Target Field Food: What to Eat at a Twins Game 2018

This is the year we broke. We got judgey. We couldn't do another media preview day, with all the quietly cooked food sitting on little perfect square plates, in dainty little food-writer bite sizes. We wanted the chaos, the real paper boats and frozen-middle bites that we all get when it's gameday. How can we tell you what's worth your money or your time when we're being lobbed softballs? Give us a line drive, and let us take a swing.

So we joined the free-sweatshirt frenzy and hit the ballpark for the home opener in search of all the new foods. Here's our Get It / Skip It / Your Call guide that you can use all season long!

New Foods at Bat & Barrel

Here's the thing: the lionshare of the new foods this year are in Bat & Barrel, which somehow didn't really get explained too well in preview. This is a full-service restaurant. It has taken the place of the Metropolitan Club, which used to be for season ticket holders only, but is now open to everyone. There are two bar areas, and communal tables, along with some booth and lounge seating. The bar seats and lounge are first-come-first-serve, but the tables are reservable (by season ticket holders). When we walked in, there were a sea of "RESERVED" signs—all the tables were booked. Lounge seating and bar stools were snapped up, and standing at and around the bar/tables was how most people ended up experiencing the new place. Some things are available at a grab-n-go section in the corner, which is like a cafeteria line.

While the whole place is technically new to the general population, plenty of others have seen the club food before. So, we stuck to the newbie list as it was given to us. But Bat & Barrel has a whole full menu, with wings and pretzels and salads, like any other tavern up the road.

CAVEAT: We nabbed some seats in the corner and watched the chaos. We are very aware that it was a Day One for these servers and bartenders, whose whole joint filled up with hundreds of humans in a manner of minutes, so we cut slack. ...Not for nothing, that last pic in the slideshow above is of our spontaneous tasting crew at Bat & Barrel. Great fans and good folks who shared our food and their own opinions, god love 'em.

Murray's

Blue cheese-crusted, bacon-wrapped tenderloin, $59

Steph March: Skip it. The execution on this was rough (that blue cheese was just tossed on top), but the steak itself was beautiful. I don't normally go for bacon/blue cheesing on my tenderloins, but then again, I don't normally go for steak at my ballgames. Not one human around us could believe we ordered that.

Drew Wood: Skip it. Not to say that you would have gone to a Twins game and ordered a $60 steak, but had you have been that person, you would have been disappointed. Like any true Murray's steak, this one was cuttable with a butterknife. Unlike any true Murray's steak, it wasn't prepared in the kitchen at Murray's and you could tell—the bacon didn't wrap it, the blue cheese didn't crust it, and it just didn't quite deliver on the promise of the price tag. 

Red Rabbit

Chicken Parmesan, $21

SM: Your call. This could be a swell cheap date option, in which you split the Parm and each get a glass of rosé and you're still under $40. I mean, you still have to pay to get in... Bygones.

DW: Your call. So conflicted about this one. It was really, really good. But it was also really, really what you expect to eat for dinner at a dimly-lit Italian restaurant, not during a day game. I will say that at only $21, it's a super solid buy because it's YUGE enough to make a swell meal for two. 

Baja Haus

Pan-seared barramundi, $32

SM: Your call. Man, that's a nice catch. That fish is lovely and soft, and those flavors are bright, and it kicks all sorts of fin over fried fish. But can I eat this and call out things like "Ploooooouuuuuffe" at the same time?

DW: Your call. I think the fish was good and tender and sorta savory (and so did the guy sitting next to us eating walleye fingers who tried it), but I'd be lying if I said I really knew what barramundi was, or that it's something I'll ever eat at a baseball game. 

Tuna poke, $19

SM: Get it. POH-KAY, Drew. I can totally imagine sitting on the patio of this joint in June and popping poké while gazing upon the boys of summer. 

DW: Get it. Did I know how to pronounce "poke" before I tried this or even, honestly, right now? No. Did I really enjoy this effervescent freshness bomb? Yes, yes I did. 

Classic ceviche, $14 (at grab-n-go)

SM: Get it. This one is in the grab-n-go area, so it's a quick snack while you wait for your drinks. I loved the chunky bits and the bright acidity, and there seemed to be plenty jammed in our cup, with a billionaire's worth of avocado. Would horde.

DW: Abstain. Everything that weirded me out about this ceviche were the things that Steph informed me made this ceviche uniquely authentic and very, very good. 

CRAVE

Burger sliders, $10

SM: Skip it. Why are you wasting my time? Dry. No.

DW: Get it. These were succulent little buggers and game with a generous helping of pickles. $10 will spent. 

Hell's Kitchen

Impossible Burger, $16

SM: Get it. I'm a fan of these, and I can't imagine a life without meat. This very popular plant-based patty sears like a dream, and that's its real charm (not the claim to "bleeding" fame, that never seems to happen on mine). We were a little worried that the menu was a bit vague, it just says 'Impossible Buger' without mention that it's not a real burger. The tiny green 'V' in corner of the menu listing might be missed by hungry carnivores.

