Philadelphia has the worst-rated large airport in America. This is the airport that encourages restaurants and shops to charge passengers 3% more than posted prices.
There have been birds in the Admirals Club to a raccoon stealing candy, American Airlines employees have dubbed their hub “Filthadelphia”.
In fact one American Airlines employee confronted then-President Robert Isom about conditions there:
When they walk in and they see a chair with filth… maggots at the gate.. we have roaches in the break room.. You have ConciergeKeys coming out of a $100,000 Escalade up onto a jet bridge with feces and dirt. The floors are never cleaned… the bathrooms, I’d like to take you on a tour of the lady’s room.. a lot of it is the city cleaners sleeping instead of cleaning.
Since American Express made quite a bit of news over its Atlanta Centurion lounge failing a health inspection (after coming close to a fail a couple of times before that) and since I’ve covered multiple inspection fails at the Chicago O’Hare Delta Sky Club, it seemed worth noting that the B/C Admirals Club in Filthadelphia has been found inadequate even by the standards of that airport by the health department.
Here are a few of the violations,
- hazardous foods kept above 60 degrees, cut fruit in the storage room refrigerator was.. undated, “insecticides (fly trap) not labeled by the manufacturer for food facility usage, in the small food prep area near the buffet area.”
- “can opener had an accumulation of food residue on the food contact surfaces” “Knives and / or cleavers stored between table edges which are not easily cleaned and sanitized.”
- “Visible physical evidence of insect activity (roaches and flies) observed in the food prep area. Visible physical evidence of insect activity (flies) observed in the bar area.”
This one really struck me though – what on earth are they doing with raw chicken in a lounge that lacks cooking equipment for meat? (Update: I understand there’s some dispute about whether the chicken was actually raw.)
Violation of Code: [46.281] Boxes of raw chicken were stored next to containers of boiled eggs and produce in the walk in cooler rather than below or away from.
Unnapproved foods should be removed from the facility. This facility does not have cooking equipment for the preparation of raw animal derived meats. New Violation.
It appears these issues were written up in August, though they’re just now coming to light. Fortunately this club’s kitchen is undergoing renovation and it does seem as though those things could be connected – or at least they’re a fortunate coincidence.
According to an American Airlines spokesperson,
Taking care of our customers is our main priority. We took immediate action upon receiving the inspection report from our Philadelphia International Airport Admirals Club in Terminal B/C. We’ve been working closely with our lounge partners and the Philadelphia Department of Health to address the results of the inspection and to inform our current and future processes.
Now the rest of the airport just needs to be demolished so they can start over. When the A West Admirals Club re-opens you should still go there instead. It’ll be in the airline’s new lounge design template, rather than the B/C Club which remains a US Airways Special.
(HT: robb)
Yes, they don’t call it Filthydelphia for nothing. Consider the work force…
AA’s answer will be to just close it and put a sign that says: “Sorry for the inconvenience. Please visit our Admirals Club and Flagship Lounge at A-West ……coming soon…..in 2038”
All food places need to be Rated A B C like they do in CA. If they get a B then they members should not be charged until they are returned to A. If they are C then members get 75% of tickets 🙂
I mean come on. It is not hard to keep this stuff clean. Is is the Club Manager’s fault for not keeping it clean. Daily inspections need to be done.
My Peeve is many of these employees need to wear HAIR NETS.
Does the same (Health Department Violations) go for the British Airways Lounge at PHL?
Isom says don’t spend an extra dollar if not necessary; next step for AA will be to give each CK member at PHL a can of sterno to cook the raw chicken with…
According to the good folks at American Airlines with regards to all of their premium catering
is that their secret sauce in all their subtle flavors come from their impeccable fresh roaches and maggots.
The same care is taken with onboard dining for which we are known to create culinary greatness
Because @ American we are going for something great!
Bon Apetit!
Is this the Admirals Club that’s upstairs with two entrances on opposite sides of the club? Yeah, that dump needs a refresh.
Gary, to say they need to tear down the airport is a bit over the top, isn’t it. There are many other airports that need a massive makeover even more than PHL which is doing a lot of overhauling now. If American would actually put some real money into this important hub for them it would improve a lot and would improve quickly, but PHL seems to be the poor stepchild in their system.
