Mar 1, 2016

New HMSHost Lease Brings Restaurant Expansion to Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport

New contract means more traveler options with regional celebrity chef concepts, wine bar, and Starbucks

BALTIMORE, MD — Local, chef-driven restaurants and travelers’ favorite coffee Starbucks will soon be available at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport following a new lease with Bethesda-based global restaurateur HMSHost. Travelers will begin to see the new dining offerings in Spring and into Fall 2016. Sales for the lifetime of the 10-year lease are projected at more than $130 million. The announcement comes on the heels of Governor Larry Hogan’s recent notice that Maryland’s major international airport has been growing, setting a record for annual passengers in 2015 with a 6.8 percent increase in traffic.

“We are thrilled to be expanding our partnership with Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport with exciting restaurants that reflect the height of the local Baltimore dining scene,” said HMSHost Vice President of Business Development Bryan Loden. “The chefs we are working with are a passionate bunch and their culinary creativity will shine through to create a unique and appealing set of choices for Baltimore/Washington travelers.”

Baltimore/Washington’s Concourse A will be home to a new location of Family Meal, a restaurant by acclaimed Maryland-based Chef Bryan Voltaggio. Family Meal is a contemporary take on comfort food classics and serves wholesome breakfast, lunch, and dinner. In-the-know diners frequent street side locations of Family Meal in Baltimore and Frederick, MD and Ashburn and Richmond, VA. Chef Voltaggio is a Culinary Institute of America graduate and owns six restaurants including some of the DC-metro area’s most successful restaurants such as RANGE, AGGIO, Lunchbox, Family Meal, and James Beard Best New Restaurant nominee, Volt.

Kapnos Marketa by Chef Mike Isabella is coming to Concourse B, to serve travelers a healthy selection of Mediterranean fare in a market-style venue. This restaurant will feature succulent rotating spooled gyro meat being freshly carved. Kapnos Marketa will deliver Isabella’s famous Greek offerings in an efficient quick-service style –a classy gyro shop, with attractive displays of retail goods to-go. Chef Isabella is well-known for his innovative style of cuisine enjoyed by many at Mike Isabella Concepts DC-metro area restaurants such as Kapnos, Kapnos Taverna, Graffiato, and Pepita. HMSHost and Isabella recently opened Kapnos Taverna in Terminal C of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.

Brix & Vine is a new kind of wine bar created by HMSHost that will greet Concourse D travelers with a clean, modern design and urban feel. It is a casually sophisticated concept that offers a place to relax with a bit of elegance. The menu will feature a comprehensive wine list including some from Maryland wineries, complementing snacks, and specialty sandwiches, burgers, and dinners for travelers interested in having a full meal. Baltimore/Washington will be the first Brix & Vine location and will feature a tasting room where trying a new varietal will be an attraction for oenophiles and fun-loving travelers alike. There will also be a bar and casual dining area, as well as a shop with wine-centric items such as wine bags, books, aerators, and wine charms. The restaurant’s name is an adaptation of Brix, a term used to describe a measurement of sugar in grapes, telling vintners when a grape is ripe.

HMSHost will also be delivering travelers more access to Starbucks as part of the new lease with new and refurbished locations. Pre-security guests will have access to Starbucks at the existing Main Terminal location as well as a new lower level location. Post-security travelers will be able to enjoy their favorite Starbucks beverage or snack in Concourse B and in Concourse D.

“At BWI Marshall, we continue to offer an excellent, award-winning concessions program for travelers,” said Ricky Smith, Chief Executive Officer for BWI Marshall Airport. “The new additions from HMSHost will highlight our commitment to a high-level dining experience for our customers. We are particularly excited that the new offerings will feature high-quality, local restaurant concepts.”