British Airways Concorde Room at JFK | Video

Seating: Does the seating look familiar? It might be tough to place in your head without the plastic your stain-a-phobic great auntie used to drape over it. But while some of the couches inside the British Airways Concorde Room at JFK are a bit of a throwback, seating overall is more comfortable than what you’ll find in a typical lounge.

Lounge chairs are cushy, wide and spaced for privacy while some sofa & chair arrangements offer an “at home” feel.

Food/Drink: Knowing that we’d be offered dinner both here and on-board, we came hungry. Inside the lounge you’ll have access to a buffet of higher-end snacks like premium meats, cheeses and bakery items. For drinks, a full stack of premium spirits are here alongside a good choice of wine and champagne.

But that’s just the start.

Find your way into a semi-private dining booth and select from one or all meal courses on the menu. Knowing we wanted to sample the food on our flight, we kept it simple here. I stopped after soup and salad, both nicely prepared but the clam chowder needed a little something…maybe clams?

See our pics from the JFK Concorde Room.

Wi-fi/Connectivity: Wi-fi was speedy enough for our normal social networking (twitter, Facebook, YouTube) and email. Power ports were convenient to most seats.

Service: Front desk staff was very helpful in sharing my multi-airline itinerary with my flight concierge. Inside the lounge, servers could be found throughout and are happy to bring you anything from the bar, kitchen or café. The only gaffe happened when we ordered an appetizer while seated in the dining area and got a salad instead.

Showers: Showers are available inside the spa attached to the Galleries Business Class Lounge on the other end of the terminal but not here in the British Airways Concorde Room.

Summary: The level of service and the per-person extra space you get inside the JFK Concorde Room are what make this a special experience. Add in a full menu of included, higher-end food and drink and you’ve got a taste of the over-romantizied early days of air travel. Our only disappointments were the walk to spa amenities and  Even if you’e not a fan of faux vintage furniture or endless cashews and champagne, this is still a good pre-flight first class experience.

Rating: 4 hops of 5.

How to get in: You must be travelling in First Class aboard British Airways to access the Concorde Room. If you’re not in First but are a One World Emerald-level frequent flyer or travelling aboard a partner in first, you’ll have access to the separate British Airways First Class Lounge at the other end of Terminal.