The 2023 baseball season is in the final stretch, and no one’s more excited for the fall season than fans of the Houston Astros. As Alex Bregman and Lance McCullers Jr. and the rest of the team finish up the season in full swing, fans will continue flocking to the stadium with hopes that Astros will make it to yet another World Series. And since baseball works up an appetite, they’ll undoubtedly be looking for some peanuts, Cracker Jacks, and more delicious game-day eats to fuel their cheers for the home team.
Thankfully, Minute Maid Park periodically unveils new dishes for the upcoming season and has made some changes this year to ensure that the stadium is a bounty of excellent and convenient dining options. With 54 permanent food and beverage locations and 69 portable concession and bars, deciding what to eat (and where to find it) is no simple feat.
Here’s a guide on what’s new and what to look out for at Minute Maid Park this baseball season:
:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24543364/Meatball_Sub.jpg)
What’s new
- Bangers and Mash: The British dish known as bangers and mash gets sandwiched in this unique and hearty fall stadium addition, which features grilled sausage, cheese, and mashed sweet potatoes, topped with crispy onion strings and jalapeno, served on a bun. (Section 231)
- Maven Coffee & Cocktails: Astros’ own Lance McCullers Jr. opened the first brick-and-mortar of his coffee and cocktails bar inside the stadium, which sells coffee drinks and made-to-order alcoholic beverages, like the LMJ Ranch Water, a mixture of Lalo Blanco tequila, lime, orange, and mineral water with a Tajin rim. A portion of the proceeds benefit the Astros Foundation and an additional charity each month, according to a Chron.com report.
- La Stella Trattoria, an Italian vendor, will dish out belly-busting handhelds like the made-from-scratch meatball sub, an Italian sausage sub, and a hearty chicken parm sub. (Section 420)
- Micheladas Cart will allow guests to quench their thirst with micheladas in tajin-rimmed glasses, in flavors like watermelon, mango, and spicy mix. Beyond micheladas, the stand will offer freshly cut fruit topped with chamoy, tajin, and chamoy gummies. (Section 129)
- Peaux Boys will sling breaded catfish and shrimp po-boys, along with Cajun fries — French Fries tossed in Breggy Bomb Cajun Seasoning and served with Cajun aioli. (Section 410)
:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24543386/Fried_Catfish_Sandwich.jpg)
- Kuesadilla is shelling out cheese, chicken, and beef fajita-stuffed quesadillas. (Section 132)
- Known for its variety of fast-casual Italian eats, Osso & Kristalla will offer Calabrese chicken wings with Calabrese remoulade, blue agave sriracha chicken wings, and a jalapeño sausage dog with fries. (Section 226)
- Creamery will offer a sweet pretzel, tossed in cinnamon sugar. (Sections 106, 153, 219, 411, and 429)
:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24543175/Cinnamon_Sugar_Pretzel.jpg)
- El Tiempo Margarita Express brings the popular beverage to the left-center field with its new location. Here, visitors will find El Tiempos batch margaritas made with Hornitos tequila. (Section 109)
- Gentle Ben Bar puts the spotlight on its enhanced craft vodka with frozen cocktail offerings like the Blue Hawaiian and peach-mango. (Section 106)
- Elote and Pupusas offers its namesake dish, elote with Yellowbird blue agave sriracha, Texas beef empanadas, and Yellowbird-sauced wings. Living up to its moniker, the stand offers elote and cheese, pork, and cheese pupusas with your choice of compliments, including red salsa, a curtido relish, and chicharrones. While you’re there, be sure to cool down with a frozen paleta or indulge in its chocolate sea salt cookies (Section 124).
- The stadium is also getting more tech-savvy. UberEats has been added to select stands in the building, including H-Town Grille (Section 109), Home and Away stands (Sections 113 and 129), Pluckers (Section 156), Osso & Kristalla (Section 226), Fastball Foods (Section 416), and Killen’s BBQ (Section 433). Visitors may place orders directly in the Uber app and pick up their food after receiving a notification that it’s ready.
Where else to eat inside Minute Maid Park
El Tiempo will continue to serve up frozen margaritas alongside classic fajita beef, chicken, and carnitas this season on the Mezzanine Level. It is also the place to find the ballpark’s only on-site homemade tortillas.
Barbecue abounds at the Butcher (Section 116 and 124), which cooks up carved barbecue sandwiches, 18-hour smoked brisket, loaded baked potatoes, and other carved meats with classic cold sides. Battered Up (Section 116) puts forth classic fried foods like chicken tenders and corn dogs, while Killen’s Barbecue, a Houston barbecue staple, will offer its Southern-style ‘cue (Section 433).
:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24543347/Stuffed_Baked_Potatoe.jpg)
Take advantage of Shake Shack’s in-stadium location and order a signature burger, a hot dog, or custard (Section 157). Vegetarian? H-Town Grill offers a slammin’ Beyond Meat burger (Sections 109, 125, and 308).
If you’re going for more traditional game-day eats — think foot-long and regular-sized hot dogs, personal pizzas, and smoked sausage — visit the Club Grill (Section 213), which has all of that.
Where to find margaritas, beer, wine, and more booze
One of Houston’s favorite breweries, St. Arnolds Bar, brings its seasonal favorites to Minute Maid in a beer garden-like setting (Section 104). Karbach Brewing is also in the building, with several of its beers on draft at its “destination bar” with views of downtown (Section 405), and its Love Street Bar, which offers cocktails, sodas, bottled wine, snacks, and signature beers (Section 119).
At the 19th Hole, (Sections 156), find a large selection of seltzers, craft beers, game-day snacks, candy, and the largest wine selection in Major League Baseball, with special offerings like Veuve Cliquot, Decoy Cabernet, and Aperture Variolites.
Also on the club level, find the Wine Bar (Section 224) serving up frosé, bubbly wines, and other offerings. If whiskey is your preference, visit the full-service Jim Beam Bar for top-shelf brands and craft beers (Section 205). Tequila lovers will enjoy Hornitos Tequila Bar on the Mezzanine, which features beer, cocktails, and unique tequila, including El Tiempo’s popular margarita on the rocks.
:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24543388/Funnel_Cake_Fries_.jpg)
Where to satisfy your sweet tooth
If you’re craving a cold and sweet concoction to cool down, Cookies and Creamery promises ice cream sundaes, ice cream sandwiches, fresh-baked cookies, and hand-dipped waffle cones. (Section 219 & 226). You can also find ice cream offerings in Sections 106, 128, 153, 251, 411, and 429.
Is deep-fried your jam? Battered-Up serves up fried foods, including funnel cakes, deep-fried Reese’s, and deep-fried bread pudding. (Section 116)