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British Airways and American Airlines Soho Lounge - JFK Terminal 8

British Airways and American Airlines Soho Lounge - JFK Terminal 8

Old Dec 2, 2022, 3:18 pm
  #16  
 
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So maybe teething problems but I’d give the lounge a 5/10.

By 5pm they’d run out of Chardonnay. The bar was pretty chaotic (no lack of staff but just too many people untrained / doing nowt. The only hot food was pasta, potatoes, chicken, overdone salmon plus a soup. Lots of salad options if that’s your thing. The a la carte menu was poor IMO. The lounge was far too busy for the 4 cubicles in the mens & half the taps weren’t working.

It’s a nice space with a great range of drinks and lovely views but the old flagship lounge was miles better.
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Old Dec 2, 2022, 3:24 pm
  #17  
 
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Early days still though. Im suprised it even opened on time tbh.

Let's hope they get the snags fixed soon .

Thx for great updates and pics !
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Old Dec 2, 2022, 3:25 pm
  #18  
 
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Originally Posted by andymcdonnell
So maybe teething problems but I’d give the lounge a 5/10.

By 5pm they’d run out of Chardonnay. The bar was pretty chaotic (no lack of staff but just too many people untrained / doing nowt. The only hot food was pasta, potatoes, chicken, overdone salmon plus a soup. Lots of salad options if that’s your thing. The a la carte menu was poor IMO. The lounge was far too busy for the 4 cubicles in the mens & half the taps weren’t working.

It’s a nice space with a great range of drinks and lovely views but the old flagship lounge was miles better.
Looking at the food that was out, it looks like there's less variety than there was before, as well as it only being on 1 side vs accessible from both in longer trays. That seems an odd change.

And I wonder what the staff situation is. Presumably they kept on the same people that were in the FL before? Perhaps they had to hire lots of new members given it sounds like the lounge is much busier than it was which makes sense.

How's the beverage situation? I couldn't make out if the liquors were still along the back wall and still self-serve? And is the central wine bar still self-serve? Where are the cocktails coming from, the FFD bar?
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Old Dec 2, 2022, 3:43 pm
  #19  
 
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Originally Posted by andymcdonnell
So maybe teething problems but I’d give the lounge a 5/10.

By 5pm they’d run out of Chardonnay. The bar was pretty chaotic (no lack of staff but just too many people untrained / doing nowt. The only hot food was pasta, potatoes, chicken, overdone salmon plus a soup. Lots of salad options if that’s your thing. The a la carte menu was poor IMO. The lounge was far too busy for the 4 cubicles in the mens & half the taps weren’t working.

It’s a nice space with a great range of drinks and lovely views but the old flagship lounge was miles better.
Thanks for the run down! What champagne(s) were on offer?
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Old Dec 2, 2022, 3:45 pm
  #20  
 
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Originally Posted by andymcdonnell
So maybe teething problems but I’d give the lounge a 5/10.

By 5pm they’d run out of Chardonnay. The bar was pretty chaotic (no lack of staff but just too many people untrained / doing nowt. The only hot food was pasta, potatoes, chicken, overdone salmon plus a soup. Lots of salad options if that’s your thing. The a la carte menu was poor IMO. The lounge was far too busy for the 4 cubicles in the mens & half the taps weren’t working.

It’s a nice space with a great range of drinks and lovely views but the old flagship lounge was miles better.
Thanks for the update! One question, is the bar self serve or tended?
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Old Dec 2, 2022, 3:50 pm
  #21  
 
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All of the wine & spirits are behind the bar, a few beers are self serve along with soft drinks.

Champagne is always a personal thing but I didn’t think it was bad in fairness
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Old Dec 2, 2022, 4:11 pm
  #22  
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Originally Posted by jjLDNY
Looking at the food that was out, it looks like there's less variety than there was before, as well as it only being on 1 side vs accessible from both in longer trays. That seems an odd change.

And I wonder what the staff situation is. Presumably they kept on the same people that were in the FL before? Perhaps they had to hire lots of new members given it sounds like the lounge is much busier than it was which makes sense.

How's the beverage situation? I couldn't make out if the liquors were still along the back wall and still self-serve? And is the central wine bar still self-serve? Where are the cocktails coming from, the FFD bar?
This is the new Soho lounge, which is entirely separate from the Greenwich lounge (ex-Flagship lounge).
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Old Dec 2, 2022, 4:17 pm
  #23  
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Originally Posted by andymcdonnell
Hoping these load… not impressed by the food
Would you please expand on this, what is the issue with the food?
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Old Dec 2, 2022, 4:27 pm
  #24  
 
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I thought the old jfk flagship lounge , (well not the old old one) the food was mediocre and most often luke-warm to cold.

So am hoping better things at the Soho lounge.

Be a shame if the food (Soho lounge) is the same, but is early days folks. It's just opened.
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Old Dec 2, 2022, 4:31 pm
  #25  
 
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Originally Posted by Genius1
This is the new Soho lounge, which is entirely separate from the Greenwich lounge (ex-Flagship lounge).
Personally I don’t think 2 hot meat/fish options and no hot veg is great for a buffet and given only one side was stocked it’s not a lack of space.

The a la carte was all fast food - 2 burgers, a hot dog, a sandwich etc.
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Old Dec 2, 2022, 4:48 pm
  #26  
 
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Originally Posted by Genius1
This is the new Soho lounge, which is entirely separate from the Greenwich lounge (ex-Flagship lounge).
Derp. I mixed them up. I'll see myself out.

But on that note this looks much better than I was expecting.. Ready-made food aside, I didn't think they'd have fresh food for order.
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Old Dec 2, 2022, 4:55 pm
  #27  
 
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Originally Posted by crazyarmadillo
Be a shame if the food is the same, but is early days folks. It's just opened.
Early days?!

Sorry but I don't think this is good enough for two multibillion pound airlines who have run hundreds of lounges in cities and airports across the globe for many decades?

There is no possible excuse here for a soft launch on the brand new lounges and service for two airline industry giants on what is essentially the most prestigious route on the planet (not to mention the others of course..)? Get the people in who have the experience to run it to tip top capability from day one. The ones who foresee the snags and logistical issues before they happen. Who see the kitchen and the bar and the service area and say: 'Ah. So let's avoid this..' or 'we can do this to ensure that..'

Unfortunately they are expensive. Pay for them. It is that simple.

Not sure why you are giving a free pass here crazyarmadillo. BA and AA are not new entrants to the market.

Last edited by noFODplease; Dec 2, 2022 at 5:00 pm
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Old Dec 2, 2022, 5:15 pm
  #28  
 
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I get it.

I suppose I don't expect too much anymore. BA and AA are never going to be the superstars in aviation hospitality.

I'm not giving them (BA AA ) a few pass really. It's just that I didn't like the AA flagship lounge at all at Y8 ( The relatively new one ).

So anything , I think will be better. Plus I was not a fan of T7 in the slightest, despite the CCR.
It's just doesn't suprise me that they are problems at this stage.
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Old Dec 2, 2022, 6:05 pm
  #29  
 
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Honestly been a terrible experience in here. Bar staff have spent the whole evening apologising. Starting to wonder if I should have gone to the Greenwich Lounge.
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Old Dec 3, 2022, 3:20 am
  #30  
 
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The initial experiences don’t sound great; however, I’m willing to give BA/AA a week or 2 to resolve the teething problems and then look again
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