American Airlines New York JFK Soho Lounge
The Soho Lounge at New York JFK is a shared lounge for British Airways and American Airlines, plus Iberia, Qantas and Cathay Pacific.
A bit of anomaly, it welcomes all oneworld Emerald members who are not flying in first class on BA or AA. Real first class passengers can use the Chelsea Lounge next door.
As you enter there is a great lobby bar, then a central dining area, with buffet catering, and at the far end a library area and quieter zone, plus some work and view pods overlooking the runway. Throughout there is a great runway view.
NEWS: British Airways has closed it's dedicated lounges at lounges at New York's JFK airport and will now share facilities with American Airlines at Terminal 8. Two new lounges, called the Chelsea and Soho lounges, are for Gold card holders, and First Class passengers.
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New York JFK American Airlines Soho lounge review
New York JFK American Airlines Soho LoungeThe combined American Airlines and British Airways New York JFK Soho Lounge Soho lounge was opened as a new lounge when British Airways closed all it's lounges at New York JFK. It is for BA Executive Club Gold and AAdvantage Executive Platinum and AAdvantage Platinum Pro and Conciergekey, in both Business and Economy. You may hear the lounge referred to as the 'First' lounge, but that is simply highlighting the Frequent Flyer benefit: the real First lounge is next door, and this lounge is just for Frequent Flyers with top tier status.
As soon as you enter you see the bar, and then to the right is the main dining area with lots of curved dining sofas opposite 1+1 tables, and the refectory area.
The Soho lounge at JFK itself is an amazing 12,000 square feet, with seating for 282 guests, however you can't get away from the way that it is just one room.
New York JFK American Airlines Soho LoungeThe Greenwich lounge along the concourse has multiple rooms and sitting areas. However, in terms of design, you can't escape the combination of the elegant decor and the great views, with a much better design ethic than the the Greenwich Lounge, and the Chelsea Lounge doesn't have any windows or windows.
When you enter the lounge, you'll first find the bar area, featuring a variety of cocktail-style tables, booths, and even high-top seating at the bar counter.
When you go further into the lounge, there are more communal tables, as well as rows of seats by the windows, which are of course the best for plane spotting. However these banks of 2+2 seats don't face the windows, and are a right pain in the neck to enjoy the views of aircraft departing.
New York JFK American Airlines Soho LoungeIn the middle of the AA/BA Soho lounge is the dining area, featuring both tables and booths that seat either two to four people. This section is the busiest, and in the early evening can get quite messy with tables that aren't cleared quickly. Above the whole area is a lighting display from a Czech Republic glass specialist which symbolises birds in flight.
Past the dining area is another space with more seating, including communal tables, booths, and high spindly seats.
Finally at the back of the lounge is what is called 'The Library' - which alas, doesn't actually have any books, however this room in the very back of the lounge is often empty, and it does have a fireplace and a couple of workstation booths in the back. There are also two phone booths to the left of the dining area.
New York JFK American Airlines Soho LoungeThe Soho Lounge also has a hidden relaxation area, which is quite well hidden. The door to this is just inside the entrance and to the right, beside the buffet. There are three day beds as well as two recliner chairs, with sheer curtains between each of them, but alas no blankets.
From morning until mid afternoon the Soho lounge is very quiet, since there are few passengers eligible for access to the lounge just for domestic flights. However, in the evenings the lounge becomes seriously busy, due to the number of oneworld Emerald members traveling on long haul flights from Terminal 8, especially to the UK where there can be a flight every 30 minutes.
Food
All the New York JFK American Airlines Soho lounge reviews highlight the elevated food & drink selection compared to what you'll find in the lower status Greenwich Lounge.Certainly compared to other AA lounges, it's great. However, compared to normal BA lounges, it is only so-so.
New York JFK American Airlines Soho LoungeAs far as food goes, there's both a buffet, and a limited selection of a la carte options. There is a different selection for breakfast and lunch / dinner.
Breakfast included a variety of fresh fruit, yogurt, cold cuts, smoked salmon, salad, cereal, bagels, bread, pastries, oatmeal, mixed nuts, chocolate, and a handful of hot dishes, including scrambled eggs, potatoes, sausage, and these mean you can create your own cooked Full English breakfast in the Soho lounge if you try.
Lunch included a variety of salads and veggies, cold cuts, cheese, a handful of hot dishes, lemon squares, chocolate cake, and biscuits.
New York JFK American Airlines Soho LoungeIn addition to the buffet, there's also a small selection of a la carte dining. When you're in the dining area, each table has a sticker with a QR code and a table number. You can open that website, enter your table number, and then you can order from a fairly short menu of burgers, fish and chips, a curry, salad, and sandwiches.
Bar
As far as drinks go, all wine and beer are only available at the bar, unlike at the Greenwich Lounge, where it's self-serve. However the spirit selection at the bar is very good indeed.You can also order drinks to be delivered to your table via the QR codes on the tables, but service is amazingly slow - about 20 to 30 minutes per order.
At the far end of the buffet is a 30 foot long communal wine pouring table opposite a wine dispenser with eight wines, although the staff often just put the same bottles in slots next to one another, which reduces the selection.
New York JFK American Airlines Soho LoungeThere is good Champagne in the Soho Lounge, while the inferior Greenwich Lounge has self serve Piper-Heidsieck.
Beyond that, there is a very poor quality coffee machine, juices, tea, and a fridge with a very good selection of American beer.
Business Facilities
Free wifi.Bathrooms
In lounge, great showers. The 30 shower suites have good amenities, but they are in reusable toiletry containers which are not branded.
New York JFK American Airlines Soho LoungeAccess
BA Executive Club Gold and AAdvantage Executive Platinum and AAdvantage Platinum Pro and Conciergekey.Video: American Airlines Soho Lounge
View photos of American Airlines New York JFK Soho Lounge
New York JFK Airport Guide
| American Airlines New York JFK Soho Lounge | ||
|---|---|---|
| Rating |
Lounge Index
| |
| Pros | Great bar Amazing views |
|
| Cons | Can get busy Only one real room |
|
| Location | Terminal 8, airside, right after security | |
| Terminal | 8 | |
| Opening hours | 04300-2300 | |
| Lounge for: | American Airlines | |
| Other Airlines: | British Airways New York JFK Lounge Cathay Pacific New York JFK Lounge Qantas New York JFK Lounge Finnair New York JFK Lounge | |
| Access | Admirals Club members, AAdvantage Platinum on long-haul itineraries, long-haul business or first-class oneworld or American Airlines tickets, non-AA oneworld Emerald and Sapphire frequent flyers | |