Review: Lufthansa Lounge Newark Airport (EWR), Including First Dining

For the first segment of my trip of downgrades, suspensions, and delays, I flew Lufthansa’s A350 Allegris first class from Newark to Munich. Prior to my flight, I had the chance to check out the Lufthansa Lounge Newark (EWR). This is also where I met up with my dad, as I was coming from Miami, while he was coming from Tampa.

In 2024, Lufthansa introduced its new long haul passenger experience, known as Allegris. As part of this, the airline is also rolling out a new lounge concept, and the location in Newark was the first to get an Allegris makeover. The airline reportedly spent €10 million updating this lounge, which seems like a lot.

How is this lounge? I’d say it’s reasonably nice, and in particular, there’s a solid first class dining section (which I’ll review in this installment as well). I wish the lounge had more natural light, but admittedly that’s something the airline has little control over, given the challenge with securing space at airports. I also think there’s room for improvement when it comes to food.

Now, I’d say that Lufthansa’s lounge changes are definitely more evolutionary rather than revolutionary, so don’t expect anything like the world’s top business class lounges. But still, there are some nice design updates, compared to Lufthansa’s old lounge design.

Lufthansa Lounge Newark location

The Lufthansa Lounge Newark is located in Terminal B, which is where Lufthansa, SWISS, and Austrian flights depart from. Newark has undergone a very nice modernization in recent years, but my goodness, Terminal B is a steaming pile of garbage. What a sad terminal in which to open a new lounge.

Note that Terminal B isn’t directly connected airside to any other terminals or concourses. However, over select hours there’s an airside shuttle service from Terminal A and Terminal C, to facilitate connections.

Once you’re in the portion of Terminal B with gates B60-68, just keep walking toward the gates.

Just before you get to gate B60, you’ll see the entrance to the Lufthansa Lounge hidden on the left, right across from the Scandinavian Airlines lounge.

Lufthansa Lounge Newark hours

The Lufthansa Lounge Newark is currently open daily from 2:15PM until 9:30PM, coinciding with the Lufthansa Group departures from the terminal. However, you can expect that schedule will evolve over time, based on flight schedules, as those are adjusted seasonally. Always check the Star Alliance lounge finder for the latest.

Lufthansa Lounge Newark entry requirements

The Lufthansa Lounge Newark follows standard Star Alliance lounge access policies. This means the lounge is open to Star Alliance first and business class passengers, as well as Star Alliance Gold members. The first class dining section is open to Lufthansa and SWISS first class passengers, and to Miles & More HON Circle members.

In this terminal, you’ll find flights on Lufthansa Group carriers Austrian, Lufthansa, and SWISS, as well as Star Alliance partners LOT Polish Airlines and TAP Air Portugal.

It’s also possible to access Lufthansa Lounges with select Amex cards. However, note that this lounge doesn’t belong to Priority Pass.

Lufthansa Lounge Newark seating & layout

The Lufthansa Lounge Newark is roughly 6,500 square feet (600 square meters), with seating for around 170 guests. So it’s a decent size for an outstation lounge, but not huge, and it definitely gets crowded over peak periods (since some flights are timed close to one another).

As you enter, the centerpiece of the lounge is the bar area with high-top seating.

Past the bar area is one of the seating zones, which consists of a bunch of dining tables, with a combination of chairs and banquettes.

The buffet area is then off to one side, with several more dining tables, along with some high-top seating at three communal tables.

There’s a quote on the wall. “Flying is more than reaching a destination. It’s about embracing the journey.” I mean, true, but I can’t say that I found that to be particularly profound. While we’re on the topic, I love the Dr. Seuss bookmark that’s placed on the bed with turndown service in Etihad first class. “You know you’re in love when you can’t fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams.” Cute.

The lounge has some more seating near the entrance and on the opposite side of the bar, with chairs and sofas.

Then the very back of the lounge has a bunch more seating, and probably offers the most overall capacity. The seating is nice and varied, and broken up into zones thanks to the use of some partitions. There’s everything from couches, to chairs, to little semi-private pods, to banquettes.

The very back corner of the lounge has what looks like a conference room table, though I guess it’s intended to be more of a communal workstation (since this space isn’t partitioned off from the rest of the lounge, so it’s not like you could actually have a meeting here).

The lounge also has two private offices, which I always appreciate, in case you’re just looking for some quiet, have a phone call to make, etc.

The major downside to the lounge is the lack of natural light and views. The very back of the lounge sort of has some views of the apron area. In reality, you’re overlooking a hallway of the immigration facility, so you’re really two sets of glass shields from outside.

