Has the food at the Capital One lounge at DFW decline a lot? I’ve noticed on several visits that the food isn’t as good as it was when they first opened. And across lounges I’ve seen strategies to cut back on grab ‘n go as well.
There doesn’t seem to be as much as there used to be. At the outset they had these large bags – which just served to encourage guests to fill the bags. Their most recent lounge, JFK, has staff getting guests the food items – this discourages anyone that experiences shame from asking for scores of items. My most recent visit to DFW had less than ever before. The hot items were also pretty mid.
Irregular operations meant that I had nearly a 2.5 hour connection at the Dallas A gates.
- My Austin to Dallas flight was delayed, and I was going to misconnect.
- So I first got backed up both on a later Austin – Dallas flight and a later connecting flight. And then I confirmed the later connection.
- All that was available was a non-extra legroom middle seat in economy and I took it. Fortunately the guy next to me at the aisle got an upgrade after boarding, and nobody was brought on to replace him even though the flight was full. So I shifted over to the window and had an empty middle. That made for a perfectly fine flight, even though it’s still a tight space for working on my laptop.
In the air I checked the wait time for the Capital One lounge and it surprisingly said just ‘5-10 minutes’. So I didn’t join the wait list then. Instead, I waited until I landed and joined through the app as I walked off the aircraft – for both the American Express lounge and for the Capital One lounge (and figured if both took a long time I’d use my Royal Jordanian status for American’s Flagship lounge). I headed over to the D concourse.
- Capital One came back in one minute. I was pretty impressed with this! So I had a total of 11 minutes to make it over there, which is about right, and there’d be a grace period in any case.
- American Express took 27 minutes. I didn’t remove myself from the list because they don’t give you a wait time estimate, and I wanted to compare how long it would take (plus I considered that I might want to switch for variety’s sake0.
When I checked in at Capital One, the woman at the desk seemed a bit bored, and was terse in checking me in. In the past, large tables were reserved for larger parties, but that didn’t seem to be the case today and staff weren’t proactively seating people as I’d seen in the past.
The only open spot in the lounge was a larger table that hadn’t been cleared. I took it, but I felt badly, because I was solo and it could have accommodated a party of four. I needed to use the bathroom but there was an 8-person deep line for that, so I waited and managed to return once the line had dwindled.
What was striking, though, was the food service on this visit.
- The grab ‘n go section was closed.
- Grab ‘n go items replaced at least half the hot food.
- Pastries were simpler.
- The ice machine by the self-serve soda was gone.
A sppkesperson shared,
We are working to resolve a small temporary maintenance issue at our grab-and-go station. During this time, some of those offerings have been temporarily relocated to the hot food service area however the entire grab and go menu is available upon request. This is not our standard operating procedure, and we anticipate the station will be operational soon.
I was there for a pass by the ‘rituals cart’ which in this case was jasmine tea and a macaron cookie. It seems like the cookie might have been a bit more nicely presented than in a shrink-wrapped package? And maybe some options for teas? Still, having some personal service rather than just buffet is a really nice experience.
National airport’s ‘Landing’ which is really a complimentary sit-down restaurant remains my favorite in the Capital One portfolio. JFK is the best lounge – based on size, experiences and offerings. DFW was first, and is now four years old. Recent visits haven’t been as good as earlier ones, and like Denver it is frequently very very busy. I want to see it getting a little love.
This is not the Capital One lounge related post I was hoping to see this week! You had me in the first half with the title, Gary. Well played!
Undergoing maintenance is understandable, hope it’s just that and not a sign of more permanent degraded experience. Of the “Original 3”, DFW is the one I’ve visited least and it’s been a while (too long), but I do miss their wonderfully decadent cream puffs/profiteroles.
So, Gary, would you say… it’s… ‘all hat, no cattle’? Yee… haw…
I was there on Friday. The “internal” staff were excellent, the desk staff were rude and somehow both bored and actively punitive. Only had 90-minute layover (I was departing Texas) – front desk wasted about 20 minutes of that. Noted the same food degradation as you. Drinks weren’t bad.
Plaza premium experience start to finish this time. Sad.
@abhinav — That doesn’t seem very ‘darn’ tootin’ to me. Boohoo.
I wouldn’t think an AUS-DFW flight would be worth evem getting my laptop out of my backpack…
I was there the day before Thanksgiving last month and everything was operating as usual. It’s unfortunate that the grab and go was in the main buffet section, though I’m hoping things get fixed soon.
