A question: would you splurge for caviar and Champagne in a busy airport concourse at LAX before your flight?
Petrossian Caviar & Champagne At LAX
Who knows if it will survive COVID-19, but Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) has a caviar and champagne bar in the international terminal. I’m amused by the concept, but it seems to me like an odd business model.
Petrossian, a French company dating back 100 years, opened a bar in the busy Villaraigosa Pavilion of the Tom Bradley International Termianal at LAX. I’ve passed by this place so many times and never seen a soul sitting there. A small tin of caviar starts at around $60 and sells as high as $500, deeding upon the variety. Smoked salmon, crabs, and scallops are also very pricey.
While I don’t think the price is a deterrent for all people, who wants to sit in a loud terminal and enjoy caviar and Champagne? And aren’t the people who can afford to splurge for such frivolities as caviar and Champagne more likely to fly business or first class (if they fly commercial), which comes with lounge access and free-flowing alcohol?
I know there are far more important issues to ponder, but this business concept is one that has left me scratching my head.
CONCLUSION
I suppose there is no cooler juxtaposition than enjoying a $500 tin of caviar and $400 bottle of Champagne before a transpacific or transatlantic flight in economy class. But who does that? If you can afford that, please reach out to Award Expert and let us help you secure a premium cabin seat…with caviar and champagne service onboard.
Would you ever splurge and spend hundreds of dollars on caviar and Champagne before your flight if you had free booze in a lounge?
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I’ve seen those Petrossian outlets in a number of airports and I always wonder the same thing. Ditto the high-end clothing stores in airports such as Heathrow and Charles de Gaulle. Who has the time? Who has the inclination? Who wants to stuff it in a carry-on? I just want to get on the plane. If I have excess time, I go to the lounge. Travel is stressful – even if you’re flying Business or First. Champagne and caviar should be savored in relaxed and suitable environs. A noisy airport ain’t it.
Re: the high-end stores – I lived in Singapore for several years and I also wondered how the business model worked for all those luxury goods stores at SIN and in the city as I never saw anyone in most of them. An insider told me that these stores make the vast majority of their revenues and profits from just one or two customers per month who would drop $100,000+ in one go. In the case of Singapore, they tended to be from China or Indonesia.
I got it in NY once when I got back from AUH. I was pissed they didn’t serve caviar on the Etihad first class flight so I was craving some at JFK
They had it in London LHR and I had a LHR-DME flight on BA First on the 747-400 a few years ago. I knew BA wasn’t going to serve caviar on the flight but I felt like having caviar & salmon so I bought a box to go and had it up in the air!
I’ve eaten here and way overpriced and underwhelming. Since the core, high-priced caviar comes from the caspian, one of the benefits of traveling internationally is going to countries where there is no embargo-induced shortage of sturgeon. Experiencing caviar in a US airport restaurant is like trying to experience foie gras at a vegan salad bar. Even if u pull it off, the experience is bound to be lacking.
Those Caviar and Prunier places are all over Europe airports – is the pricing in those less?
Didn’t realize this was a french company – when I saw Petrossian just assumed it was Russian
Yeah, I’ve seen theses sorts of caviar/seafood stands in HKG and LHR too (those were several years back so not sure they’re still there). I’ve never seen them full, so I always assumed they were a low flow, high margin business. I’ve also just assumed they targeted business people with generous expense accounts.
Nothing screams POSEUR as much as consuming caviar and champagne on a plane…and twice as loudly when doing so at an outlet on an airport concourse. It’s no surprise to see it at LAX, home airport for the ‘look-at-me’ set. Most of them would rate cat piss/tinned sardines highly if told it is expensive.
Jealous much? Calm down.
Ha! I enjoy a glass of champagne l and it’s so tasty with caviar. I put my headphones on and don’t care what’s going on or who’s judging me. Pop open a bottle at home and pour yourself a glass, it’ll relieve some of that spite you’re releasing.
No one judges you for what you do in your own home. But there’s nothing that shrieks “new money” so much as those snuffling caviar and swilling champagne on planes. So vulgar,…and invariably with someone else’s money…
This certainly targets the nouveau riche.
True caviar and champagne connoisseurs won’t accept having them in less than perfect conditions.
This. I enjoy both but never would visit this type of bar in an airport.
I tried it once because I love caviar and it looked appealing. Let me just say it was bad. I mean reqlly bad. I spent $240 or something on an ounce if caviar and the quality sucked. I honestly thought it was a bait and switch where they bought some cheap crap for $30 and acted like it was high end. I complained to the mgr who assured me it was the good stuff but I didn’t believe him. And of course he never took a dime off the very expensive bill. Plus the server there wasn’t friendly and made the experience all the worse by her non-caring attitude.
I have eaten caviar from time to time usually at a nice restaurant when I have the craving for it and it usually is delicious, with all the accompaniments as well. I would avoid that place at LAX.
Caviar House & Prunier has several of these bars in the various CDG terminals. Pre-covid, I always saw some levels of patronage.
Don’t really like either one, so…gimme a Big Mac…or something.
You don’t like champagne?
Not particularly. But then the list of things I don’t really care for would probably get me run out of any cookout in America.
There’s something like this by the escalators up to the BA F Lounge in T5 at LHR and there are always people there. Everyone may not be having caviar, but champagne seems to be flowing…
Not that I ever pay for it. Bubbles are one thing BA gets right.
Good point, Jerry. That bar is always crowded! (just like everything else in T5…)
They are for biz travelers on expense accounts. Neither of which really exist at the moment.
Have only had both on Lufthansa First Class and it was great..but someone may want a pre-Boarding celebration!!