I recently flew from New York-JFK back home to Amsterdam to visit friends and family (see my quick looks for the flight there and back with). I flew on KLM’s World Business Class, and as part of that I was eligible to use Delta’s business class services, termed ‘Delta One’. In this review I’ll only talk about the Delta One Lounge, though I’ll start by briefly mentioning additional services that you can expect.

Briefly, I was impressed by the experience. I greatly enjoyed the Delta One Lounge’s three course, full service, seated dining concept and the spa treatment I received was short but wonderful. It’s also a beautiful lounge with lots of marble and wood. I’ll definitely make it a point to return!

1. Delta One Lounge (and services) access requirements
2. A whole experience: Delta One check-in and security services
3. Delta One Lounge design, layout and seating
4. Dining at the Delta One Lounge
   1. Seated dining: full service, three-course dinner
   2. Buffet restaurant
5. Wellness spaces: spa treatments and quiet space
6. Other facilities
7. Heading for my flight
8. Summary

Delta One Lounge (and services) access requirements

Delta One is the name of Delta Airlines’ top premium class, akin to business class on other carriers. In order to access Delta One lounge and services at New York-JFK, you’d need to be on:

• A same-day A Delta flight traveling in a cabin marketed as ‘Delta One’.
• Delta 360 members traveling in first class (if not in Delta One).
• Traveling in international first or business class on select Delta partners, including: KLM, Air France, Virgin Atlantic, Korean Air or LATAM.

Note that the access rules, at the time of writing, are the same for the Delta One Lounge in LAX, but are more restrictive in Boston due to capacity constraints: Air France and KLM passengers cannot access the Delta One lounge and are restricted to using the Delta Sky Club or Air France lounge.

A note on what constitutes Delta One: not every single flight on Delta offers Delta One. In fact, Delta One is only provided on select transcontinental domestic, long or medium haul international flights. Delta’s domestic first class doesn’t necessarily constitute Delta One, and so wouldn’t be eligible to enter the Delta One lounge. When you buy your ticket, ensure that it is marketed as Delta One: if it is, you’ll get access to the Delta One Lounge if operating in and out of a location that has it. Currently, only Boston, JFK and LAX have a delta One lounge, but Seattle and Salt Lake City should be next to get one.

So in my case I got access to Delta One Lounge and services by virtue of traveling in KLM’s World Business Class out of New York-JFK.

Note that flying out of JFK, really the only way to do so is by flying business class with KLM, LATAM, Virgin Atlantic or Delta. I realize you can also get access with Korean Air and Air France, but both these airlines depart from Terminal 1. Hence flying with them will not help you to get into the Delta One Lounge, unfortunately.

A whole experience: Delta One check-in and security services

What I didn’t realize is that the Delta One ground experience is not just the lounge. I assumed there would be some priority check-in and such, but I didn’t think it’d be more than that. As it turns out, Delta One comes with a whole experience, that starts at check-in.

When I arrived at New York-JFK’s Terminal 4 I went to the right-most part of the terminal sicne I rmemeber seeing the priority check-in counters over there:

Additionally, I saw the signs to Delta One, and thought I was in the right place. When I walked over to the attendant at the entrance and showed her my boarding pass, however, I was told to walk back a bit. As it turns out, Delta One passengers have an entirely private entrance:

This entrance is all wooden with glass sliding doors, and had a distinctly premium look to it that made me quite excited. The truth is that I’ve seen this sort of private check-in for first class passengers on other airlines, but not usually for business class. So this was a great start of the journey. Inside two attendants once again checked my boarding pass and invited me to walk down a hallway that, frankly, was a little bland. The potted plants were nice, though.

