Your guide to the best—and weirdest—ballpark food from all 30 MLB stadiums

From the classic (Chicago-style hot dog!) to the just plain weird (apple pie nachos???) here are the most appealing—and confusing—ballpark food options at all 30 MLB stadiums.

The quest to find food at a ballpark can be a daunting one. Sure, every team offers plenty of options to sate virtually every fan, but finding the best, most delicious or most intriguing meal can require hours, if not days, of detective work (not to mention that it results in a significantly lighter wallet). It’s become even more difficult in an era in which every team is hell-bent on creating the craziest, biggest, most gastronomically challenging food it possibly can—layering on meat, cheese and fries with reckless abandon.

Making sense of the massive world of ballpark foods takes (literal) guts. Luckily for you, we’re here to break down the menus across the country and pick out each stadium’s top option and each team’s most out there creation. So the next time you buy a ticket for a game, you’ll be able to walk into that park knowing which item you should make a beeline for (and which ones to think twice about).  

Welcome to SI Eats

Oriole Park at Camden Yards (Orioles)

BEST: Chesapeake Fries

You know you’re in Baltimore when there’s something slathered in crab, and that’s exactly what you get with the Flying Dog Grill’s Chesapeake fries, which are waffle fries covered in crab dip. It’s as Maryland as you can get.

WEIRDEST: Pork rind chippers

Okay, so there may be such a thing as too much Baltimore. Case in point: these pork rind chips that are topped with crab meat, cheese and ubiquitous Maryland staple condiment Old Bay. It’s a portable heart attack, at least.

The pork rind chipper from Oriole Park at Camden Yards :: Patrick Semansky/AP Images

Fenway Park (Red Sox)

BEST:Lobster roll

If you’re going to go to a game at Fenway Park, then get the quintessential Massachusetts meal and grab yourself a lobster roll. Courtesy of the venerable (and, for Boston fans, unfortunately named) Yankee Lobster company, fans at Fenway can get one of two lobster rolls: a classic New England-style lobster salad on bread, or a hot roll with warm butter and parsley. They’re wicked good.

WEIRDEST: Lobster Poutine Steak

This item, meanwhile, is just wicked. Taking the Canadian staple of poutine—fries covered with gravy and cheese curds—the Red Sox have chocked it full of lobster and replaced the gravy with bisque. It’s a bit too much.

Yankee Stadium (Yankees)

BEST: Lobel’s Meatloaf Burger

The folks behind the classic Lobel’s butcher shop have been a mainstay at Yankee Stadium for years, but this sandwich—essentially meatloaf topped with cheese and crispy onions—is new for the 2017 season, and well worth it.

WEIRDEST:Barnyard Wedding

Available at the Triple Play stand in Section 115, the Barnyard Wedding may end up leading to a triple bypass. This gargantuan burger has a beef patty topped with cheddar cheese, a fried chicken cutlet and a hash brown—a whopping 1,200 calories’ worth of food.

Tropicana Field (Rays)

BEST: Cuban sandwich

The Cuban Favorites menu offers you plenty of twists on the classic, like a Cuban burger, but you should stick with the traditional sandwich. You can’t go wrong with pork, ham and swiss cheese with mustard and a pickle on a toasted roll, after all.

Ballpark eats: / Tampa Bay Rays

WEIRDEST:Brunch Bloody Mary

Only available during day games, the Brunch Bloody Mary is a portable breakfast: A regular Bloody Mary that comes with sausage, egg, chicken and waffles, donuts and bacon on a skewer. All you’re missing is some aspirin…and maybe some Tums.

Rogers Centre (Blue Jays)

BEST: Sausage poutine

Go to Canada, get some poutine. And while the Blue Jays have many, many variations on the national classic, they do it right with this option: the Liberty Village sausage poutine. Available from Toronto Street Eats, it comes with two different kinds of sausage—smoked farmers and peameal-bacon, another Canadian staple—with onions and peppers atop fries with cheese curds and gravy.

WEIRDEST: Churro “Dessert” Poutine

Rest assured, there’s no gravy, cheese curds or fries in this one, just their sugary counterparts: churro in place of the potato, ice cream in place of the cheese and caramel sauce to sub in for the gravy. “Dessert poutine” is a scary thought, but this one actually sounds on the level.

