have been a better experience if it hadn't been so packed. If you're flying first class and have access to Flagship First Dining, I highly recommend spending most of your time in that area, especially if visiting during a crowded time as I was. There was more seating there and it was more tranquil.

The shower room I visited was clean and and fresh looking, with a rain shower, as it should be for such a new lounge, albeit austere.

As far as food in Flagship First, I liked the potstickers, although they were really no better than what you can get at Trader Joe's, and the Sauvignon Blanc wasn't as good as the one we normally get from Trader Joe's. I personally didn't care for the eggplant caponata, due to all the onions in it, but otherwise it was ok. I was glad to have the option of Flagship First dining, since the buffet in the regular Flagship Lounge was rather picked over and depleted during my visit.

If you've visited the American Flagship Lounge recently, what was your experience?

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