The 5 Best Restaurants To Eat At In Atlanta Airport, According To Reviews

Considering that Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport is the world's busiest airport, chances are you've either flown out of or into it at some point during your travels. As any jet-setter knows, one of the most important elements of visiting a new airport is knowing where to find good grub. Whether you're waiting a couple of hours for your flight or have a quick layover between stops, airport food runs the gamut from greasy fast food to elegant fine dining.

Overall, Atlanta has 163 unique food and beverage options throughout the building, which is partly why it's also considered America's best foodie airport. However, since you'll never have time to visit even a fraction of that many places, you'll need to narrow them down. Fortunately, we've done all the hard work for you and created a list of our picks for the five best restaurants to eat at in the Atlanta airport, based on reviews.

Since these are based on reviews, some well-known spots like Chicken and Beer or Ecco were left out, as their ratings weren't high enough to make the cut. For example, despite offering a relatively chic dining experience, Ecco has a 3.7-star rating on Google at the time of this writing. By comparison, every place featured on this list has around 4.5 stars, and we've chosen a mix of different cuisines to satisfy everyone's taste buds. Make sure to keep your luggage by your side as we travel on the Plane Train to each eatery.

There's something of an unwritten code about drinking at the airport. No matter what time of day it is, it's never a bad time to order a beer or a cocktail, especially if you're nervous about flying and want something to help soothe your nerves. As the name suggests, Beercode is a bar serving a variety of locally crafted beers alongside traditional mixed drinks and wine. The place also opens at 7 a.m. daily, so you can get a pint to go with your breakfast.

With an average 4.8-star rating on Google, customers rave about the friendly service and delicious food. According to one reviewer, Beercode is the "best part of the Atlanta airport — I genuinely look forward to this place when I'm transferring." Multiple reviews also highlight one of the bartenders, Rachel, and her attentive service and killer drink recommendations. In fact, Rachel was even featured in a Citybiz review of the restaurant, which highlighted her tendency to get guests to take a moment to enjoy their surroundings and potentially connect with a fellow traveler.

Beercode offers breakfast, which is either a burger, a build-your-own omelet, avocado toast, or a "pub breakfast," complete with eggs, sausage or bacon, toast, and hash browns. For lunch, you can choose chicken schnitzel, seared salmon, fish and chips, an Asian bowl, or a different type of burger. Beercode also has soft pretzels, soup, a Caesar salad, and even a warm brownie for dessert.

Even if you're not exactly hip to celebrity chefs, chances are you've heard the name Bobby Flay. Flay is a world-famous chef, thanks to his various shows on the Food Network. If you've ever seen him cook and wanted to know what his food tastes like, you can head on down to Concourse B and sample the dishes at Bobby's Burger Palace (BBP for short). Considering that burgers are a quintessential American food, someone like Flay would need to really kick things up a notch for his restaurant to make a "best place to eat" list.

Well, with over 10,000 reviews on Google, BBP has an average 4.5-star rating, so Mr. Flay must be doing something right. Customers rave about the quality of the burgers, including their juiciness and seasoning blend. As with Beercode, the service is also top-notch, with multiple servers getting name-checked by guests who were impressed by their skills and personality.

Another unique selling point of Bobby's Burger Palace is that it offers a wide selection of burger options, besides just beef. In addition to turkey and chicken burgers, there are a few vegetarian choices that seem to hit the spot, according to reviewers. Similarly, if you're looking to save calories but stick with meat, you can get any burger "Bobby's Fit" style, meaning with no bun. Finally, you can wash down everything with a delicious shake to complete the full Americana experience.

Just in case you were wondering if any other celebrity chefs have lent their names and recipes to the Atlanta airport, next we have Cat Cora's Kitchen. Like Bobby Flay, Cora is mostly known for her appearances on the Food Network, as well as being the first female contestant on "Iron Chef America" to win the illustrious title. But while Flay focuses on burgers, Cora's menu selection is much greener and more diverse.

