You're in a hurry. You forget to eat breakfast in a rush to get to your flight on time and now, you're sitting in the terminal with a half hour to spare. Hunger hits and now you're faced with paying 10 bucks for a cold, sad sandwich or starving for the next few hours.
This can happen all too often when it comes to the airport. Tampa International Airport, it seems, is doing their best to change this with the recent addition of a handful of savory, local dining options both before and after security inspection.
Following a grand opening event this past Wednesday, an iconic assortment of local restaurants officially opened their doors to local and visiting travelers alike. These include the Columbia Restaurant, Cigar City Brewing, Shula's Steakhouse and Shula Burger, Mis En Place's First Flight, and the Green Iguana.
According to airport CEO Joe Lopano, this is all part of a conscious effort to "Bring Tampa into the airport". With the Republican National Convention approaching in August, it seems the timing for this is also another conscious effort despite claims of the opposite.
Either way, there's a big slice of Tampa when it comes to dining in the airport now and that's pretty cool. Only time will really tell, though, if these places hit it off or fall to the wayside of familiar restaurant chains like Chili's, Burger King, and TGI Friday's.
What do you think? Let us know in the comments below.
