Is there really such a thing a good airport food?

Sunset, March, 1996 by Bill Crosby

Many seasoned travelers wrote to say that good airport food is an oxymoron ... except for one find they were willing to share with us. Here, then, are some favorite spots worth checking out if you find yourself with time to kill and a growling stomach at any of the following airports around the West.

Claudia Buzard of Petersburg, Alaska, offers a tip for travelers up to the big corner of the country: "Alaska Airlines flight crews from Seattle buy pies when they're in Sitka. Some of the best pie I've ever eaten is from the airport there. Their peanut butter pie is to die for, and their strawberry-rhubarb ain't too shabby either." The Nugget Restaurant, the only eatery in this small airport, has an off-site bakery where it makes the pies daily.

Kingston, Washington, reader Annamarie Lavieri is fond of grabbing her breakfast on the run at Sea-Tac when she's heading out of town. "At Starbucks kiosks you can get a wonderful latte and breakfast pastry quickly and inexpensively."

Another coffee lover from the Pacific Northwest touts the next big airport south. "Portland International has completely revamped its food offerings," writes Michelle Schmidt Leipzig of Portland. "It now offers Coffee People coffee bars (with real lattes poured by trained baristas), Macheezmo Mouse (healthy Mexican fast food), and a host of other snack places and bars, all in newly remodeled spaces."

If you're venturing into Utah, consider this insider's tip from Mary Tollefson of Gig Harbor, Washington: "As a flight attendant for Delta Air Lines, I have dined in almost every airport in the West, and my favorite is in Salt Lake City. Instead of the usual fast food that is between every six gates now, there is a wonderful and calm restaurant on the third floor of Terminal 1. It is called The Terrace, and even though it overlooks the busy walkway areas of the airport, you feel a world apart. It's a full-service restaurant with a tiered, open atmosphere and wonderful food that ranges from homemade soups to a great taco salad."

The new Denver International Airport gets kudos for Pour la France, which has a full-service restaurant on Concourse B and a sandwich bar in the main terminal.

Mary Sudar of Tacoma says, "Eat here and skip the airline food entirely; it's even better than meals in first class. Great fresh food, French accent, emphasis on salads, nice cheese and fruit, luscious pastries and wines, and very good coffee."

Finally, two intrepid travelers plan their flight schedules around mealtime layovers in Albuquerque. "I spend half my time traveling on business, and I seldom touch airline or airport food," writes Susan Omberg of Livermore, California. "But I take time out of my day to have lunch in Albuquerque. [At T & C Concessions] in the main portion of the airport, they make a wonderful green-chili stew." Elizabeth Malloy of Golden, Colorado, concurs: "A friend swears that the very best green chili in New Mexico is at the airport - and indeed, on a recent business trip, I planned around having lunch there to verify his claim. It was true - so much so that I changed my return flight to coincide with an early dinner."