Golden Gate Lounge at San Francisco International Airport [Review]

I visited the Golden Gate Lounge at San Francisco International Airport with my family of 5, including a teen and tweens, in October 2024. We found fresh food and a comfortable space to relax from traffic and grab a bite before boarding. The location was convenient to the Terminal A gates, making it easy for us to visit and be on our way quickly.

I liked Golden Gate Lounge’s efficient service, fresh food, and ease of accessing the lounge, though it was small and limited in amenities. It was great for a quick visit, but it would be less comfortable if we’d planned to stick around for an hour or more.

What Is the Golden Gate Lounge?

The Golden Gate Lounge is a SkyTeam lounge at San Francisco International Airport (SFO) Terminal A that serves passengers flying with participating airlines and members of lounge networks, including Priority Pass, LoungeKey, Lounge Pass, and Diners Club.

The lounge is open daily from 7 a.m. to 11:30 p.m., though space constraints mean access may be restricted from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 5 to 10:30 p.m.

It’s small but serviceable, featuring work and dining areas, a buffet, a self-serve bar, and restrooms.

Golden Gate Lounge Location

I hadn’t planned on visiting lounges as we left San Francisco, knowing we had to wake up extra early to make it through Bay Area rush-hour traffic from Sonoma County to make our flight on time. But we walked right past the lounge as we exited Terminal A security, and it was close to our departure gate, so the location was great.

We’d just passed through Terminal A security when my husband mentioned needing a coffee, and I noticed a sign for lounges and clubs just past the security checkpoint.

Looking to the left, we saw an entrance with lounge signage and decided to check it out.

Inside, we saw a screen with information about 5 airline lounges in this area. We could access China Airlines Lounge, Golden Gate Lounge, or Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse using our Priority Pass Select memberships from my Chase Sapphire Reserve^®. The same lounges are accessible with the American Express Global Lounge Collection from The Platinum Card^® from American Express.

With so many options and a location convenient to our departure gate, we reasoned we had just enough time to grab a coffee — and maybe some snacks — instead of hitting a coffee shop on the way. A little more than a half hour before boarding, we were short on time and had to quickly decide which lounge to visit.

We were interested in the China Airlines Lounge but quickly pivoted to the Golden Gate Lounge on the same floor when we saw China Airlines Lounge had a line out the door. In retrospect, the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse might have been a nicer choice, but we mostly just needed a quick refresh, and reaching the Golden Gate Lounge was easy without getting back on the elevator.

Hot Tip:

Airport lounges often limit visits to 3 hours. If you find yourself with several hours in SFO Terminal A and have the right lounge access, you could easily lounge hop among this convenient pod of lounges.

We followed signs down a travel poster-lined hallway to reach the lounge.

Gaining Entry

We reached the Golden Gate Lounge at the end of the hallway, reaching a propped-open door with a sign indicating access for members of lounge networks.

At the front desk, I used my Priority Pass Select membership to get myself and 2 of our kids in, and my husband used his membership to get himself and a third kid in. We just had to show our Priority Pass cards and boarding passes.

According to the SFO website, the Golden Gate Lounge is an Air France lounge, though we saw no signage at the lounge to indicate that. It serves passengers flying Air France, KLM, AeroMexico, Korean Air, Phillippine Airlines, and Qatar Airways.

Members of various lounge networks can access the lounge, including Priority Pass, LoungeKey, Lounge Pass, and Diner’s Club.

Bottom Line:

There are numerous ways to access Golden Gate Lounge, whether you’re flying with a participating airline or have a lounge access membership.

First Impressions

With such broad access, I was surprised that the lounge wasn’t full. I suspect most passengers choose other nearby lounges with better amenities, but for our needs — a speedrun mostly for free coffee — the Golden Gate Lounge was a perfect fit.

Seating

There were 2 seating areas. The first was in the entrance room and almost empty. It had about 10 small 2-top tables and a few bar-height seats.

Bar seats lined the window.

The bar seats in this room had a better view of the airplanes coming and going than the bar seats in the dining room.

Most people gathered in the dining area, which had varied seating. Some of the same small 2-top tables were there, along with a large bar-height table in the middle and a long stretch of bar seating at the window.

We looked for a fairly open space that could fit all of us and found it at the window bar seating. We probably should have sat in the nearly empty entry room, but we wanted to be near the food, like everyone else. I could keep my kids within eyesight as they visited the buffet, so it worked.

However, the view wasn’t anything to write home about — a very gray view of the top of a building and a highway.

Food and Beverages

A need for coffee brought us into the lounge, but it had been hours since our pretraffic breakfast, and we realized we were ready for a quick meal before boarding. The lounge’s buffet and self-serve bar were small but had a good selection.

Buffet

The main buffet offerings were on a small bar, with dishes frequently rotated as selections disappeared. With a fairly full dining room and little room to access the buffet, I expected to have trouble getting to the food, but that wasn’t our experience. We moved quickly through the foods, which ranged from breakfast classics to sandwiches, salads, cheeses, and meats.

There were a few hot eggs and breakfast meats, but the rest were cold. I liked that we could choose from hot breakfast or light lunch around 10 a.m.

Opposite the buffet was more food and drinks. A cooler to the left had yogurt cups and cold cups of fresh fruit, including grapes and oranges. The cooler beside it had canned sodas and carafes of milk and juice.

Atop the coolers were glasses, whole fruit, pastries, and nuts. The whole fruits and canned drinks were easy to grab and go.

Though the buffet area was compact, I was impressed by the breadth of selections and appreciated that there was something each of us could enjoy. There was no shortage of fresh and healthy foods.

I made an early lunch out of a veggie and cheese sandwich with marinated tomatoes and a few slices of meat. The yogurt cup had fresh berries and mint on top.

Bar

Next to the coolers was a self-serve bar with a small selection of liquors, mixers, and several wines, some of them on ice. Most of the wines appeared to be from California. Ice for drinks was in a bucket.

Opposite the self-serve bar and next to the main buffet was a beer tap featuring a Bay Area IPA, a selection of teas, and a coffee machine that could dispense various drinks, from lattes and hot chocolate to plain hot water. The coffee cups were disposable, so my husband could take his coffee out after we were done eating.

Amenities

The amenities at Golden Gate Lounge were functional but not extensive, limited to Wi-Fi and restrooms. I didn’t see televisions or flight information displays like you find in many other lounges, but the lack of screens made for a calmer environment. There were no showers or kid-specific amenities like a playroom or changing tables.

Wi-Fi

Various signs throughout the lounge had a QR code for joining the Wi-Fi network and a password for access.

Restrooms

There were 2 unisex restrooms. These were clean, private rooms with locking doors.

Each restroom was large and had a toilet and sink. I didn’t see any baby changing tables.

The sink had a small counter and liquid soap.

Staff and Service

I only saw a few staff within the lounge — 1 at the check-in desk and 2 to 3 others working the buffet and clearing plates from the lounge. The lounge was clean and well-stocked and seemed to run very efficiently. The staff quickly replaced plates on the buffet as the food was cleared and picked up trash to maintain a clean area throughout the dining room. I was satisfied with the service in the lounge and thankful that it was easy and quick to navigate in the short time we had available to visit.

Final Thoughts

Golden Gate Lounge wasn’t a luxurious lounge experience, but it checked all the boxes we needed, with a fresh, fast buffet, coffee to-go, and restrooms within the lounge. It’s ideal for a short lounge visit in SFO Terminal A. I liked the food selection and would be happy to return, especially if we need another quick bite in SFO Terminal A. But if we have more time to relax, I’ll probably check the lines for the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse and China Airlines Lounge first.