Chowing down (or not) at LAX
Gross. Airport food, y’all. Specifically, LAX airport food.
Why is it that while most airports in the U.S. (and the world) are getting makeovers that include real, actual restaurants—or at least decent chains like CPK and Jamba Juice—LAX’s current makeover includes…a lot of dust?
Word on the street is that Tom Bradley International Terminal, at least, is getting some culinary upgrades. Not that we have high hopes, as even a Burger King would be better than the dreck they currently offer in the mezzanine food court: McDonald’s, bad Mexican, scary sushi, a disappointing Haagen-Dazs fro-yo thing, more unfortunate Japanese and the most horrifying steam-plate Chinese you’ve ever imagined.
(She's cute; the food? Not so much)
And to think this is the first, and last, vision of America that international travelers see. (Unless you’re flying Alitalia, in which case you’re at a different terminal. Logic FTW!) I’ve met family members on layovers there three times this year, so I’ve become well-versed in the offerings, and I’m no longer disappointed in the futile search for goodness. But for the Germans I saw staring bleakly at the sweet-and-sour “pork,” this was a fresh culinary hell.
The lessons learned at Tom Bradley? One, don’t judge people for getting McDonald’s; at least it’s recognizable non-food. And two, the guy going to town on the 2-pound box from See’s had the right idea. Next time, I’m just getting candy.
—Katherine Spiers