Over the past year or so, Priority Pass has added partnerships with a number of airport restaurants, where you can now get a dining credit of ~$28-$30 at a number of participating restaurants (amount of credit depends on the location/currency). The newest addition is at New York’s JFK Airport, and that will no doubt make it pretty popular. Unfortunately for domestic travelers, it is located in an international terminal, but for those traveling from Terminal 8 and looking for a higher-end meal at the airport, this looks like a nice enhancement.
As you can see above under the “opening hours” heading, cardholders are only allowed to bring one guest, and you’ll get a credit of $28 per person (which can only be applied toward your order — it won’t count for gratuity and you can’t get cash back. Here’s a link to the lunch and dinner menu. As you’ll see, $28 will be sufficient to get you a soup and sandwich or salad and sliders or something of the sort. If you’re looking for dinner, it’ll at least get you a substantial discount on a more formal entree — leaving you to pay $12 for a filet mignon or completely covering entrees like lobster ravioli or sesame crusted ahi tuna. I think that’s not a bad deal at all and in fact there are times when I would rather have a nice meal like that than sit in a lounge with trail mix and juice boxes.
Notable from the conditions/additional information shown below is that you must show your card prior to ordering and you can only use one Priority Pass membership card per cardholder — so you can’t whip out 3 different memberships to stack up an $84 credit.
I’m not sure I’ll be flying out of Terminal 8 internationally any time soon, but this is a nice option to have. Even if you are flying business class and have access to an airline lounge, it might be nice to get a proper meal and then relax in the lounge / get work done.
H/T: One Mile at a Time
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[…] airport lounges. I’d say that Priority Pass is innovating. As I’ll be flying out of JFK’s Terminal 8 this week, I’ll be happy to enjoy that […]
I get “to go” and don’t tip.
Tipping is anti American and what commies do. No sir, never going to tip. Not I this gods own America.
Bribing people to give you service is probably the most capitalist thing you can do. There’s nothing communist about it.
Bobby Van’s speciality is the Prime-Rib for 2 for $100. Not at JFK?
Amazing dish ! (with plenty of sides).
Terminal 8 is a domestic terminal as well. All American flights out of JFK go through Terminal 8.
Shows how often I fly Oneworld out of JFK. The Priority Pass app labeled it as international, so I assumed it was international-only. Thanks!
How about Delta?
Isn’t 2 and 4?
Nick,
At JFK, can’t we access the International Terminal with a valid same-day ticket, even if it is domestic? Then you leave that terminal and go back to the domestic terminal when it is time for the flight. I think I’ve done that before…
I’m not sure. I’ve done that in other airports before, but haven’t tried at JFK. If you try it out, let me know if it works for you.
Are we certain you can’t use the $28 to cover gratuity? I was in MIA a few months ago, and decided to take my wife and daughter to Priority Pass’s Corona restaurant for a change of pace (normally, I would have just headed to the Centurion Lounge). At the Corona, we were able to use the $28 per person allowance for what I recall to be the mandatory tip. This is a good thing because, otherwise, it probably makes more sense to go to a decent lounge (like the Centurion) where you don’t have to tip on overpriced airport food.
At JFK, the new rule says only 1 guest. But if, say, I had a party of 4, I assume there would be nothing wrong with my wife and I each using our PP cards and taking one guest. I assume they’d give us separate checks, but not make us sit at separate tables. Still, if I had to pay a $20 tip on that meal, I’d probably just head to a lounge unless we actually were hungry for a real meal.
See the last sentence under “additional information” — “Any remaining balance cannot be used towards gratuity.” It was my understanding that the $28 credit can’t be used towards gratuity at any of the Priority Pass restaurants, but I haven’t tested that theory or read much about it.
I also assume that if you had a party of 4 it would work having two people each use a Priority Pass. It doesn’t say one card per party; it says one card per cardmember. I think they just don’t want you to pull out two of your own Priority Pass memberships. If two people at the table each have a Priority Pass, I would expect that to be OK.
You’re right that tipping is a consideration. Personally, I’d rather have a full meal and pay $6 in gratuity for it than a few handfulls of trailmix if that’s what they’re offering in the lounge. If the lounge has more substantial food, that makes a difference (as does how long I’m going to be waiting, etc). And if I were paying $6 x 4 people, I could also see how that would feel much less appealing. I agree that it won’t work for everyone, but it’s a decent option to have.
I definitely was able to use my remaining balance in MIA for gratuity. It obviously makes the experience more appealing. Of course, you’re right — if the lounge sucked, you’d be delighted to eat at a halfway decent airport restaurant for the price of a tip. I will say, though, that — in addition to the free food — I find it much more pleasant to wait for a flight in an airport lounge than in an airport restaurant. Right now, though, the novelty of “free food at an airport restaurant” probably trumps the comfort of visiting a lounge in airports where PP has restaurants.
We were told at the PP restaurant in Portland last week that our remaining balance couldn’t be used for gratuity.