There is little question that the British Airways Concorde Room maintains its status as of the world’s great lounges. The exclusive Concorde Room is located at Terminal 5 at London’s Heathrow Airport. The lounge is best known for its fantastic hospitality and service which remains to be very consistent to this day.

I had a fantastic visit to the Concorde Room which obviously is not the Emirates First Lounge in Dubai. But my visit reminded me of the great attention to detail that employees bring to work each day. I think this experience blows away any lounge experience in the United States.

ACCESS

Very exclusive, you can only access this illustrious lounge if you are flying First Class or have a British Airways Concorde Room card which grants you access to Concorde Room regardless of your ticket class.

SURROUNDINGS

As you enter the lounge there are many cozy seating options that have somewhat recently been refreshed. Some of these chairs and sofas have nearby charging stations. I always enjoy going to the bar for a glass of champagne. The bar surroundings are really beautiful and you can also eat here with their expansive lunch and breakfast menus.

While they are no longer serving the Laurent Perrier ‘Grand Siecle’ they have a top vintage champagne, the 2006 ‘Cuvee Louise’ by Pommery. The wine is served in an exclusive stem that is designed for this older, very Burgundian champagne. The lounge also serves an excellent espresso and expresso martini if you feel like you are in the mood for a cocktail.

The Concorde Room does not have a great selection of red and white wines, as there are cheaper Bordeaux options available. I think that the best wine they serve is the 2021 ‘Rock Angel’ which is a beautifully-aged Provence Rose.

The espresso martini is really well-made — not too sweet and beautifully balanced. Their bar lead has worked in the Concorde Room for more than five years and really has a deft touch to the drinks she makes. This was enjoyed with a fabulous breakfast which included Eggs Royale and transitional English breakfast. It was a lot of food but fun to taste. They did an excellent job with their fresh Hollandaise sauce.

The Concorde Room has an extensive liquor collection which includes Don Julio 1942 (USD $200). You can even have Johnny Walker Blue Label scotch if you fancy which retails for 250 USD. I think one of the lounge’s strong points is definitely these options as well as their list of sparkling wines. I think that their sparkling wines definitely rival the Emirates First Lounge. They serve beautiful vintage Hattingley Valley sparkling wine that you can taste alongside the 2006 Pommery ‘Cuvee Louise.’

BATHROOMS:

While very sanitary, the bathrooms in the Concorde Room are sadly outdated. One small perk is the Elemins products they carry for soap and lotion. The showering area is sterile. Some other Concorde Room patrons have complained about the bathrooms for years. Functional but not fancy would describe these. There is nonstop cleaning at the bathroom area which is great.

You never go hungry at the Concorde Room as you can dine and drink whenever you like. Service for me is really top class British hospitality.

THE TERRACE:

Frequent fliers also complain about service around the Terrace. I have not found this to be an issue as waiters were refilling my champagne and water. I love the Terrace as it is the spot in Concorde Room where you can see all the happenings of Terminal 5. It is really entertaining to watch the other planes take off. The terrace has comfortable couches and a range of seating options with charging stations. The furniture was updated roughly a year ago and is a lovely improvement. I think this expansive part of the Concorde Room is rarely very busy and you are always going to find a comfortable seat here.

CONCORDE DINING

For sure one of the perks Concorde Room is the Concorde Dining, located in the heart of the Concorde Room. This is a very elegant setting which serves both breakfast and lunch. It is particularly fun if you have many friends with you.

They do a great job with the their pork terrine as well as the duck confit. Both were absolutely delicious and the duck literally fell off the bone. For me this is the finest entree that I have tasted here yet.

BOTTOM LINE

For years British Airways frequent fliers have been complaining about the Concorde Room. I think they should visit a lounge in the United States before they do that. For me there is absolutely no complaining about food quality, beverage quality or service here. As a One World Emerald there are certainly no US lounges that rival this level of service or dining experience. The American Airlines ‘First Dining’ comes close but has poor service consistently. The decor has improved in the Concorde Room.

While I would prefer it, I don’t need a fancy bathroom. If you want to be comfortable and sip world-class champagne or maybe enjoy a killer espresso martini — all with excellent service? Then I think you need to visit the Concorde Room.