The meal options at Cat Cora's Kitchen include dishes like crab mac n' cheese, edamame and avocado hummus, and Norwegian salmon (although the last item is a seasonal option). Overall, if you're looking for something fresh and homemade that won't make you feel bloated or gassy while you're on the plane, Cat Cora's is an excellent spot. Considering the unexpected science of why you pass gas more on an airplane, you can do yourself and your fellow passengers a favor by getting something a bit healthier.

But what do customers have to say about the eatery? On Google, Cat Cora's has an average 4.5-star rating and over 4,000 reviews, so it's off to a good start. Multiple reviews say that the food here is great "for an airport diner," so it's hard to gauge whether the ratings are objective or based on comparisons to other airport restaurants. Either way, most customers are impressed with the quality of the ingredients and the combination of flavors, no matter how low (or high) the bar may be set.

As part of our research into the five best restaurants to eat at in the Atlanta airport, we looked at recommendations on sites like Reddit to help us narrow our focus. According to this particular thread, one spot came up more than any other: One Flew South. So, while the average rating on Google is a mere 4.4 stars (out of almost 2,000 reviews), having such a strong number of recommendations on social media gave it an edge.

So, what's so special about One Flew South, anyway? Well, it's an upscale dining experience, which is somewhat rare for airport restaurants, which often focus on speed and efficiency, not ambience. This particular eatery specializes in Japanese-inspired cuisine, and it even has its own sushi roll menu if that's what you're looking for pre-flight. Roll options include favorites like the California roll and spicy tuna, or you can choose freshly prepared nigiri and sashimi instead. If you're not looking for sushi, One Flew South also features steak, salmon, a burger, Southern-style sandwiches, and even a "Surprise Me" bento box, which changes depending on what the chef's entree is for that day.

According to reviews, the food is quite delicious, and the service is impeccable, but the prices are pretty steep. The perceived quality of each dish can also vary, depending on who is eating it. As one Google reviewer put it, "I could cook better Southern fusion. In fact, I've had it done better several times." Finally, multiple reviewers comment that you'll need a long layover to appreciate One Flew South, as it's definitely not a quick-serve restaurant. However, the staff members will ask how long you have before you order to accommodate flight boarding times.

Although airports can sometimes feel like unique enclaves, entirely separate from the city in which they exist, they can still offer a slice of the region in the form of local restaurants. So, if your travels take you to Hartsfield-Jackson but you're not traveling through Georgia, one of the best places to get a taste of Southern cooking is at Paschal's. While the original restaurant is in the heart of the city, there's also a location in Concourse B, which has an average of 4.4 stars with 3,700 reviews on Google.

As you might imagine, the airport version of Paschal's doesn't have as extensive a menu as the full-sized restaurant, but you can still sample its delectable fried chicken. Considering that the chicken is what helped put Paschal's on the map, you owe it to yourself to get at least a two-piece plate while you're waiting for your flight. Other Southern delicacies include a fish plate, pulled BBQ pork, country fried steak, and St. Louis-style ribs. But the real treats are the sides, which feature baked macaroni and cheese, candied yams, collard greens, and black-eyed peas.

According to reviewers, the food is incredible, and the service is just as much a part of the experience. The staff members at Paschal's are warm, friendly, and know their food, which helps make every interaction memorable and enjoyable. Another point we have to mention is that the owners respond to almost every review on Google, both good and bad, illustrating their commitment to providing excellent service.

When narrowing down our top five picks for the best restaurants to eat at in the Atlanta airport, star ratings on Google were our primary resource. At first, we looked at roundups and reviews from various sites, but many of the spots recommended would have four stars or fewer, so we scrapped these in favor of restaurants that were more highly rated. For example, a roundup by Infatuation recommended LowCountry New Southern Cuisine, which has 3.9 stars on Google at the time of this writing. 

Social sites like Reddit also helped us narrow down our options, but ultimately, the average rating on Google was the deciding factor. Finally, we wanted to offer a mix of different kinds of cuisine and avoid major chains. This way, the selection is more unique to Hartsfield-Jackson, and not a list of restaurants you might theoretically find at any big airport.