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The new Terminal One at John F. Kennedy International Airport was already shaping up to be a blockbuster, but now it’s getting something that no traveler knew they needed: a full-fledged Bon Appétit restaurant and gourmet market. The 70-year-old magazine that taught you how to roast a chicken, sharpen a knife and properly chill a martini is stepping into the airport dining arena, Forbes reported last week.
Set to debut next year, the bi-level space will work as a sort of edible extension of the brand. Downstairs, there will be a bakery, deli and coffee bar designed for travelers on the go who are hoping for something more substantial than a stale muffin. Upstairs, there will be a full restaurant and bar serving the magazine’s trademark, globally inspired dishes and cocktails.
The restaurant is part of editor-in-chief Jamila Robinson’s bid to transform Bon Appétit for a new era. Since Robinson took over the role two years ago, she’s worked to future-proof the legacy pub with moves that go beyond print. Forthcoming is an AI-powered kitchen assistant trained on the magazine’s gigantic recipe archive and, coming soon, the inaugural Gear of the Year awards, which will package the brand’s decades of product testing and expertise into a shoppable stamp of approval.
“Food really is a global experience,” Robinson told Forbes. “In the restaurant, we’re going to reflect that through dishes we’ve cultivated in our test kitchen and through relationships with chefs, bakeries and local purveyors.”
Because this is Bon Appétit, screens woven throughout the space will play the magazine’s video content, including test kitchen classics, deep dives into food culture and the addictive series that taught half the Internet how to make caramel. Some of the programming will even be available on flights.
All of it is a sign for a new chapter for one of food media’s most recognizable names. Licensing a brand for cookware or a festival is one thing—building a two-level airport restaurant with integrated digital content is a different kind of swing. But for JFK, it’s another step toward becoming a place where passengers actually want to linger.