How to Eat Healthy at America's 10 Busiest Airports

With a chicken restaurant from Ludacris, a hip microbrewery from Athens (Terrapin) and civilized cocktails at One Flew South, temptation is everywhere at the world's busiest airport. Luckily, there's some, er, healthy competition. Fresh fruit cups and tropical smoothies with a Latin twist are the focus at LottaFrutta, the satellite of a popular spot in Atlanta's hip Old Fourth Ward—try to resist the excellent pressed, Cuban-style sandwiches (Concourse B). Craving some greens? We Juice It stands out from the fast-food crowd in the hopping Atrium dining area for its real-deal, pressed-to-order juices. If you're in need of a more substantial meal, drop by Nature's Table Bistro, a frequent-flyer favorite serving up hot, healthier meals (veggie chili!) alongside an impressive selection of cold deli salads—try the lentil (Concourse E). Traveling in mixed company? Steer your group toward the The Original El Taco, an Atlanta institution with two airport locations (Concourses C, F). Let them go for the fried chicken burritos—you're having the vegan tacos, stuffed with roasted vegetables, crunchy jicama and fresh guacamole.

With an “aeroponic garden” (Terminal 3) yielding a year-round supply of fresh greens to terminal restaurants, a contemplative yoga space and an open-to-the-public health club just across the street, this massive airport is fairly serious about your health, which can sometimes be lost on passengers rushing to make their connections. Those with time to kill and a willingness to explore will find that the food can be pretty good, too—access to any of the three main terminals is possible without passing through security. You'll have to be on your best behavior (no burger and fries!), but the new Publican Tavern, affiliated with the top-notch Publican in town, has some very good salads—try the roast turkey, served with a honey and Tabasco vinaigrette (Terminal 3). In Terminal 2, you can sit down for a seaweed salad and a few nice pieces of sashimi at the very good Wicker Park Seafood and Sushi Bar, while those looking to grab something and get on with it are served well by B Smooth, a juice bar with decent salads (Terminal 3). Really, though, it's hard to talk about O'Hare without recommending Tortas Frontera. Known best for its hearty Mexican-inspired sandwiches, Rick Bayless's multi-location airport institution also has a very good Taqueria Salad, dressed with a creamy avocado lime dressing—you can top it off with grilled chipotle shrimp. There's fresh guacamole, too, because obviously (Terminals 1, 3, 5).

Famously cramped and terminally crowded, your mileage at LAX may vary dramatically, depending on where you're flying and who you're flying with. Most international travelers will be overwhelmed with personal space in the glamorous new Tom Bradley International Terminal, not to mention good food (go for sushi at Luckyfish). Booked on a United flight to Houston? We can think of more commodious bus stations than Terminal 7. (At least you have access to takeout Chinese chicken salads, that L.A. staple, at Wolfgang Puck Express.) It's happier days for healthy eaters at Terminal 4, where vegan favorite Real Food Daily tempts with its make-your-own bowl options, while passengers flying Delta have access to local lunch spot Lemonade, which offers an array of pick-and-mix prepared salads and fruity cold drinks (Terminal 5). Finally, if you're in Terminal 6, they've got a location of Santa Barbara-based staple Habit Burger, known for their ahi tuna and veggie burger options—make sure to skip the fries and order the excellent tempura green beans, instead.

This gargantuan hub has something for everyone. Want to chow down on barbecue and guzzle giant beers? That's a thing. But Dallas-Fort Worth is also celebrated for its health initiatives, creating a nearly mile-long fitness trail and yoga room within Terminal D. The airport even has its own app that you can download in advance to learn more about healthy options and calorie counts at its restaurants. Armed with this knowledge, you can navigate your way through pretty much any restaurant, though you really can't go wrong with the hummus, baba ghanoush and other Mediterranean favorites at Café Izmir, a new satellite location of an in-town favorite (Terminal D). Super hungry? There's a terrific veggie burger topped with avocado slices at Twisted Root, a popular new burger joint—if you're into breaking the rules just a little, you could even pair it up with a side of flash-fried vegetables (Terminal D).

