This year, several national brands, including McDonald’s Quiznos, Starbucks, and Chili’s, shuttered their concessions at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. That paved the way for more upscale concepts helmed by Twin Cities chefs and restaurateurs.

Delta Air Lines is spearheading a reinvention of concessions at MSP’s G concourse. Plans include remaking gate areas to function as dining/seating areas and iPad pods for ordering food and monitoring flight status. 

The first restaurants make their debut on Concourse G this spring. They include the Mill City Tavern (from Heartland’s Lenny Russo), Mimosa (a raw bar and brasserie from Meritage’s Russell Klein), and a beer-driven pub from Victory 44’s Erick Harcey. For cult-coffee fans, there’s Worldbean Coffee from Dogwood Coffee Roasters. More local food sources are waiting in the wings.