Miami is home to one of the few Flagship Lounges in the American Airlines system. I recently gave you a quick overview of the massive space. I find that Flagship Lounges are great, but not excellent. For the best lounges in North American, United Polaris lounges take the cake. During my last visit to the Flagship Lounge, I didn’t get to check out the most exclusive restaurant in Miami airport, American Airlines Flagship Dining. However, this time around I did.
Hours
The Flagship dining room is located inside the Flagship Lounge near gate D30. It can host up to 29 passengers at a time but odds are you wont see more than 5 during your entire visit. Currently, the dining room is open from 1:00 PM to 11:00 PM, although those hours keep on changing based around when AA has flights departing.
Access
The dining room is accessible to First class passengers traveling on American Airlines and Concierge Key members. The only flights from Miami with true First Class are to London (LHR), Buenos Aires (EZE), and Sao Paulo (GRU), but as of about a month ago, American expanded access to include British Airways First class passengers. British Airways passengers will need to make an effort to get to this space, as it is located next to gate D30 and all British Airways flights leave from Terminal E. The two terminals are connected behind security, so you wont need to re-clear security if you do decide to visit.
Upon arrival into the flagship lounge, you will be given an invitation to Flagship Dining at check in on the first floor. Up stairs go through the doors labeled Flagship lounge, there is also an Admirals Club at gate D30. Once you enter the flagship lounge another agent will escort you to the Flagship Dining room.
WOW! What a gorgeous space.
There are a few regular seats, if you’re not dining. There’s tarmac views, a bar with bartender and 9 tables. All the tables were set up for 2, but the booths could easily hold more.
When I arrived at 3:00 PM I had the entire space to myself and no other guests came in during my 2+ hour stay.
Drinks
My one complaint about the Flagship lounge is that it doesn’t have a real bartender, thankfully Flagship Dining does. The drink menu was perfect. It included 2 champagne options, 1 being Krug, 4 reds, 4 whites, and 5 cocktails. I sampled the Krug, Caipirinha, and Miami Blues. No complaints for Krug, ever. The Caipirinha was refreshing and authentic while the Miami Blues ended up being too sweet for my taste.
Food
The menu was small but covered lots of different styles of cuisine. Being in Miami, American definitely put some flair on the menu with lots of fresh seafood. The menu does change seasonally.
To start, I was offered a selection of bread and I had the shaved salad which was bright and light. The peas were sweet and it was perfectly dressed.
The main course came out about 30 minutes after I placed my order. I ordered the duck. The meat was perfectly cooked, and while I thoroughly enjoyed it, I thought the maple was a bit overpowering, close to cloyingly sweet.
For dessert I had the classic American dessert, the sundae, which was perfect
Overall
I don’t think I have ever had a better meal in an airport, period. The service was exceptional as I was the only person there. The food was fresh and tasty, the beverages were on par with what you’d expect paying for a first class ticket, and who doesn’t love these views!
If you are flying AA or BA First I would make sure to arrive 2-3 hours early to enjoy a proper meal on the ground and skip a meal in the air.
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