Fresh flavours are set to arrive at Auckland Airport, with a new food and beverage lineup announced for its International Terminal.
Auckland Airport is introducing a new mix of dining options at its international terminal, with well-known brands and local favourites joining a refreshed food and beverage offering to open progressively this year.
The new and updated offering will give travellers more options to look forward to before they fly, from coffee to fresh pasta, Asian dining, burgers, bagels, New Zealand pies and more relaxed places to sit and enjoy.
Auckland Airport’s Head of Retail, Lucy Thomas, said the focus is on improving the dining experience for customers as a core travel experience.
“We’re bringing together a mix of New Zealand operators and brands, experienced airport food and beverage partners and recognised international names to give travellers more choice before they fly.”
Among the 10 new or updated dining options at international departures will be Kiwi favourite BurgerFuel, fresh pastas and pizza from Needo, Japanese from TJ Katsu, Vietnamese from Roll’d, as well as the internationally recognised Starbucks. There will also be three new café and dining concepts celebrating New Zealand coffee and hospitality culture: Auckland Coffee Exports, The Local and NZ Pie Co & Croissant Lab.
"We are proud to open our new Starbucks store at Auckland International Airport, bringing together premium coffee, innovative handcrafted beverages and warm New Zealand hospitality for travellers before they embark on their journey,” said Michal Haines, General Manager of Starbucks New Zealand, owned and operated by Tahua Group.
"At Starbucks, we believe in creating moments of connection, one person, one cup and one neighbourhood at a time. We are proud to open our new Starbucks store at Auckland International Airport, bringing travellers the iconic Starbucks experience they know and love, from expertly crafted espresso beverages to our globally loved favourites, seasonal innovations and handcrafted drinks created for every occasion. Whether customers are looking for a familiar favourite or something new to discover, Starbucks offers a beverage for every journey.”
The new entrants will sit alongside six existing food and beverage offers, with the ever-popular Best Ugly Bagels and Vantage Bar & Kitchen both being refurbished. Soul Origin also remains, serving up its sought-after salads, sandwiches and wraps.
“We are stoked to serve our freshly made-to-order bagels prior to folks boarding their flights. We generously hero only the best NZ products to top our famous Montreal bagels. Think ‘New Zealand King Salmon’, ‘Zany Zeus’ cream cheese and ‘Fix & Fog’ peanut butter. There is something for everyone’s tastes with a bunch of new and exciting offerings about to be rolled out as part of the upgrades of our refurbished Auckland Airport flagship stores. It’s a super fun vibe, smashing out rockstar tasting bagels, by kind and caring staff,” said Al Brown, founder and operator of Best Ugly Bagels.
Thomas said the upgraded food and beverage offering is designed to give travellers more choice once they are through security, from fast, convenient options through to more relaxed dining and familiar local favourites.
"We've worked hard to create a food and beverage offering that gives people a reason to head through security a little earlier and start their journey well. We know great food and beverage helps create a sense of place, and we've carefully curated an offering that reflects the diverse needs of travellers moving through the airport every day.”
There’s also a change for the landside dining environment (before security). The cafe and bar area (Oma’s Bakery and Blue Marble Bar) will be updated with a new layout, new look, menu and name: The Social will open as a new-look café, bar and restaurant, bringing a contemporary offer for travellers, those farewelling their friends and whānau and workers in the terminal.
The ever-popular landside KFC is staying in place, along with customer-favourite McDonald’s with their landside and airside locations.
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