Many persons have come to the IHG board with the dillema of choosing which IC for their NYC visit.
As you know IC Times SQ does not have a lounge but is in the middle of the action, Yeah!
Whilest the IC Barclay does have lounge but is located in a more sedated area of Manhattan.
Allow me to take you on a photographic tour at the Club Intercontinental Lounge at the IC Barclay so you can make an informed decision if it is worth booking a club room/suite, worth to aim for the milestone 40/70N annual lounge pass or if you are just curious and fancy a lazy armchair read to kill time ... ofcourse this one is dedicated to all my homies, bros, sisterhood, those with any remote ability to smile and as such everyone who ever contributed on the IHG-fora.... without you all i might have even become swayed to the dark side of slavishly following Marriott / Hyatt / Hilton .....
There are 3 F&B presentations
- breakfast
- afternoon tea
- evening drinks & appetizers
I'll start with the physical space and show you the food and beverage offering in chronological order
Directly of the lobby you will find the entrance to the club lounge
Currently its operating hours are from 7 till 20 daily
There is always an attendant on duty, just quote your room number and registered name to be allowed access
Please be reminded that lounge itself has no windows and although i am allergic to pokey holes,
i found the darker decoration 1920/30s Belle Epoque style quite cozy and comfortable with still enough light to read / work and seeing in one's eyes
Entrance to the lounge of the lobby
Looking left after entering,
you will find some extra seating,
- 2 workstations of 1 MAC OS and 1 MS Windows,
- both with complete office suite
- a toilet serving all genders of all persuasions
Seating area of the lounge , TV is set on local NYC news
Meeting room of the lounge "Salon II" ,
this can be used on a first come first serve basis
Next to the computer corner you can find all these handy things to keep your documents and files / wraps in place
Internet reception is strong in the lounge
Enough American power outlets are scattered about
Ok, just showing you the photo of the restroom so you know that Iris Apfel has left her legacy of inspiration in NYC
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iris_Apfel
Yes it is quite different
And now we go to the food and beverage presentations
What is always available during lounge opening hours?
So from 7 - 20 H
Infused cold water
Teas by the house of Dammam Frères .... just as IC AMS & IC PLG
https://www.dammann.fr/en/
Machine
Choices of coffeestyles also offer DECAF
Illy cold brew dispenser
Sweets of every possible chemical composition found in nature or not at all 
Illy bean to cup machine : this machine is specially set up for your to go / take away coffees on the move
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illy
The softdrinks cabinet
Jars with sweets
Jars of cookies and nuts
It took the lid off for a better photo
Fruit bowl
And now we go on to
breakfast.
This is available daily from 07.00 till 11.00 H mornings
The setup is buffet style
There is no additional à la carte cook to order menu
It seems to mimic the offerings of the main breakfast venue ...
Although my son immeadiatly spotted the absence of the rose flavoured yoghurt ....
The hot breakfast items seems to rotate every day on an interval to keep some variety in offerings
Buffet set up for breakfast
Breakfast 1
Breakfast 2
The lounge does have raspberries !
Breakfast 3 no rose flavoured yoghurt
Breads
Bakery items
All things to start a hot breakfast with in the morning
Milks of the lactose and non lactose versions
Cereals and stuff for the oatmeal porridge
Cereals
The lounge does have strawberries !
Some hot items rotate at an interval daily
Hot items
Rotation 1
Hot items 2
Rotation 1
Egg white scrambled next to normal scrambled eggs
Rotation 1
And these hot items were for day 2
Hot breakfast items
rotation 2
Hot breakfast items
Rotation 2
Hot breakfast items With green asperagus Rotation 3
Hot breakfast items Rotation 3
And now we move on to
afternoon tea,
Thisisavailable from 14.00 till16.00
A selection of sandwhiches , sweets and scones are available
The selection differs by daily rotation
Salmon sandwiches and éclair sweets
Watercress egg sandwiches
Crean milk puff
Scones with jam and clotted cream
Cucumber sandwiches
And now i will show you the evening presentation of the
evening drinks
Exactly available from 17.00 till 19.00
The beerfridge becomes unlocked and the wines pop out....
You notice no hard liquor available because %> alcohol local and state laws & permits
The offerings rotate on a daily basis
Cold items 1
Cold items 2
Sweet items
Hot items 1
Pigs in a blanket
Hot items 2
Stuffed potato skins
Hot items 3
Beef short rib and Roquefort cheese puff
With sauces
And now the evening drinks
Beers available for self serve
Cold white + rosé + bubbly available for self pour
2 different red wines
Conclusion
As
I said before, only you can decide if the lounge suits your needs.
It can be worth it because of the calm during breakfast when the main venue is like a zoo.
The ability to be productive and have drinks ready at hand available in a nice space beats the popular trend of crowded hotdesking in a chaotic Starbucks. Most important, it is not a zoo of chaos wind such as Hilton, Hyatt and Marriott lounges were one can incur trample damage not worthwhile the effort for a measly snackmix and no hot items.
From an economic standpoint,
If you do compare the pricing of all the types of drinks in the hotel, there is really value in having lounge access.
The fact is that the lounge breakfast provides a complete array that should suit everyone's taste
The staff encountered are all friendly and keeping the lounge tidy and clean by clearing & cleaning tables .
And yes i tried to emulate Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte, Miranda's lifestyle of looking for labels and love ....
But exactly as in "Just like that" ... i have aged tragically that i can't do anything without my reading glasses ...
But i did spot some lookalikes about.
Hope you enjoyed this analysis ... may it be informative for you all