Travelers planning to fly out of Bellingham Airport who arrive a little early can enjoy a meal at the new Scotty Browns Restaurant. A recent behind-the-scenes media lunch at the new location revealed good food in a fun place to eat.
“Scotty Browns is a neighborhood destination-style restaurant,” says manager Jason Cooper. “We focus on good food, good service and good location.” The restaurant chain has a total of 16 locations, with only 2 outside of Canada – both in Bellingham. This is the company’s first location inside an airport. “This is a great spot for us because the Bellingham airport features so many vacation destination flights to places like Hawaii, Las Vegas and Palm Springs. People arrive here relaxed and excited about going on vacation. They are also excited to find a great place to eat with their families,” he explained.
The restaurant is open from 5 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. “We make everything in-house, from scratch, including sauces and dressings,” said chef Joseph Merkling. This is no easy feat in a tiny kitchen, but it has inspired him to develop new recipes that are both hearty and quick to make. One example are “Street Tacos,” which were created for the airport menu and are so popular they have now gone company wide. “These are perfect for someone who has to catch a flight,” confirmed Merkling.
Many of Scotty Brown’s signature items are also on the menu, including #28 Dragon Bowl, and the Almost Famous Blackened Fish Burger. Our table enjoyed both of these. I ordered the Dragon Bowl and tasted it for the first time. A beautiful display arrived. It is a truly unique dish that seems to be an Asian-Southwest fusion, featuring coconut rice, veggies, yogurt, cabbage and chicken teriyaki. It was crunchy, spicy, savory and definitely hearty. I was full and happy afterward!
Or maybe I was full because I was also sneaking sweet potato fries off of Jacqueline’s plate (which were on the side of the fish burger). I couldn’t resist.
Did you notice the gorgeous Bellini in the Dragon Bowl photo? That is the Scotty Browns brand signature drink. It is frozen, sweet and delicious – just right for transforming into vacation mode. The bar opens at 6 a.m. and breakfast items are also served all day, including a breakfast burrito and breakfast sandwich, that are great to go.
At the table next to us, they were topping off their meal with an amazing slice of chocolate cake. This sounds perfect just before a 3 hour nap on the plane, or as a “Welcome to Bellingham” reward upon arrival!
