When it comes to our travels, we are meticulous planners: earnestly optimizing our airline miles, comparing dozens of hotels, and snapping up the hottest dinner reservations weeks in advance. So why is it that, when it comes to feeding ourselves at the airport, we are rendered helpless—wandering aimlessly, queuing endlessly, and swiping credit cards left and right? We’ve all been there, face-to-face with a tasteless turkey club (that we didn’t actually want), washed down with a heavily upcharged glass of Pinot.

But is all airport food deserving of the bad rep it has? Is the landscape as bleak as we make it out to be? Like anything else in travel, we’d like to think the right amount of snooping and prodding, and in the right directions, will yield unexpected wins—whether that means discovering the allure of the Japadog stand by the parking lot in Vancouver International Airport, tracking down that best-selling tub of crunchy prawn roll in the vastness of Singapore’s Changi, or spending a layover strawberry-picking next to Narita Airport.

In the hopes of proving this—as much to ourselves as to you—we’ve tapped our editors and writers to share their most memorable airport meals around the world, wax eloquent about airport sushi, chronicle a food diary on a blizzard-hit night spent in Halifax airport, and much more. Look to these stories when you need tips on how to navigate your way to the best airport restaurants—we promise they’re out there (no lounge access required). And when all else fails, there’s always fruit snacks and a hummus cup from Hudson News.

From chicharron sandwiches in Lima to a noodle buffet in Tokyo and a fried chicken plate in Atlanta, we're revealing the airport food our editors keep returning to. Read the full story here.