The Blue Jays offer Churro Poutine / Toronto Blue Jays

Progressive Field (Indians)

BEST: Melt Parmageddon

It’s easy to understand why the Parmageddon is such a favorite (it won USA Today’s Best Ballpark Food of 2016 fan vote). It’s a Great Lakes twist on grilled cheese, with a potato and onion pierogi, onions and sauerkraut between two pieces of bread and some cheddar.

WEIRDEST: Killer Kilbane Dog

This one is an overload for the tongue: Available at the Happy Dog stand, the Kilbane features relish, peanut butter and sriracha sauce. That combo of tangy, hot and slightly sweet is intriguing, but it’s also crazy as hell.

Guaranteed Rate Field (White Sox)

BEST: Brisket Mac and Grilled Cheese

This is an absolute monster of a sandwich. Measuring in at a ridiculous 16 inches, it’s as simple as it sounds: mac and cheese topped with brisket. Bring some friends.

WEIRDEST: Clean Up Hitter

Speaking of monsters, this burger is a mess of ingredients: beef, Italian sausage, mozzarella cheese, sweet peppers and marinara sauce. Bring some napkins.

Comerica Park (Tigers)

BEST: Grecian french fries

A deconstructed gyro on fries: What more could you want? Playing off of Detroit’s Greek heritage, you can find these fries—covered in gyro meat, tzatziki, feta, cucumber, tomato and olives—at the Corktown stand in the Big Cat Court.

WEIRDEST: Detroit Coney Deep Dish Pizza

The Detroit coney dog—a hot dog topped in chili, cheese and onions—is a local staple, as is Little Caesar’s Pizza, the chain founded by late Tigers owner Mike Illich. This combination, though, is a wild one: all the ingredients of a coney dog on a pizza. If you’re up for a bizarre combination, you don’t need to look much further than this.

Kauffman Stadium (Royals)

BEST: Burnt End Basket

Kansas City is perhaps America’s greatest barbeque spot, and the Royals have you covered if you get a craving at the stadium. Stop by Sweet Baby Ray’s Barbeque in the outfield to grab a basket of burnt ends, the regional delicacy that never goes wrong.

WEIRDEST: Pork Patty Melt

Pulled pork, fried onions, cheese and bacon: So far, so good, right? But then the Royals took that perfectly acceptable (if not stroke-causing) collection of foods and went ballistic by putting them in between two pieces of funnel cake, dusting it with powdered sugar and turning it into one of the most monstrous sandwiches you’ve ever seen.

The Royals offer a pulled pork patty melt / Aramark

Target Field (Twins)

BEST: Kramarczuk’s Kurd-Marczuk

Basically a Midwestern spin on poutine, this new addition to Target Field’s concessions takes Polish sausage from legendary Minneapolis butchery Kramarczuk and puts it in a bowl with cheese curds and brown gravy.

WEIRDEST: Triple Sausage Sampler Bloody Mary

If the Kurd-Marczuk wasn’t enough sausage for you, though, grab yourself this boozy brunch drink featuring three different kinds of sausage—andouille, bratwurst and Polish—on a skewer. It even comes with some cheese cubes—you know, to lighten things.

Minute Maid Park (Astros)

BEST: Chorizo Loaded Fries

The best of Tex-Mex cuisine hits the dependable bedrock that is fries. Chorizo, queso, chipotle mayo and some green onions make for the incredible toppings in this Houston take on loaded fries.

WEIRDEST: Chicken and Waffle Cone

In case you were looking for a portable food that might literally stop your heart, the Astros have you covered with this terrifying mashup of fried chicken, mashed potatoes and honey mustard. And since it’s served in a waffle cone, you have no need for pesky things like a chair, a plate or even a garbage can.

Angel Stadium (Angels)

BEST: Short-rib grilled cheese

Available at the Big Cheese in Angel Stadium’s Section 211, this combination of melted cheese and slow-cooked beef short ribs is worth the wait and the calories.

WEIRDEST: Churro Pop

Portability and enough sugar to melt your teeth are the main selling points of this concoction, which takes a churro and turns it into a lollipop that’s drizzled in chocolate. Delicious, but definitely strange.

Oakland Coliseum (Athletics)

BEST: Ahi poke tacos

Quick and bite-sized, these fish tacos at the Shibe Park Tavern in the Coliseum are a perfect mix of sweet, salty and crunchy. Served in a fried wonton shell, you get ahi tuna topped with shoyu, onions, Macadamia nuts and guacamole.

WEIRDEST: All-Star Hot Dog

Oakland’s concessions don’t get too strange, but the All-Star Dog is still an intriguing combo of flavors, coming loaded with mac and cheese and jalapenos. Spicy and creamy is a weird mix, but it’s got a kick, at least.

