By Mark Halpern
In my first article, I reviewed 13 MLB stadiums and their famous foods. In this part, we are going to see what NFL Stadiums have some of the crazy food. As we all know when going to a football game you are going for two meals. The first meal is all the food you eat from your tailgating time. Most fans arrive 3-4 hours early to the game and park, get out that grill, and start cooking, eating, and drinking. You can fill up very fast, but you have time to digest before tackling what exceptional food can be found. Today I am reviewing ten stadium specialty high-priced foods. Stadium foods will be ranked #1 must try to #10. Maybe one day I will try.
#10. We are heading to New York for this twist on an American classic. The Buffalo area of NY has county fairs all the time, and at this stadium, you can sometimes see certain finds from them for sale during the season. One of the menu choices is Fried PB&J on a stick. Now I love a good PB&J on a typical day but fried? The sandwich consists of a crustless PB&J sandwich, dipped in a batter {that is used to make funnel cake} and then right into the fryer to make it all crispy. A Bamboo skewer is placed through the sandwich, and you eat it off the stick. Some people take it back to their seats and discard the skewer and eat it like a sandwich. It can be messy but, any Bills Mafia member will tell you that you have to dive on this before it’s all gone
#4 Heading to Texas to see what the other team in Texas has to offer. The Houston Texans have a crazy taco for you to have, called the Battle Red Taco. This tasty snack comes with three soft tortilla shells filled with Hot Cheetos crusted chicken finger, small mango pieces, red cabbage slaw, and topped off with Sriracha mayo. This spicy treat is said to be a barn burner so make sure you are prepared and have antacid tabs.
#2 The Washington Football Team stadium is known for its food choices, even though many fans tailgate before the game and have their hotdogs and other grilling treats before the game. However, when the fans get inside the stadium, they flock to a stand that sells The Pitbull. It is a footlong hotdog topped with hot and spicy Italian Giardiniera and topped off with spicy horseradish sauce. This hot dog is one the most sought-after hot dogs to try and again be prepared to have a fire in your belly but, use that anger and yell at the WFT for not having a real name.
#6 The Los Angeles Chargers have a burger on the list, but this is no ordinary burger by any means. The Burger is named the Tsunami Burger, and it consists of a seared tuna steak, applewood bacon, tomatoes, avocado, a light lemon aioli placed on a toasted brioche bun. This hamburger is a nice twist of a burger, and it is one of the more popular items ordered at the stadium.
#9 When I think about the Chicago Bears and food, I can’t help thinking of the guys on Saturday Night Live talking about the bears, and the foods and drinks they all had were standard food. However, inside the stadium, you can get a taco like no other. It’s a soft taco shell filled with braised pork bellies, with an Asian carrot style slaw, grilled scallions {Green onion} and topped off with a spice sriracha pepper sauce. This food is one of the most sought out food items at the stadium, and make sure you come hungry cause there are three to an order.
#5 Going back out to California, we head to the home of the 49ers, were a new take on the standard pretzel. The name of this shellfish treat is simple. It is called The Dungeness Crab Pretzel, and it consists of a toasted brioche pretzel stuffed with Knuckle and Claw meat from the crab, topped with garlic aioli, Dijon mustard, and chopped chives sauce. I have never had a stuffed pretzel like this one but creative nonetheless.
#5 Going back out to California, we head to the home of the 49ers, were a new take on the standard pretzel. The name of this shellfish treat is simple. It is called The Dungeness Crab Pretzel, and it consists of a toasted brioche pretzel stuffed with Knuckle and Claw meat from the crab, topped with garlic aioli, Dijon mustard, and chopped chives sauce. I have never had a stuffed pretzel like this one but creative nonetheless.
#8 Heading back to the WFT, have another treat on this list, and it’s a monster burrito called The Super DMV. The burrito consists of 3lbs of beef, and chicken smoked and rolled with Spanish rice, lettuce, tomato, black beans, and avocado in a soft tortilla. This is not a food that’s for one person to try and eat all of it. This is for at least a few people at your party. I mean, three pounds is a lot. If this were a challenge on a show like Man vs. Food, I would try it to see if I could sack this monster, but, otherwise, maybe one day.
#3 The Kansas City Chiefs have a sandwich that will warm your insides up during the cold months of the season and make you spitfire as well. The concoction is called The Kingdom Inferno Chicken Sandwich. With a name like this, there should be a warning before eating. Start with a toasted brioche bun, then top it with a breaded chicken finger, Carolina Reaper pepper mayo, sliced jalapenos and then add hot buffalo sauce. This is a sandwich that I will love to try one day. This sandwich was tough not to be #1 because I love spicy chicken sandwiches and can handle the heat. Bring it on. The more, the better.
#3 The Kansas City Chiefs have a sandwich that will warm your insides up during the cold months of the season and make you spitfire as well. The concoction is called The Kingdom Inferno Chicken Sandwich. With a name like this, there should be a warning before eating. Start with a toasted brioche bun, then top it with a breaded chicken finger, Carolina Reaper pepper mayo, sliced jalapenos and then add hot buffalo sauce. This is a sandwich that I will love to try one day. This sandwich was tough not to be #1 because I love spicy chicken sandwiches and can handle the heat. Bring it on. The more, the better.
#7 Moving to one of the most famous teams in the NFL, we head to Green Bay, Wisconsin, home of the Packers, for a food that you wouldn’t be surprised that they have. Wisconsin is known for its cheese and brats. However, they have made a sandwich called Brat in a Blanket. When I saw this name, I was thinking, oh, like pigs in a blanket, but I was way off. This sandwich comes together with a Brat wrapped up in melted Wisconsin cheddar cheese curds, lettuce, tomato, and beer mustard on a brioche pretzel bun. This sandwich looks excellent and is a true staple of Green Bay delicacies.
#1 Now, this wouldn’t be football unless some food challenged the buyer. Remember how I mention Man VS Food for the burrito? This is a true Man VS Food challenge. The Arizona Cardinals did just that with their sandwich called The GridIron Burger challenge. A challenge brings it on, and I said until I saw what went into this thing. A 10” bun has 5 1/3 pound burgers, five all-beef hot dogs, five brats, 20 slices of American cheese, eight slices of thick bacon, eight chicken tenders, 12oz of fries, lettuce and pickles, and their secret sauce called Tanker Sauce.
You would think this is for more than one person, but it isn’t a challenge for nothing. This is a challenge for one person to finish this monstrosity in under an hour. Now I would think the prize would be a free angioplasty or at least a Lipitor shake for dessert, but if you complete this sandwich in the time frame, you get a Cardinals Jersey and your picture on the wall. I hope the jersey is at least autographed.
I hope you all enjoyed this in-depth look at NFL stadium food finds. NBA and NHL will be up next up so stay tuned for that one.
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