There’s nothing quite like Big D.

Jerry Jones, Mark Cuban and Bonnie and Clyde. Dallas is the home of great inventions like the frozen margarita machine, the first National Football League cheerleading squad, and one of the staples of unhealthy American snacking, 7-Eleven. Oddly, Dallas is also the home of the largest Arts District in the country.

There are plenty of great reasons to visit Dallas, but eating healthy isn’t one of them. Besides chains like Sweetgreen or rare gems like the fantastic Tribal All Day Café, the city stays squarely in the confines of barbeque, Tex-Mex, and anything fried or refried.

The city’s major airport is predictably even worse. In fact, DFW is a venerable disaster.

It would take a detective to ferret out the few healthy options. Luckily, we brought our trench coats, notepads and magnifying glasses down to the Jumbo State, and we are on the case.

Terminal A

Loyal airfare readers won’t be surprised by our picks in the American Airlines terminal. We’re back to the familiar, tummy-saving, heart-healthy stalwarts of M&M: Mediterranean and Mexican. These two cuisines are built on beans and veggies, two foods that, according to the World Health Organization, are among the healthiest things we can eat.

The go-to

Bleu Mediterranean Bar

What to get: Go with the delicious homemade lentil soup and a Mediterranean Salad, no cheese, dressing on the side. For a bigger meal, add a side of Fried Cauliflower—which is actually pan-friend, meaning sautéed—and the baba ghanoush or hummus appetizer with sliced veggies for dipping.

The backup

Qdoba

We know the drill here—beans, veggies, corn, salsa and guacamole. There’s nothing simpler and better we’re aware of.

Terminal B

Yikes. There is only one passable gem in this part of DFW for anyone interested in clear arteries and staying awake.

The go-to

McAlister's Deli

What to get: Grab the Half and Half, usually pairing a soup with a salad. We like the Veggie Chili and Garden Salad with no cheese and dressing on the side. For more substance, pair the chili with a sandwich, opting for the Veggie Sandwich on nine grain bread, hold the mayonnaise. The bread isn’t be considered #actuallyhealthy, but it’s not the end of the world. Everything’s bigger in…

The backups

Either lean on the Panda Express secret or mix and match at Cantina Laredo.

In our article on How to eat healthy at Denver International Airport, we presented the option of combining brown rice, steamed veggies and hot sauce to create a reasonably healthy and filling meal from a place in the hall of fame of unhealthy foods. But be careful, willpower has been known to decline sharply in the presence of sesame chicken and lo mein.

The other passable option in Terminal B is to pick sides and salads at Cantina Laredo to get some combo of beans, veggies, and guac. Good luck.

Terminal C

The go-to

Bleu Mediterranean Bar

Find the same decent options here as the location in Terminal A.

The backup

Freshens

This chain has all of the requisite ingredients but tends to mix them in not-so-healthy ways. Hence, it’s relegated to the back-ups list. For instance, the smoothies will have juices, added sweeteners or sweetened frozen yogurt. The salads and the bowls suffer similar fates.

So to try and build a custom bowl, using the brown rice and quinoa blend and then adding veggies, beans or salad. For smoothies, stick with veggies, fruits, unsweetened milk and water.

Terminal D

The go-to

CRU Wine Bar

Another healthy dessert here. It feels weird calling CRU the “go-to.” It’s more of a last resort. There aren’t great options here, but we found three that will do the job.

What to get: Order the hummus and raw veggies with no pita. Then get the Wild Mushroom Quinoa Wrap. The wrap is mostly processed flour, so we open it up and dump the veggies and quinoa into the hummus. Boom.

The backups

We can hack some beans, veggies and guac together at Cantina Laredo or grab the nuts and unsweetened dried fruit from Artisan Market.

Terminal E

The go-to

2.0 Taco and Tequila Bar

What to get: Veggie tacos with corn tortillas, or the veggie burrito bowl. On either option, no cheese or sour cream, add guacamole.

The backup

Our only other option is The Panda Express Secret, which we covered in Terminal B above.

Fun facts about DFW

• It is the largest carbon-neutral airport in the world. Okay, Dallas. We did not see that coming.
• It’s the home of American Airlines, which is headquartered nearby.
• It’s the fourth-busiest airport in the country behind Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson, Los Angeles International, and Chicago O’Hare.
• When it opened in 1974, it was the largest airport ever constructed at 17,500 acres or 27.3 square miles. The size crown was taken handily by King Fahd International Airport in Saudi Arabia, which opened in 1999, comprising—get this—192,000 acres!
• In terms of total size, DFW is now the third-largest airport in the world and second-largest in the United States behind only Denver International.