By Vanessa Whiteside on April 17, 2025
Wheels Down, Forks Up: Restaurant Stops in Kansas Fly-In Towns
Several Kansas towns offer unparalleled dining experiences, whether you’re an aviator seeking a fly-in feast or prefer to drive to a rural airport for a meal with a view of planes coming and going.
Milk & Honey at the Flight Deck
Garden City Regional Airport
The newly remodeled Garden City Regional Airport is home to Milk & Honey at the Flight Deck, where diners watch airplanes take off and land while seated at modern wood-topped tables. Open Wednesday through Sunday, the second-floor eatery serves breakfast and lunch, but dinner service draws locals for New York strip steak or chicken kabobs.
Bring the family to Sunday brunch for specialties such as the crab cake club sandwich, eggs benedict or cinnamon roll pancakes the size of dinner plates.
Milk & Honey at the Flight Deck
2215 S. Air Service Road, Garden City
(316) 295-3072
Stearman Field Bar & Grill
Stearman Field Airport
Aviation enthusiasts appreciate Stearman Field Bar & Grill’s covered and open-air patio seating in view of the Benton airport’s runway. A flight-themed menu featuring Bomber Chicken Nachos and a half-pound Smokeout Burger competes for attention.
An early crowd gathers for daily happy hour specials, especially on weekends for fly-in events and late-night band performances. Big-screen TVs make it the ideal place to root for a sports team when not watching the sky for aircraft.
Stearman Field Bar & Grill
14789 SW 30th Street, Benton
(316) 778-1612
We B Smokin’ BBQ
Miami County Airport
The smell of barbecue meats draws pilots and locals alike to We B Smokin’ BBQ, a family-owned restaurant serving big portions with big views of the airport’s taxiway. Arrive early for a homestyle breakfast or order fall-off-the-bone ribs or a stacked barbecue sandwich at lunch or dinner six days a week.
Extra napkins are required for menu extras such as We-B Beans, served in an overflowing bowl. Regular customers know a slice of homemade cheesecake is a must-try before departure.
We B Smokin' BBQ
32580 Airport Road, Paola
(913) 256-6802
Additional airports have on-field restaurants accessible to pilots and the general public. These restaurants range from casual to fine dining, including Airport Steakhouse & Bar at Hutchinson Regional Airport, Beaumont Hotel Café at Beaumont Hotel Airport, SKY Restaurant at Topeka’s Philip Billard Airport and K-18 Cafe at Lucas Airport.
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