After my Japan stay I really thought the Japan Airlines Sakura and First Class Lounges were tough to beat. I’ve had to rethink that sentiment though after staying at one of KLIA’s (Kuala Lumpur International Airport) Plaza Premium Lounges (by the way, you can also read this article about my experience on the Malaysia Airlines BMW/Mercedes Private Transfer to KLIA Satellite Terminal). Whether it was the food to the ambiance, there was a lot to like here.
KLIA2’s Plaza Premium Lounge: Good Food and Relaxing Ambiance
Unlike JAL’s Sakura and First Class Lounges, the Plaza Premium Lounge is not attached to a single airline. Instead, it’s an independent airport lounge network that caters to all passengers (so long as they pay of course). You’ll find one in both KLIA1 as well as KLIA2.
One thing I really liked about the Plaza Premium Lounge is the well lighted and warm interiors. The lighting as well as the interior design was really light on the eyes. Though it wasn’t crowded, you do get a sense that people actually enjoy coming here (more on this later).
Need to work on something before your flight? You can take a seat on this table here and you’ll have plenty of space to do what it is you need to finish. Also, this ceiling fixture looked really cool and definitely commanded attention the moment you stepped in the lounge.
Here you’ll be able to read the rules and regulations of the lounge. There’s also a sign here with a QR Code for Telkomsel Prestige customers. Take note though that this doesn’t necessarily free access to the lounge. Rather, Telkomsel Prestige customers get 20% off when they access the lounge via walk-in (as opposed to reservation).
As I said earlier, this was much busier than other airport lounges that I’ve been on. I think the fact that it’s accessible to anyone regardless of the airline they’re booked with (and the type of booking they have) has made it relatively popular.
Another reason for the popularity probably has to do with the complimentary buffet. Now I’m no gourmet but I think the food here could be worth purchasing a pass. In this image, you can see the lounge’s signature Curry Laksa and an Ipoh Hor Fun Soup.
For sauces, you can choose from Thai Sauce as well as Tomato, and Chili Sauces. Other than the Signature Curry Laksa, there’s also a Sambal Curry Laksa if you want something that’s spicier. Of course, there’s also some fried onion here that you can add to your Sambal Curry Laksa for additional texture and flavor.
If you’re into sour and spicy flavors then Ikan Assam Pedas might be a dish that’s worth checking out. Not too keen on meat and/or fish dishes? Roasted Eggplant with Hot Bean Sauce is a tasty and flavorful vegetable dish that should go well with rice (and speaking of rice, do you know you can also have Uncle Roger’s famous fried rice here at KLIA2).
Want more vegetable dishes? You’ll also find some Vegetarian Samosas here which apparently are also quite popular among the guests (at least when I was there) as evidenced by the picture above.
About a foot or two from the Samosas you’ll find these short pots containing Chi Kuh Teh and Dried Longan Red Dates Sweet Soup. For those not familiar with it, Chi Kuh Teh is a variant of Bak Kuh Teh that uses chicken rather than pork.
If you’re looking for something to quench your thirst then you can head to this soft drink dispenser for a glass of regular Coke, Sprite, Heaven and Earth Lemon, or a Coke Zero. Not a fan of sugary colas? Don’t worry as there are plenty of other beverage options here that I’ll feature later.
Moving on to the salad and pastry section, here you’ll find a number of popular dressings that you can use for your salad. These include Thousand Island, Cocktail Dressing, Parmesan Cheese, Olive Oil, and Honey Mustard Vinaigrette.
Another good thing about the complimentary buffet is the freshness of its breads. These wheat and sourdough loaves still looked fresh that I actually thought of getting a couple. If you do decide to get a slice or two of these loaves then make sure you also get a packet of either butter or jam (or maybe both?) from the dispenser off to the side of the breads.
Here are the available ingredients that you can use for your salad. Aside from assorted greens, you can opt for corn, chickpeas, and cherry tomatoes. At the time I was there, they also had some honeydew.
Now if you have a sweet tooth then you’ll undoubtedly enjoy this section. Sandwiched between the breads and salads are these sumptuous looking cakes. The two items that really tempted me here were the Matcha Tiramisu and the Red Velvet cake. Other than these, the Chocolate Chip Cookies also looked delicious.
Here’s a look at the area behind the counters. As you can see, the shelves here also had a rather ample selection of hard drinks. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to quite make out the exact brands but I am sure a lot of these bottles were whiskeys with some gin and wines.
So these are the beverage options other than the colas that I was talking about earlier. Aside from orange juice, there’s Calamansi and Apple as well as some lemon and mint (or I think it looks like mint, I might be wrong) infusions.
Now if you’re someone who can’t live without coffee then you might want to head to this area which has these EspressoLab coffee machines/dispensers. You can use these to get either an Espresso, Americano, Caffe Latte, Cappuccino, or a Flat White. In addition to these, there’s also an option to just get hot water that you can use for tea.
Here’s another look at one of the EspressoLab machines. I did notice that there weren’t that many people using this but that might have been because of the time of day. Regardless, I think having these is always a net positive for guest experience.
I mentioned tea earlier, well here is where you can get your tea bags as well as stirrers, creamers, and sweeteners. The tea here is by Dilmah which is a relatively popular tea brand in Malaysia.
Since the EspressoLab only dispenses about 90ml of hot water, chances are you might end up using this dedicated dispenser instead. I’m not gonna lie though, this looks a little intimidating to use especially with the warning sign beside it. That said, you could always ask for help from the staff if you’re unsure how to operate this.
At this point, I already finished getting my order and the place was still quite busy. Here are some of the other guests getting their own orders.
Speaking of orders, this is what I got: the Signature Curry Laksa. I will say, this was a really tasty bowl that I would totally recommend. The broth was creamy and the spice levels just right for my taste. As for the noodles, they actually had a little chew to them and the bean sprouts added some really nice textures.
If you want to check the status of your flight then just look for this LCD screen near the lounge’s exit. ‘Pintu Buka’ means that your flight is boarding while ‘Pintu Akhir’ and ‘Pintu Tutup’ roughly mean last call for boarding and boarding is closing respectively. As for ‘Lewat’, that just means delayed.
After my meal it was then just a matter of waiting for the boarding gates to open for my flight. One thing I would recommend if you plan to spend some time at the Plaza Premium Lounge is to be here 3 hours before your flight (if you’re departing Malaysia). For arrivals to the country, you can just walk in and you should have no issues.
Overall, my Plaza Premium Lounge experience was quite positive. The food was really good and the ambiance made me feel relaxed. Despite there being a sizable number of guests at that time, I actually didn’t feel like the place was crowded. There was still plenty of space between me and the other guests there. Have you ever stayed at the Plaza Premium Lounges at KLIA1 and/or KLIA2? If yes, don’t hesitate to share your thoughts in the comment section!
