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Plaza Premium Celebrates Grand Opening of Lounges at Dallas (DFW)

Written by Matthew Justice on Apr 17, 2026
Dragon sitting on the floor in front of a Plaza Premium Lounge grand opening sign.

Plaza Premium Group (PPG) held a festive grand opening at the Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) to commemorate the opening of their Plaza Premium and Plaza Premium First lounges in Terminal D. The grand opening event took place on (Tuesday) April 14, 2026, and I was lucky to be selected to attend.

The ceremonies kicked off around 10:30 with a handful of speakers, including Plaza Premium executives Pascal Bélanger (Senior VP for the Americas), Jonathan Song (Chief Commercial Officer), Eric Pateman (Senior VP for North America), and Kenneth Buchanan (EVP Revenue Management and Customer Experience) from DFW. The speakers spent time thanking business partners, DFW staff, PPG staff, and others who all worked hard to make the opening of the new lounges possible.

This opening is very meaningful to me. I wanted to make sure I come straight from Hong Kong headquarters, said Jonathan Song. On behalf of the family, I just want to say thank you so much, and let's have a great grand opening.

The speakers also pointed out how the vision had evolved over the last 10 years between PPG and DFW and how this evolved into the first Plaza Premium First lounge to open in the United States (and 9th in the world).

multiple people cutting the ribbon for the grand opening. dragon and people standing nearby with their thumbs up.

Following the talks was the official ribbon-cutting ceremony, and then the finale with an amazing Dragon Dance (a traditional Chinese ceremony meant to bring good luck, prosperity, and drive away negative energy).

Once the downstairs ceremonies were finished, most of the visitors went up to the lounges for a preview. They had a jazz player with a saxophone, a live DJ playing music, and employees who were serving samples of their menu items (including Gulf Red Snapper, Prime Steak Tips, and Bread Pudding) and featured cocktails for other Plaza Premium Lounges around the world.

Saxophone player and DJ with a laptop, with lighted Plaza Premium First sign behind them. bar area with drinks on the bar and people visiting the lounge.

Plaza Premium in Dallas

I think it is notable that Plaza Premium North America is based in Dallas, and the first Plaza Premium Lounge to open in the United States was at DFW Terminal E, back in September 2020 (which is still open). I will say the difference between the Terminal E lounge and the new Terminal D lounges is significant, and I will be covering that in upcoming reviews.

Big thanks to the Plaza Premium Team, based in Dallas, for their exceptional hospitality and coordination of my visit.

Closing Thoughts

I have been to many grand openings over the years, but Plaza Premium for sure made this event one of the most memorable and pulled out all the stops. I am looking forward to the next U.S. Plaza Premium First lounge opening, which is scheduled to open sometime in 2026 at New York (JFK). In the next week I will be posting reviews for the two lounges I visited, with many more photos and details.