All-in-all, it’s a nice enough space. While I prefer the decor a bit to Lufthansa’s old lounge concept, I still find the design to be rather sterile.

Lufthansa Lounge Newark food & drinks

The Lufthansa Lounge Newark has one main buffet inside the entrance and to the right, which has a selection of hot and cold food.

The cold options at the buffet included cold cuts, cheese, bread rolls, three types of salads, sandwiches, and wraps.

There were also four hot options, including charred pork and summer squash, long grain rice with blistered tomatoes, balsamic roasted vegetables, and green beans with tomato confit. I found it odd that the only meat option was pork, and then you had two types of vegetables and rice. That’s not exactly a huge selection.

The buffet also had a selection of desserts, including cookies, and small slices of cake.

There was also a snack counter with a variety of sweets.

The lounge had two different stations with espresso machines and a selection of tea.

Alcoholic drinks were available from the bar, with a selection of beer, wine, and cocktails. I appreciate the increasing trend of lounges having proper bars where bartenders can actually prepare decent drinks.

As Lufthansa introduces its new lounge concept, it doesn’t seem like much is being invested in the soft product… at least not yet. The food selection was virtually the same as I’ve seen in the past. I did miss pretzels, which are usually a standard offering at Lufthansa lounges.

As I’ve also already said, I thought the hot food selection was odd. The only non-vegetarian option was pork, and then you had rice and two types of veggies. That’s not exactly impressive.

Lufthansa Lounge Newark first class dining

The Lufthansa Lounge Newark has a first class section, called “First Class Wining and Dining.” It’s reserved specifically for Lufthansa and SWISS first class passengers, as well as HON Circle members. It’s not actually a fully separate lounge, but instead, it’s just off the main part of the lounge, with a bit of a partition.

I’ve gotta say, I found the design of this to be super sleek, and clearly the seating was intended to match the new Allegris first class seat, so I thought that was kind of cool. The first class section has a total of nine tables. There are five in a row, three in another row, and then one lonely table along the wall.

While this is intended primarily for dining, guests are also welcome to just hang out here, which is nice, given that the rest of the lounge can get absolutely slammed (I imagine there are some situations where it would be polite to move back to the main part of the lounge, if all tables are occupied, but that wasn’t the case during my visit).

Shortly after arriving in the first class dining area, we were presented with the menu and drink list, which you can find below.

As you can see, it’s a pretty small menu, with two appetizers, two main courses, and two desserts. The drink selection is elevated compared to the main part of the lounge, but nothing strikes me as being particularly first class.

To drink, I decided to order a negroni, which hit the spot.

As a starter, I ordered the crab arancini, which was absolutely massive, and portioned more like a main course.

For the main course, I had the burrata, pea veloute, and vignarola salad.

Funny enough, if you presented me with the above two dishes, I would’ve assumed the burrata was the starter and the arancini was the main, so don’t ask me to explain what’s going on here.

My dad, meanwhile, ordered the grazing board with meat and cheese, which was substantial, and he was happy he didn’t order a main course beyond that.

We then decided to split the two desserts, including the strawberry shortcake with mascarpone cream, and the affogato chocolate mousse.

The service was friendly, and I’d say the food was decent, but nothing special. I’m not trying to be jaded, but I sort of detest when people describe everything when flying in premium cabins as being Michelin-star quality. I’m not even sure they have a proper kitchen back there, so I suspect they’re just nuking stuff in the back. But accounting for that, I thought it was quite good.

Lufthansa Lounge Newark bathrooms

The Lufthansa Lounge Newark has a separate men’s room and women’s room, located inside the entrance to the lounge and to the left. The men’s room features two sinks, two stalls, and one urinal. That’s not exactly a huge amount of capacity if the lounge is full, but that’s a common issue at many lounges.

Unfortunately the lounge doesn’t have any showers.

Bottom line

The Lufthansa Lounge Newark is a reasonably nice outstation lounge. It’s not huge and doesn’t have great views, but that’s a limitation that’s largely beyond Lufthansa’s control.

What’s interesting is that this is also the first lounge with the new Allegris design. I’d say I prefer the new design slightly over the old one, but I can’t say that Lufthansa is going for some industry-leading lounge concept, suddenly.

The lounge’s soft product was fine. I thought the buffet could’ve been a bit better (particularly the hot selection), while it’s nice that there’s a first class section with a la carte dining (even if the selection is limited).

If you’re connecting from United and flying Star Alliance business class, personally I’d rather spend as much time as possible at the United Polaris Lounge, before heading over to Terminal B, as I think it offers a better overall experience.

What’s your take on the Lufthansa Lounge Newark?