Home to Toronto FC and the Toronto Argonauts, people go to Toronto’s BMO Field for some action. But, almost as important as the game itself are the snacks you load up on right before you’re ready to watch. BMO Field just revealed the holy grail of snack menus to dig into as soon as sports seasons are back up and running. While we impatiently await the return of sports let the anticipation build with these killer game day eats.
“What we’ve realized is that few people want ‘healthy’ when visiting the stadium,” said Chef Chris Zielinski, MLSE culinary director and executive chef, at a menu preview for the seven new food items available this year at BMO Field.
Instead, guests will find a comforting, calorie-packed assortment of new, spot-hitting stadium grub to eat when they cheer on TFC or the Toronto Argonauts. These fresh menu features diet-breaking items that one may only consume at the game, from fully topped tater tots and foot-long hotdogs, to elevated cheese curd packed poutine.
If you can already imagine mowing down on said items with a beer in-hand, well, that’s the whole point. “Pretty much everything we do goes well with beer – whether you’re on the Argos side or the TFC side,” said Chef Zielinski. He says that most of the menu items feature the comfort of familiar flavours, but are “presented in a different style.”
Here’s a look at this year’s new additions…
The Foot-Long Buffalo Blue Cheese Corn Dog
This indulgent Foot-Long Corn Dog is topped with Buffalo sauce, crumbled blue cheese, buttermilk ranch, and scallions.
Nashville Hot Chicken Sandwich
The crispy chicken in the highly addictive Nashville Chicken Sandwich (my personal favourite) is marinated in buttermilk, dipped in Nashville hot chili oil, and topped with kosher dill pickles and coleslaw.
Jerk Chicken Poutine
Taking the poutine game up a notch, these fresh-cut fries are topped with house-made jerk spiced chicken, aged gouda, Quebec cheese curds, scallions, and jerk gravy.
Braised Beef Poutine
The hearty Braised Beef Poutine features house braised brisket, aged cheddar and Quebec cheese curds, caramelized onion, roasted garlic aioli, and crispy fried onions.
Classic Chicago Dog
Moving well beyond your backyard hotdog, the foot-long Classic Chicago Dog is made with Nathan’s beef and complete with all the fixings, like kosher dill pickles, fresh sliced tomato, diced onion, mustard, relish, celery salt, and spicy pepperoncini peppers.
Chili Cheese Tots
These flavour-packed and crispy tater tots are topped with housemade chili, aged cheddar, avocado crema, and scallions.
Braised Beef Grilled Cheese
This gooey and comforting grilled cheese fills butter-toasted Hawaiian bread with slow braised brisket, caramelized onions, emmental, and three-year-old cheddar.
Ensuring that no second of the game is missed – and helping in the hangry-avoidance department – mobile ordering is also a new addition this year. Fans can order these items and others right to their seats through the “In-Seat Delivery” app. “It’s as simple as typing in your section, row, and seat, then a full menu pops up that also has a very robust drink selection with beer, mixed drinks, and wines,” said Dustin Smith, MLSE senior food manager. “You can avoid the lines at half-time and really just be here for the game.”
The menu reveal came just days before the TFC home opener on March 7. In other TFC-related news, the TFC 2020 Unity Kit was unveiled last month at New York Fashion Week, and the home opener is the first time the team will sport it. In a subtle nod to 28 surrounding cities and regions within the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), the jersey’s jock tag includes inscriptions of all cities and regions names, which are visible under “ALL FOR ONE” – the football club’s motto.
Fans can purchase the jersey at the Real Sports Apparel store, online, or at the in-stadium kiosks at BMO Field on game day – along with all the aforementioned gourmet grub, of course.
