Back in 1969, architect, urban planner and designer Hans Hollein came up with a good – somewhat kooky – idea:
An inflatable office that could be used when out on the road. Here’s a fun photo that shows him at work during a stop-over at an airport.
(Photo courtesy Hans Hollein)
There are a plenty of things to do when you’re stuck at the airport: wait, walk, talk, shop, work, nap, get a flu shot, check out other people, see some art, drink and, of course, eat.
But how will you choose where to dine at the airport?
You can line up behind scores of other travelers at McDonald’s or some other chain outlet. But why do that when you can nibble on something truly tasty and local?
Here are a few resources – and resource people – who can help steer you in the right direction.
Over at Portfolio.com, Joe Brancatelli has published his excellent, updated, two part guide offering tips on “Where to Eat Before You Fly.”
Part one lists his picks for places to eat in and near airports in Atlanta, Charlotte, Chicago/O’Hare, Dallas/Fort Worth, Denver, Detroit/Metro, Houston/Intercontinental, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis/St. Paul, New York/Kennedy, New York/LaGuardia, New York/Newark, Philadelphia and Seattle.
Part two focuses on dining options in and around smaller airports, including Austin, Boston, Chicago/Midway, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Honolulu, Memphis, Nashville, Orlando, Pittsburgh, Phoenix, Portland, Maine, Portland, Oregon, Raleigh/Durham, Sacramento, Salt Lake City, San Francisco Bay Area (3 airports), St. Louis, Tampa, Washington, D.C. and Baltimore (3 airports). See the full list here.
As someone who also spends a lot of time in these same airports and who researches the local options for the airport guides I put together for USATODAY.com, I can tell you that Brancatelli has got the airport dining thing down.
Another resource: Eater.com, a national restaurant and dining blog. Ron Holden, a Seattle-area food writer who blogs at Cornichon.org, sent me a link to Eater.com’s listing for where to eat at my hometown Seattle-Tacoma International Airport and I see that there are also listings for close to two dozen other airports.
And, for dessert, here’s a link to a Food & Wine article posted on msnbc.com’s Ovherhead Bin today describing America’s best new (and some not so new) airport restaurants.
And, if you don’t have time to sit down and enjoy a great airport meal, don’t forget you can always stop into one of the growing number of airport shops selling locally-made, snacks and gourmet treats to go.
Moon Pies at Nashville International Airport. Sold individually and by the box in many flavors.
Hungry yet? This should get you started.
Have your own tips on where to eat when you’re stuck at the airport? Please share them here.
While I’ve had my share of long waits, I’ve thankfully never been one of those passengers held hostage for hours on end on a plane waiting to take off or deliver passengers at an airport
So, last night, when the captain of my Lufthansa flight on a small plane heading from Munich Airport to Geneva – a one hour trip – announced we’d be sitting on the ground for at least an hour because snow removal had closed two runways, I thought “OK, now it’s my turn to be stuck on an airport for ten hours.”
I wasn’t prepared. Neither my cell phone nor my laptop was fully charged. For food, I had a bag of licorice I’d bought as a gift. And my book was in the carry-on suitcase I’d stuffed into the overhead bin.
I stole a look at my seatmate and at the people around me. Were there kids or babies bound to start crying; who was likely to be traveling with good food or snacks; and were these going to be interesting people to be held hostage with on an airplane?
Luckily, I didn’t have to find out.
Within minutes of the pilot announcing our delay, flight attendants appeared with water and juice and trays of white cloth bags, each with a jolly embroidered Santa Claus on the front.
Inside each bag was a mandarin orange, a cheese sandwich on dark bread, a package of good cookies and a tiny chocolate Santa.
“Classy,” I thought. “Definitely not the bag of pretzels passengers would be getting if they were stuck on an airplane in the U.S.”
I immediately ate the chocolate Santa and half the sandwich. Then, already thinking like an airplane hostage, I carefully re-packaged my snacks for later.
I didn’t end up having to swap that orange for a sweater, something to read or the use of a charged cell phone to call my family or the hotel. After about an hour and a half of sitting out there in the snow, we were indeed on our way.
Good job, Lufthansa and Munich Airport. And thank-you, Santa!
In response to my At the Airport column in USATODAY.com last week: How the airport experience has changed since 9/11, I got a couple of calls from folks at Smart Money who were also pondering then and now changes.
Quentin Fottrell, one of Smart Money’s Pay Dirt bloggers, wanted to know if there was anything fun to do at airports.
I put down my coffee and rattled off some of my faves, starting with the Chinese, Japanese and Hawaiian gardens at Honolulu International Airport.
Based on our chat, here’s how Fottrell wrote up the five other airport diversions we talked about for his Pay Dirt post:
“Palm Beach International Airport: Practice Your Golf
Operated by hospitality firm HMS Host, the airport provides an indoor putting green and, for $3, you can walk away with a souvenir golf ball.
Boston Logan Airport: Make Your Own Sundae
The MooBella vending machine makes Sundaes in 30 seconds. You can choose from 12 flavors on the touch screen. They’re at Terminal C near the Back Bay Café and Lean & Green food store.
Chicago O’Hare International Airport: Workout at the Gym
For $15, take a workout in the Hilton Hotel gym, which is attached to the airport, or relax in the sauna and steam room, or have a dip in the pool. AirportGyms.com has details of similar offers.
San Francisco International Airport: Visit the Museum
On Level 3 of the International Terminal, there are free exhibitions on vintage televisions and a photography exhibition on the San Francisco Seals Baseball Team from 1903-1957.
Portland International Airport: Take Your Bike Apart
After you’ve taken the cycle track to this airport, you can use the tools and facilities at this area near the Lower Terminal roadway to take apart your bike so you can bring it on the airplane.”
Thanks, Quentin!
On Monday, Vancouver International Airport announced the winner in its Live@YVR contest to choose someone to live in and report from the airport for 80 days.
I wasn’t eligible to enter but, I admit it, I felt a twinge of jealously when I learned that Jaeger Mah, who described himself in his entry video as “the Anderson Cooper of YVR,” had won the contest.
Mah moves into the airport on August 17th, 2011. He’ll have a nice room at the on-site Fairmont Vancouver Airport Hotel and, armed with a camera and editing equipment, he’ll spend 80 days finding stories and sharing them with the public on www.liveatyvr.ca, Facebook and on Twitter.
I plan to interview Mah before he starts his airport stint and check in with him during his adventure.
Here’s his winning video.