Let’s play ball! The Toronto Blue Jays are finally home, and we’re celebrating with traditional stadium foods

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Hold on! Baseball season is finally here, and not too soon, with Canada’s beloved Toronto Blue Jays playing their home opener on Friday, taking on the Texas Rangers for a night performance at Toronto’s Roger’s Center that has everyone gasping. in advance.

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And why not? It’s been a long, drawn out two seasons for the Blue Jays — and other teams — playing away from home as the world grappled with the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Well, the boys of summer are back in town and they can’t wait to play ball!

The excitement among the fans is palpable as everyone prepares to stand for hymns, sit for sustenance and pray for a lift. Because there really is nothing more basic than the game of baseball, especially with the arrival of warm weather and that special buzz in the air from the proverbial field of fantasy dreams that comes to us every spring.

Toronto sure is ready, especially with the offer of free TTC streetcar rides from 5:30am to 11:30am courtesy of Polar Ice, the team’s official Canadian vodka. And the streetcars bring back so many memories of that first game played in Toronto on April 7, 1977. The Toronto Blue Jays were playing the Chicago White Sox at the city’s Exhibition Stadium, and the field was covered in snow before first pitch. was released. And yes, it was a nine-to-five win for the Blue Jays!

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The games whet everyone’s appetite, especially when sitting in the sun. Hotdogs were the favorite treat, produced in large numbers at the time, steamed, wrapped and ready to go, along with the obligatory popcorn and peanuts. Beer was just a dream at the time, but it was introduced a few years after the games started.

And while the menu seemed very humble at the time, it was a reflection of everything the game stood for: solid, stick-to-the-ribs food that tasted heavenly when devoured in the open breeze. It was just euphoric.

Today’s Blue Jay fans have an incredible variety of treats to choose from, including the inclusion of Mary Brown’s Chicken for the first time. As for the hotdogs, you can order them field-roasted, grilled, gluten-free, even Coney Island-style kosher. You’ve got the long foot and your loaded cheeseburger dog and something called “Schneiders Stadium Hot Dog” which isn’t available on Tuesdays.

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And, along with the chips, peanuts, crackers, and ice cream, you can also order a Bavarian pretzel, because it wouldn’t be a baseball game without a pretzel in hand.

Considering bagging it? Rogers Center has an excellent food and beverage policy that allows guests to bring outside food into the stadium “as long as the items are wrapped, bagged, or left inside a container to prevent spills. Food containers must comply with the bag policy and must have soft sides and be small enough to fit under a guest’s seat,” according to a recent press release. In addition, plastic bottles and/or cans with a capacity of 600 ml or less and non-alcoholic beverages will also be allowed; You are not allowed to bring your own alcohol, as is any edible cannabis product.

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Are hotdogs the most popular snack in stadiums?

Well, let’s put it this way: Baseball without hotdogs is like Romeo without Juliet or Babe without Ruth.

Research shows that hot dogs (francs, red hots, wiener dogs) were first sold at baseball games in 1893, and continue to be the favorite food of fans in ballparks, with a long and illustrious association that has Transcended game story: Never mind what’s in the mystery stuffing. Or if we want our dog neat, grilled, steamed, dipped in a million ingredients or, in some cases, injected with a quick shot of Jack Daniels.

The reality is that the humble hot dog is undoubtedly a beloved national institution in the sports world, with millions consumed before the season is over. Many see the hot dog as an emotional link to the game, as a family heirloom passed down from generation to generation.

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“The perfect hot dog is a classic baseball tradition,” executive chef David Burns told the National Hot Dog & Sausage Council website (hot-dog.org), in a previous interview. “The hot dog is ultimately customizable, so it appeals to a wide range of fans.”

“The hot dog is celebrated not just as a fun meal, but as an introduction to how Americans think about themselves,” write authors Bruce Kraig and Patty Carroll in the excellent A man bites a dog: America’s hot dog culture (Altamira Press). “Everyone knows that hot dogs have always been the quintessential public gastronomic delight.”

DID YOU KNOW:

* Children prefer hot dogs (first choice) to hamburgers (second choice) and ice cream.

* The average hot dog is consumed in 6.1 bites. (medium size mouth tested)

* Mustard remains the most popular hot dog topping – 88% of hot dog eaters use mustard.

* Babe Ruth once ate 12 hot dogs and drank eight bottles of soda between games of a doubleheader. He was reportedly rushed to the hospital after the game with a bad case of indigestion.

— weird facts.com