food court

American  

noun

• food courts
  plural

1. a space, as in a shopping mall, with a concentration of fast-food stalls and usually a common eating area.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• food courts
  plural

Etymology

Origin of food court

First recorded in 1980–85

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

food court

A video, external of the incident shows the elderly man patting the child on the head as he walked past her table at a food court in a shopping centre.

From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026

At Plaza Mexico, where a framed picture of the Virgin of Guadalupe looks over the food court, customers filled about half the tables during lunchtime recently.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 25, 2026

Meanwhile, unlike the tiny 9,000-square-foot Ikea store that opened in Arcadia’s Santa Anita Mall in 2024, the Culver City location will feature a food court.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 18, 2026

Students cross it constantly, cutting through between classes or to meet friends at the food court, or pausing to take in the sun on the grass.

From Slate ● Oct. 30, 2025

The Daniels had never experienced the Academy cafeteria, so they thought the food court was fine dining.

From "Ungifted" by Gordon Korman