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New Airport Eats Arrive in Houston, Dallas and Boston

New restaurants seem to be popping up at airports across the country faster than we can keep track of them, so we took some time to check out some of the newest options. Here’s just a few of the latest establishments competing with Sbarro for your airport restaurant dollars:

Dallas Love Field

Southwest is the carrier that ‘LUVs’ to fly to and from the smaller airport down in Dallas, but that doesn’t mean that the airport isn’t a great place to relax between flights. New restaurants are all part of a new expansion at the airport, as October 2014 is when certain flight restrictions will become a thing of the past.

Whataburger—in its first airport appearance—brings burgers and fries into the terminal, but if you’re looking to sit down during your meal there’s always Cool River and Sky Canyon. National options include places like Starbucks and Dunkin’ Donuts, because you just need your coffee fix. However, if you’re looking for something local there’s Campisi’s Pizza, Cantina Laredo, and Dickey’s Barbecue Pit. Things opened up earlier this week, so swing by if you’re heading to or heading through.

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The Time I (Almost) Flew the United 787 Dreamliner

"I just stepped off United's 787 Dreamliner and, boy, let me tell you about its awesomeness."

That's the sentence I had hoped to type to you today.

Instead, my story, typed from a hotel lobby across the country from home, goes a little something like this: "I flew to California and have nothing but disappointment." I only wanted to fly the United Dreamliner and had sought out an affordable route that included the 787 on one leg, from Newark (EWR) to Houston-George Bush (IAH). That routing just happened to go to Ontario, California. Whatever, so long as I get my 787 action. I booked it in October and also paid to upgrade to EconomyPlus. 24 hours before my flight, still seeing the 787 listed as my aircraft, I went ahead and booked a hotel night.

In case you aren't up on your Dreamliner news, the planes have had some electrical issues (resulting in non-life-threatening emergency landings) and United's been taking them off and on their routes. Reuters & WSJ have the latest updates. Knowing this, I had obsessively checked my travel details daily, fingers crossed that the 787 would stick. It did. Until it didn't.

Now I've wasted hundreds of dollars and have no United 787 photo galleries or stories to share with you, other than this sad one of lack of communication from United and a dreaded equipment change.

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United Finally Took Its Baby Boeing 787 Dreamliner Home to Houston

The 787 gets a water cannon salute after landing in Houston

The skies above Texas today were absolutely speckled with the green and yellow radar blips of thunderstorms. That sucks for Texas, with the exception of one other radar blip: United Airlines' very first Boeing 787 Dreamliner, which came home to Houston on its delivery flight from Boeing Field in Washington State.

Those thunderstorms did add a twenty minute arrival delay, though; it was the final delay in a what's really been a saga of delays leading up to the first delivery of a 787 to a US airline.

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The TSA Won't Be Fooled by Your Fake ID Again

Fake boarding passes and fake IDs have been an obvious hole in TSA's security theater for over half a decade. We know it's been that long since we wrote about it a bit in 2008 and then at length in 2009 and then offhandedly in in 2011. That whole time terrorists were able to evade the no-fly list either by getting a fake ID that matched their real boarding pass or by generating a fake boarding pass that matched their real ID. Options!

Perhaps realizing that the situation was not conducive either to objective security or to the public's perceptions of the agency's reliability, TSA announced last fall that they would be rolling out new machines to bust fake IDs and boarding passes. Fast forward half a year later, and they're now actually doing it.

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Six US Airports for Stalking the Airbus A380

Korean Air and Lufthansa A380s snuggle up at JFK Terminal 1

Look, if you're an airport and you want to have the superjumbo Airbus A380 flying in and out, you can't just be like "hey, airlines, bring that big thang on over." Nope. Instead certain preparations must be made to accommodate an airliner of the A380's size and heft. To effectively manage each plane's 500+ passenger load, more jetways are needed, plus support vehicles to reach the upper deck. In some cases, airport runway indicator lights may need to be moved and the tarmac reinforced.

In other words, A380s can't just fly anywhere and, although the massive planes have been in the air since Singapore Airlines took delivery of the very first in 2007, not all that many airports around the world are treated to them. At least some of those are the United States...

