JFKIAT, operator of Terminal 4 at John F. Kennedy International Airport, has opened four locally rooted, chef-driven restaurants at the terminal: FieldTrip, Bessou, Chopt and Dos Toros Taqueria.
The openings are part of JFKIAT’s partnership with an HMSHost-led joint venture, announced last year, to bring a curated mix of local and diverse businesses into T4. The new restaurants join an existing line-up of locally driven concepts, including Villa Russo, The Brooklyn Counter and Brooklyn Tea & Market. Local business partners in the joint venture include Tamalito Inc., Neat Rules Hospitality Group, Kintaro Foods, Kismet Cocktails, Corlis Stone-Littles and Fresco’s Cantina.
Roel Huinink, CEO of JFKIAT, said, “These new F&B concepts are strong additions to our growing culinary program at Terminal 4. Since completing the US$1.5bn redevelopment of T4, we’ve continued shaping the experience at T4 to provide passengers with experiences that showcase the depth and diversity of New York’s one-of-a-kind culinary culture.”
FieldTrip, founded by chef J J Johnson, is a fast-casual concept built around rice dishes drawing on the African diaspora, Asia and the Caribbean. The T4 location is FieldTrip first airport venture, following its Harlem flagship and an outpost in the Bahamas, and will offer counter-service ordering with signature rice bowls, oxtail egg rolls and a new breakfast menu.
Bessou, founded by Maiko Kyogoku in Manhattan’s East Village, serves Japanese-American comfort food. At T4, it will offer karaage fried chicken, chicken sandwiches, onigiri, bento boxes and a retail line of Japanese-inspired snacks.
“Opening at JFK T4 is an incredible opportunity to bring Bessou to a broader audience and redefine what airport dining can be,” said Kyogoku. “Bessou has always been about food that feels like home.”
Chopt Creative Salad Company, founded in Union Square in 2001, will bring customizable salads, wraps and grain bowls to the terminal. Dos Toros Taqueria, a mission-style taqueria founded by siblings Leo and Oliver Kremer, will serve handmade burritos, tacos, quesadillas and bowls.
JFKIAT has operated T4 for 25 years. The company said approximately 45% of its project spend on the T4 transformation, totaling US$37m, has been awarded to minority- and women-owned business enterprises. The T4 redevelopment is part of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey’s US$19bon transformation of JFK Airport.
In related news, JFK Terminal 5 adds New York culinary brands as $100m refresh continues
