New Birmingham, Newcastle and Heathrow restaurants join Priority Pass – but not for Amex

Three new UK airport restaurants have joined Priority Pass.

At Birmingham International, The Factory Bar & Kitchen has joined. This is the first restaurant at Birmingham to sign up.

At Newcastle International, Aster & Thyme Bar & Kitchen has joined. Again, this is the first Priority Pass restaurant option there.

At Heathrow Terminal 3, Evergreen Bar & Restaurant has joined.

You will receive £18 credit towards a meal or drinks at these three sites. If your Priority Pass allows a free guest and you arrive with someone else, you will receive a £36 credit between you.

Unfortunately these deals are NOT available to anyone who gets their Priority Pass via American Express. It is available to anyone who gets their pass directly from Priority Pass or via another card such as the HSBC Premier World Elite Mastercard or the £15 per month Lloyds Bank World Elite Mastercard.

Here is an updated list of the UK venues where you can use your Priority Pass to claim your £18 restaurant credit.

Remember that you can visit multiple sites on the same day if you wish, or visit a restaurant before or after visiting a lounge.

London:

London City Airport

• Juniper & Co
• Soul & Grain

London Heathrow

• Big Smoke Taphouse & Kitchen (Terminal 2)
• Evergreen Bar & Restaurant (Terminal 3)

London Gatwick

• Tortilla (North)
• Juniper & Co (North)
• The Breakfast Club (North)
• BrewDog (North)
• Pizza Express (South)

Pizza Express is the only venue on this list which DOES accept American Express-issued Priority Pass cards.

London Luton

• Avalon Crafted Coffee
• Big Smoke Taphouse & Kitchen
• Nolito

London Stansted

• The Camden Bar & Kitchen

Outside London:

Birmingham International

• The Factory Bar & Kitchen

Bristol International

• Starbucks
• Cabin Bar
• Tortilla
• Brigg & Stow

Cardiff

• Y Castell

Glasgow International

• Bird & Signet

Manchester International

• Starbucks (Terminal 1)
• The Grain Loft (Terminal 1)

Newcastle International

• Aster & Thyme Bar & Kitchen

But if your Priority Pass is issued by American Express ….

There are a grand total of TWO restaurants globally that Amex-issued Priority Pass customers can use.

One is Pizza Express at London Gatwick’s South Terminal. Given that this is the British Airways terminal, it is at least convenient for most HfP readers. The other is the Moevenpick Cafe in Berlin Brandenburg which offers a €23 credit.

My best guess is that Priority Pass wants to charge American Express a higher fee for restaurant visits, as it pays out more than it pays a lounge operator, and that the two parties could not reach an agreement.

Unfortunately the chances of this changing are slim. Sentiment is going the other way – both Chase and Capital One in the US have recently banned restaurant visits from the Priority Pass cards they issue.

You can find out more about these new Priority Pass options by searching for an airport via its website.

PS. Without wishing to state the obvious, you should not take part in any of these restaurant deals if you have a ‘pay per use’ or – if you’re not alone – a ‘pay for guests’ Priority Pass. The guest fee is now £24 and you are getting £18 of restaurant credit so you can see the problem!

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How to get FREE airport lounge access via UK credit cards (September 2024)

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

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 American Express Platinum review is here. You can apply here.

If you have a small business, consider American Express Business Platinum instead.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 22nd October 2024, the bonus on American Express Business Platinum is increased to up to 80,000 Membership Rewards points, worth 80,000 Avios. You will receive 8 points per £1 spent for the first three months, on up to £10,000 of spending. Click here to read our full card review. Click here to apply.

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold 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 review here.

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.

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