The B/C lounge, however, needs more than a kitchen makeover which is happening. It needs a total redo as soon as they open the Flagship lounge later this year. The should close half the B/C lounge and renovate it, then do the same to the other half. Then they need to go to the F lounge, close it and redo it, then reopen it. Both the B/C and F lounges haven’t been fixed since well before COVID.
By the way, why do you keep bringing up old news like the bird? Next you’ll complain about Santa being pelted at Eagle’s games like sportswriters every year at the holidays even though that happened more than 50 years ago. The bird was 4 years ago in 2021.
@NSL14 – “why do you keep bringing up old news like the bird?” because it makes me laugh
@1990 yes that one
Been to Philly many times, last was 20 years ago, got robbed at a City Center gas station. The joke heard was “Killphil” and “Filthydelphia”. Sad. A once all-America great city run into the ground. Why am I not surprised. Glad I got to visit Independence Hall. Have not returned since and don’t plan to, not even the airport.
As a person who’s been involved in health inspection, food safety, and food manufacturing facility auditing for over 35 years, nothing surprises me. When I was inspecting in the US Army, I once closed an officers’ club down when I saw one of the food preparers mixing salad dressing with her bare hands, then changing flavors by licking her hands clean. Nothing in that report surprises me one bit. That’s why when I use United Clubs, I tend not to eat anything and stick to beverages.
Philadelphia feels low standards to me.
You want affordable housing in NYC? Y or N? Well. Outsource labor,planning and some materials to china and Vietnam , guarantee the buildings will pass inspection (law) and the cost will be a fraction of overpriced American costs … “ get the housing built now!!!!!!!!
Steve K: Philadelphia is a very different city than it was when you were last here 20 years ago. Center City is prosperous and lively, with a club and restaurant scene that didn’t exist then, and the population and tourism are growing. I’ve lived here for almost 30 years and have never had a problem nor felt unsafe walking everywhere. Times change, you know.
Philadelphia isn’t alone, sadly. I got food poisoning after visiting the MIA admiral’s club last month. I reported it to the Dade county health department. Not sure if they followed up with an inspection.
The entire airport is disgusting in fact all AA hubs are disgusting.
I have no trouble believing this I got horrible food poisoning at the Dallas-Fort Worth admirals Club.
The fact the food was so bad to begin with really made it excruciating
Philly is my hometown…although I have not llived there in MANY years. I still have a large extended family all over the greater Philadelphia-New Jersey area. Sadly, I have to say that in all my USA travels, I dread going to PHL more than to any other big airport…it’s just way under “standard” for a modern, efficient, pleasant, traveler oriented airport.
I got the Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive card about ten months ago to restock my points and then use their lounges as I had a number of trips planned on AA in 2024.
I don’t fear getting food poisoning from their lounges because the food is not appetizing…at all.
The quality is so poor, from the crappy bagels and preservative full muffins in the morning (even the orange juice tastes bad), to the carrot sticks that were cut so many days prior that they are white from being dried out, and they are shaped like a “C” instead of straight because they are so dehydrated…they can’t even do carrot sticks well!
The carrot sticks look that bad at ALL the lounges! They must have a protocol to leave them out for “x” number of days prior to serving!
I just go there because it’s a tad less chaotic than the terminal gates, but there’s still people with their bare feet on the furniture in the lounge.
Will just continue to make the trek to the Capital One lounge at DFW if I have enough connection time in future.
If Isom toured the DFW Capital One Lounge, and then any of the DFW Admirals Clubs, I’m sure he would smile with glee in noticing the massive delta in quality and know he must be saving tons of money.
Not only is that place a dump but they can’t handle the capacity. I had a two hour layover after a 8 hour flight from the EU, and after getting through immigration I had to wait 30 mins to get into the club.
@ Steve K Center City, not “City Center. Go Birds!
I would imagine most airline/airport lounges would fail a health inspection given the crowds.
Too bad the Health Department doesn’t inspect the galley’s or catering kitchens. There is a reason the crews bring their own food.
We were there in late September and were shocked and dismayed at the B/C Admiral’s Club: plastic cups at the bar; no produce, no cheese at the food ‘bar’; and cut up sub sandwiches! Really? REALLY???
Not a premium market. Move the wide bodies to JFK and make PHL a narrow body transatlantic hub.
It is Philadelphia. No additional explanation required.
Seems like a missed opportunity to not mention the long-anticipated and delayed Flagship lounge in PHL.
Very unappetizing.