Denver Airport Food: What's Worth Eating by Concourse

Denver International is one of the busiest airports in the world — DEN’s own site pegs it at more than $47.2 billion a year for the Colorado economy — and it feeds a crowd to match, with well over 100 restaurants on property. The catch nobody warns first-timers about: almost none of that food is where you land.

I book travel for a living, and Denver is one of those airports where “we’ll just grab something in the terminal” quietly falls apart. So here’s the honest version, concourse by concourse — what’s worth a detour, and what’s a gate-side compromise you settle for because your flight boards in twenty minutes.

Denver Airport’s Dining Layout: Three Concourses, One Train Ride Apart

Start with the mental model, because it saves you a bad decision later. DEN’s official dining directory sorts every restaurant by zone: the A Gates, B Gates, and C Gates, plus smaller clusters in the Cell Phone Lot, the Hotel & Transit Center, and the Jeppesen Terminal out front. That’s the whole map.

Here’s the part that trips people up. The Jeppesen Terminal — the big pre-security hall where you check in — has exactly three places to eat, per DEN’s directory: two coffee counters and an Olive & Finch grab-and-go. Everything else, all 100-plus restaurants, sits past security in Concourse A, B, or C. And the only way to reach a concourse — or to hop between them — is the underground train.

So the plan of “I’ll eat, then go through security” doesn’t work at Denver. Clear security first. Then eat where you actually are. If you want the full list before you fly, DEN publishes DEN’s full restaurant directory, and it’s worth a skim so you know your options by gate.

Which Concourse Are You Actually In? (A vs B vs C by Airline)

Before you decide whether a place is “worth the walk,” check the concourse letter on your boarding pass. Your airline decides which food you can reach without a train ride, and the split at DEN is unusually clean:

• Concourse A — the international hall, plus most non-United domestic carriers. That’s Frontier, JetBlue, Allegiant, Breeze, Sun Country, Delta, and the long-haul flags: Aer Lingus, Air Canada, Air France, British Airways, Copa, Icelandair, Lufthansa, Turkish, WestJet, Volaris, and more.
• Concourse B — United, almost exclusively. If you’re on United, this is home.
• Concourse C — Southwest, American, Alaska, plus Contour and Southern Airways Express.

Write that down before you get hungry. A restaurant one concourse over is a train ride, not a walk — and that changes the math on everything below.

Concourse A: The Newest Food Court and DEN’s Native-Owned Standout

Concourse A got the biggest recent upgrade. In April 2026, DEN opened a new food court in the center of the concourse with Fat Sully’s Pizza, QDOBA, Chick-fil-A, and Shake Shack. Per the trade outlet Future Travel Experience, DEN CEO Phil Washington framed it as part of the airport’s push toward 100 million annual passengers — the same build-out that added an East Screening Checkpoint and 31 new concessions in 2025, with 27 more (including a P.F. Chang’s on the Center Core Mezzanine and a Taco Bell Cantina) slated to open across the airport by the end of 2026. If you want a fast, name-brand meal and you’re flying Frontier or an international carrier, this is your cluster.

But the reason to slow down in A is Tocabe: An American Indian Eatery, near Gate A38. When it opened on April 29, 2025, Westword reported it as the first Native American-owned restaurant to operate inside a U.S. airport. Founded by Osage Nation citizen Ben Jacobs and Matt Chandra back in 2008, the airport menu runs to bison ribs, fry bread tacos, and green chili stew, sourced “Native first, local second” from tribal producers. It’s the one thing at DEN you genuinely can’t get elsewhere.

A also carries the cheaper Elway’s option. Elway’s Taproom and Grill opened in the Concourse A-West expansion near Gates A20/A18 in November 2022 — a smaller, more casual counterpart to the full steakhouse over in B. If you’re stuck in A and want the Elway’s name without the Concourse B prices, this is where to find it.

Concourse B: The Deepest Bench (and DEN’s Priciest Splurges)

Concourse B is United’s turf and the biggest concourse for food — roughly 40-plus outlets, the deepest roster at the airport. It also holds Denver’s most serious sit-down meals, and its steepest checks.

The headliner is Elway’s, the full steakhouse in B’s Center Core, owned by Hall-of-Fame quarterback John Elway. Hand-cut USDA prime steaks, and reviewers consistently praise the Cherry Creek salad, the breakfast benedicts, and the burgers. Just know what you’re signing up for: prices run steep, with reports of $27 burgers, $12 fries, and $20 for two crab cakes.

Newer and, to my taste, the better splurge is Osteria Marco, which opened in Concourse B on Mezzanine Level 3 in August 2025. It’s the first airport location from 16-time James Beard-nominated chef Frank Bonanno, whose original Larimer Square spot dates to 2007. The menu is burrata, hand-rolled pastas, and wood-fired pizza; reviewers single out the carbonara and the burrata as standouts.

The famous name on B is Voodoo Doughnut, on the Center Core Mezzanine — the Portland chain’s first-ever airport location when it opened in 2022. A dozen classics runs $22, and it’s open daily 5:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Reviews are genuinely split: plenty of people call the novelty flavors (the Voodoo Doll, the bacon maple bar) worth the line, while others report stale or soggy doughnuts and per-item prices around $5.10 each — roughly double the street locations. Buy the dozen if you’re buying at all.

Concourse C: Small but Punches Above Its Weight

Concourse C is the smallest of the three, around 30-plus outlets, serving Southwest, American, and Alaska. It also has, dish for dish, the best food at the airport.

