A Speakeasy Is Coming to JFK Airport

1850 is the new cocktail concept by PDT's Jim Meehan

1850 speakeasy at JFK's Centurion Lounge
Inside the 1850 speakeasy at the Centurion Lounge in JFK Airport
American Express

It’ll be nice to get away at some point again.

And by get away, we mean get away when we’re back in a crowded airport (is it OK to miss crowded airports? Because we do.) Helping you find some peace of mind amidst busy travel holiday times: the new Centurion Lounge at New York’s JFK Airport, featuring a cocktail bar speakeasy from the one of the world’s most renowned bartenders.

So first, yes, AmEx lounges are reopening, albeit with new precautions. The JFK one is new, however; located in Terminal 4, the two-story hideaway features a restaurant run by a Michelin-star chef, a coffee bar, Equinox spa services and 1850, a speakeasy hidden behind a copper-paneled wall, with a cocktail and wine selection curated by Jim Meehan (Gramercy Tavern, Pegu, PDT) and Anthony Giglio (Food & Wine’s Wine Guide).

While this isn’t the same hidden pleasure as Meehan’s former NYC stomping ground of Please Don’t Tell — the underground speakeasy behind a telephone booth in a hot dog joint in the East Village — it will offer top-notch cocktails and food. Drinks highlights include the Cosmonot (Ford’s Gin, Lemon Juice, Cointreau, Bon Maman Raspberry Preserves) and Port in a Storm (Rye Whiskey, Vermouth, Noval Black Port, Hella Aromatic Bitters).

You can access these AmEx lounges for cardholders if you hold a Platinum Card from American Express or The Business Platinum Card from American Express; those cardholders can bring in two guests.

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