To kick off my two-part birthday trip to the Golden Triangle , I had the chance to check out the American Flagship Lounge Miami (MIA), prior to my Qatar Airways A350 business class flight to Doha (DOH). Separately, I reviewed the British Airways Lounge Miami , which is the primary lounge Qatar Airways uses at the airport.

Now, Miami is my home airport, and I’ve visited the Flagship Lounge a countless number of times over the years. However, I haven’t reviewed it in around eight years, so it seems like it’s time to revisit it, as a lot has changed.

Look, what can one really say about the current state of Flagship Lounges? They’re significantly better than Admirals Clubs (particularly in Miami, where Admirals Club crowding is getting out of control), but they’re just so uninspiring, and sort of feel like glorified cafeterias (and maybe not even that glorified?).

When Flagship Lounges were first introduced nearly a decade ago, they were pretty great, competitively.…