Q. When is a lounge not a lounge?
A. When the lounge is a Priority Pass lounge (sometimes).
Priority Pass, the worldwide network of over 1,000 airport lounges, has been adding some unconventional venues like restaurants and even Minute Suites. Traveling through Denver, CO recently, the Lounge Buddy app, which seems to update automatically, alerted me to the fact that DEN had just recently added its first Priority Pass Lounge – Timberline Steaks & Grille.
I was travelling in the morning and decided to stop for breakfast. Getting to Terminal C required only a short walk and a three-minute ride away on the airport train from my departure gate, A26. Escalators from the train to the concourse level end right next to the restaurant.
Timberline Steaks & Grille is open Sunday – Friday 06:00 – 22:00 and Saturday 06:00 – 21:00. Priority Pass members receive a $28 credit for food and beverages or $56 if they register one guest. Present your Priority Pass credentials before ordering.
The credit is very generous for breakfast. Here is the breakfast menu:
I ordered the steak & eggs and a mimosa to max out my credit. The steak was supposed to be 8 ozs. It was actually more like 14 ozs.
Timberline did an excellent job with this meal. The ribeye steak was prepared medium and juicy. The potatoes had just the right combination of a crunchy outside and soft inside. The eggs were cooked as ordered. Each item was served at the right temperature. Then, to top it off, a delicious Mimosa.
The bill came to $26. The restaurant charged nothing, although the bill shows a calculation that is not the same as a straight $28 credit.
Lunch begins at 10:45. I looked at the lunch menu to see what it offered.
For lunch, the Priority Pass credit will go a long way but may not cover the total bill. If you have a guest, the $56 credit may cover both meals if one spends slightly more than $28 and the other spends correspondingly less.
Seating at the bar and tables is strictly restaurant style. Although Timberline has wifi, you would not want to hang out here after a meal unless there was something of great interest on the TV.
Update: I visited this restaurant again in 2019. Timberline was very crowded, and it seemed everyone was using Priority Pass. I don’t know if there was a correlation or if this was now typical, but the service and quality of food had gone downhill. I will give it another try the next time through DEN.
Final Thoughts
The delicious a la carte breakfast courtesy of Priority Pass was a very welcome surprise. Priority Pass should be applauded for expanding its arsenal of lounges to include restaurants. Lounges are great places to relax and work, but few lounges can match an a la carte restaurant for food. Ideally, one would visit Timberline for a delicious meal and then retire to the United, American or Delta lounges for work or relaxation.
As I understand it, as long as the food costs less than $28 there is nothing to tax.
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Looks like they did you a favor splitting your credit into 2 parts. If they applied the tax to your $26, you would have been over $28.
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