Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Guv'ment Airport recommends Varsity, Varasano's, Real Chow Baby, other local eateries get spots in aviation hub
Posted by Thomas Wheatley @thomaswheatley on Wed, Dec 14, 2011 at 11:16 AM
Other eateries include Shane's Rib Shack, Sweet Georgia’s Juke Joint, TWIST, Yeah! Burger, Willy's, Chin Chin, ECCO. Retail locations include Spanx, Kiehl's, New York Times Bookstore, Sweet Auburn Market. (View a table of the recommended vendors — and the groups who would operate them — here (PDF). If you notice anything interesting, send us a line or opine in the comments.)
“The new food and beverage program at Hartsfield-Jackson will offer our travelers many new and exciting dining options while showcasing an array of familiar Atlanta and Southeastern-based restaurants and eateries,” said Aviation General Manager Louis Miller in a statement. “The food courts will be redesigned using colors, natural light and innovative textures to capture the look, feel and spirit of our city and region.”
In addition, Miller says, the main level of the international terminal, which is scheduled to open next spring, will include retailers such as Ferragamo, Omega, Bvlgari, Swarovski, and Tommy Hilfiger and a "full-scale sit-down restaurant and a sleek, futuristic tapas bar."
The city released the recommendations early this morning via email. Several Atlanta City Councilmembers, who must sign off on the list before it's approved, expressed concern that they were not given information about the proposals much earlier.
"This information should have been made available to us much earlier," Councilwoman Felicia Moore said during today's Transportation Committee hearing (which you can view live here). Councilmembers, staffers, and the public should have been given more time to digest the details, she said.
The program to find new vendors has been called one of the largest in North America. The city restarted the entire process in September after many vendors failed to comply with e-Verify regulations. More to come.
Comments (12)
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I hope the Sweet Auburn Market location will include King of Pops. That's where I'd send friends on a layover for the best taste of Atlanta!
"Several Atlanta City Councilmembers, who must sign off on the list before it's approved, expressed concern that they were not given information about the proposals much earlier"
Read as: "Several Atlanta City Councilmembers, who must sign off on the list before it's approved, expressed concern that they were not given information about the proposals in time to solicit bribes and steer contracts toward family members"
Why is there any "picking" in the first place? They should auction off the spaces. Highest bidders get the leases. Then the windfall by virtue of location goes to the city (hopefully to offset taxes) rather than to the operator. The operator can then compete to make money from his space, rather than knowing he's automatically going to make money due to his location and his less-than-market-would-bear rent.
Also, I eagerly await reports of the first flight forced to land halfway through its flight plan because one of the passengers had three chili cheese slaw dogs, rings, and a large FO.
Good to see that the locals will be filling these spaces. Airports have become so homogeneous (like most of the cities they are in) that it's nice to go somewhere and see a name you don't recognize. Makes you feel like all that time you spend is actually travel.
Vortex didn't get a spot at the airport because they wanted to put a cigarette on the burger to capture the cancer-inducing ambiance of the restaurants.
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