Qantas' first and platinum flyers will be able to escape the hum of Los Angeles airport with the opening of the dedicated First Lounge in the Tom Bradley international terminal on Thursday.
With a capacity of 200 people, the lounge has been styled on the airline's flagship first class lounges in Sydney and Melbourne designed by Marc Newson.
Speaking at the launch, Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce said Qantas was 'the biggest airline operation flying back to Australia and that was why the undisclosed investment had been made in the lounge'.
WATCH: Take a video tour of the new Qantas first-class lounge at LAX
 
"Our vision … was to create the best lounge in North America, the equivalent of a five-star hotel or a fine-dining experience," Mr Joyce said.
The LA First Lounge has a 74-seat restaurant and bar where customers can dine from a Neil Perry Rockpool-designed a la carte menu from the open-style kitchen.
Guests will also be served small plates throughout the lounge and dining area.
There's Californian Knoll furniture chosen by Marc Newson, American oak walls, marble floors and a 48-foot-long bar, and Tai Ping wool carpets from Hong Kong with the Qantas First Lounge hex design. On the menu there's Rockpool Bar and Grill dishes such as black angus minute steak with chipotle butter and lime, local cuisine including Mexican, Korean and Italian fare.
"Most airlines lounges don't have kitchens, don't have chefs and don't have waiters, it truly is a restaurant," Mr Perry said."
The exclusively-operated Qantas lounge is managed by Sofitel and open to Qantas First Class passengers, Platinum One and Platinum Qantas Frequent Flyers and Oneworld Emerald members. The extra capacity in the First Lounge is in addition to extensions to the business class lounge to be finished in the second quarter of 2015 and will accommodate 200 more people.
"The business lounge was always going to be at capacity while we undertook these significant building renovations," a Qantas spokesperson said. "Combined, the two lounges are more than double the space of the previous lounges."
"(Christmas) is certainly one of the busiest times which is why the opening of the First Lounge was fast-tracked"
A dedicated children's area will be part of the second phase building of the Business Lounge and both are located on Level 5.
Qantas operates 40 services a week from Los Angeles to Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne
Jane Reddy travelled courtesy of Qantas and Beverly Hills Convention Bureau.