At the end of the hallway you’ll find a lounge to the left with a few desks for any help you may need:

There was also a little buffet with warm and cold drink options, including fruit-infused water, snacks and crackers:

And then to the right was a large, spacious area for check-in, with several check-in counters. The design was striking in how big and yet empty it was. I thought it was quite beautiful:

As you can see, there is no obvious ‘line’ or anything. You just sort of queue up at whatever counter you want to stand at. I imagine the idea here is that there’s always enough manned counters that as people come in to check in and drop their bags, there is an agent ready to welcome and help them, but in practice I did have to wait a few minutes. Adding some kind of signage can help manage expectations I think, but on the other hand, I like the lack of such a regimented process. Perhaps this sounds corny, but without any lines or signage I did feel like Delta One feels more premium, since you can choose wherever you want to stand rather than being pushed into some line. Perhaps that sounds silly…

Check-in was quick and efficient and the friendly (but not overly friendly) agent handed me the boarding pass and directed me to security. As it turns out, Delta One has its own security checkpoint as well. I wasn’t sure whether this would also include TSA PreCheck, as it seemed there was only one line:

This part of the Delta One experience definitely doesn’t feel all that premium. Compared to my experience at other airports that didn’t have uh a special section like this, but where premium (e.g. SkyPriority-eligible) passengers all shared the same line (e.g. at Copenhagen and Tokyo-Narita) I sped through very quickly sicne there were 3-4 lines and essentially no passengers. So, this was perhaps a little disappointing as it seemed to me that the Delta One section should really have multiple lines. I do get it’s a tight corridor but perhaps this is something for Delta to improve on.

Fortunately, as I got to the security checkpoint and the TSA officer so my boarding pass, he gave me a special note that indicated my TSA PreCheck membership:

In practice, this meant that I didn’t need to take my shoes off at the checkpoint, and I was able to go through the ‘simple’ scanner of the two. Other than that, since there was only one line, there was nothing particularly expedited in this line with TSA PreCheck.

Once I came through (and my carry-on as well), it was a short walk to the Delta One Lounge:

You can’t see it on this particular picture, but here you are right after the checkpoint, and there is a walkway that curves around to what looks like the other side of the hall. Down below are the shops and restaurants of the main concourse of Terminal 4, while, all the way at the other end, where you see a bridge between the two side of the concourse, is the ‘main’ security checkpoint for all other passengers. Right after that, just to the right of where that bridge is, with the wooden facade, is the Delta One Lounge entrance.

So, I walked along the hallway to the right over to the other side, and soon enough ended up at the entrance to the Delta One lounge:

There were a few agents at the entrance to check boarding passes and let you in. There is no registration or anything required, nor was here any waiting time to get in, despite the lounge seeming rather busy. As you get in, you enter a short hallway before you get to the lounge proper:

Overall, the ground experience so far was unexpectedly pleasant. I’m not sure if the experience would be the same at LAX or Boston, or how this compares with flying in United’s Polaris or American’s Flagship classes – whether they have a ground experience like this in place.

Delta One Lounge design, layout and seating

The entrance to the lounge brings you to a bit of an awkward space that feels both big but also cramped. Here there is a concierge who cna take your stuff for safe keeping in the cloakroom, which I think is a wodnerfuls ervie. it allows you to offload your stuff and freely explore the lounge without dragging around your carryon and coat.

If you look to the left and right, you’ll see the main corridor that runs along the lounge. The white marble floors is a nice touch that looks luxurious. There is another corridor on the other side of the lounge hat similarly runs along the various areas, though with windows so you can look out to the aprons and watch the aircraft.

If you walk forward a little but, you will find to your left a lounge area with diverse seating options that looks a bit like a living room, with warm colors and wooden finishes. There are predominantly low chairs with side tables, as well as some couches, with more lounge chairs along the edges of the space.

Then, on the right, there is the bar area. As you can see, I arrived at a very busy time, but even so there was seating to be found, though perhaps not at the bar. Similar seating as in the opposite can be found here: smaller lounge chairs as well as bigger ones that you can really ‘sink’ into and relax, all with little side tables.

Moving closer to the bar we get a better view of the design. It ties in well with the space opposite that I showed above, replicating the chandelier-like fixtures on the ceiling with the shape of the bar. The whole vibe is a little dark with light, golden accents, and together with the velvety carpet it feels like you’re in something of speak easy. Personally I really like the look, as it looks rich and luxurious. I was also happy to see that the bar stools have a comfy back rest, so sitting at the bar for an extended amount of time should be quite comfortable.

I did not order anything, rather I continued to see what else was there. I emerged on the other side of this area, and found the second corridor that I mentioned above. it runs along the other side of the lounge, with windows that give a view of the airside.

