MSP Airport gets a premium lounge for gamers

MSP Airport is leveling up with a “first-of-its-kind” premium lounge dedicated to gaming.

What to expect: The 3,800-square-foot Portal Lounge boasts over a dozen stations with Nintendo Switch, Xbox, PlayStation consoles and custom-built gaming PCs.

Travelers can also pass the time with a snack or drink in an adjoining room that features more typical tables and bar seats.

🤖 Plus: A dance-happy robotic bartender named Toni mixes drinks ordered via a nearby touch-screen (human mixologists are on call to help with specialty items and glasses).
Bar scene with numerous liquor bottles hanging from the ceiling, a black beverage dispenser on a white counter, and a blue digital drink menu on the wall in the background.
Toni dances when he isn’t pouring shots.

If you go: Travelers who want to pop into the lounge can buy a $70 day pass or gain entry via premium credit cards that come with complimentary lounge access.

Food, drinks and gaming console access come with entry.

📍It’s located in Terminal 1, between Concourses C and D.

What we’re hearing: Portal co-founder Jordan Walbridge, who also launched the Gameway video game lounges, told Axios that he came up with the new concept after feeling “underwhelmed” by lounges that “feel the same.”

“We want it to be tech-forward, we want it to be premium, and we want it to be fun,” said Walbridge — whose game of choice is “Assassin’s Creed.”

Torey’s thought bubble: While I’m not a gamer, I appreciated the Instagram-worthy vibe and convenient location during a brief pop-in before a flight.

The food options looked tasty, and the novelty of the robot bartender alone is worth a visit if you can use your card to enter for free!

🤫 What’s next: Walbridge said he and his wife Emma are expanding the concept to more airports soon, though he declined to say which ones.