People don’t ordinarily associate airports with fine dining, but that is changing as celebrity chefs unveil restaurants in terminals across the country. Today, on-the-go foodies can sample specialties from Martin Yan at San Diego International Airport (SAN), Masaharu Morimoto at Los Angeles International (LAX) and Todd English at Boston’s Logan International Airport (BOS). Meeting planners are discovering that such eateries provide more appealing options than soggy packaged sandwiches and commercial fast food, and even make flight delays and layovers less odious.
The Italian Kitchen, Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW)
Chef Wolfgang Puck’s signature food can be found in airports from Atlanta to Seattle, and Cancun, Mexico, to Dubai. His newest concept focuses on rustic Italian fare. Entrees feature chicken picatta with sauteed broccolini and hand-stretched pizzas (pictured). For dessert, savor classic tiramisu. wolfgangpuck.com
Plane Food, Heathrow Airport (LHR)
Brash British chef Gordon Ramsay offers sit-down service and picnics to go. In the morning, select a proper English breakfast or the Japanese version featuring fried egg, miso soup, rice and hijiki salad. For lunch or dinner, choose salad with crunchy beetroot, pumpkin seeds and feta, or pork and fennel sausage with onion mash and shallot gravy. gordonramsayrestaurants.com
Bar Symon Kitchen & Taphouse, Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD)
Bring a hearty appetite to James Beard Award-winning chef Michael Symon’s eatery. Signature dishes include the Fat Doug burger with coleslaw, pastrami, Swiss cheese and mustard, and potato cheese pierogis with kielbasa, griddled onions and mustard sour cream. The bar offers craft beers. michaelsymon.com
Tortas Frontera, O’Hare International Airport (ORD)
Tortas are griddle-baked Mexican sandwiches. For breakfast, try chef Rick Bayless’ torta with eggs, chorizo, grilled poblano pepper, cheese and avocado. For lunch or dinner, order slow-cooked citrus-braised pork, chipotle chicken or garlic shrimp. Don’t forget freshly made guacamole with a choice of toppings. rickbayless.com
Cat Cora’s Kitchen, Salt Lake City International Airport (SLC)
The first female Iron Chef puts a healthy spin on traditional American fare. Small plates include housemade potato chips with warm bleu cheese dip, sesame lamb meatballs with spicy red pepper yogurt, and lobster mac and cheese. catcora.com
