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EWR Polaris lounge -- Reviews, Experiences, Q&A, ..

Old Jun 3, 2018, 2:29 pm
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Last edit by: SPN Lifer
Access to Polaris lounges (source):


update 29 Sept 2017, effective 1 Oct, 2017

Departure: The airport you are leaving on an international J/F flight* from, i.e. EWR-ORD-NRT
Connecting: The airport to or from which you have a short-haul flight to connect to a longer flight, i.e. EWR-ORD-NRT or NRT-ORD-EWR
Arrival: The airport you arrive at after your long-haul flight, i.e. EWR-ORD-NRT

Hours- 4:30a - 10:45p

*Currently it appears that any departing international flight on an *A partner qualifies (except AC operated transborder flights ), but only United flights with the premium cabin class listed as 'Polaris Business' or 'Polaris First' will qualify for entrance after arriving off a United Polaris flight.
UA premium cabin flights not marketed as Polaris, such as Domestic First or International Business (Canada, Mexico, Caribbean ... ) are not eligible for Polaris lounge access.

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EWR Polaris lounge -- Reviews, Experiences, Q&A, ..

Old Jan 15, 2023, 9:09 pm
  #556  
 
Join Date: Aug 2008
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Originally Posted by elitefreak
...
A guest across from me was raving about the duck, first to server and later to a chef. He claims he travels a lot so I will conclude that it is quite good.
...
Lemon budino tasted fine but had a grainy texture. But worse was a bottom watery layer under the pudding.

Buffet was uninspiring and heavy on Indian cuisine.
...
From my post above:
Duck was literally burnt, I could taste bitterness. I had the duck at IAD and it was the opposite, skin wasnt rendered enough so impossible to chew
Same with dessert. The panna cotta at IAD was soup ( could drink it). The budino here was solid and grainy.
ORD had two different types of cream/mousse at the buffet. This would have been preferred and is much easier to make correctly.


I thought the EWR buffet had more of a mexican theme if any theme at all. I'll say for all the PL, the dining room food is starting to get closer to how it was before, the buffet is still much worse than I remember.

Speaking of guests raving about things, last time I was at the EWR club, I was seated pretty close to the bar and could overhear a guy talking to one of the staff. He said that he travels all over the world and this was one of the best lounges he has been in and was saying he'll post a positive review. He then said that he's a famous golfer and has X Million followers so he's got it covered. I guess some people just like hearing the sound of their own voice.
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Old Jan 15, 2023, 11:46 pm
  #557  
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Originally Posted by Kmxu
Connection pax for flying out from a different hub can have the entire dining room for himself/herself. I did this at EWR in the early afternoon (for EWR-IAH-SYD).
YMMV!
Also the case at LAX PL for most / if not all days, fortunately!

Personally, I did not find the food options that bad at EWR, when I visited in fall. Do not recall a heavy Indian or Mexican food selection. However, the self-serve dessert selection was truly lacking with some fruits and cookies only.
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Old Jan 17, 2023, 12:29 am
  #558  
 
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Originally Posted by unitedbusiness
glad I didnt rush to get in the EWR lounge then. Not sure why it has been Indian-centric lately, not a fan
No problem with that on my end! Keep it coming! As far as DL goes in comparison, they offer a lot of the same food options at the JFK SkyClub but just buffet style and no menus. It's not a sit down restaurant like PL but the offerings are still good. They just want and need to cater to more people in a very busy setting at T4.
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Old Jan 17, 2023, 11:19 pm
  #559  
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Come spring/summer with additional flights more crowding at the EWR PL can be expected.
How many Polaris pax will be departing daily? a couple thousand or so? maybe even more?
Not even counting arrivals connecting. (my numbers are probably way off)
20 772s already add up to 1000 seats.......
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Old Jan 18, 2023, 6:52 am
  #560  
 
Join Date: Aug 2019
Posts: 128
Talking

Originally Posted by cesco.g
Come spring/summer with additional flights more crowding at the EWR PL can be expected.
How many Polaris pax will be departing daily? a couple thousand or so? maybe even more?
Not even counting arrivals connecting. (my numbers are probably way off)
20 772s already add up to 1000 seats.......
I fear it won't be long and those on award tickets will be relegated to the United Club where they will have to put up with hot dogs, nachos and sub-$10 whiskey. Air Canada is already doing that to their award fliers. And I can see this happen during peak hours at especially busy hubs like EWR. Well, as long as I can still use it late March I'll be fine.
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Old Jan 18, 2023, 3:06 pm
  #561  
 
