A $100 dollar meal should be served piping hot by a uniformed waiter who remarks as he sets down the dish, “This is an Alaskan Halibut served over seared baby bok choy. Would you like a shaving of truffle?” In the Louisiana Superdome, that $100 meal (including Saints tickets, parking, and large foam finger) is served lukewarm by an inattentive vendor and if you want a topping, go stand in another line for some mustard for that hot dog. Is it a good value? Probably not. Is it one of the city’s best locations for eating? Absolutely.
First and foremost is booze. This season, it’s a necessity, and the signature “Dome Foam” will run you a hefty $7. What’s worse than the price is the fact that beers are poured from individual 16 ounce plastic bottles into plastic cups. I knew Dome Foam and you sir are no Dome Foam. But the excessive cost fades away after your first sip, and to be fair, you can also get Blue Moon in addition to the usual Bud and Coors. At the other end of the alcohol spectrum, a liquor drink costs $8, with a double going for $14. Again, steep, but necessary.
You are bound to work up an appetite while cheering “Who Dat?” and yelling at Falcons fans. Nachos are a stadium food staple, but this season’s stale chips and a peel-top tub of semi-melted cheese does not a nacho make. It’s not enough. In New Orleans, chips must struggle not to go under in a sea of cheese to be considered nachos. A basket of chicken fingers and french fries is a sufficient meal when you catch them fresh out of the fryer, and the classic hot dog slathered with mustard is the most consistent item in the Dome.
And this year there are more exotic options: Triple B’s bland jambalaya and alligator sausage, smoked turkey legs the size of your forearm, Ground Pat’i and Cheeburger Cheeburger’s freshly cooked alternatives to Aramark’s burgers, and the loaded baked potatoes offers pretty good value. Fans in the Club Level have more of a variety of vendors and food choices, but the real fans don’t sit there.