Safeco Field (Mariners)

BEST: Frozen Rope ice cream sandwich 

Made with your choice of local ice cream—either Snoqualmie Valley or Lopez Island Creamery—you can get this sweet treat either on a cookie (including red velvet) or a homemade brownie and top it with anything from sprinkles to M&Ms to Fruity Pebbles cereal. You're not human if that sentence didn't make you drool a little bit.

WEIRDEST: Grasshoppers

Toasted grasshoppers, to be precise. New to Safeco Field this year, this classic Mexican treat is exactly what it sounds like: a bunch of grasshoppers, cooked and then dusted with chili lime salt, for a crunchy snack that’s also high in protein. Hey, at least they’re better for you than the big pile of bacon and cheese that most teams offer.

Grasshoppers from Safeco Field :: Stephen Brashear/Getty Images

Globe Life Park (Rangers)

BEST: The Boomstick

Nelson Cruz is gone, but his namesake food still reigns supreme in Arlington. The Boomstick is proof that everything’s bigger in Texas: It’s a two-foot-long, one-pound hot dog covered in chili, nacho cheese, onions and jalapeno peppers. And, if you’re craving that with a Mexican flourish, you can now get the Boomstick as the “M.V.T.,” which takes the Boomstick hot dog and loads it into a tamale, then covers it with chili, brisket, nacho cheese and sour cream.

WEIRDEST: Texas Snowballs

They don’t get a lot (if any) snow in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex, but they do have a ton of brisket, and that’s what you get in the Texas Snowballs. But this is no ordinary barbeque meal: You get shredded brisket that’s dipped in funnel cake batter, deep fried and then coated in powdered sugar. Much like roller coasters or cigarettes, this isn’t recommended for children, the elderly or pregnant women.

A Texas Snow Ball is shredded brisket dipped in funnel cake batter, deep fried and coated in powdered sugar / Delaware North

SunTrust Park (Braves)

BEST: Tomahawk pork chop

It’s worth noting that this enormous sandwich is supposed to serve four, but don’t let that stop you from trying to tackle it alone. The Tomahawk features a fried pork chop topped with collard green slaw and white barbeque sauce, and if you eat the entire thing by yourself, they should retire your number at the park.

WEIRDEST: Burgerizza

It’s all right there in the name, really. In their first year at Suntrust Park, the Braves have concocted the kind of sandwich that usually is the domain of chemically altered college kids: a 20-ounce beef patty topped with cheddar cheese and served between two eight-inch pepperoni pizzas. There’s no truth to the rumor that Bartolo Colon eats one before every one of his starts.

The "Burgerizza", AKA a 20-ounce beef patty served between two eight-inch pepperoni pizzas / Delaware North

Marlins Park (Marlins)

BEST: Lechon pork nachos

The best of Cuba meets a ballpark favorite at Marlins Park with these nachos. Slow-roasted pork, avocado crema, tomatoes, red cabbage and cheese all get served on a bed of corn tortilla chips for a taste of Calle Ocho at the ballgame.

WEIRDEST: Miami Mex Taco Dog

The ingredients for this one don’t sound all that strange: a footlong covered in chili con carne, cheese, jalapeno lime aioli, cabbage, salsa and cheese. But it all comes in a tortilla wrap as opposed to on a hot dog bun—an odd choice that could make for a very messy meal.

Citi Field (Mets)

BEST: Mama’s of Corona Italian Special Hero

Loaded with Genoa salami and pepper ham and topped with mozzarella, mushrooms and roasted red peppers, it doesn’t get more Queens than this terrific sandwich, a throwback to the old Italian delis from New York’s past.

WEIRDEST: Junior’s Deep Fried New York Cheesecake

Speaking of a New York institution: Junior’s has long positioned itself as the city’s best cheesecake since its first restaurant opened in Brooklyn in 1950. But cheesecake definitely feels like a dessert that doesn’t—nay, shouldn’t—need to be bathed in hot oil to be great.

Citizens Bank Park (Phillies)

BEST: Federal Donuts chicken sandwich

I know what you’re thinking: Why get a chicken sandwich at a donut stand? Because this particular sandwich is a triumph: fried chicken on a soft and buttery Martin’s potato roll with pickles, cheese and a spicy sauce that packs a true kick. And hey, you can get a donut to go with it.

