The Sacramento International Airport launched outposts of three local restaurants and a first-of-its-kind cafe and market concept Thursday as part of its major dining overhaul project.
Bar New Helvetia, Magpie and Centro Cocina Mexicana are now part of the airport’s Terminal A dining options just past the security checkpoint. Sacramento International Airport celebrated the opening with a ribbon-cutting event Thursday morning.
The popular Sacramento-based eateries are the newest additions to the capital region airport amid a multi-year concessions refresh, which is approaching its completion later this year, airport officials said. The overhaul project will help bring various local businesses into the airport, an environment often dominated by global chains.
“What I wanted to do when we did the refresh was to really bring even more of the Sacramento sense of local restaurants, local breweries,” said Cindy Nichol, director of airports for Sacramento County.
New Helvetia Brewing owner Dave Gull speaks at the Sacramento International Airport ribbon cutting ceremony for Bar New Helvetia and other new concessions on Thursday. Camila Pedrosa cpedrosa@sacbee.com
Since late November, the Sacramento airport has rolled out multiple new restaurants, including Vino Volo and West Coast Sourdough, but local options have taken slightly longer to prepare.
Airport officials said Thursday they expect all the planned restaurants — including capital region favorites Nixtaco, BAWK! by Urban Roots, Cafe Bernardo and OneSpeed Pizza — would be open by mid-2026.
“We have every taste,” Nichol said. “Having the variety and the quality of food really matters.”
Further down in the terminal, Starbucks opened a brand-new cafe and market concept — the first in the U.S. In addition to the world-famous beverages and snacks the chain serves, travelers can also pick up various provisions in the cafe.
According to Scott Birch, director of operations with SMF’s dining development partner, HMSHost, the hybrid cafe-market format has already been successful in its two Terminal A locations.
Inside the cafe’s attached Golden Grove Marketplace, the shop sells familiar airport newsstand items and a selection of products by Sacramento-area small businesses, including Carmazzi Caramel Corn, The Bee Box and Ginger Elizabeth.
A new Starbucks location at Sacramento International Airport’s Terminal A includes an attached market, selling classic airport provisions and products from Sacramento-based small businesses. Camila Pedrosa cpedrosa@sacbee.com A taste of Sacramento in Terminal A
The bright, airy food court welcomes travelers immediately after crossing over the security checkpoint.
New Helvetia Brewing sits at the center of the atrium, with a 360-degree bar surrounded by a large metal structure proudly displaying the Sacramento brewery’s logo.
“Making the choice to lean into local is probably the most important thing (the airport and HMS Host) could have done,” said Dave Gull, owner of New Helvetia Brewing, during the ribbon-cutting. “As you travel through this airport, whether you’re from Sacramento or visiting from somewhere else, choose local, please.”
Bar New Helvetia was one of four new dining options at Sacramento International Airport unveiled Thursday. Camila Pedrosa cpedrosa@sacbee.com
Just past the bar are Centro Cocina Mexicana — set up as a quick-service walk-up window — and a full-service Magpie restaurant. A large mural depicting California’s native yellow-billed magpie spans a feature wall in the restaurant.
The mural was painted by co-owner Ed Roehr’s sister, Rebecca Roehr.
“I think it really speaks to the name of the restaurant, to have the yellow-billed magpie as kind of our flagship,” co-owner Janel Inouye said. “We always think that’s very representative of our area, since they’re from here.”
At Magpie’s airport location, Roehr and Inouye said they plan to bring back a popular former offering — brunch.
Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, Magpie’s breakfast and brunch had “a huge following,” according to Roehr. Pandemic-related closures led the team to sunset the early morning dining, but they are taking the opportunity to bring it back at the airport.
“Part of the experience for us is to figure out how we can make things that represent our style in Sacramento,” Roehr said. “I think part of why Magpie is here is to figure out how local you can make a restaurant inside an airport.”
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This story was originally published March 13, 2026 at 1:25 PM.
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Camila Pedrosa is a service journalism reporter at The Sacramento Bee. She previously worked as a summer reporting intern for The Bee and reported in Phoenix and Washington, D.C. She graduated from Arizona State University with a master’s degree in mass communication.