Root Down is the reason. It’s Mission Yogurt’s airport outpost of the LoHi original, tucked into C’s Center Core, and it does globally-influenced, vegetable-forward comfort food with a deep vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free bench (dedicated fryers, which matters if you’re avoiding cross-contact). On HappyCow, reviewers repeatedly call it “the best airport meal” they’ve had, praising the Country Fried Tofu, the Buddha Bowl, the Tofu Banh Mi, the lamb sliders, and the duck wings. The honest caveat: some diners flag inconsistent service and small portions for the price. Manage the expectation and you’ll likely still leave happy.

The other C standout is ChoLon Modern Asian, near Gates C62/C63 — chef Lon Symensma’s airport version of his Denver restaurant, bringing Shanghai dumplings, shrimp and chicken shumai, spring rolls, a Korean fried chicken sandwich, and a full bar to the smallest concourse. For a concourse this size, that’s a strong one-two punch.

Before Security: What’s Actually in the Jeppesen Terminal

If you’re dropping someone off, arriving early, or waiting on a delayed pickup, set your expectations now. The Jeppesen Terminal, pre-security, has the three options I mentioned up top: two coffee counters and an Olive & Finch grab-and-go. That’s it.

Don’t plan a real meal out here. There’s no hidden food hall landside at DEN. Get your coffee, get through the checkpoint, and eat in the concourse. (If you’re a passenger with lounge access, that also changes the picture past security — DEN runs a surprising number of them, and it’s worth knowing where Denver’s 12 airport lounges sit before you commit to a restaurant.)

Why Denver Airport Food Costs What It Does

Yes, the prices sting, and there’s a real story behind them. Denver runs a city concessions policy that’s supposed to cap airport markups at 15% over “street price.” But a 9NEWS investigation, reported by the Denver Gazette, found plenty of items priced well above that line — and the airport’s own concessions head confirmed most of those markups had been pre-approved under exceptions built into the policy. So the cap exists; it just bends.

There was almost a harder rule. Colorado’s House Bill 26-1012 would have forced “captive-consumer” venues like DEN to price food at no more than the county average for the same item. The Colorado Sun reported that legislators killed it in March 2026, after the Colorado Restaurant Association argued that airport vendors already eat five-figure sponsorship fees and the cost of prepping food off-site, and that those costs justify the markup.

You don’t have to take a side to use the takeaway: at DEN, some prices are fair for what you get and some aren’t, and the policy won’t sort that out for you. You have to. Which is the whole point of the next section.

What’s Actually Worth the Walk (and What’s a Gate-Side Compromise)

Here’s my blunt verdict list, the kind I’d text a colleague flying through.

Worth a detour, even a train ride if you’ve got the time:

• Root Down (Concourse C). The most consistently praised meal at the airport. Best value-per-dollar despite the portion gripes.
• Tocabe (Concourse A). Not just good — genuinely one of a kind. Go for the story and stay for the bison ribs.
• Osteria Marco (Concourse B). A real chef-driven sit-down. The carbonara justifies the seat.

Fine if you’re already there, skippable if you’re not:

• Elway’s steakhouse (Concourse B). Excellent, but you’ll pay for it. A great meal, not a great deal.
• Voodoo Doughnut (Concourse B). Novelty over quality by a lot of accounts. A fun grab if you’re passing; not worth crossing the airport for.

The decision rule is simple. If you have under an hour and you’re not already near one of the “worth it” spots, eat where you are — the Concourse A food court, a Taproom, whatever’s at your gate. If you have ninety minutes or more and one of the three standouts is in your concourse, go. Only chase a restaurant into another concourse when you have real time to burn and you actually want the meal, not just the check-mark.

Getting Between Concourses for Food (and What It Costs You in Time)

Every concourse hop at DEN means the underground train — there’s no walking between A, B, and C. That’s fine when you’ve planned for it and expensive when you haven’t. Leaving a Concourse A gate to chase Root Down in Concourse C means the train out, the meal, the train back, and a buffer for your actual flight. On a tight connection, that’s how people end up sprinting.

I won’t re-run the clock here, because it’s already been done properly — see the train and parking math at Denver International for the real minute counts, and how DEN’s three concourses actually work for the layout. My rule of thumb: budget a solid 30 to 45 minutes round-trip for any cross-concourse food run, and only make it when your gate cushion can absorb the whole thing without stress. Otherwise, eat local and save the train for boarding.

Denver Airport Food: Quick Answers

Is there a Chick-fil-A at Denver airport?

Yes. It’s in the new Concourse A food court that opened in April 2026, alongside Fat Sully’s Pizza, QDOBA, and Shake Shack. Note that it’s past security in Concourse A — not in the pre-security terminal.

What restaurants are in Concourse B at Denver airport?

B is United’s concourse and the largest for food, with roughly 40-plus outlets. The anchors are Elway’s full steakhouse in the Center Core, Osteria Marco on Mezzanine Level 3, and Voodoo Doughnut on the Center Core Mezzanine — the deepest and priciest sit-down bench at the airport.

Is there food before security at DEN?

Barely. The Jeppesen Terminal, pre-security, has just two coffee counters and an Olive & Finch grab-and-go. For a real meal, clear security and eat in Concourse A, B, or C.

Which Denver airport restaurant is the best?

By the weight of reviews, Root Down in Concourse C — diners repeatedly call it the best airport meal they’ve had. Fair warning on the recurring complaints about small portions and inconsistent service, so go in expecting a good plate rather than a huge one. If you want something you can’t get anywhere else, Tocabe in Concourse A is the pick.

Denver isn’t a bad food airport. It’s a badly-organized one, if you don’t know the map. Learn which concourse you’re in, decide before you’re hungry, and treat the train as a cost — and DEN goes from “whatever’s at the gate” to one of the better meals you’ll eat with a boarding pass in your pocket.