Airports are often the setting for strong emotions, nostalgic hugs and even interesting food experiences. Lovers reunite, kids jump into their parents’ arms, friends high five each other and even pets are reunited with their owners at airports. I’ve always had a liking for airports, even if they tend to make me emotional. They serve as connecting points between cultures that may otherwise be poles apart and do their best to be a place of comfort with restaurants and places to sleep.
Restaurants at airports can range from chains to independent ones and most provide a slice of the city or country they are based in. I make sure to pick flights with layovers that will allow me time to sample local cuisine, even if it may be only at the airport. One such time, I stopped over at Helsinki Airport in Finland on my way to Delhi from Dublin and found a restaurant that served Scandinavian dishes. Even sausages made with reindeer meat were on the menu but I stuck to a safer toast skagen, which is made with prawns, mayonnaise and lemon topped with roe and served on crisp bread.
Dubai International Airport has an array of international and local restaurants too, and I’ve often stopped at one of the local ones for shawarma and chips. The staff will greet you in Arabic and shower you with the best of Arab hospitality, making you feel at home even if you are miles away from it. Being one of the largest airports in the world, it allows passengers to spend time browsing multiple menus and eating what they fancy.
Heathrow Airport in London is also huge and has everything from breakfast to drinks. I arrived at Heathrow at 7 am once, hungry and tired, and a salesperson offered me a cup of gin. Although I was tempted, I refused it and ended up at Wagamama (a very British chain) for Japanese breakfast.
Indian airports aren’t far behind. Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport caters to all demographics with a McDonald’s, Subway and even a South Indian eatery that serves dosa and idli. More recently, Delhi’s South Indian darling Carnatic Cafe opened at the Indira Gandhi Domestic Departures Terminal 3. Despite its swanky setting, Carnatic Cafe has stuck to its original mission of serving food from the villages of Karnataka and the prices remain reasonable.
It’s a myth that food at airports can’t be tasty. Food at airports is an accurate display of the local culture and the respective country’s culinary traditions. It provides respite between long, tiresome flights and welcomes people home with what they know best. Amid painful departures and happy arrivals, airports bring out the best and the worst emotions in people, and to have local food to comfort them at those times is an unparalleled pleasure.