Andy McCullough covers the Royals for the Kansas City Star, and has been to all 30 MLB Stadiums in the process. This makes him uniquely qualified to judge the food in the 30 parks, but from a different angle. For a recent Royals mailbag, McCullough was asked via twitter which park has the best press box food in MLB. McCullough went a step further, as he ranked them all from 1-30. If you know anything about the parks and the food that is served to the paying customer, the list will definitely surprise you. Here is who McCullough ranks as number one:
1. Citizens Bank Park: The Gold Standard, as Philadelphia’s Jeffrey Lurie might say. I’ve never had a bad meal here. Start with an outstanding salad bar. There are bowls of fresh strawberries, blueberries and blackberries. The hot food is tremendous. And there’s Turkey Hill ice cream, including the famous Graham Slam, all scooped by the legend, Frank.
And now for the surprises:
2. Tropicana Field: The Trop is a gem. There are cold cuts, good soup and a decent daily array of deserts.
I actually liked watching games at the Trop, but I thought their food was just okay. So it’s weird to see it ranked so high. And it’s probably the only time you’ll see the words “The Trop is a gem” in that order, anywhere in print.
3. Kauffman Stadium: Call me a homer, if you want, but John and Andy do an excellent job. The salad bar is top-notch, and the entrees deliver.
Very surprising seeing as if the K was ranked dead last in a list of ballpark fare by Thrillist, and was cited for health violations not only this past Opening Day, but during the 2014 World Series as well.
28. Citi Field: This may be the best eating park in baseball — Shake Shack, Pat LaFrieda’s, Smoke Shack, Rao’s — but not in the pressbox.
You’d think they have some of that gourmet food shipped aside for the working media. Hell, even gourmet leftovers. But alas … no.
The entire list from McCullough is worth a look, and he’s also worth a follow on Twitter.
(Silly photo of baseball fans dressed as condiments comes from Greg Fiume/Getty Images)
