Pizza Express in Gatwick South has joined Priority Pass – even for Amex cardholders

If all went to plan, a Pizza Express restaurant opened in London Gatwick’s South Terminal this morning.

It will be the only Pizza Express restaurant to serve breakfast, as it opens at 3.30am! The closing time is 9.30pm.

Pizza Express replaces The Grain Store, which has now gone.

This branch of Pizza Express has joined Priority Pass. This isn’t entirely surprising, as The Grain Store was also in the programme.

You will receive an £18 credit at Pizza Express when you show your Priority Pass card. If your Priority Pass card allows a free guest, and you come with someone, you can claim £36 off your bill.

What is really interesting ….

There are hundreds of restaurants in airports across the world that are part of Priority Pass and where you can get an £18 or equivalent credit against a meal or drinks.

Here is a full list of participating UK airport restaurants.

However, American Express does not allow its cardholders to access Priority Pass restaurants – only the airport lounges. Other card issuers are now following Amex’s lead, with Chase and Capital One in the US now withdrawing from restaurants too.

For reasons we don’t quite understand, there are TWO airport restaurants globally which American Express DOES allow you to access and receive an £18 credit.

One is the Moevenpick Cafe in Berlin, and the second was The Grain Store at London Gatwick’s South Terminal.

The Grain Store – of course – has closed, replaced by Pizza Express from this morning.

Looking in the Priority Pass app last night, it appears that American Express cardholders can use their Priority Pass in Pizza Express at London Gatwick’s South Terminal. The arrangement that was in place with The Grain Store seems to have rolled over.

The Priority Pass app filters the lounges and restaurants you are shown based on the type of Priority Pass you have. Pizza Express was showing as available to me last night, unlike all of the other UK airport restaurants that partner with Priority Pass.

I’m sure that within 24-48 hours we will find a HfP reader with an American Express-issued Priority Pass who has given it a go and can confirm that it works.

If you want to learn more about Priority Pass, we published this article on how it works. You can buy one here.

If you want to learn more about American Express Platinum (comes with two free Priority Pass cards, each admitting two people on unlimited visits), click here for our review.

If you want to learn more about the ‘free for a year’ American Express Preferred Rewards Gold (comes with a Priority Pass with four free visits loaded), click here for our review.

PS. Pizza Express Club benefits do not apply at airport sites

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How to get FREE airport lounge access via UK credit cards (June 2025)

Here are the six options to get FREE airport lounge access via a UK credit card.

Your best value option (but no points):

The cheapest route to a Priority Pass airport lounge card is via the Lloyds Bank World Elite Mastercard.

The credit card has a fee of £15 per month, and comes with a Priority Pass which gives unlimited free access for the cardholder. If you add a free supplementary cardholder, they will also receive unlimited free access.

Unlike the version of Priority Pass you receive with American Express, the Lloyds Bank version also lets you access £18 airport restaurant credits.

Even better, the credit card has 0% FX fees and comes with 0.5% cashback. Full details are in my Lloyds Bank World Elite Mastercard review.

Lounge access via American Express cards:

The Platinum Card from American Express comes with two free Priority Pass cards, one for you and one for a supplementary cardholder. Each card admits two so a family of four gets in free. You get access to all 1,500 lounges in the Priority Pass network – search it here.

You also get access to Eurostar, Lufthansa and Delta Air Lines lounges.  Our in-depth review of The Platinum Card from American Express is here.

You can apply here.

The American Express Preferred Rewards Gold Credit Card is FREE for the first year. It comes with a Priority Pass card loaded with four free visits to any Priority Pass lounge – see the list here.

Additional lounge visits are charged at £24.  You get four more free visits for every year you keep the card.  

There is no annual fee for Amex Gold in Year 1 and you get a 20,000 points sign-up bonus.  Full details are in our American Express Preferred Rewards Gold Credit Card review here.

Lounge access via HSBC Premier credit cards (Premier account holders only):

HSBC Premier World Elite Mastercard gets you get a free Priority Pass card, allowing you access to the Priority Pass network.  Guests are charged at £24 although it may be cheaper to pay £60 for a supplementary credit card for your partner.

The card has a fee of £290 and there are strict financial requirements to become a HSBC Premier customer.  Full details are in my HSBC Premier World Elite Mastercard review.

Got a small business?

If you have a small business, consider The American Express Business Platinum Card which has the same lounge benefits as the personal Platinum card:

You should also consider the Capital on Tap Pro Visa credit card which has a lower fee and, as well as a Priority Pass for airport lounge access, also comes with Radison Rewards VIP hotel status:

PS. You can find all of HfP’s UK airport lounge reviews – and we’ve been to most of them – indexed here.