RIC lands Hardywood, Beet Box and Wolfgang Puck as newest food/drink vendors

A rendering of the planned Hardywood location at the airport. (Images courtesy Richmond International Airport)

A slate of new dining options is due to arrive at Richmond International Airport later this year, including outposts from two local brands.

This week the Capital Region Airport Commission voted to approve deals for four new concession operators: a bar from Hardywood Park Craft Brewery, a Wolfgang Puck Bar & Bites restaurant, and two concepts from local juice bar The Beet Box. 

The approvals were a result of a request for proposals for new bars and concessions issued last year by the commission, which serves as the airport’s governing body.

The winning proposals were made by Beet Box and Faber, Coe & Gregg, the latter of which is a concessions operator that helps run dining options in airports and train stations all over the country.

Faber, as part of its bid, had worked out deals with Hardywood and Wolfgang Puck and brought them to the airport in its proposal. 

Details on each new spot are minimal. The Beet Box co-owner Ashley Lewis declined to comment at this time, and representatives for Hardywood and Wolfgang Puck didn’t respond to requests for comment by press time. 

They’ll open in areas that are currently used for open seating in RIC’s two concourses. The Beet Box’s two concepts will be on Concourse A near gates A-8 and A-11, and Hardywood’s will be a bit farther down, near gates A-15 and A-16. Wolfgang Puck will be on Concourse B near gates B-14 and B-15. 

Wolfgang Puck has around 25 airport locations all over the globe.

Wolfgang Puck has more than two dozen airport locations all over the globe, often with a full bar and breakfast, lunch and dinner menus. 

A rendering of the planned Hardywood location is also anchored by a bar, but it’s unclear whether the site will  include a food operation. Hardywood’s downtown taproom features a full pizza-based menu, while its West Creek production facility has a snack bar menu with items like pretzels and sausages. The airport outpost will be Hardywood’s third physical location, though from 2017 to 2019 it had a Charlottesville taproom. 

The Beet Box, which was founded in the Fan in 2020 and is currently expanding into Church Hill, offers smoothies, bowls, juices, coffee and wraps. At the airport it’ll set up a Beet Box Cafe and kiosk, as well as Homegrown Local Bar & Marketplace, a full-service bar and lounge with a grab-and-go area, according to CRAC documents. The Beet Box also previously had a third location in the now-closed Manchester food hall. 

A rendering of The Beet Box’s new concept for the airport.

An airport spokesperson said it anticipates that the four new spots will open by the end of the year. Each of the new concepts’ contracts with the airport is for five years and includes a pair of one-year extension options. 

The airport’s current dining rosters includes a trio of Ironclad Coffee locations, an Applebee’s, a Sam Adams restaurant and bar, as well as one of the two remaining Cheeburger Cheeburger locations in the country. 

Other, larger changes are also en route to the airport, including a pair of new parking decks and a consolidated security checkpoint. 

Also presented at Tuesday’s CRAC meeting was the airport’s traffic report for April, which showed 404,851 passengers, down 1% from the same time last year.

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