Turning to the left you quickly run into a dead-end. There’s a bunch of seating along the windows that gives nice views, but other than that there’s much else there, so I walked back and to the other direction. I was pleasantly surprised to see something of an oudoorsy area, though entirely enclosed in glass. With the big planters, a small bar (there are these rolling bars, well-stocked with all sorts of drinks, that you’ll find throughout the lounge), this is a very nice, quiet spot to enjoy a drink and enjoy the views.

I continued on my way along the corridor and emerged in the first of two dining areas. As you can see, it’s not gigantic but there’s enough seating. The vibe is airy and light, with white tiles and yellow accents that are quite pleasant. Seating consists predominantly of two-person dining tables along long couches, but also multi-person sharing tables with stools. The latter would be a better fit for bigger groups. I’ll get to the food itself later on.

If you now keep walking along that corridor, you’ll find more seating that looks more like an office space. Several larger tables with plugs are combined with lounge-like chairs and tables, as well as closed booths that are perfect for conference calls. I really liked this space, personally, due to the glass walls and all the wood, combined with the window-side seating it felt like it’s own little place, separated from the rest of the lounge but still very much a part of it.

I then continued along the corridor and arrived at what you might call the ‘wellness’ section of the lounge. This area consists of an actual (small) spa, a fairly normal seating area, and a specially dubbed ‘quiet’ area.

The first place you will walk into is the general seating area. This area has more of the same kind of lounge chairs that you find elsewhere in the lounge.

I realize this don’t seem like a particualrly ‘wellness-y’ areas, but I do include it with the ‘wellness’ area because of the taps along one side of the wall where you can get a range of custom juices. I tried several, and found some to be very nice and refreshing, while other s a bit too ‘grassy’ for my taste.

This doesn’t mna that the only drink you cna find here is just the juice. Quite the contrary – I had mentioned portbale little bars throughout the lounge, and such a thing was present here as well:

As you can see, there is a healthy amount of beer and wine available throughput the lounge at these stations, though they are not self-serve. I found that once you start approaching such a station, a member of the staff will quickly approach to ask if you want to drink something. I got a glass of wine, that I proceeded to take around with me as I continued walking.

If you continue following the corridor, you will get to the quiet area. For what it’s worth, this part of the lounge did actually seem quieter, and I imagine it’s because it’s the furthest away from all the dining areas of any space. Plus, the drapery and carpets provide a soft acoustic environment that further dampens the sounds.

I appreciated the additional seating options, with both smaller and taller chairs with comfortable back rests. There are also booths to the side, as pictured below. These offer a kind of bench with a small table that could be good to get some work done, or just have a drink in a darker environment.

Then there is an actual spa as well, where you can get various treatments, but I’ll address that in a separate section, further down into this review.

Beyond this point there’s the restroom and showers, which I’ll show a little later on. Suffice it to say that the lounge is not enormous – it’s a decent size, but it does get crowded at peak hours due to the main Delta and Delta partner flights (e.g. KLM) leaving at this time of the evening. I thought the design of the lounge was quite beautiful and I particualrly enjoyed the white marble floord and the wood paneling and accents throughout. The seating was adequate. Seats were comfortable and there was a diversity of seating options and arrangements. A little bit more ‘office’ style space would have maybe been nice, but then I didn’t see all that many people use that space.

Dining at the Delta One Lounge

Having toured the lounge, I thought it was high time to grab a bite, and I decided that I wanted to experience the seated, full service dining option. However, note that there is also a buffet-style restaurant, in case you’re looking for a quicker bite, since the full service restaurant does take about an hour to get through all the courses. That is assuming you’re eating at a steady pace.

Seated dining: full service, three-course dinner

The full servcie restaurant is directly right of the entrance. Opposite the bar, you’ll come across a doorway with a hostess. You can give ehr your name and the number of people and she will see what time you cna get a table. When I dropped by it was peak dinner time, around 6:45pm, and it seemed as though there was a 15-20 minute wait for a table for 1 or 2 people. Fortunately for me, I could take a seat immediately if I was okay with the chef’s table: essentially sitting it a bar right at the kitchen.

The hostess guided me through the beautiful restaurant, with a large island in the middle with comfortable-looking benches, which my husband tells me are called ‘banquettes’. I really liked the lighting fixtures hanging over the island, as well as the wooden and golden touches throughout the space.

