Terminal 5 at O’Hare has recently undergone significant renovations and expansions, resulting in an enhanced and modernized customer experience. There are many terrific new shopping and dining options to enjoy, along with many committed people working behind the scenes to help bring more concessions to the revamped terminal.

From its perfectly seasoned fried chicken batter to its gracious service, Chick-fil-A is often a top earner at airports, even while its closed for business on Sundays. The chain’s newly-opened location at Terminal 5 is Chicago’s first airport Chick-fil-A, and two seasoned professionals of aviation and quick-service dining have played a significant role in bringing the restaurant to O’Hare.

Marc Brooks is a Chicago native born into a family of food service professionals. After attending college at Northwestern and playing basketball in the Big Ten conference, he went to work in the Chicago Bulls front office. From there, Brooks jumped back into the family business of owning and operating restaurants and retail establishments.

Brooks has been exceptionally successful in bringing concepts to the airport space, which include the development and management of airport lounges such as The Club Airport Lounges currently operating in Boston; Buffalo, New York; Charleston, South Carolina; Charlotte, North Carolina; Cincinnati; Cleveland; New Orleans; Pittsburgh; San Francisco and San Jose, California (which has two lounges). A Club Airport Lounge will open later this year at Midway, and Brooks has also been involved in the development and operation of Chase Sapphire Airport Lounges in Boston, Washington Dulles and New York (both at La Guardia and Kennedy Airports), with lounges opening later this year in Phoenix and San Diego.

Another person responsible for bringing Chick-fil-A to Terminal 5 is Ramona Hall, who started her career in the airport business in 2007 and was often the only female at the table. After nearly two decades of working in aviation concessions, Hall has learned many valuable lessons about the airport business, which include knowledge of airlines, flight schedules and enplanements (which is the number of passengers coming in and out of an airport). Hall also knows the value of a good brand and about resilience in the business world, having opened her first Chick-fil-A and her second Starbucks during the pandemic. Hall operates two Starbucks stores, another Chick-fil-A and two Einstein Brothers Bagel locations in Miami.

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The Ultimate Guide to Terminal 5

Publican Quality Bread, Protein Bar & Kitchen

Quality croissant lovers rejoice! Chicago’s very own Publican Quality Bread has opened in Terminal 5.

The bakers at the James Beard Award-winning Publican use locally-farmed and milled whole grain flour with an extra-long fermentation time and super-high hydration, resulting in exceptional baked goods that are sold throughout town.
 

At O’Hare, Publican’s main items are coffee, teas (including horchata chai, rooibos and Shizuoka matcha) and pastries. With a variety of croissants and specialty pastries available, passengers can also perk up with locally-produced gourmet coffee from La Colombe. And don’t forget to stock up on sweets, which make for a perfect hostess gift. Stand-out sugary delights include caneles, chocolate brioche and financier cakes (which are almond cakes with seasonal fruit).

Another exciting culinary addition to Terminal 5 is Chicago-based brand Protein Bar & Kitchen, which offers delicious and healthy food for travelers on the go. With a choice of bowls, smoothies, salads, wraps, acai options and soups, there is no shortage of wholesome options for passengers.

O’Hare marks Protein Bar’s 13th location in Illinois, in addition to a restaurant in nearby Crown Point, Indiana and another one in Salt Lake City.   
 

Gallery ORD
Terminal 5’s latest shopping obsession is Gallery ORD, a luxury boutique with an eye-catching honeycomb design from Dufry.

The space’s beauty matches the gorgeous items for sale. Gallery ORD offers upscale brands such as Longchamp, Michael Kors, Hugo Boss and Montblanc, with designer eyewear displayed inside of a cubby hole-filled wall. And, if you are a luxury lover seeking a bargain, you’ll enjoy the pre-loved designer handbags from ReLUX, a first-of-its-kind in the airport space.
 

Six Points Market
Inspired by the six-pointed stars on the city flag, Six Points Market was designed to reflect Chicago’s community pride.

Six Points Market offers travelers everything needed to make their journey more comfortable and enjoyable, selling a variety of reading material and locally-crafted gifts to beverages, snacks and Chicago flag souvenirs.

Six Points Market features an in-store coffee shop, proudly serving freshly brewed cups of locally-roasted java from Chicago’s Metropolis Coffee Company  —  brought to Terminal 5 by the father-daughter duo of Sulaiman Rahim of Midway Restaurant Development, Ltd., and Farhana Rahim of Fresh Creations, LLC.

Farhana Rahim has been recognized as one of the youngest partners in O’Hare’s airport concessions disadvantaged business enterprise (ACDBE) program, owning and operating Fresh Creations as a 33-year-old Asian-American woman.  

“When my dad and I opened Metropolis Coffee, we never imagined that it would grow large enough to open a shop at O’Hare Airport,” said Tony Dreyfuss, co-founder of Metropolis Coffee. “As a fellow small, family business, our ACDBE operating partners are close to our heart. We have worked together for nearly 12 years and built a lot of mutual respect and trust in that time.”
 

BLVD & Branch, InMotion
BLVD & Branch embodies the heart of Chicago and represents the diverse culture, community and beauty of the Windy City. The name pays homage to the beautiful boulevards dotting Chicago’s neighborhoods and branches of the city’s “L” public transit system. The store — which has a strong focus on local, minority and female-owned businesses — showcases beloved local brands like Frango Mint Chocolates, Lettering Works, Dishique Boutique, Chicago Candle Co., REP CHI and ChiBoys (which opened a concession at O’Hare earlier this year).

InMotion is also setting up shop with a new location at O’Hare, its fifth at the airport. The world’s largest airport-based electronics retailer, InMotion carries the latest cutting-edge tech products from brands such as Apple, Beats, Bose, Sony and JBL. In addition to O’Hare, InMotion operates locations at more than 60 U.S. airports, as well as more than a dozen airports in Europe and Australia.

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