The Jetsons Meet The Disneys: Encounter Restaurant & Bar, LAX

Start with a few Walt Disney Imagineers, circa 1961. Add a generous portion of Jet Age kitsch. Then bake it for decades under the southern California sun. What do you get? The highly acclaimed Encounter Restaurant & Bar in LAX’s landmark Theme Building. Years ago, I enjoyed a very impressive meal here. In 1997, a newly appointed restaurant with space-air interiors and spectacular lighting opened, serving fantastic cuisine and offering 360 degree airport views.

With its distinctive, giant 135-foot-high parabolic arches, the Theme Building was the first structure in the U.S. to utilize supporting steel arches of this design. Today, it’s surprisingly affordable, offering a Bar Menu and Full Lunch, Kid’s, and Dinner Menus, with prices ranging from $6 and up, plus a new Prix Fix Menu with a special, three-course selection at only $33.

Plus, there are Happy Hour discounts for everyone but pilots!

Executive Chef Julio Hawkins Bennett features dramatically presented, award-winning “California Fresh” cuisine.

See the Encounter Restaurant & Bar menus and more.