The chef’s table was through the restaurant and at the kitchen. I thought this was pretty cool actually, since you get a literal first row view of what’s going on in the kitchen. I was concerned the smells and sounds may be disturbing, but found this wasn’t much of an issue.

The menu is solid. A good selection of classic and more modern dishes should have something for everybody. As such there’s Duck l’orange, Steak frites, burger… There really does seem to be a strong preference to French cuisine, which I’m totally okay with. These are all dishes I personally enjoy, anyway… I will say that for those that stick to vegetarian meals the selection is perhaps limited, with one appetizer and one main. And note that this is all complimentary – you can leave a tip for your waiter but otherwise you shouldn’t expect to leave any money here, except if you were to get a premium drink.

So here’s where things may cost you money: the reserve wines and spirits (above and below). As you can see there’s a large selection of complimentary drinks, so I think most should be able to find what they want from the list of complimentary drinks, but if you have something to celebrate, you can find a nice selection of more ‘premium’ drinks for purchase for either cash or miles.

I decided to stick with the complimentary drinks list. The waiter was friendly and helpful, and suggested I go with the Merlot blend, given my food choices: I’d be having the calamari for the appetizer and the duck l’orange as my main. The wine definitely hit the spot! I also advised the waiter that I’d be having a spa appointment around 7:30, and asked if it’d be enough time to get through the entire meal, to which he answered it should be no problem.

The appetizer came in about 10-15 minutes and was quite nice. I’ll be honest here – I thought it was a little too salty and not as flavorful as I had hoped. The sauces paired very well though, and uplifted the calamari. That said, I probably wouldn’t take this dish again, having something else instead.

For the main I ahd the duck l’orange, which was delicious! The presentation was beautiful, and I loved the striking orange color palette. The meat was tender and delicious, and paired well with the sauce. I also very much enjoyed the endive and squash puree, which the duck meat was lying ont op off. Definitely a dish I can recommend!

By the time I finished the duck, I had also finished my wine. It took a little bit of time for the waiter to spot I was done and take my plate away. I can see this was peak dinner time and all the waiters were very busy, but I was a little disappointed it took this long for the waiter to notice. Especially given that I was sitting right next to main service station.

When he finally did come at my signal, he took my desert order – and I choice the chocolate soufflé and a cup of tea. At first he ended up bringing me coffee which I politely had sent back in favor of tea. He was rather apologetic and promptly brought me my order. A little while after the soufflé came with vanilla sauce on the side. This was absolutely delicious. The soufflé was cake-y on the outside and deliciously ich and liquid in the inside – a great end to the meal!

After dessert I finished my tea and… wasn’t sure what to do. Normally you’d ask for the bill, pay and leave, but it felt strange to just up and leave without paying anything. So I asked to be sure and was told that yup, that’s what you do. I left a few bills for a tip and exited the restaurant to go to my dpa appointment

Overall I thought this was a fantastic meal. I didn’t really know what to expect but having a full restaurant experience as a complimentary service ina. business class lounge, so nicely designed and with such high quality food, was an immensely pleasurable surprise.

Buffet restaurant

Moving on to the ‘Market’, which is the buffet-style restaurant. This is a less regimented ‘choose what you want and eat’ type arrangement that doesn’t require any waiting around for a seat, and would be ideal for a quick bite if you’re a little short on time. I already showed the setaing here so I will not repeat those photos.

What’s the food like here? Well, the choice is very good, with diverse options that, as I understand it, do rotate with the days and weeks. All the food was being freshly prepare don the spot and frequently replenished, though I suppose I made these pictures right before they did so…

RTo the right there are the hearty mains, including vegetables, meats, fish, pizza and pasta.

Then on the left side there was a full dessert section, but also salads and lighter fare:

As you can see there is a verity of pastries and little pieces of cake, but also fruit and cheese plates, and small charcuterie plates:

There was also a section with all sorts of sandwiches that looked full to the brim, and delicious. Alas, to me this seemed more like a lunch-type food, and eprhaps not the best choice for a 6:30pm dinner. That might explain why so much of it was available…

Besides the pastries, there was another dessert section that mostly contained all sorts of cookies and brownies:

And finally, there was a salad bar where the staff was helpfully putting together whatever you chose. From what I could see there was a good selection of ingredients that would certainly allow you to put together a nice salad.

