UC vs MLL
 

MLL pros:

1) Less overcrowding
2) Better food
3) Fewer bartenders
4) Better booze

UCC pros: (e.g. how is a UC better than a MLL)
1) Access to booze before 11am
2) Some locations are half decent - SAN/SEA etc.

What am I missing?

And...go.

If you want "food", MLLs are better.

If you want snacks, UCs are better.

When I have an hour between flights, I don't want a sandwich. I want a plate overflowing with cheese, crackers, and hummus. UC all the way :D

UCs typically have beer more to my tastes though. But their free booze is disgusting. Even mixed with Coke it makes me gag.

What does a UC have by way of snacks that are better than a MLL?

I seem to (probably i'm wrong) recall that cheese, crackers and dips are available in both?

Oh, I forgot one thing.

The wifi at a UC is SO much better.. I'm not kidding or being facetious. It's so much faster and there's so much less BS when it comes to joining them.

BS? One click at a MLL vs. A password at the UC? Neither is a big deal. I do agree that the UC is generally faster.

I can't recall ever seeing cheese and crackers at a MLL. And United has better hummus.

On the pros side for AC, MLLs are less dirty and things are falling apart less, in general. Although my experience is mostly in IAH (terminals A, C and E), DEN and SFO, which are probably among the worst. Then again, the EWR one in the pier AC uses wasn't very nice either. The one in SEA is very nice though.

As for WiFi at UC, not sure I follow. AC no longer requires a sign-in, whereas the UC requires you to enter that stupid daily code.

I usually just enter my Aeroplan number.

The DHCP servers are faster than at a MLL.

Also heaven forbid I get flamed for this,

UC agents have been more respectful than MLL ones for me lately.

lol

"Sir, how are you getting in here today?"
"Uhh.... I'm in international business class and I'm Star Gold."
"Sir, this is a domestic flight. You can't get into a lounge with that until you're in Los Angeles."
"I'm Star Gold"
"Well my system is saying no"

"He's my guest."
"He's not on the same flight as you."
"I know, but we just drove here from work together, and he's my guest."
"He has to be on the same flight as you."
"No he doesn't."
"Sir, I'll pull up the rule."
** five minutes later **
"Well I can't find the rule, so I'll let you in just this once, but you're wrong. He's not allowed in with you."

That has never worked for me. Like. Not once. Whatever, they have the WiFi passwords everywhere.

It has been a while since I've been in a United Club, but in the past the main thing I found them good for was the desk separate from the entrance where they could work on flight changes and so on.

I don't know if they still have those.

Otherwise the main attraction was that I was permitted to enter while other people were not.

SEA is nice. Its like SAN. The agents at SAN were very polite so were the bartenders. Much better than say those at YYC. I was pleasantly shocked.

The UC at SFO was meh, I agree there.

The UC for the E/F gates at ORD is also very nice. Similar decor to SEA and it's quite big. The food offerings at UC also seem to have improved since a few years ago. Last few times, they had salad and soup in addition to the snacks, which are also better than a few years ago. The Skittles are a nice touch. Sometimes I'm in the mood for a sweet snack with my G&T.

Never worked for me either. As for the passwords, I disagree. In some UCs, yes. In others, no, and you end up wandering around all of the place to find one.

Yes, some do, and agreed that's a great feature. I find it to be sub-optimal to sometimes hold up the line of people looking to get in when I'm just trying to get a simple flight change or something done (nor do I like being the one held up).

UC is definitely better than it was in regards to snacks. I find MLL staff friendlier. UC staff do seem to get a bit of a thrill at turning people away. When that happens to the Mileage Plus flier ahead of me I've offered to guest them in which just annoys the UC staff even more :)

As for Wifi - UC is MUCH better. If I'm at LGA and need to get work done I will head to the UC lounge every time.