What are the best airports for food?

March 6, 2006 10:19 PM

What is the best food at airports around the world? I found this list at lonelyplantet.com. It is solid but I want to know all the best places. I travel a ton for work and like to book travel through airports with good food.
posted by rje7 to food & drink (22 comments total)

Au Bon Pain typically serves very edible fare. However, I feel kinda pretentious saying their name, so I usually just refer to it as ABP.
posted by Afroblanco at 10:28 PM on March 6, 2006

Caviar House -- Terminal 4, Heathrow (London)
posted by ericb at 10:33 PM on March 6, 2006

In Hong Kong Chep Lap Kok Airport, in the food court near the airport entrance just within the main passenger concourse, there's a fast food bar named "Cafe de Coral." The menus are all in Chinese, and the patrons are mostly airport employees and other Chinese locals. English is spoken with difficulty.

Don't be afraid. Go there, line up, watch the other eaters for cues, and attempt to order a standard bowl of congee with pork and century egg. If you are successful, you will be rewarded with the Best. Congee. Ever. (In the airport, anyway.)

(And if you fail, the congee-and-noodles place right beside it has the Second. Best. Congee. Ever.)
posted by brownpau at 10:55 PM on March 6, 2006

SFO. Hands down.
posted by radioamy at 10:55 PM on March 6, 2006

Sea-Tac has a new place called "Pacific Marketplace," with a Starbucks, Dillettante, Ivar's, Wendy's, some fancy cafe, a seafood house, Japanese, Mexican, Chinese, and probably some others. best part is that they're all located in the same area. And the windows are HUGE, maybe a couple hundred feet high, so you can watch the planes taking off.
posted by apple scruff at 11:06 PM on March 6, 2006

Paschal's southern food in Atlanta/Hartfield hits the spot for me whenever I'm passing through.

This WSJ article on the subject mentions it.
posted by Brian James at 11:33 PM on March 6, 2006

In Heathrow, at the BA terminal (1?) there is a place called Pret a Manger. Good sandwiches, but the Chocolate Goddess cake is truly fabulous. Browniies very good as well.
posted by Goofyy at 12:21 AM on March 7, 2006

At Logan Airport in Boston there's a Summer Shack in Terminal A and there's a Legal Seafoods in Terminal C. Both have very good seafood, especially for places located in an airport...
posted by lazywhinerkid at 1:28 AM on March 7, 2006

Brownpau - hey I love that place, but have never had any problems with English there. If you want good fish and chips at HK Intl, there's an Irish pub called Katie O'Connors in the arrivals hall. When coming out of customs/baggage, it's at the very far left end of the arrivals hall, tucked behind the escalator to ticketing. Got a nice sized basket and a drink for about HKD100.

Minneapolis / St. Paul - Famous Dave's (bbq) has a location at the far end of NWA's main concourse. Yeah I know it's not the best in BBQ, but it's definitely several steps above normal airport food.
posted by nathan_teske at 1:36 AM on March 7, 2006

Pret a Manger is London's ABP.
posted by k8t at 3:14 AM on March 7, 2006

The Minneapolis airport has a bakery/cafe called French Meadows that has very good organic food, which surprised me at an airport. I eat there every time we fly to Oregon, mmmmm.
posted by ugf at 5:09 AM on March 7, 2006

DCA - Maui Taco ($) in is some of the best on-the-go food I've had in an airport (probably because it contains no grease.) I was eating the fish taco almost weekly for a couple of months.
SEA - New food court area is really nice, although I haven't tried much other than the large restaurant ($$$, very good.)
BOS - Legal's Test Kitchen in Terminal A ($$)
IAD - Matsutake Sushi ($$, they also have it at DCA, but I liked this one a lot more)


Just don't eat an Manchu Wok (a.k.a. Wok and Roll)
posted by cmicali at 6:15 AM on March 7, 2006

I don't know if it's closing down like the main restaurant is, but the root beer at Berghoff's in the United terminal of O'Hare is unreal. I'd fly there just for the root beer.
posted by orangemiles at 6:25 AM on March 7, 2006

[Reagan] National Airport (DCA) has a decent sushi place, Maui Taco, Legal Seafood, a couple of Brew Pubs, a couple of non-Starbucks and a couple of Starbucks coffee places... most require no security screening which is a HUGE plus for those picking up/dropping off others.

It also only has around 30 gates, so we're not talking about a big place.
posted by Pollomacho at 7:00 AM on March 7, 2006

At the far right of HKK under the escalators is a pub that sells excellent fish and chips.
posted by furtive at 7:40 AM on March 7, 2006

Looks like nathan_teske beat me to it.
posted by furtive at 7:44 AM on March 7, 2006

CLT -- Phillips Seafood, in Concourse C. If I have an hour or more layover, I'll sometimes stop here to get a tuna steak. It is surprisingly tasty for an airport restaurant, comes with a choice of sides, and costs less than $15.
posted by blue mustard at 8:20 AM on March 7, 2006

Jim Neely's BBQ at the Memphis airport is very good. There's always a line.
posted by wsg at 9:08 AM on March 7, 2006

Neely's is also called Interstate BBQ. Not sure what the signage at MEM looks like. There is also a Corky's BBQ in the Memphis airport. You can't miss with either.
posted by Carbolic at 9:55 AM on March 7, 2006

Another vote for Interstate in Memphis.
posted by lackutrol at 10:38 AM on March 7, 2006

Chicago Midway Airport - Lots of good stuff here. Manny's Deli is my favorite. Potbelly and Pegasus on the Fly are also really good. Quite a change from the way it was most of my life - one concession stand where the food was kind of "meh" and a couple snack/cocktail bars!
Chicago O'Hare Airport - Also has loads of good stuff. Berghoff Cafe is still there (that's not closing), and there's a Billy Goat and Connie's Pizza, too.
posted by SisterHavana at 11:12 AM on March 7, 2006

AUS is on lonelyplanet's list, and I give it a hearty second. I live in Austin, and I always eat in the airport--breakfast tacos on morning flights, and Amy's Ice Cream while I'm waiting for my luggage.
posted by donajo at 9:45 AM on November 15, 2006