Super Bowl LVIII is just days away with the San Francisco 49ers and Kansas City Chiefs ready to face off in Las Vegas on Feb. 11, and pairing game snacks with the participating teams and host cities is a time-honored tradition. This year we have Kansas City's BBQ acumen squaring off with San Francisco's reputation as being great at all things edible, all sprinkled with a little Vegas glitz.
You have to set the scene, and the color scheme is super easy -- red, white and gold works for both teams.
Kansas City is famous for its barbecue joints, such as Arthur Bryant's, Gates, and Joe's Kansas City Bar-B-Que. Throw what you want on the grill, as long as the weather permits, but why not try Joe's beloved Z-Man Sandwich, which is a favorite of actor Paul Rudd, who lived many years in Kansas. It consists of smoked brisket, provolone cheese, K.C.-style barbecue sauce (sweet and spicy with a molasses base) and onion rings all piled on a Kaiser roll. You can make miniature ones -- easier to grab while focusing on the game -- by using slider or dinner rolls. (Here's an exhaustive video on the history of the sandwich and instructions if you want to make everything from scratch, including the bread.)
There is one other food tradition that is popular in the Midwest – we're talking about the questionable pairing of cinnamon rolls and chili, and we're not going there. But feel free to make a big slow cooker of chili (here's a healthier, turkey-based one), always a Super Bowl favorite.
Choosing a 49ers-inspired dish is trickier because San Francisco is a culinary mecca. Cioppino, a tomato-based seafood stew, is probably its most iconic dish, but we don't want you slaving all day in the kitchen, so we'll go for something a little more simple and party-friendly: garlic fries! It's more associated with the San Francisco Giants than the 49ers, but Niners fans also enjoy them at their stadium.
Easiest way to make them is to heat around a quarter cup of olive oil on the stove over medium heat and stir in 2 tablespoons of minced garlic and cook until the garlic turns golden. Any darker and you'll have really unpleasant burned garlic. Bake or air fry a bag of frozen french fries, and after they're done, brush the garlic-oil mixture over the fries and give them a liberal sprinkling of chopped fresh parsley, salt and grated parmesan cheese. Garlic powder? Will. Not. Do.
And yeah, we're going there: Your Swiftie friends will want to have Chicken Fingers, Taylor's Version -- nuggies served with ketchup and "seemingly ranch."
How are we fitting in the Vegas vibe? The city is known for its high-roller celebrity-chef restaurants, but its casino buffets are iconic. So you're in luck -- Super Bowl spreads are most often served buffet style, so scatter some playing cards and poker chips among your red, white and gold decorations and you're golden.
We hope these ideas have gotten you out of the wings-and-pizza rut (not that there's anything wrong with that), and inspired you to elevate your spread for the clash between the Chiefs and 49ers, airing on CBS and Nickelodeon, and streaming on Paramount+.
