Food Fight!

This post is going to have a very provocative declaration at the end.  But you will wait for it.  No scrolling down.

Yours truly, the happy denizen of two Major League Baseball parks, will face his usual twice-a-season dilemma when the Mets visit Dodger Stadium next weekend.  I like to say that these are the games which find me "clapping with one hand."

Regardless of what happens on the field of play, I am now watching another battle unfold before me.  The one which circulates around which of the two arenas offers the better food choice. 

This used to be an easy one.  When the Mets were playing in my beloved, but sadly dilapidated Shea Stadium, there was no doubt.  Dodger Stadium won hands down.  Back in those days when Shea's hot dogs could be dressed with condiments only if you had teeth strong enough to rip apart the packaged relish and onion bits. 

Meanwhile, when I first started to frequent Dodger Stadium, I was pleasantly surprised by the bill of fare.  There is a very unique taste to the famed Dodger Dog, as long as it is grilled.  Fresh condiments like relish and onions are on tables and you can dish them out to your heart's content.  You also don't need to worry about fractured front teeth if you want them. 

Most of the other menu items at Chavez Ravine were standard but decent enough for a ballpark meal.  When I became a season ticket holder, I got the added bonus of being able to partake in the pre-game buffet at the Stadium Club, which offers some of the finest dinner items in all of Los Angeles. 

So, yeah, when it was Shea Stadium vs. Dodger Stadium, it was no contest.

Now, there's the Mets' new facility, Citi Field.  And, ummm, well, er...........

Four years into its short life, Citi Field has grown on me.  For esthetic baseball viewing features, there is still no place like Dodger Stadium.  At Citi, I can't see the left field corner from my seats.  The view of Flushing and its many car chop shops is light years behind the spectacular mountain vista you see anywhere in Dodger Stadium. 

But, if you want to eat.  Well, Citi Field is a magnificent food court, which just happens to have a major league baseball game going on in the middle of it.

It wasn't until this year that I started to explore the menus.

First of all, welcome to the new millenium, New York Mets.  Fresh condiments are available on "toppings" stations.  And not just fresh onions and relish.  Sweet roasted onions.  Sauerkraut.  Peppers. 

But you don't have to stick to hot dogs.  We have grilled sausage sandwiches, which are oh, so, New York.  And a host of other ethnic and high class cuisines.  The lines can be long, but your palate will be rewarded for its patience. 

There is the Shake Shack for all sorts of burgers, chicken, etc..  Blue Smoke offers barbecue fare.  Last weekend, I inexplicably ordered from them a fried bologna sandwich.  It was phenomenal.  Who knew?  Well, Elvis did.  I might wind up dead on the bathroom floor like he did, but the taste was indescribible.

More and more, I see new and interesting baseball food choices at Citi Field.  Meanwhile, back on the left coast....

Dodger Dogs.

Pizza.

Nachos.

The same stuff.

Oh, they have expanded a little bit into healthy choices, but who the hell wants that?  Unless, of course, you're stuck going to a game with America's chief dietician, Michelle Obama.

It's time to upgrade, new Los Angeles Dodgers owners.

They may be inching that way.  As soon as the Guggenheims took over the team, season ticket holders got an elaborate on-line survey, which required a half-hour for me to fill out.  It was all about the Dodger Stadium experience and food was a major portion of the questioning. 

Of course, Citi Field was just built and it was set up to feed its patrons in the 21st Century.  There are seven or eight fancy schmancy restaurants there which slobs like me can't get into.  But, there's plenty of options for those of us real people. 

Dodger Stadium opened in 1962 and was designed as a place, heavens to Betsy, to watch a baseball game.  Gluttony was only a secondary consideration.  But, still, they need to step it up.  They have the wherewithal inside the park to get it done.  The Stadium Club chef is terrific.  So is the guy who runs the press box cafeteria, which I've gotten to sample from time to time.  It can be done.

The challenge might be to really change up the food offerings in what is probably a very limited facility.  Dodger Stadium, fifty years old, likely cannot cook up what Citi Field does.

Which begs the rather daring notion that I alluded to at the top of this post.

"Is it time for the Dodgers to consider building a new ballpark?"

Ouch, my fingers actually hurt as I typed that.

Here's hoping they can figure out some expanded food choices in the stately venue of Chavez Ravine.  Looking at those amazing mountains, I don't want to move a single inch away from this location.

Yet, that view.  Would it be tastier with a Dodger Dog.....or a pulled pork sandwich?

Hmmmm again.

We'll see what develops with the new Dodger ownership.  And, once they hopefully tackle the food, let's hope they move onto the bathrooms, which, from the loge level on up, can use a total overhaul.

Dinner last night:  Turkey burger.