At California’s major and minor league ballparks, the days of limp hot dogs on soggy buns have given way to an era of gourmet grub fit for a foodie, as well as improbable creations that seem to have been conjured by chefs who could moonlight as mad scientists.
Baseball is our most traditional sport and for much of its history, ballpark cuisine remained pretty basic, according to Bennett Jacobstein, author of The Joy of Ballpark Food: From Hot Dogs to Haute Cuisine. Then, after a wave of stadium construction, a new generation of ballparks accommodating extra concession areas opened and teams began to make food a bigger part of the game experience.
Jacobstein, a retired librarian who has worked in concessions at San Jose Giants games, says, “Nachos and garlic fries have become the new peanuts and Cracker Jack. I’d definitely say that the selection expanded a lot in the ‘80s, then after the 1994 strike, teams wanted to get fans back and started adding more selections. In the last 10 years they’ve increased both healthy selections and some that are as unhealthy as can be.”
With five teams in the majors, plus clubs in the California League and Pacific Coast League, California serves up a winning lineup of ballpark food, from the classics to the crazy. And appropriately enough, for America’s leading winemaking state, there’s even a vineyard of Cabernet Sauvignon grapes grown by Clarksburg-based Bogle Vineyards at Sacramento’s Sutter Health Park, home of the Pacific Coast League’s Sacramento River Cats.
The array of dining choices is a good reason to get out to the ballpark early to peruse the different concession stands before making a selection. After all, there’s only so much you can eat—unless the game goes into extra innings.
Here are the most notable dishes at California’s ballparks, listed from north to south.
Fried Asparagus
Stockton Ports, Banner Island Ballpark
Stockton bills itself as “The Asparagus Capital of the World” and to honor this hometown crop, the California League’s Stockton Ports serves up deep-fried asparagus with dipping sauces at a cart along the first-base line.
Stockton certainly takes asparagus seriously. It’s a safe bet that the Ports are both baseball’s only team with a pair of asparagus for mascots (Gus and Gustine, for the record), not to mention a secondary team logo featuring a tattooed Popeye-style sailor wielding a bat-like asparagus stalk as if he’s squaring up to bunt.
And if Opening Day is the big annual event for most teams, at Banner Island Ballpark it’s rivalled by Asparagus Night, an all-asparagus evening when the concession offerings expand to include such specialties as asparagus dogs and tacos. These Asparagus Night delicacies also sometimes pop up at the ballpark at other times during the season.
Crazy Crab’z Sandwich
San Francisco Giants, Oracle Park
Crazy Crab, perhaps the most reviled mascot in the history of American professional sports, may have only enjoyed a brief career three decades ago. But this cracked crustacean has enjoyed an impressive afterlife as the inspiration for a San Francisco culinary sensation.
In this food-mad city, Giants fans line up for the Crazy Crab’z Sandwich, a San Francisco sammie through and through. It combines local ingredients that pair perfectly with this bayfront ballpark: heaps of Dungeness crab and sliced tomatoes on buttery, grilled, made-in-San-Francisco Boudin sourdough.
The sandwich is just one reason Oracle Park took first place in USA Today’s 2024 rankings of the best ballpark food. Another go-to spot for Giants fans is Orlando’s Caribbean BBQ, named for Hall of Fame slugger Orlando Cepeda. Dig into the Cha Cha Bowl—rice, beans, and jerk chicken with pineapple-zucchini salsa and a selection of sauces to bring the heat.
And for more spice, the new habañero-brined O.G. Chicken Sando at Fuku, created by leading contemporary Asian chef David Chang, looks like a sure bet to break into the Oracle starting lineup.
Churros
San Jose Giants, Excite Ballpark
For select games during minor league baseball’s Copa de la Diversión (Cup of Fun) promotion, many teams temporarily rename themselves for a favorite local food.
On these festive nights, the California League’s San Jose Giants morph into the San Jose Churros, a tribute to the beloved cinnamon-and-sugar crusted deep-fried dough treats created by Hipolito (Paul) Cerda.
