Designed by Sir Terence Conran, the Concorde Room at JFK opened in 1999 and was refurbished three times since; new Conran-designed elements were introduced in the early 2000s, a major refurbishment took place in 2011, with a more recent refresh of selected elements being carried out in 2017. Despite changes over the years, including of course the untimely demise of Concorde herself, the Concorde Room at JFK retained a number of original elements right until the end, including the entrance wood panelling, marble-effect floor, glass and granite-clad bar and green marble washrooms. This lounge was special for its enduring connection to Concorde, for it was the only location in the BA network where you could still walk in the footsteps of those lucky passengers.



The Concorde Room’s long entrance corridor took up around half of the entire length of the lounge and was impressive in an understated, elegant way. Understated elegance was perhaps the best description for the Concorde Room at JFK; with the atmosphere of a private members’ club, it felt both homely and luxurious at the same time and was quite unlike any other airline lounge I’ve ever visited.





A cloakroom and washrooms were located off the entrance corridor, with a VIP room (formerly a smoking room) located at the far-left hand end. The washrooms featured the original green marble Conran design, and although dated at their end, they were befitting of the wider environment. The Concorde Room didn't feature showers; only the Club lounge (at the other end of the terminal) offered those.



The lounge was separated into two distinct halves; a collection of four ‘living room’ seating areas on the left, and the tended bar and waiter-service dining area to the right.





Each seating area was comprised of multiple different styles of armchair and sofa, with occasional tables interspersed between the pieces. To the untrained eye, the effect was slightly eclectic, but with a little more study it was apparent that the colours and styles of furniture and sumptuous fabrics were coordinated, in a way that seemed very elegantly British and far removed from the regimented modern interiors of, for example, the Qantas First lounges.











Additional seating and a small work zone were provided to the rear of the fire escape core. Opposite the fire exit was an additional entrance to Gate 1, which originally offered direct boarding from the lounge for Concorde passengers, who would've walked past a newspaper and magazine rack on their way to their Conran-designed seat.





Waiter service was not confined to the dining area, with the entire lounge offering made-to-order drinks. Service was mostly excellent, with multiple drinks refills and waiters circling regularly but unobtrusively a common occurrence. A small sweet station was usually available for those emergency moments when waiting a few minutes for service is impossible, with fruit and cheese available at the bar.





The dinner menu, whilst not extensive, usually featured a refined choice of exquisite and truly restaurant-quality dishes; a wine list was available via iPad.

















I was only fortunate enough to visit the JFK Concorde Room once, but what a lounge it was.

Conran would've been proud of how long his design endured and how it continued to evoke the essence of Concorde for nearly two decades after her retirement.