I flew United from Nashville to New York City for the official launch of Expedia One Key. As part of my flight, United invited me to dine at CLASSIFIED during my visit. Normally, the United CLASSIFIED at Newark dining experience is reserved for the airline’s most loyal passengers and premium cabin travelers. Here’s what I experienced during my visit, the breakfast menu options available and whether my food was worth $66.
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How did I get invited to dine at CLASSIFIED?
Aside from the Southwest Companion Pass, I don’t have airline elite status. And whether I’m traveling within the U.S. or internationally, I rarely fly on United. However, I was invited to New York City for the launch of the Expedia One Key Rewards program. Expedia graciously booked my flight, and they chose the airline.
A few days before my flight, I received an email invitation to book a reservation at CLASSIFIED. This exclusive airport dining experience is normally invite-only and reserved for United’s most loyal travelers and First Class passengers. So, I just happened to be in the right place at the right time.
Use our Expedia search tool to book a flight through Newark (EWR) to see if you get an invite to United CLASSIFIED at Newark.
Where is CLASSIFIED located?
In true speakeasy form, United doesn’t disclose the location of CLASSIFIED until after booking a reservation. Once I booked my pre-departure breakfast, United sent an email with instructions on how to find the restaurant.
It is located in Terminal C, near Gate 120. After using CLEAR and TSA PreCheck, I was on my way. The email says to go to Saisson Brasserie (a seasonal New American and steakhouse restaurant). Then, let the host know you have a CLASSIFIED reservation.
Although my reservation was for 8:30 am, I arrived early at 7:45 am and received a warm reception.
The host walked me to the back corner of Saisson to find the entrance to CLASSIFIED.
How do you dine at CLASSIFIED?
CLASSIFIED is an intimate dining experience, with room for only 36 guests.
Although CLASSIFIED is a full-service dining experience, guests order food using a QR code on the table. Ordering your meal, asking for extra food or drinks, and paying your tab is completely handled through the website link.
What food can you order?
I visited during breakfast, and the menu was quite extensive. Here are six screenshots of the breakfast menu that you can scroll through. The United CLASSIFIED at Newark menu options change between breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
How much does it cost to dine at CLASSIFIED?
I feel that New York City is full of budget-busting experiences, and United CLASSIFIED is no exception. I dined by myself and ordered three items, and my total was $66.68.
My breakfast consisted of Brioche French toast, bacon, and a Mimosa. The French toast was good, but it pales in comparison to what the Gansevoort served me for breakfast yesterday. This order included sliced bananas, walnuts, and caramel sauce, but I asked for it to be served plain.
The bacon was superbly thick and decadent. My order included four slices, which may have been equivalent to half a pig. The Mimosa was a typical drink that was good but nothing special.
I could have saved some money on my breakfast at CLASSIFIED if I had a United Airlines credit card. You can enter your Last Name and United MileagePlus number to receive the 25% discount on United purchases with your card. Learn about the best airline credit cards for free flights.
Is dining at CLASSIFIED worth it?
Overall, the food was delicious but not worth $66 on its own. Airport food is expensive, but not that expensive. If you have airport lounge access through a credit card (or even buying a day pass), you can probably save some money.
I loved the exclusive feel of the experience. The restaurant was a tranquil setting that I enjoyed almost entirely by myself. During my 90 minutes at CLASSIFIED, there was only one other diner, and he sat at the opposite end of the space. So, it’s like each of us had the restaurant to ourselves.
The area was well-lit, with windows overlooking United planes coming and going. This makes it an ideal place for AVgeeks to hang out and watch the planes.
Overall, the experience is worth the splurge for a special treat if your travel budget allows it. But it’s not something I would do on a regular basis.
The Bald Thoughts about United CLASSIFIED at Newark
I’m always looking for unique experiences when I travel. Receiving the invitation to dine at United CLASSIFIED at Neward during my NYC trip for the Expedia One Key Rewards was such a surprise. My flight from Nashville got delayed, so I wasn’t able to eat dinner there. However, I found time to book a breakfast reservation before I flew home a couple of days later. The food was delicious, but it was wayyyy more expensive than I’d normally spend on breakfast. From the pics, do you think it was worth $66?
I’ve had an invite a couple times as a United elite on a First Class ticket (not upgrade). The last time was for dinner, which as you mention, is expensive. But, I felt it was worth it if only for the fact EWR was going to heck in a hand basket, the United Club at C120 was starting to look like a campsite (until they reopen the other Club, it can get pretty crowded especially in IROPs) and like you I was one of two parties in there. It was close to the end of the night and most reservations were no showing so they kindly let me hang out and watch TV (I tipped well) by myself for about a half hour after the other group left.
Thanks for sharing your experience. You make a good point of using this invite for a better lounge situation until the other United lounge re-opens.
What a joke of a price and only four pieces of bacon
I get how it could be useful if the club is overrun, but that’s a failure on United’s part to not manage the clubs properly
Yeah, prices were ridiculous
Have you eaten breakfast at any hotel in NYC??
😂 I guess I’m spoiled with Globalist and FH&R benefits.
But the prices and the menu are the same as the restaurant outside (same kitchen). So that’s more of an OTG/EWR airport issue than this restaurant specifically. Remember this is the concessionaire company that got ordered by the Port Authority to lower its beer prices because the bad press was overshadowing the good about the new LGA. Because a $28 pint is street pricing, eh OTG?
You make a good point. If the CLASSIFIED menu prices are the same as Saisson, you might as well enjoy the intimate experience.
Love how bloggers with no airline allegiance or status get invites… just to write a mediocre review of the venue… yet 1k members of 15+ years get zero 😛
My luck… I’d get invited only to have my flight canceled/diverted/delayed where I couldn’t attend… Has anyone actually flown United in the past 2 months where you aren’t canceled/diverted/delayed? It’s been an operational nightmare 🙁 I feel for the airport staff
My flight from Nashville got delayed 1 hour and 20 minutes. I barely made it to my event. But at least the flight home was on time.
Serious question: What else were you expecting from the review?
@MikeL I’ve flown at least once a month on connecting flights on United and had zero delays in the last four months. Maybe I was just born under a lucky star haha. And now I’ve jinxed myself for my two trips in August. Dang it.
As for the restaurant- I was going to do it once but then got upgraded to Polaris (I travel primarily internationally for work) and got a free sit-down restaurant dinner at the Polaris lounge instead. I can’t imagine how this works at a profit for them except that it overlaps completely with the normal restaurant operations of the restaurant it is behind, so all they need is a table runner to drop off food and clear a table or two. It is really a niche market for customers and I would bet there is never more than 2-3 tables occupied.
I’m not understanding the concept. If I invite you to share a meal with me – it’s ON ME, meaning the bill. You had to pay $66 & ordered 3 different items?
I’m always a very light eater on travel days, no way could I try to down 3 plates of food and get on an airplane – I’d painfully bloat at 40,000 ft!
Hey Mikey, this was an invite to an exclusive United dining experience called CLASSIFIED. Yes, you have to pay for your own food and drinks, just like at the attached restaurant, Saisson.
While, I wish the bill was $66 for three plates of food, my meal was much smaller than that. The three items that I ordered were French toast, bacon, and a Mimosa. Of course, alcohol always inflates a tab, but even subtracting that, it would still be around $40 for French toast and bacon. By comparison, a Denny’s French Slam with French toast, bacon, sausage, and eggs is only $14.