The lounge offers tastings for some of the wines, and Sonoma chardonnay and Napa cabernet sauvignon flights are available. Guests are greeted with a wall of wine at the reception desk, with over 100 bottles neatly stacked and arranged.

The bartender told me that romantic encounters are not uncommon at these bar stools, as he’s seen it happen from time to time. George Botanivore Gin) is a popular item. The premium cocktail list is available at 10:30 a.m. The lounge opens its doors at 5 a.m., and the bar begins serving lighter drinks like mimosas an hour later. The food program includes preportioned plates or buffet-style eating. On the counters in two kitchens, the revamped menu - from Ravi Kapur, a chef who co-owns the James Beard-nominated Liholiho Yacht Club in Lower Nob Hill - is on display with kochujang chicken skewers poking out of a decorative black skillet next to bowls of the lounge’s signature coconut soup. The walls still feature portraits of rock stars like Jerry Garcia and Sly Stone, but wavy and celestial pieces from Taiwanese American artist Tracie Cheng have been added, helping to elevate that sense of transit. Meanwhile, AmEx has glistened some of the amenities. The luxurious hideaway at SFO in the United terminal recently underwent a four-month remodel that doubled its floorspace to 16,000 square feet. A couple of teens sunk into a plush couch while a man wearing both a Canada Goose sweatshirt and a Canada Goose vest paced back and forth in the new hallway that separates the two sections of the lounge. On a recent Friday afternoon, the theme song from “Dawson’s Creek” played while a man openly conducted business in a video conference on his laptop by the buffet. The living wall welcomes invited guests into the lounge’s glass facade. The lights are set to dim, the bar opens by 6 a.m., and there’s a never-ending playlist of soft 1990s rock. A bookish ambiance to subdue the tired lounge lizard at the Centurion Lounge in SFO.

Amex centurion lounge sfo review