WEIRDEST: Wayback Triple Triple Burger

Nine—count ‘em, nine—beef patties make up this leaning tower of meat available at the Wayback Burger stand. Topped with cheese, lettuce and tomato, it’s a whopping 2,200 calories—an entire daily allotment, if you can take it all down.

Nationals Park (Nationals)

BEST: Ben’s Chili Bowl original half smoke

An iconic D.C. hot dog is as good as it gets at Nationals Park. It’s a half-pork, half-beef sausage that’s smoked and then served slathered in cheese, onions and chili for a meal that is a total mess but can’t be denied.

Ben's Chili Bowl original half smoke :: Deb Lindsay for the Washington Post/Getty Images

WEIRDEST: Bourbon and cinnamon babka push pop

When you think push pop, you probably don’t imagine a marriage of Jewish pastry and booze. But the folks at On Rye have come up with this wild frozen dessert as a new option for 2017, pairing cinnamon babka with a maple bourbon gelato and a little bit of bourbon.

Wrigley Field (Cubs)

BEST: Chicago-style Hot Dog

There’s no need to do anything fancy or find a special part of the stadium to get Wrigley Field’s No. 1 meal. Just go to any hot dog stand and order a Chicago all-beef frankfurter with everything on it: relish, tomatoes, onions, sport pickles, a dill pickle spear, mustard and celery salt on a poppy seed bun. And while you’re at it, get a second one, too. You’ll be glad you did.

WEIRDEST: Pig Candy BLT

You know what the traditional BLT has always been missing? Sweetness. At least, that’s the bet with the Pig Candy BLT, which adds candied bacon to the mix along with lettuce, tomato, onions and mayo on a brioche bun.

The Pig Candy BLT offered at Wrigley Field / Chicago Cubs

Great American Ball Park (Reds)

BEST: Queen City Hot Ham Sandwich

This is a sweet meat combo that just sounds right. New to Great American Ball Park for 2017, this sandwich named after Cincinnati combines ham, pineapple and a cherry drizzle in an intriguing combination.

WEIRDEST: Cherry Drizzle Chicken Basket

This, however, feels like a step too far, with chicken tenders and funnel cake fries topped with powdered sugar and that aforementioned cherry drizzle. Where does dinner end and dessert begin?

Miller Park (Brewers)

BEST: Bratwurst 

There's nothing very complicated about this pick at all, but for a team that puts out racing sausages every game, there's really no other choice here. 

WEIRDEST: Ham Dinger

A pulled pork sandwich is great on its own! So is a donut! But there's really no need to combine them into one sandwich, which is what Holey Moley Donuts has done here. 

PNC Park (Pirates)

BEST: PrimantiSandwich

Yes, you can go to Pittsburgh standby Primanti Brothers outside of PNC Park, but why pass up a chance to visit it during the game? Get a sandwich stuffed with meat, cheese, fries and coleslaw and be glad you did.

WEIRDEST: Cracker Jack and Mac Dog

Cracker Jack and mac and cheese and jalapenos and caramel sauce on a beef frankfurter” sounds like an escalating prank, or a bet gone horribly wrong, but the Pirates are gambling that you’ll take the plunge. I imagine they care whether or not you come back, though.

Busch Stadium (Cardinals)

BEST: Dinger’s Donuts

On the surface, there’s nothing particularly special about these fried mini donuts, which come with your choice of glaze (vanilla, chocolate or maple) as well as chopped nuts, sprinkles or cinnamon sugar. But the price is the real draw here: You can get 50 of these little bits of doughy goodness served in a helmet for just $15. That’s a deal that can’t be beat.

You can get 50 of these donuts served in a helmet for $15 / St. Louis Cardinals

WEIRDEST: Bacon Wrapped Hot Dog

That doesn’t sound weird at all—until you realize this is no mere dog. Instead, the Cardinals have taken a jumbo hot dog, wrapped it in Applewood smoked bacon, then topped it with baked beans, crispy onions, pico de gallo and spicy aioli. There are a lot of things happening here.

Chase Field (Diamondbacks)

BEST: D-bat Dog

Like corn dogs? You better if you’re going to tackle this gigantic offering from the Taste of Chase stand. Weighing in at 18 inches, is no ordinary corn dog: It’s stuffed with jalapeno, cheddar cheese and bacon, then served on a bed of fries. Buy one and share it with your family—and the family sitting next to you, for that matter.

