Airport Food – Boudin in San Francisco, California (SFO)

One of the ways we make a long flight to Hawaii from the east coast bearable is by selecting a layover that is about halfway to our destination. The San Francisco airport fits the bill and we love flying into San Francisco and seeing the beautiful golden gate bridge out the airplane window. (Fun Travel Tip: To see the golden gate bridge, typically you want to be in a window seat on the left side of the airplane taking off and on the right on landing, opposite if the winds are from the south)

We use the time on a layover to stretch our legs and burn off some of our son’s never ending energy supply by walking a few laps up and down the length of the airport. Grabbing a quick bite to eat that isn’t served from a tiny cardboard box on the plane is also important (I guess you figured out by now that we’re not flying first class!).

Boudin Bakery and Cafe is a favorite place to stop when visiting the beautiful city of San Francisco, so I’m thrilled that they have one in the airport. Fresh baked sourdough bread bowls brimming with a warm comforting clam chowder is just what I need to de-stress and prepare for the next leg of a long trip, especially now that I have the added challenge of trying to entertain our 2 year old son in a teeny tiny space for way too many hours. Enjoying a bowl of Boudin soup whisks me off for a few moments of relaxation and happy memories of previous travels, which is just what I need to regroup and prepare for the final long flight to Hawaii.

My new best practice when ordering a bread bowl from Boudin is to ask for the soup in a To Go container rather than the bread bowl. That way I can easily take any leftover soup and bread onboard the plane to enjoy later without the concern of a soggy mess.

Boudin Seasonal Breads

I also enjoy seeing all the fun shapes of sourdough loafs at Boudin. Last time I had a layover in San Francisco I remember a cute teddy bear made out of bread.  This time we visited around Halloween and they had a Jack-O-Lantern pumpkin shaped bread loaf…so fun!

If piping hot clam chowder or chili served up in a sour dough bread bowl isn’t your thing, the San Francisco airport has a lot of other decent food options. Some of our other favorites include:  Andale serving up Mexican fare and Firewood Grill with brick oven pizza and pasta options.