I did notice the ice machine gone while I was there, though.
@Christopher J Raehl — And yet… our Dear ‘Thot’ Leader would rather pay for his own ‘premium’ WiFi than allow us peasants to enjoy a few minutes of free WiFi during that 30 minutes hopper of a flight. Aircraft hardly reaches 18,000 feet before it has to descend. Maybe a good 5 minutes above 10K for WiFi.
I don’t know of a single credit card or domestic US airline lounge that has maintained food quality on a consistent basis from lounge opening to the present – the lounges are simply too crowded (and food inflation is probably too high) for that to work economically
I was at the JFK lounge in October and the previously fresh and normal size Ess-a-bagel (I visited in August just after it opened) was now mini and stale. The rest of the food wasn’t anything to write home about. It was also the exact same food at the hot bar and available à la carte both times I visited. Zero variety.
I haven’t noticed any particular degradation in the quality of the food. In fact, the brisket they have been serving lately is fantastic! The bar staff told me they have a new caterer or supplier, and they seemed to think it was working out pretty well. Also, I almost always sit at the bar, and there’s virtually always a seat open there.
Give them crap and charge excessive fees and they foolishly will come
Call it something premium sounding
A total success for the banks
They then reign them in lines like cattle waiting for slaughter begging to get in
While a surly team may allow entry after ice agents interrogate guests asking to many questions
And then possible entry with perfumed Fabreeze clouding the air and rats running around the kitchen and public areas
I’ve thrown away all club lounge access unless they toss it at me for free and even then I try to find an uncrowded area to sit near the gate
Unfortunately today free is about all it’s worth as the once premium clubs are filled with the masses where just about everyone is elite?
@Dwondermeant — “A total success for the banks…” and yet, Citi has somehow avoided lounges. Huh. Are the folks at 388 Greenwich slow? @Peter, what gives?!
Drop the grab and go entirely as a bad experiment. If you don’t have the time, don’t go.
On November 4, I stopped by after a red eye from OGG, and the lounge was closed until about 8 or 9 am. I was informed then, and the next week, that they had a “new menu” and a “new management company” although many of the employees would remain the same. The difference in the space of three weeks between the old and the new is noticeable. Pastries are much smaller and dried out, entrees have been noticeably weaker with worse ingredients, and the grab and go has been unavailable that whole time.
Same for us on our stop on Friday AM before our flight to Mexico. Food was not great….not horrible, but definitely not what we had a couple months prior when we flew through. Grab and go was covered like in your picture. Figured it was because it was early, but guess not.
Front desk attitude was similar. Bartender and other servers were great. Bathrooms always had a line. Hoping for better next time, or will make my decision on keeping my Venture X a bit easier when the lounge access policy is degraded.
How is Capital One providing exceptional value to customers in this lounge? Paying $395 a year for a Venture X card will obviously not get you anything memorable if you’re based in Dallas. The space is crowded and not luxurious, and Capital One’s food looks junky. Terminal D has a few nice restaurants that are more suitable for adults, so I’d rather visit one for about $50 or less instead of paying $395 for a year and ending up in a room with little kids.
@Alex — If only C1 would approve those of us who go LOL/24, I’d get VX, because the $395 AF nearly pays for itself due to the $300 C1 Travel credit and 10K points anniversary bonus ($400 in-value at break-even). So, the lounges are a bonus, even with the loss of guest access starting 2026. (@L737, is that about right?)
I was there in November and noticed the same – a meaningful deval in the hot food product (less meat in mains, no more charcuterie) and a decline in the grab and go.
Went to the new one in LAS yesterday and it was a little better. They had hot breakfast sandwiches on the grab and go.
@1990 — Yep! I’m rooting for your eventual approval. Even if P2 doesn’t get their own card to reap those benefits as well after the lounge access changes, $125 for AU access really isn’t so bad imho if one travels regularly and has a Cap 1 lounge(s) in their home base. (Gary valued one meal at the DCA landing being worth $100/person!)
@L737 — Buddy, I have an issue… way over 5/24 at the moment, so it might need to be 2 years at least for a reset, and even then, I’m kind of obsessed with earning SUBs. Ahh. Yes, perhaps P2 will take the hit. Oh, and if Gary valued it, I trust that. If it was TPG, they’d’ve gone with $1,300. LOL.