Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge, SFO

Attention United domestic flyers.  Did you know, that if you have Star Alliance Gold or higher status, that you can use the Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge at SFO, even when flying domestically?  So even if United doesn't give you UA Club access, you have an option!  Yes, it is located over in the International Terminal, near D gates, but it isn't a long walk from the E or F gates that United uses for these flights.  This was my first visit.

The lounge really was a pleasant enough experience, particularly compared to a UA club.  It was very full, but not bursting at the seams like the UA club (which, literally had no seats available, and swarms of people just standing up waiting for a seat).  It was light filled, and seemed relatively calm, which was impressive given the fullness.

The main attraction seems to be the outside terrace (yes, real fresh air!), although it was a dreary rainy day when I visited, so I didn't spend time out there.  I'd like to visit again sometime when it isn't breakfast hours as the offerings weren't particularly interesting.

Seating.

There are several kinds of seating areas, all along the bright windows.  It was full, but seats opened up fairly readily.

Runway Views.

The windows were large, and had great runway views.  This is not a dismal lounge.

Bar.

The bar opens at 11am when breakfast service ends.  There is a barista, but they do not do decaf espresso drinks.

Breakfast buffet.

The breakfast buffet had oatmeal and baked beans in the soup wells, plus hash browns, sausage, eggs, and "french toast".  I tried the later, which was just a very eggy casserole/bread pudding.  Far too eggy for me.

Fruit/yogurt/oatmeal toppings.

Some basic fruit, yogurt, and other toppings for oatmeal came next.

Toast.

Simple bread, "tea cake", and a toaster completed the line up.  No muffins, danishes, or pastries of any kind.

Soda machine.

The self-serve soda machine had a few options, but nothing I was interested in.  I found it interesting that they went for a simple model like this, rather than Coke Freestyle machines everyone else has been adding.  They also had a sparkling and regular water tap, and a robot coffee machine.

I tried the decaf coffee, but it was pretty awful.