The best restaurants in America’s busiest airports

ATL is a behemoth. Proclaiming itself as the busiest airport in the world, Hartsfield-Jackson saw nearly 37 million passengers in 2021, according to Federal Aviation Administration data. At the hub and home of Delta Air Lines, heaven forbid you try to make a tight connection. That may send you running — or boarding a Plane Train on a three-mile loop — to one of 192 gates across its seven concourses.

The Texas-sized airport and major hub for Fort Worth-based American Airlines covers nearly 27 square miles between two cities. D Magazine dining critic Brian Reinhart says Terminal D has the best dining options, and travelers can take the Skylink train freely between terminals after they’ve cleared security.

A major hub for United, Frontier and Southwest Airlines, DEN is a gateway to the West with a unique fabric roof and infamous conspiracy theories. The central, multistory food court makes travel journalist and beer expert Brad Japhe feel nostalgic. “It’s like the mall food court that you remember from high school, only with cool local breweries,” said Japhe, a regular at DEN.

O’Hare’s strategic Midwest position makes it a hub for hometown United Airlines and American, with both carriers operating more than 70 gates. Across most terminals, fliers will find hot-dog shops and salad-vending machines from Farmer’s Fridge. Not ready for a full meal? Grab some of the city’s famous caramel-and-cheddar popcorn mix from Garrett stands in Terminals 1, 3 or 5.

It was tough for local experts to name a great place to eat at LAX. Farley Elliott, senior editor at Eater LA and author of “Los Angeles Street Food: A History From Tamaleros to Taco Trucks,” said there’s no singular spot for travelers beyond the “alt take” of walking or Ubering to the In-N-Out (about a mile away) to eat an iconic burger with planes flying overhead a la Anthony Bourdain.

One of the largest hubs for American Airlines, CLT is in the middle of a $600 million terminal expansion that will create more room for its famous white-painted rocking chairs. Beer geeks will be happy here, with dedicated bars for local favorites Olde Mecklenburg Brewery, NoDa Brewing Company and Asheville-based Wicked Weed.

Millions of people fly to Orlando every year to visit the self-proclaimed most magical place on earth. But for now, most of the restaurant options are the opposite of enchanting. “The food scene … is pretty dire,” said AJ Wolfe, owner and executive editor of the Disney Food Blog, who lives in Dallas but visits Orlando once or twice a month. A new $3 billion terminal is expected to open in mid-September, showcasing two-dozen places to eat and drink.

Las Vegas’s Harry Reid airport has one goal: to get you in and out quickly. It’s about two miles from the center Strip, which means you can maximize your time in the city. Al Mancini, longtime Vegas food writer and founder of Neon Feast, says the airport doesn’t reflect the city’s status as a dining capital. But there are a few spots that serve as gateways to local favorites, including two pizza shops.

PHX has so many local spots that it’s tough for regulars to single out a favorite. Chef Danielle Leoni of Phoenix’s Breadfruit & Rum Bar (which closed during the pandemic) says the strong lineup at PHX was a decade in the making. There’s an abundance of local desserts — such as Sweet Republic Ice Cream and Tammie Coe Cakes — breweries and sandwich spots like Leoni’s beloved Nocawich.

Miami is known as a gateway to Latin America and the Caribbean — a status that shows in the food at the airport, which was the country’s busiest for international traffic last year. Find ceviche, empanadas, oxtail, stone crabs to go (in season) and so many Cuban restaurants that it might be tempting to embark on a croqueta crawl before catching a flight.

Sea-Tac is the primary hub for Alaska Airlines and a big waypoint for Delta. The airport’s one central terminal is nearing the finish line of a nearly $22 million renovation. Recent years have already seen the addition of Hawaiian-style poke bowls, barbecue and a Filson store (for the lumberjack in your life).

Highway-bound Houstonians might not bat an eye, but the drive to Bush is a hike north of the city’s outer loop. IAH is a hub for United and welcomed back Southwest flights in 2021 after a 16-year absence. It’s massive and full of flashy vendors, but many Texans would tell you to hit the regional fast-food favorite: Whataburger.

With more than a million travelers passing through every month, New York City’s main international airport has a range of recognizable chains and restaurants by well-known chefs. But despite being in one of the best food cities in the world, JFK doesn’t inspire visitors to write home about any of the meals they tried in the airport’s sprawling eight terminals.