WEIRDEST: Funnel Cake Chicken Sandwich

Funnel cake is apparently having a moment across MLB parks. Arizona’s addition to the oeuvre is to put fried chicken between two pieces of the carnival sweet bread, along with cheddar cheese and strawberry jam. It’s sweet and salty and birthed from the mind of a madman.

Coors Field (Rockies)

BEST: Colorado Queso Stak

Celebrate Colorado’s rich heritage of green chili by dumping a ton of it all over fries, then covering it with pork carnitas, pico de gallo, jalapenos and sour cream. Yes, this spicy mashup will clear out your sinuses, but your stomach and tastebuds will thank you.

The Rockies offer apple pie nachos / Aramark

WEIRDEST: Apple Pie Nachos

The great American pastime and the quintessential American dessert come together with a Mexican twist. The Rockies have taken apart the apple pie and thrown it onto some cinnamon flavored chips along with whipped cream and caramel, and it even comes with cheese, if you feel like you haven’t gone far enough in defying nature.

Dodger Stadium (Dodgers)

BEST: Elote

One of Mexico’s most popular street foods should be your meal of choice when you go to Dodger Stadium. Your roasted corn on the cob comes with cotija cheese, mayonnaise and chili powder, making it a powerful mix of spicy and funky in perfect quantities.

WEIRDEST: Dodger Burger

Is a hot dog a sandwich? The Dodgers have circumvented that thorny question by creating a sandwich with a hot dog—specifically, slicing up two of their beloved Dodger Dogs and putting them on a beef patty with BBQ sauce, jalapeno poppers and caramelized onions. Hot dog or sandwich, we can all agree that this is one crazy concoction.

A Dodger Burger :: Mark J. Terrill/AP

AT&T Park (Giants)

BEST: Garlic fries

You can get garlic fries at pretty much any ballpark in America, but AT&T Park’s are hands-down the best in the majors. There’s nothing flashy about them: fries covered in minced garlic, olive oil and parsley, perfectly seasoned. Oh, and they come with a breath mint, so no need to worry about offending your friends after you’ve devoured your order.

WEIRDEST: Jerk chicken nachos 

Want something spicy? Like, truly nuclear bomb-level spicy? Then set yourself down in front of these nachos, which come with a heaping pile of jalapenos and slathered in jerk sauce to go with the already red-hot jerk chicken. Our apologies to your tongue and lips.​

Petco Park (Padres)

BEST: Broham Pulled Pork Sandwich

There’s nothing flashy about this one, featured at Phil’s BBQ in Petco Park’s Main Concourse. But it’s hard to argue against that classic combination of pulled pork, homemade BBQ sauce and coleslaw.

WEIRDEST: The Triple Threat

How much pork is too much pork? The Padres will test your limits for pig-related ingestion with this new offering from the Carnitas Snack Shack, combining pulled pork, bacon and schnitzel to create the world’s most efficient cholesterol bomb.

Ranking MLB's Best Hot Dogs 

As ballpark foods go, there’s nothing more quintessential than the hot dog. But the days of a simple frank on a bun being enough for fans are long past over. Now, some of the best hot dogs are monuments to creativity and excess. But that's not to say an understated approach isn't still beloved in certain places. Below, we select our top five from around the league.

1. Chicago Dog (Cubs/White Sox)

Simple is best with this Windy City classic, which you can get at either Wrigley Field or Guaranteed Rate Field. Nothing beats that combo of pickles, sport peppers, relish, mustard, onions, tomato wedges and celery salt on a Grilled Vienna frankfurter in a poppy seed bun.

2. Top Dog (Diamondbacks)

Combining nachos, chili and tater tots is brilliant enough an idea, but it gets even better when you put it on a hot dog like the Diamondbacks did. Nacho cheese, chili, sour cream, tater tots and green onion come together for a massive flavor experience.

3. Cuban Dog (Royals)

Kansas City is pretty far from Havana, but don’t let that keep you from trying this spin on a traditional Cuban sandwich. It features all the staples—pulled pork, ham, swiss cheese, mustard and pickles—on an all-beef dog.

4. Denver Dog (Rockies)

Green chili, cheese and jalapenos on an all-beef frankfurter: What more do you need? This is a spicy one, but it’s a terrific combination of tastes.

5. Dodger Dog (Dodgers)

The Dodger Dog is the king of team-specific stadium dogs, and it keeps its throne despite there being nothing crazy about it: It’s a foot-long frankfurter—no more, no less. But no matter how you top it, it’s still one of MLB’s best hot dogs.