Plaza Premium First Lounge

I have not visited any of the airport lounges in Kuala Lumpur after they went through a round of renovations. Since we had time to spare this trip while waiting for our flight, we decided to pop over to the Plaza Premium First Lounge, which is open to Priority Pass

Located within KLIA Terminal 1, the Plaza Premium First lounge is a popular lounge with many people logging in before their flight

The layout of the lounge was pretty interesting, with different cubicles and spaces which did not really resemble a usual airport lounge. The new layout gave a feeling of more privacy between the tables due to the high partition screens and pillars. There were also private rooms open for certain credit card owners

The toilet was decent, clean and well-maintained with a cleaner on standby since the lounge traffic was high. There was no wet floor, and sufficient paper and soap, which is great compared to using the public toilets around the terminal. There were also shower rooms where you can gain access by informing and booking with the counter staff

Due to the layout of the lounge, the food offering counters were all broken up, and the beverage counter, which had coffee, tea and some juices. The hot food area had creamy soup, fried noodles, vegetables, and meat. The salad area in the chiller also has some cakes and desserts. There was another hot food area with a live station offering noodles soup, laksa noodles, pasta, white rice and curry chicken

I managed to try a couple of the items available, and they were pretty decent for an airport lounge, especially the laksa noodles. The flavours were thick and strong enough without being too watery, like some lounges I have experienced before. The pasta was slightly dry, while the fried noodles were decent but better with some curry sauce. The creamy mushroom soup was like the ones you get from fast-food restaurant sets

Overall, the new lounge felt more like a buffet restaurant where people hang out to eat more than a place where you can really lounge and chill. Overall, it was noisier than most lounges, and the setup was not really suitable for resting, except in the private rooms. After finishing our food, we left as many people were waiting for tables, and it was not really a place for resting without the usual sofas