Buy Me Some……….. Granola And Soybeans??
The Washington Post publishes a Letter to The Editor from someone upset by the food choices at Nationals Park:
I searched the entire stadium for healthful food but could not find any. I asked stadium workers for help in vain. Tens of thousands of spectators apparently have no food choices but stand after stand of fried food, huge hot dogs, beer and more unhealthful items. I finally bought a fish and chips meal for $14 but threw away almost all of it. (The french fries had to weigh at least 2 pounds.). The stadium is a great place, the baseball team is great, and all the employees I met were helpful and friendly. All I ask is something nutritious to eat! I shouldn’t have to bring it with me.
Dude, it’s a baseball stadium. What exactly were you expecting?
As you would expect, the prices for ballpark food are generally really high, so for cheaper food (like fries) they tend to give you super-sized portions.
The food concessions at AT&T Park in San Francisco are always busy and crowded – so I never bother, I just figure I’ll go out in the city afterward to eat.
Funny, these complainers like this never go, “Aha! Business opportunity” Now if they were complaining about being shut out of licensing a stall to provide “healthful food” then that would be different. Otherwise, rent a spot, stock some healthful alternatives and wait for the long deprived fans to mob you.
Nationals Park is best described as a food court with a ball field in the middle of eat. There used to be a kosher food stand and a vegetarian food stand that sold sandwiches.
In look at the concession list:
http://mlb.mlb.com/was/ballpark/concessions/index.jsp?content=guide
One can get vegetarian tacos, vegetarian wraps,
The website even has a list of vegetarian options
http://mlb.mlb.com/was/ballpark/concessions/index.jsp?content=healthy_options
Supposedly the Nationals have worked hard on the food to encourage people to come to night games during the week.
@superdestroyer:
That was my first reaction. I’ve been to National Park enough to know it’s not all Nachos, fries, and hot dogs. The guy obviously didn’t look hard enough
This one has me concerned. I’ve never tasted a Major League Baseball team but I would expect it would be salty. Perhaps it is a venue for up and coming baseball groupies?
@ al-Ameda
I always try to hit Red’s Java Hut before the game.
@Doug Mataconis:
What is amazing is that there is a sitdown restaurant in center field and the Lexus seats get their own sit down restaurant.
One of the complaints is that nothing has built up around National Park. However, when there is a large number of food sellers inside the park to include Shake Shack, Five Guys, Bens Chili Bowl, etc, why eat outside.
The opposite is Camden Yards with average food inside the park (and fewer healthy options) but more restaurants outside. What also amazes me about Camden Yards is that you are allowed to bring food in.
@JKB: You’ve put your finger on why there’s no longer a team known as “The Boston Beaneaters”. They’d be back by the 7th inning.
What this person really needs to complain about is the high price of food at these stadiums, arenas, speedways, golf tournaments, and theme parks, It is true a lot of these places will let you bring limited food and drinks in. If you buy one of their cups, you can usually bring it back for cheaper refills (just don’t anyone tell Mayor Bloomberg).
I guess that it will be inevitable that some mayor or city council member will propose some law that requires that a certain amount of food has to be “healthy” at these places.