By Mark Halpern
In the first two parts, I discussed MLB/NFL stadium foods. Since most NBA teams share an arena with NHL teams, most of the concessions you would get can be made for either sport. I have selected 12 different Arena’s that have extravagant food selections for you to try.
#3 In New Orleans, home of the Pelicans, you get a treat from the sea mixed with one of the best comfort foods. They have taken the simple Macaroni and Cheese and jazzed it up. You can get an order of seafood Mac/cheese with Shrimp, Crawfish, Scallops, and chunk Crab Meat that will give you a fresh taste of the sea. It is not a small bowl either; it is a rather big bowl, so come hungry.
#6 In Memphis, Tennessee, home of the Grizzlies, you can get one of the enormous snack cakes but with a county fair twist. You can get an order of 2 or 4 fried Twinkies with chocolate sauce drizzled all over and a good, sweet treat for not just the kids but anyone who wants to raise that blood sugar.
#8 In Orlando, Florida, home of the Magic, we get traditional but loaded one called The OMG {Oh My God} Dog. This hotdog consists of an all-beef hotdog wrapped in Pastrami, Chorizo Sausage, and cheese sauce with a side of either French fries or potato chips. Some people pay the extra fee to have both fries and chips, with the fries being on the hotdog.
#2 In the heart of Texas in San Antonio, home of the Spurs, we get a twist on an original snack food. This dish is called Brisket Nachos. You get a bowl of multi-color tortilla chips with a Queso Blanco, Brisket, Pinto Beans, and a homemade Jack Daniels BBQ sauce. Try only eating one order as people will get 2-3 orders at a time.
#9 This next dish was named after long-time Penguin’s goalie Phil Bourque, called the OLE 29er. This concoction consists of a crisp waffle bowl filled with BBQ pork, Mac and Cheese, Baked Beans, and coleslaw. This dish is typical at Penguins games as most fans get it early to enjoy other treats later on.
#1 This next Arena food comes to us from the land of Elvis, in Nashville, Tennessee, home of the Predators. Tennessee is known for its Hot Chicken dishes, and with no surprise, you can get a heaping bowl of cheesy Mac and Cheese with chunks of Hot Chicken mixed in. If you have ever had hot buffalo wings, then you haven’t experienced authentic hot chicken. I have had the Hot Chicken before, and it can be overwhelming if you are not prepared. This dish is best at the beginning of the night because one bowl isn’t enough sometimes.
#4 Well, the Suns in four things was just overplayed but, one thing that wasn’t was the dish called the Colossal loaded Fries and Rings. This was a heavily ordered item this year, and for a good reason. You get a collectible bowl filled with 2lbs of French fries, then on top of that, you get beer cheese sauce, bacon {which we all know makes things taste better} chives, and sour cream, and if that wasn’t enough, add Onion Rings on top. A must-have if you go but be prepared because not everyone can eat 2.5 pounds of food in a setting.
#5 In the baseball part of this series, I talked about a burger with doughnuts for buns. In Sacramento, home of the Kings, we get a Chicken Sandwich with the same idea. This sandwich has two glazed Brioche doughnut buns and in between them a hot chicken breast with buttermilk coleslaw and pickles. This is a trendy item in the arena which makes sense that you can get it almost on any level of the arena
#7 In Buffalo, New York, you can get an interesting meal. We usually see sausage paired with peppers in most cases, but you can get The Enforcer at a Sabers game. This is not your standard sausage on a roll deal, no-no-no. You get an Italian Sausage on a large hotdog bun, then top that with shredded buffalo chicken, blue cheese coleslaw, and then the top of that with an Ancho Chile BBQ sauce. Next time I go to Buffalo, it has to coordinate with me getting to a game and having one.
#10 Heading out to the Midwest, we come to the home of the Oklahoma City Thunder for a real sweet treat. Now you can go to almost any arena/stadium in the country and find a dessert such as ice cream or cookies. However, in this arena, they are known for their mini pies. Yes, mini pies, everyone. Who doesn’t like pie, especially when small like this and not your everyday apple, blueberry, or cherry? In the home of the Thunder, you can get a pie in one of three versions. First, they have a creamy buttermilk custard, a margarita with a whipped cream top, or one of my favorites, an Oklahoma Pecan Pie. They are small enough that eating 2 of them at a game is not unheard of.
#12 Now, when I think of pizza, the two states that come to mind are New York and Illinois. However, we go to the home of the Celtics/Bruins for a monster slice. In Massachusetts, a small, famous pizza chain called Sal’s and excel at selling a massive slice of pizza. So, at TD Garden Arena, you can get a famous slice of Sal’s pizza that measures a whopping 18” slice. If you can’t do the math, that is a foot and half. So, you better plan on coming hungry or don’t bother.
#11 We head on back to the home of the Predators, where they pay homage to their mascot Gnash. The dish called Gnash’s Ghosh is a plate-sized Bavarian pretzel bun filled with smoked pulled pork, brisket chili, beer cheese, scallions, and sour cream. Now, if you want to partake in this dish, you must be fast because they sell out fast and are only served during the first intermission. So, if you start seeing many people getting up 5-7 min left in the first period, they are not heading to the bathroom. People line up fast because they run out fast.
I hope you enjoyed this part three will be doing a particular College Football stadium post this weekend, so be on the lookout for that.
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