Passengers familiar with JFK know the drill: if you don't like the food that's available behind security in your specific terminal, you’re out of luck. That said, the airport does boast a mini-chain of gourmet (or at least gourmet-ish) delis that offer up a wide range of grab-and-go salads, sandwiches and fresh fruit—look for the trusty Cibo Express locations in Terminals 2, 5 and 8. Big fan of good sushi? Sit down for a meal to remember at Deep Blue in Terminal 5—they offer a wide range of sashimi and healthier traditional rolls, as well as a great chirashi bowl and sides like chicken lettuce wraps. In Terminal 4, New York-institution Shake Shack has a firm grip on most outbound travelers (and some inbound, too), but do the right thing and stop instead at barbecue favorite Blue Smoke. It's not as good as the one in town, but there's a decent Caesar salad on the menu—start with an order of bean hummus and chips.

This gargantuan hub has something for everyone. Want to chow down on barbecue and guzzle giant beers? That's a thing. But Dallas-Fort Worth is also celebrated for its health initiatives, creating a nearly mile-long fitness trail and yoga room within Terminal D. The airport even has its own app that you can download in advance to learn more about healthy options and calorie counts at its restaurants. Armed with this knowledge, you can navigate your way through pretty much any restaurant, though you really can't go wrong with the hummus, baba ghanoush and other Mediterranean favorites at Café Izmir, a new satellite location of an in-town favorite (Terminal D). Super hungry? There's a terrific veggie burger topped with avocado slices at Twisted Root, a popular new burger joint—if you're into breaking the rules just a little, you could even pair it up with a side of flash-fried vegetables (Terminal D).

You'd expect one of the developed world's most food-mad regions to deliver on all fronts, comestible-wise, and boy, does it—healthily, too, if you know where to look. For many, the search begins and ends at Plant Café, with its organic juices and healthy smoothies in the morning and veggie burgers and quinoa bowls during the rest of the day (Terminal 2). Others prefer to graze from the broad range of offerings at Napa Farms Market, a restaurant and gourmet boutique where you can do everything from nibble on a locally-sourced salad to stock up on Cowgirl Creamery cheeses and Sonoma wines (Terminal 2 and International Terminal). 

Few airports baffle the health-conscious as thoroughly as Sin City's, not that you need to lower your standards all the way to, "Well, at least it's not deep fried." A little creativity will leave you well-fed, without the food coma. In Terminal 3, sit down for a proper chopped salad (or any kind of salad, really—there's a decent selection) at the Las Vegas ChopHouse & Brewery, or go for the lettuce wraps at Pei Wei's, which also has a location in Terminal 1. Here, the options shrivel up and blow away like tumbleweeds, with an array of underwhelming boxed salads leading the way—choose the Chinese chicken salad at Wolfgang Puck Express, located at the C Gates). There's hope, however. The menu may be more limited than you'd find at their city-side outlets, but the pressed juices, fresh salads and sandwiches at local staple Rachel's Kitchen are some of the nicest food options available at the airport (D Gates).

With those famous rocking chairs in the central Atrium, a team of on-staff therapy dogs (no, really, they're called the “Canine Crew”) and some pretty good barbecue, this oft-transited hub airport doesn't exactly stir the traveler to action—or to go searching for a salad. The motivated, however, will find themselves well catered to, starting with the centrally-located 1897 Market, an exceedingly pleasant restaurant with great salads and a good selection of the usual healthy takeout, including fresh-cut fruit (Atrium). If, for some reason, nothing there grabs you, opt for the close-by Beaudevin, a proper wine bar with some creative small plates—try the caprese skewers. Raw fish aficionados will perhaps be surprised to find that Hissho Sushi has been one of the airports more popular stops for some time now—start with a miso ginger salad with avocado and move on to the chef's choice sashimi (Concourse D).

If only we could survive on cortaditos and guava pastry alone—Miami's hectic airport would take home all of the awards, and the outlets of local staples Versailles and La Carreta (and the less-iconic but equally-worthy Ku-Va) would be the first and last word in terminal dining. Cursed to live in the real world, however, travelers will find themselves somewhat stumped, when in Miami and trying to do the right thing—that is, until they find gems like South Beach-transplant Icebox Café for soy milk smoothies, good turkey chili and veggie sandwiches, or their new spin-off Fig & Fennel, a Mediterranean spot with organic juices, fruit cups and a vegetarian lentil soup. Both are located along the vast D Concourse, along with Sushi Maki, another local name with a pleasant dining room. Here, the menu jumps around the Asian continent and contains pitfalls (just say “no” to the tonkatsu ramen), but clean eaters will still find plenty to like, from petite spicy tuna tacos to filling salads.