Finally, there were drinks stations with hot and cold options, including various kidns of coffee and plentiful kinds of tea:

Unfortunately the ‘soda tap’ appeared to be out of order. I didn’t immediately see a different place to get such soft drinks, but it seemed as though the wait staff at the lounge had their ways to get you these drinks from elsewhere since I did see guests at the lounge have soda. There was water and ice tea available from large cylindrical vats, though, which you can see just right of the soda tap.

While I didn’t try any of the food here, it seemed to me that the food was freshly prepared and looked very appetizing. I liked that there was a variety of dishes, so I believe there should be something for everybody. With a salad bar, sandwiches and dessert, the buffet restaurant is completed. I’d be interested to try this next time, though I’d probably have to starve myself during the day, because I’ll absolutely want to go to the full service restaurant first…

Wellness spaces: spa treatments and quiet space

The massage chairs seemed available most of the time, but the actual spa treatment required quite a wait. I signed up for the ‘Grown Alchemist recovery Remedy’ massage (the third in the below list) and had to wait about an hour and a half, as my appointment was around 7:30pm. To make an appointment, you approach the hostess and she will hand you her iPad to fill in your email address and name, and once you confirm you will receive an email confirming your appointment.

Closer to the appointment time I received a reminder to come towards the spa for my appointment. I came out of the restaurant but was a little bit early, so I was invited to sit down while I waited and was shown around by the friendly hostess.

There are various massage chairs that you can sign up to use and appeared under-utilized. Then there’s also spaces where you can take a nap.

There was also a semi-private space where you could receive a chair massage, and finally there was a separate room for the spa treatments.

The massage was performed by a professional masseuse, and included the neck, head and shoulders. The spa area anyway is a very tranquil space where you don’t hear much from the rest of the lounge, but I found that this room specifically was very quiet. Some soft, relaxing music in the background completed the vibe, and the massage itself was incredibly relaxing. I very much enjoyed and was sad that the massage came to an end after about 10 minutes. I would be very happy to return here!

Other facilities

The lounge includes a few more facilities that are worth mentioning. You can reserve a shower for example, though I didn’t enter these to make pictures. The restroom are in this same area however, and are large and spacious, desgined for people with disabilities:

I loved the blue tiles, that stood in stark contrast to the white marble and light wooden features. There was further a table to tend to babies that could be folded down, and a complement of different hand soaps, facial tissues and other such amenities. Finally, there was a shoe shining station in this same area as well, though I never noticed anybody actually using it.

Heading for my flight

At the end of my stay, I went back to the entrance to pick up my luggage. The host promptly took my ticket and soon appeared with my coat and carryon, and told me to go into the corridor. I was a little surprised – I was about to head the same way I came in, but you cna actually take an elevator down to the main concourse level:

When you get downstairs, you’ll follow a short corridor along these windows, with views of the apron:

As you follow the corridor and go around the corner, you find that this is another entrance to the lounge, but from the concourse level:

I bid the lounge farewell and walked over to my gate to board my flight to Amsterdam.

Summary

I have to say, I thought this lounge was a triumph. I enjoyed my stay here tremendously, despite the fact that I was rather crowded and a little loud when I first entered. I thought the design of the lounge was quite beautiful, with lots of white marble, wooden paneling and gold touches, put in contrast with darker tones.

The service is very good as well. There is staff literally everywhere to help out, be that bring you a drink or give directions, help you get a table or explain where to get or do certain things. I also found the staff to be very friendly and very happy to help. In some cases staff proactively approached me to ask if I was okay – whether I wanted a drink for example.

I also very much enjoyed the food. I’ve not seen a full service restaurant yet in a business class lounge, having usually heard of such facilities in first class lounges instead. I thought this was a fantastic amenity, and something I thoroughly enjoyed. The food quality was generally very good, even if the appetizer wasn’t perhaps entirely my thing. Still, the wine, the duck and the dessert were all very good. And if that’s not enough, the selection of options at the buffet will likely satiate you.

Finally, the spa was a wonderful experience, do I wonder if Delta could increase the capacity for treatments. It seems as though the ‘special’ spa treatments were all done by one or two people, depending on the ordered service. Rather than having so many massage chairs that few people were using, having an extra space for a chair massage may allow for a shorter waiting time.

So overall, I will certainly be returning here, as this was a fantastic experience.