London has 5 of the UK’s top 10 airports for food

A good pre-flight meal can get your trip off to a great start straight away. But which airports in the world provide the best dining experience? Let’s find out.

Radical Storage analysed data on the top 100 airports in the word (by passenger numbers) to uncover the world’s best airport for food.

The analysis used data from online directories such as Yelp and Google Maps, menu PDFs from eatery websites, and social media posts from the eateries in addition to plant-based database HappyCow to determine which airports offer the best eating experience.

Visit https://travel.radicalstorage.com/airport-food-guide/ to view the analysis in full.

Key Findings

The Incheon International Airport in Seoul, South Korea, is the world’s best airport for food, with a huge 270 options to choose from, where a typical main menu or lunch item would cost an average of $8.18 (£6.56).
Manchester Airport is the best in the UK for food with 30 eateries to choose from and has the UK’s widest variety for vegans and vegetarians with 26 options.
Zürich Airport, Switzerland, is the world’s best airport for vegans and vegetarians, with 36 options registered online, rated a higher-than-average 3.8 out of 5 stars.
Those following a gluten-free diet will have the easiest time in Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport with 36 options, followed by Boston’s Logan International with 30 options.
Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Vietnam has the lowest average food cost where one main or lunch item would cost $2.75 (£2.21), while Japan’s Kansai International Airport had the highest average cost at $34.02 (£27.29).
The best airports in the world for food

Using the data from the study on behalf of Radical Storage, points for each datapoint were allocated to each airport to determine which ones ranked best overall.

Incheon International Airport in South Korea took the top spot as the best airport for food. The analysis found that the airport

With 270 eateries to choose from, diners are spoiled for choice with Korean, American, Italian, and Mexican, to name a few. However, it is worth noting the average rating of these eateries was just 3.2 out of 5 on Google Maps. For further context, the average of all airport eateries in the world was just 3.3 out of 5. Incheon had a lower-than-average meal cost, with average main menu items costing approximately $8.18 (£6.56). The airport did have three confirmed choices for vegans and vegetarians, however, there were no gluten-free options registered online.

In second place was Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport in Atlanta, U.S., with 138 eateries, rated an average of 3.4 out of 5. What makes this airport so outstanding in this analysis is its offering for those who eat gluten-free, with 36 options registered online, the most out of any other airport in this analysis.

Finally, in third position, was Taiwan’s busiest airport, Taoyuan International Airport just west of the capital, Taipei. While this airport has a lower eatery count of 29, they are rated higher at 3.7 out of 5 and have a low average dish price of $5.65 (£4.53), perfect for those looking for a relatively affordable pre-flight meal.

The best airports for food in the UK

The analysis found that Manchester Airport is the best UK airport to visit for the best food experience.

For Brits and travellers arriving to explore the history of the United Kingdom, those using Manchester Airport are going to have the best choice of food on offer. This North-West airport has 30 eateries to choose from, rated an average of 3.3 out of 5 stars, and has the most vegan and vegetarian options (26) on offer out of any UK airport.

London Stansted came in second with 17 places to choose from for a bite to eat, also rated 3.3 out of 5, however, it had a lower average food cost at £6.70. Lower food costs in this study were often indicators of airports having more cafés than restaurants, or the country’s overall cost of living being lower than most.

London Heathrow, the largest of all London airports, had the most registered gluten-free options, however, it had the second-highest average food cost (£14.06) which the data indicates is impacted by more high-end restaurants available in the airport.

The best airports for vegans and vegetarians

When reviewing the data and solely focusing on the airports with the most vegan and vegetarian options, we can see that Manchester Airport ranks in 3rd place globally of the airports analysed for their 26 vegan options available, rated 3.3 out of 5 on average with a main meal or food item costing an average of £9.14.

Heathrow Airport took 6th position for its 20 eateries rated 3.6 out of five, with the average main meal or food item costing £14.07.

The best airports for gluten-free food

The Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in the U.S. has the most gluten-free options registered online at 36, closely followed by the Logan International Airport in Boston with 30 options.

Seven out of the top ten airports in the world for gluten-free food are located in the U.S. There are a couple of reasons that would impact this, one key factor is how the U.S. gluten-free market is growing at an annual rate of 8.25%, and the leading gluten-free restaurant databases available tend to focus on American travellers.

Visit https://travel.radicalstorage.com/airport-food-guide/ to view the analysis in full.