In terms of food quality, airports tend to go the same way of hospitals: more likely to be a punchline and consumed out of pure necessity than a delightful dining experience.
But recently, that trend has changed. Airports across the country are becoming home to higher quality food — to match the notoriously high-price food.
And according to a recent report, some of the best airport food can be found right here in Atlanta.
Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport ranked No. 3 overall for best airport food in the nation, according to a new report from travel company Wanderu.
To compile the rankings, the company looked at the total number of restaurants in the country’s 50 busiest airports, the number of restaurants with more than 3 star-ratings on Yelp in each airport and the top-ranked restaurant in each airport.
After looking at that criteria, the folks at Wanderu ranked the airports on the total number of high-rated restaurants. What they found put Atlanta in the bronze-medal position.
It trailed Denver International Airport and Dallas–Fort Worth International Airport, which took home the top two spots, respectively.
Wanderu found that Hartsfield-Jackson is home to 88 restaurants, 18 of which are “high-rated restaurants.” The ranking agreed with other similar lists, including Thrillist, that One Flew South is the best preflight dining option Atlanta has to offer travelers.
“If you’re willing to splurge, take the Plane Train to One Flew South in Concourse E,” Wanderu writes in its report.
“Marketed as the first upscale dining experience within the Atlanta airport, One Flew South’s menu features items like hamachi crudo, thyme roasted pork belly and a collard green ramen you can try to duplicate at home with the purchase of Chef Todd Richards’ debut cookbook.”
In a separate report earlier this month, the website Thrillist said the restaurant One Flew South in Atlanta's airport is "probably the finest airport restaurant in the US, period." The dining option, found in Terminal E, touts a 4.5-star rating on Yelp.
For those not interested in that option, Wanderu also gave a nod to Ludacris’ Chicken + Beer, noting it was the first airport-based restaurant in the country nominated for a James Beard Award.
“Guess he knows a thing or two about Southern hospitality …” Wanderu writes of the hometown hip-hop hero.
Whether you’re leaving home or passing through, get your tastebuds ready for the Atlanta’s terminals.
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