US airports where you'll find A380s:

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Cat Cora's Second Airport Restaurant is Now Cooking at Houston-IAH

If you’re looking for a great layover lunch—or dinner—during your holiday travels be sure to check out one of the latest options at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston.

Iron Chef star and all around celeb chef Cat Cora recently opened up a new restaurant in Terminal E at IAH—it’s near E10. Cat Cora’s Kitchen is intended to actually provide you with an enjoyable airport meal, and if travelers like this new outpost as much as the version out in SFO—check out the Yelp reviews—this should be quite an addition to the airport.

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Watch the Skies for United's Eco Plane, Already Flying on Biofuels

Huge news. Yesterday marked the first time a US airline used biofuel in a commercial flight. No, it wasn't Alaska Airlines even though they are trying; it was United, and they flew their eco-friendly 737-800 from Continental's's former home base, Houston, to the United home base of Chicago.

For the #avgeeks: The biofuel is algae-based and includes 60 percent petroleum fuel and 40 percent biofuel produced by a company named Solazyme.

The eco-consciousness isn't limited to what goes in the tank, either. United flight attendants now push lighter serving carts and pilots traded in their 38-pound flight bags for more weight-conscious iPads (already loaded with their in-flight navigation charts and aircraft manuals). Furthermore, United makes it easy for plane spotters to identify the Mother Earth-friendly aircraft by its green winglets and 'eco-skies' written towards the front of the fuselage.

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Three Excellent French Brasseries Found Inside Airports

Cafe Rouge at LHR T4.

What food do you reach for before hopping on a plane? For many, it's hearty (burgers, pizza, pasta), snacky (chips, candy, chocolate) or healthy (sushi, salads, granola), but what about Frenchy? Don't walk through your next airport terminal so quickly, or else you may miss some of the most interesting airport cuisine out there. Yep—we're talking about French Brasseries.

It's rare to find them, but when you do, we recommend stopping in for some Moulet et Frites, frogs legs, or just a simple Café au lait. Here's three great French Brasseries found at major airports:

· Cafe Rouge at London-Heathrow Terminal 4
Reminiscent of the classic Orient Express trains, Cafe Rouge at T4 is lengthy but thin, with clean lines and subtle art deco touches. Like a proper brasserie, its position makes it ideal for people watching, a sport made all the more intriguing by the fact that you're still before security. Someone awaiting your arrival could always pop up here for a Croque Monsieur and eavesdropping on tearful farewells. Plus, it's open from 5am clear until 10pm. Honorary mention: Chez Gerard in Heathrow's Terminal 3.

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Lady Gaga Dons a Straitjacket for Her Flight into Houston

In what's quickly becoming a weekly edition of "what crazy costume Lady Gaga wore on a plane today," we report that the infamously fashion-bold singer made her way into Houston International Airport in a straitjacket.

Well, it wasn't your typical straitjacket, but a custom-made, cowl-neck straitjacket dress designed for Gaga by stylist Asher Levine. The Daily Mail UK reports that yet again, Gaga found it difficult to walk in her high heels as the dressed cinched closely around her knees. And yet it seems like just yesterday that she was having that deep vein thrombosis scare onboard another flight.

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Continental Begins to Fulfill Our Self-Boarding Fantasies

A Continental turnstile ad in the NYC subway

While American Airlines looks toward a more convenient, tech-friendly future with the introduction of their iPhone app and mobile boarding passes, another US airline is going a step further to trial self-boarding.

USAToday just announced that Continental has begun using turnstiles at selected boarding gates at Houston International Airport. What this mean is that, instead of waiting in a long line for one or two gate agents to scan your boarding pass and wave you into the jetbridge to board the plane, you can join one of a few lines that lead to a turnstile where you scan your boarding pass on your own and process to the plane.

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The WiFi Offerings at Houston Airport

This is a sign we encountered just outside the Continental Presidential Lounge in George Bush Intercontinental/Houston Airport (IAH). See, this sign is misleading because while the airport has Wi-Fi Service, it's not quite as easy as advertised. Why's that? Oh yeah, that's because you gotta pay to use it.

Through the Sprint PCS Service you can pay $9.95 for 24 hours or you can get on the Sprint monthly plan for $49.95 a month. Yikes. We tried hijacking a network from the Presidential Lounge but it was a no-go. an airport would you?

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· Airport WiFi coverage [Jaunted]