While Hal has yet been unable to find a door back to Barry, he has managed to retain some of his control. It helps, he believes, that there are so many oddly scented folk about him, which throws off his hunger and riles his curiosity. When he reaches the lobby, he takes a deep breath (nose in the air) and finds he's in this situation again.

He can't place it, but it's familiar, as if a smell from his long ago years coming back without being able to be placed.