The Food and Drink at New Orleans’s New Airport Is So Good You’ll Want to Hang Out There
There is no city in America I enjoy visiting as much as New Orleans. Which is why flying into the old New Orleans airport—Louis Armstrong International—was always an exercise in jarring contradiction. The gateway to a lively landscape of first-rate food and beverage was marred by tired kiosks offering lousy coffee and stale Cinnabons. This all changed in early November when the city cut ribbon on a new $1.3 billion dollar terminal after six years of construction (and several delays). I flew out of the new 35-gate airport on the very day of its opening, and I can happily say that its concessions—indeed, it’s very construction—finally reflect the nature of its neighboring metropolis.
The new offerings include airport versions of New Orleans staples like Café Du Monde's beignets and café au laits, creole dishes from Ye Olde College Inn, gelato and baked goods by Angelo Brocato, and James Beard Award-winning chef Susan Spicer's Mondo, which serves up some of the city's classic dishes.