Jacques Torres

Why you should go to Newark Airport hungry

There is now a very sweet, very fresh and very good reason to go to the airport hungry – if you’re flying through United Airline’s Terminal C and Newark Liberty International Airport.

United Airlines and OTG are finishing up a $120 million “re-imagining” of Terminal C at EWR, creating 55 new restaurants, bars and food markets. One of the new venues – the Mélange Bakery Café – includes what is likely the first 24-hour production bakery inside an airport.

The staff there is not only creating croissants, macarons, gourmet chocolates, bagels, doughnuts and other pastries for café customers, but for all the food outlets in the terminal.

It’s a tall order, and consulting Chef Jacques Torres (aka “Mr. Chocolate) wasn’t quite sure the staff of two executive pastry chefs and team of round-the-clock bakers could pull off making everything fresh on the premises in an airport, but during an opening celebration on Tuesday Torres said, “It works! It’s unusual for an airport, but the beauty is everything goes from the oven to the store, just like the bakeries in France.”

Here’s what Melange plans to bake each day: more than 1,000 croissants, assorted pastries and buns; more than 1,200 hand-rolled New York-style bagels (including rainbow bagels); 600+ muffins; 200+ hand-crafted chocolate bars; 12 types of macaroons; 10 varieties of doughnuts, such as Passion Fruit and Maple Bacon, six varieties of sweet and savory eclairs and lots of cupcakes.

Find Mélange in the Global Bazaar on the C1 Concourse in United’s Newark Liberty Terminal C, by Gates 90-91.