I avoided eating a Dodger Dog last season out of fear that doing so would cause The Astronomer’s beloved St. Louis Cardinals to lose to the Los Angeles Dodgers. After the Dodgers swept the Cards in the Division Series with me consuming only team-neutral concessions, I vowed to eat whatever my heart desired the following season. Superstitions be damned.
We returned to the ballpark last week to witness some regular season play between the Dodgers and the Cards. With the sun slowly setting in the distance and cheery fans sporting their brilliant Dodger blue, my appetite was piqued for greasy stadium fare.
During the first inning, The Astronomer and I shared an order of Gordon Biersch garlic fries ($5.75). What makes these spuds super special is the abundance of minced garlic and parsley bits coating each shoestring. Every bite delivers an intense garlicky hit that’s dreadful for one’s breath, but oh so good for one’s soul. I’m not much of a sports fan, but I will gladly tag along to any event where these fries are served.
Sometime around the fifth inning, after the memory of the garlic fries had faded, we made a run for wieners. The Astronomer went with a traditional Dodger Dog ($5) because he’s not the least bit superstitious. Measuring over ten inches in length, the frankfurter extended quite a bit further than the bun. The Astronomer dressed it up with ketchup and onions.
The Dodger Dog tasted as expected—unspectacular, but more than satisfactory. The Astronomer appreciated that the dog was grilled, but felt that the bun was too hefty for such a skinny wiener. I agreed with him on both fronts.
I took a walk on the spicy side and ordered a Picante Dog ($5.75). My dog wasn’t as long and lean as a Dodger Dog, but what it lacked in length, it more than made up in girth. As a result, the ratio of meat to bun was more to my liking. The flavor of the Picante Dog was legitimately fiery. In fact, I had to take a few deep breaths in between bites for the burning to subside. I’d definitely order this puppy again.
Even though I sometimes root against his team and am far more interested in eating at the game than watching it, I hope that The Astronomer continues to take me out to the ball game until we’re old and gray.
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Dodger Stadium
Los Angeles, CA 90012
Phone: 323-224-1500
Nice post….
Ketchup on a hot dog? There is little worse on Planet Earth.
such a cute post!
those fries make me sick every time i eat them, but your photo makes me crave them anyway.
Now I know why “my” Cardinals got swept in LA for the first time since ’88!
Fress – Ketchup belongs on a hot dog! Been eating them that way ever since grandma fried ’em up when I was a kid 😉
Marc – I told The Astronomer not to eat a Dodger Dog, but he wouldn’t listen!
awww…that last pic and last line was soooo cute.
I have a feeling the girth and spice of the picante dog would take me down. But those garlic fries I could certainly manhandle. Oh yes I could!
Go Dodgers! And I always love them garlic fries.
I’ve never encountered good food at sports venue! Even at the fancier (I thought) Canadian Tennis Open! Those fries look yummy!
I’m all about Camacho’s nachos, myself. The grilled dogs are definitely better than the regular.
Long wieners and geriatric love. Thank god for baseball!
loooooove the garlic fries… i always, alwaysss get the fries there… (i skip the dodger dog most of the times) 🙂 btw, i love the dodgers!! love our boys in blue!!
FUN!!!! You should watch my video. I went to a Dodger game with Tyler Florence and he made us a grape salsa for our Dodger Dogs! GREG
(posted with humour tines pointed out) Garlic Fries at PG&E Park are pretty ridiculously awesome. As are the loverly local beer offerings on tap. Anchor Steam? Yay!
As a Cardinals fan, I appreciate your efforts. 🙂 And I totally buy the idea of food superstition in sports. My boyfriend, while a rabid Cardinals fan, loves Old Style beer, but he refuses to buy it during baseball season because he doesn’t want to give the few snotty Cubs fans in St. Louis anything to hang their hat on.
I would also like to point out that we have nothing nearly so awesome as garlic fries at Busch Stadium, so you Dodger fans may very well win. I’m neutral toward the Dodgers, actually, so I might try making those. Just minced garlic, parsley, and magic, right?
Garlic fries sound like they’d hit the spot right about now, they look tremendous.
Mary – Wish we had toasted raviolis at Dodger Stadium! Now, that would be awesome! And yes, garlic, parsley, magic, and a bucket of oil.
Garlic fries and dodger dogs. I haven’t been to a dodger game in ages!!!!!
mmmm garlic fries… but go GIANTS!
Great post. I can almost smell the dogs, fries and beer at the ball park!