Join Date: Mar 2017
Location: Boston MA
Programs: AA EXP
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Was in the EWR Polaris lounge today connecting from an international flight to a domestic one; I thought the lounge was very nice; menu items were good, felt clean and new, and the self-service items were good. However, 2 clusters of 3 staff- one in the showers, and one in the self-service food area spent quite some time in a huddle texting and loudly discussing employment terms with no customer interaction.
Then, to my surprise, one after the other, 2 of the people that wheel folks with limited mobility came up to the buffet and helped themselves to bagels, coffee and other items. One used his hands to remove stuff from the pile, and both stashed the items in the back of the trolley. I think this reflects poorly on the Club manager. In general, though, a quality place to spend a few hours.
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Old Jan 18, 2023, 3:52 pm
  #562  
 
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Originally Posted by cesco.g
Come spring/summer with additional flights more crowding at the EWR PL can be expected.
How many Polaris pax will be departing daily? a couple thousand or so? maybe even more?
Not even counting arrivals connecting. (my numbers are probably way off)
20 772s already add up to 1000 seats.......
Since when did UA care about crowded lounges?
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Old Jan 18, 2023, 7:36 pm
  #563  
 
Join Date: Jan 2009
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Originally Posted by eng3
Since when did UA care about crowded lounges?
To be fair to UA, theyve expanded ORD twice to address overcrowding.
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Old Jan 18, 2023, 7:48 pm
  #564  
 
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Originally Posted by st530
To be fair to UA, theyve expanded ORD twice to address overcrowding.
Plus the EWR UC Lounge expansion, to also be fair.

I've read a couple of horror stories about EWR PL where people "sat on their rollaboards". I'm not doubting that occurred, but I think it's more the exception...
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Old Feb 4, 2023, 9:09 am
  #565  
 
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What time does the EWR Polaris lounge stop serving dinner?

I'm on a late Europe bound flight tonight in Polaris, late enough where they won't be serving dinner. What time does the Polaris Lounge in EWR stop serving food? I know a couple times in the past I've entered later in the evening and the buffet and restaurant were shut down.
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Old Feb 5, 2023, 4:16 am
  #566  
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Originally Posted by vandalby
I'm on a late Europe bound flight tonight in Polaris, late enough where they won't be serving dinner. What time does the Polaris Lounge in EWR stop serving food? I know a couple times in the past I've entered later in the evening and the buffet and restaurant were shut down.
Lounge closes at 10:30. I seem to recall restaurant has last seating well before then, but no personal experience.

Curious about what flight you are on that wouldn't serve a dinner? To my knowledge, all the late European flights have an after-departure meal service. Granted it might not be edible though... Haha
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Old Feb 5, 2023, 11:05 am
  #567  
 
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Originally Posted by goodeats21
Lounge closes at 10:30. I seem to recall restaurant has last seating well before then, but no personal experience.
Is 10:30pm new? It has been 10pm sharp closures on my recent visits. I believe the restaurant won't seat you after 9.30pm, perhaps earlier if staff is trying to close it down. It makes the 11pm EWR-LHR flight unattractive (especially if it's delayed!) - it's definitely worth turning up to EWR 2-3 hours before to ensure you get fed in the PL...
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Old Feb 5, 2023, 11:21 am
  #568  
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Originally Posted by seanp7
Is 10:30pm new? It has been 10pm sharp closures on my recent visits. I believe the restaurant won't seat you after 9.30pm, perhaps earlier if staff is trying to close it down. It makes the 11pm EWR-LHR flight unattractive (especially if it's delayed!) - it's definitely worth turning up to EWR 2-3 hours before to ensure you get fed in the PL...
It's been that way for a couple months at least, but I do remember being on a late + delayed flight last summer and hitting the closing time call at 2145, which felt a little bit hostile. So maybe you can say it is semi-recent change.
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Old Feb 8, 2023, 10:24 am
  #569  
 
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I didn't see the latest menu posted here
haven't tried lunch/dinner yet. Curious about what the chicken dish is
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Old Feb 8, 2023, 11:39 am
  #570  
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Originally Posted by eng3
I didn't see the latest menu posted here
haven't tried lunch/dinner yet. Curious about what the chicken dish is
img
Kind of reads like it's halal cart chicken. Which sounds good to me! 😁
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