I went to the Indian’s game on Saturday. But this is not a post about baseball. This is a post about baseball food. And drinks.
Due to a rain delay that lasted about an hour, the friends I was with and I went on a serious culinary adventure around the park. Our mission: funnel cake.
We asked at least three employees where we could find the elusive funnel cake that we were pretty sure we smelled when we first entered the park. All relied on tiny cheat sheets to help guide our way. And, though I can’t recall the exact section, I believe we arrived at our deep-fried destiny somewhere around section 160. (That also jives with this some-what helpful map from the Indians website.)
If you believe it’s possible, what we found was better than funnel cakes. The stand also sold fried cookie dough and fried Twinkies – each for only $5! ($5 = one funnel cake, two Twinkies or two giant cookie dough balls. There was also a combo platter for $10, but I assume that was for lesser amounts.) For $15, the bf James, our friend Josh and I split a collection of fried goodness.
I cannot believe that I had never had a fried Twinkie before. To me, it was easily the best of the three, though the guys preferred the cookie dough. When the Twinkie gets hot from the oil, the cream filling melts into the cakey part, resulting in a super crispy exterior and incredibly moist interior.
Best. Thing. Ever.
Now, I thoroughly admit that largely due to the rain delay, I was at least four beers in before the Twinkies, so my perception may be slightly skewed. But hey, what sporting events are for, right?
In addition to the fried treats, Josh also introduce us to a place — dangerously near the Twinkies — where you can purchase slushies spiked with liquor. These cost about $10, but when you’re paying almost $8 for a beer, that’s a pretty sweet deal. I opted or vodka, thinking that something more flavorful like whisky or spiced rum would be strange. However, the guys got Jack and tequila in theirs. And I was admittedly a little jealous.
At this liquid concession stand, we also spied the ultimate needle in the haystack of standard ballbark beer – Dogfish Head and Stone ales. Only one of each, but still — all this time I thought the Beers of the World Stands (where the best thing you can find is Great Lakes, and they don’t get much more worldly than Heineken) was where it’s at.
And, by exploring more on the first level (we typically have seats in the mezzanine or upper deck, if you can’t tell) we also found much better quality brats, only slightly more expensive than those at every other stand in the stadium.
Including tonight, there are 8 more home games. I’m seriously considering getting tickets (and let’s be honest, at this point they’re probably like $5) just to get more of this incredible ball park food. Otherwise, I’ll be anxiously looking forward to next April.
Filed under: Cleveland sports | Tagged: Cleveland Indians | 3 Comments »