Dubbed “the Super Churros Man,” Cerda has operated a stand at the ballpark for decades. Cerda’s irresistible churros became such a part of the San Jose Giants experience that a few years back, some fans made t-shirts that read “I’m Only Here for the Churros.”
And the churro logo that the team eventually has adopted is definitely unique. Wearing a white cowboy hat (a tribute to Cerda’s days as a vaquero), a human-like churro smacks its lips as it swings another churro as a bat.
Dodger Dogs—and Octopus Balls?
Los Angeles Dodgers, Dodger Stadium
Sports Illustrated dubbed Dodger Dogs “the most iconic hot dog in baseball” and Los Angeles fans gobble up nearly three million of these smoky, 10-inchers every season at Chavez Ravine. That’s more than twice as many hot dogs as any other ballpark manages to sell.
But there’s more to Dodger dining than Dodger Dogs, especially with the 2023 arrival of Shohei Ohtani, perhaps the most ostentatiously gifted ballplayer since another slugger-pitcher hybrid first took to the field more than 100 years ago—some guy named Babe Ruth.
While Little Tokyo may be just a few miles away, you’ll now find a growing assortment of Ohtani-inspired Japanese street cuisine right at Dodger Stadium: chicken katsu sandwiches, veggie kurubota yakisoba dogs, and takoyaki. Also known as octopus balls, takoyaki are fritters made with minced octopus and have become a staple at Japanese ballparks. They’re available at the Dodger Stadium outlet of Tsukiji Gindaco, a popular chain in Japan.
Loaded Tremor Tots
Rancho Cucamonga Quakes, LoanMart Field
Say it out loud: Loaded Tremor Tots. Sounds a bit ominous, especially considering that this concoction is served at Rancho Cucamonga Quakes games—and in a ballpark formerly known as The Epicenter. This earth-shakin’ taste sensation features tater tots topped with nacho cheese, bacon bits, sour cream, and green onions. The key to a good tater tot, of course, is the combination of a crispy crust and soft interior, and despite the copious toppings, Tremor Tots do retain their structural integrity. If it all sounds like too much, consider topping your Tremor Tots with sliced avocado—the healthy kind of fat.
Diablo Po’ Boy
Los Angeles Angels, Angel Stadium
Although the Angels lost Shohei Ohtani to the Dodgers, the Anaheim-based club still has Mike Trout as well as some promising newcomers, at least at their food stands.
The Angels’ rookie of the year might just be the Diablo Po’ Boy, a sandwich thick with crispy popcorn shrimp topped by a spicy Mexican butter sauce, all piled on a banh mi–style hoagie roll. Available at the stadium’s Pacifico Porch, you can also get the same lineup of ingredients but as tacos.
And while the only trout you’ll find at Angel Stadium is Mike himself, if you have a hankering for fish, the ballpark’s poke bowl with ponzu marinated ahi tuna, carrots, and wakame over rice is also a winner.
Fish Tacos
San Diego Padres, Petco Park
From a baseball fan’s perspective, San Diego is synonymous with Hall of Famers Ted Williams and Tony Gwynn. From a foodie’s perspective, the city is best known for fish tacos and craft beers, both of which command a prominent presence at Petco Park.
While fried fish tacos are the traditional Baja and San Diego style, Blue Water Seafood Market & Grill also serves up an outstanding grilled variation, as well as the Track Taco—grilled wild-caught Pacific shrimp marinated in chipotle butter and topped with Maui onion and mango slaw among a host of other ingredients.
As for beer, Petco is a virtual hophead heaven, with such local IPA legends as Societe’s The Pupil, which has been named one of the top 50 IPAs of all time by RateBeer. Or you can toast Gwynn with AleSmith’s San Diego Pale Ale .394, a tribute to Mr. Padre’s 1994 batting average (the highest in the majors since none other than the aforementioned Ted Williams hit .406 in 1941).
The carnivorous crowd will also find local classics at Petco. Don’t miss the Burgundy pepper tri-tip, either as a sandwich or on nachos, at the stadium’s outpost of Cardiff’s Seaside Market, a gourmet grocery based in the beach town of the same name.