November 28, 2023: Lawrenceville, GA – The Flying Machine
I was doing an insurance checkout / training flight in a Pilatus PC-12 and found myself in an airport restaurant I didn’t even know existed. Wow what a find! I like this place. Granted it is in North Georgia, but hey, if you find yourself passing through – plan a stop here.
Getting to the Flying Machine
There is parking on the ramp in front of the restaurant and yes, you can access it directly. Security is realistic there and is not a tremendous hassle.
There is also a nice, outdoor seating area, which I might have tried on a warmer day. November 28th was a little chilly and breezy for that.
At KORL, KLAL and KOCF I’ve been able to avoid paying “ramp fees” almost all the time. We need to return to this.
Why Were We There?
Our passenger had business near PDK, and we had stopped at Epps to let him off and supposedly wait. However, the Idiot in Chief was in town to attend a former First Lady’s funeral and the airport was about to shut down for several hours. We barely managed to get out of there and reposition over to Lawrenceville. Only a 15 minute flight at 3000′ (quite bumpy I might add) but the Secret Service were getting ahead of schedule. I’m glad we did!
While I had looked forward to revisiting the Downwind Restaurant in PDK, I was not disappointed by discovering the Flying Machine.
The Food and The Company
Chris Olds and I found a nice table by the window, which isn’t that surprising because pretty much every table in the place is by a window. I had to order the “$100 burger” of course! (It was delicious). Chris got some country fried chicken, which he also thoroughly enjoyed.
The prices were reasonable, although we were using the client credit card for it. “It’s good to be the Corporate Pilot.”
PIREP
The actual cost ended up being less than $300.
- Aircraft Rental: priceless
- Fuel at Lawrenceville – I really don’t know!
- Restaurant bill: On the card!
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- Total: $0
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- Total flight time several hours but worth it!
Do many of us Floridians have the chance to fly up to North Georgia for lunch? Probably not. I certainly don’t. However, in my travels, I often need to stop for FBO services, and if I have the choice, I will gladly land at KLZU and get some lunch at the Flying Machine. Both restaurants I’ve visited in North Georgia have been great so far, both here and the Downwind Restaurant at KPDK.
I know we originally started this blog for places within an hours flight of Orlando, but maybe it’s time to branch out. What do you think? Drop us a line and let us know.
Back to $300 Burgers