Local restaurants to open in expanded Myrtle Beach airport

Two popular local restaurants, as well as Dunkin Donuts and Steak N Shake, will operate in the expanded Myrtle Beach International Airport.

Bubba’s Fish Shack and Nacho Hippo, two Divine Dining Group restaurants along the Grand Strand, will share a 5,000-square-foot space in the new terminal, which is under construction and will open in January 2013.

Also, in the airport’s pre-security area, there will be a Boardwalk Café, where folks picking up passengers can grab a burger and fries – something that isn’t available now at the airport’s limited snack bar. The new 2,000-square-foot eatery will have a bar and a beach design with a mural that will include shag dancing, the beach and golf. Dunkin Donuts also will serve donuts, baked goods and coffee there.

“We get complaints periodically because people can’t get hamburgers, French fries, hot sandwiches [in the pre-security area],” said Bob Woods, assistant director of Horry County airports.

Airport officials, who said they wanted to create a beach feel with the food offerings in the new terminal, announced the lineup Wednesday, saying it will give more options for passengers waiting to fly out and friends picking up passengers who don’t go beyond security check-in.

MSE Branded Foods, which has operated the concessions in the airport for seven years, recruited Divine Dining to add that local flair while serving the kind of food passengers prefer these days, MSE President James Hough said. Bubba’s, which has a restaurant in Surfside Beach, will serve seafood, ribs, burgers, sandwiches and other similar munchies at the airport, while Nacho Hippo, which has a restaurant at The Market Common in Myrtle Beach, will serve nachos, tacos, quesadillas and have a full-service bar. Both locations not at the airport will remain open.

“The Southwest-Mexican theme is really popular right now,” Hough said.

Airport officials said they wanted local restaurants to be part of the expanded airport so arriving passengers can get a taste of Myrtle Beach as soon as they land.

“We want them to know they are in Myrtle Beach,” airport spokeswoman Lauren Morris said. “We are just delighted to be able to give a local flavor to the airport.”

After passengers pass through security, they will be able to pick from the Divine restaurants, Steak N Shake and Dunkin Donuts, which will serve its full breakfast menu there.

The existing food offerings, including Subway, Pizza Hut, the sports grill and Samuel Adams bar, will stay open but will get an updated look, Hough said.

Divine’s restaurants are a good match for the airport, said Doug Maschin, a member of the Airport Advisory Committee.

“That speaks Myrtle Beach probably more than anything else in town,” he said.

The planned additions got a thumbs up from Arthur Murphy, who drives a shuttle between the airport and six area hotels. Passengers leaving town often ask him how they can kill time at the airport before their flight, and these restaurants will help, he said.

“Any options are better than the ones we have,” Murphy said. “They are going to sit here three or four hours and they are looking for places to eat.”