SAN DIEGO -- The 2016 Major League Baseball All-Star Game is coming Tuesday from San Diego's beautiful Petco Park, which means several days of fun for the locals. The firm beginning is probably the Futures Game on Sunday night. In front of that, CBS Sports baseball scribes Matt Snyder and Dayn Perry got the chance to sample some of the best food in the ballpark, thanks to Delaware North and chef Carlos Vargas.
Let's take a run through what could best be described as ballpark food that is totally on another level from what traditional ballpark fare once was. But first, a cocktail.
That's the Michelada, garnished with two fresh, jumbo shrimp, a lime and a habanero pepper. Why a habanero? Chef Carlos says when people start to drink and possibly get a little crazy, he likes to envision people daring each other to take a bite of the hot pepper. In the cup? Estrella beer, clamato juice, lime juice and tajin spice. This drink is available in the Members Lounge.
It's good, if you like a Bloody Mary. Spicy and similar with a bit more character than your run-of-the-mill Bloody Mary.
Next up, the #Hashtag Dog, from the Budweiser cart in section 112.
That's a hot dog deep fried in tempura batter with shredded potato. It's on a bed of chili and has special sauce. It might sound outrageous, but it's outrageous in a good way. Correspondent Snyder couldn't put it down.
Let's get some tri-tip, shall we?
On top is the Burgundy Cardiff Tri Tip sandwich, which can be found in the Seaside Market. It's sliced beef tri tip with barbecue sauce. The meat is unbelievably tender, and feels like it's almost melting in your mouth. It also occupied much of correspondent Snyder's time.
Below that would be the tri tip nachos with Diego queso, Bud Lime braised chipotle chicken, pico de gallo, cotija cheese and sour cream. It's available in The Loft.
Picture Ron Burgundy saying the name of this next one, available at Board and Brew.
That's the San Diegan. It's turkey, bacon, lettuce, tomato, mayo and an excellent avocado spread. The special sauce has a wonderful sweet heat to it, too.
How about a San Diego-like spin on a Banh Mi? They've got it at The Loft.
The Brisket and Smoked Bacon Bahn Mi has shaved brisket, slab bacon, pickled carrot, daikon, cucumber slaw, jalapeno aioli and cilantro. And finally, the BBQ Broham:
That's pulled pork in barbecue sauce with cole slaw on it, along with fresh cut fries. A very good option that can be found at Phil's BBQ in several different areas of Petco Park.
Snyder's power rankings on the above good items:
1. Tri tip sandwich
2. Hashtag Dog
3. Tri tip nachos
4. Banh Mi
5. San Diegan
6. BBQ Broham
Now onto Dayn Perry on the Pescetarian options ...
OK, Chef Carlos treated us to three seafood items. With all three, the freshness of the fish was remarkable. I live in Chicago, and while Chicago does a great job with its seafood by the standards of interior cities, there's no comparison to to the fresh taste of a coastal city. Nothing beats the taste of fresh-caught Pacific seafood, in this scribe's opinion.
First up, an interesting pairing ...
This was the dish that really featured that freshness via the raw tuna. This was just an outstanding dish. The sesame ahi tuna tasted great when combined with the avocado and sriracha aioli, pico, and pickled red onions. Team this up with summer weather and one of San Diego's many beers, and you've got a great dish. Chef Carlos says he has an allergy that prevents him from eating avocado, which makes the conception of this dish even more impressive. Delicious.
Up next ...
Pictured above: soy miso glazed local Yellowtail, baby bok choy with rainbow carrots, roasted garlic polenta fries, red curry crema.
Yep, another hit. I'll repeat myself and again say that the freshness of the fish is one of the stars. The sweetness of the glaze worked very well, as did the complementary flavors of the bok choy and root vegetables. As much as I loved the piece of fish, though, the garlic polenta fries really stood out. Could I eat a bucket of them? Yea, verily: I could eat a bucket of them.
And finally ...
If your prior experience with fish tacos has been limited to tilapia, man, you're missing out. Mahi mahi has a mild flavor, but it's a meatier taste that, in my opinion, works much better in the taco setting than tilapia does. Anyway, this was another excellent dish by Chef Carlos. I love shredded cabbage as taco filling, and the Mateo's spread and Rimel's green sauce was the perfect touch. As always, tacos belong in soft corn tortillas and nothing else.
So let's rank 'em ...
1. Ahi tuna poke stuffed avocado
2. Mahi mahi tacos
3. Catch of the day
In all, this isn't just some PR spin. The food was insanely good and probably the best ballpark food in America.
The before picture:
And the after:
Continue to enjoy your ballpark, San Diegans. The food is top notch.