DW: Get it (if you're into fake meat that really, genuinely tastes and behaves like real meat). I'd heard tell of this wondrous faux burger, but never encountered one prior to this one. And I have to say that—and I cannot believe I'm admitting this—it actually lived up to the hype. I mean, I'd still prefer a real beef burger, but had nobody told me that this wasn't real beef, I might have never known. 

Ike's Tavern

Burger, $14

SM: Get it. You know, it's a giant, sloppy, beefy tavern burger with stuff. You will clearly need a few innings to recover from this, before getting a Kramarczuk's with kraut. (See? I see you.)

DW: Get it. It's basically one of those fancy, cheffy doubles that the Twin Cities have come to love, but with massive patties that can be cooked to temperature, which is my way of saying it's the best of both worlds. And at $14, it is completely on par, if not cheaper, than what you'd pay for the same exact (or lesser) burger at a restaurant. 

Red Cow

Tennessee Hot or MN Nice Chicken, $13

SM: Your call. I agree this one might have had an execution issue for us. It was far too oily to champion, but I could see where it wanted to be. The hot was a nice hot, and that chicken was tender and moist. 

DW: Your call. We got the Tennessee Hot, which wasn't too hot, but was too greasy-tasting. I do think it's possible we just caught a bad break with one that got left in the deep fryer a smidge too long, so I'm not totally giving up on this one. 

Brisket poutine, $13, at the grab-n-go

SM: Your call. Here's what. Make sure you ask for a fresh bowl—some of them are sitting there a bit too long waiting for that special grabber. They were happy to make me a freshy, but I worry that when things REALLY get busy, you might not be given that option so readily. Otherwise: a very tasty, cheesy, beefy mess.

DW: Get it. Red Cow nails poutine in their brick-and-mortars, so it shouldn't be too much of a surprise that they nail it at the ballpark.

Hot Indian

Frittes, $8, at the grab-n-go.

SM: Get it. Le duh.

DW: Get it. Always good. Always. And the sauce is like mind-boggling to me always. It makes everything better. 

Tattersall Distilling

Specialty cocktails, $10–$13

SM: Get it. They tasted a bit like the gun, from whence the soda came, but all-in-all very refreshing drinks. LOVED the whiskey smash, yo. Thought the Bootleg went well with the POH-KAY.

DW: Get it (for the most part). At this point it's not surprising that Tattersall cocktails (even made by someone other than Dan Oskey) are tasty, and for the most part their selection here are as well... Bonus points for the Moscow Mule, which just might be the only beverage in the restaurant that comes in non-disposable cup. 

Drafts at 34

Surly Cut Down IPA, a collaboration with former Twins player Glen Perkins

SM: Get it. After curds, and fries, and cheese sauce of indiscriminate temperatures, we ALL need a Cut Down in our mouths. Sharp and bright, that sipper is.

DW: Get it. My favorite Surly is Todd the Axeman, and Cut Down is like a brother from another mother. 

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New Foods in the Stadium

Holy Land

Section 107

(Pictured from left to right):

Gyro wrap, $11.50

SM: Get it. Why would you ever get a concession stand burger when you can have this gloriously flavored meaty situation?

DW: Get it... But request more tzatziki than we did. 

Pita chips and hummus, $8.50

SM: Skip it. Unless you just reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaallly want hummus right now. 

DW: Your call. It's Holy Land pita chips and hummus, both of which are good things. They're just not quite the things I want to be eating at a game. 

Arabic chicken shawirma wrap, $11.50

SM: Get it. This is maybe my most favorite new bite at the ballpark. There's a cinnamon waft pulling you to it—don't resist. It's a flavor bomb of hearty chicken and spices, punctuated by sharp pickled bits, in an easy-to-eat package. Go.

DW: Get it. You can literally smell this from like three sections away, and it's got a just-spicy-enough flavor profile and uber tender bites. Doesn't disappoint. 

Hot Indian Foods

Section 120

Tofu Vindaloo, $11

SM: Get it. That shit was ON FIRE.

DW: Skip it. This is the first time I've ever thumbs-downed a H.I.F. dish of any kind, but this one was just incredibly over-spiced to the point that any flavor that was present in all those crunchy, fresh ingredients vanished after the first bite. 

Andrew Zimmern's Canteen

Section 114

Rice bowls (chicken or beef), $14.50

SM: Get it. Actually my second-favorite bite. This seemingly simple bowl had so much flavor and texture, working together perfectly. Crunchy chickpeas, tangy tzatziki sauce, and fresh spiced chicken on rice. Balanced. 

DW: Get it. Your eyes do not deceive you. That is indeed as fresh and vibrant as it looked.

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Other stuff we found

Bacon Cheese Curds at Bat & Barrel, in the grab-n-go

SM: Skip it. For cryin-in-the-barn! Can there ever just be a normal-sized and excellently fried curd anymore? What say there, fussybritches?

DW: Get it. I liked these bizarro little savory fellas...Especially when dipped in the sauce from the Hot Indian Foods pomme frites. 

Kramarczuk's Cheesey, $9

SM: Get it. Not really sure that this is new, but damn, it's delicious. It's your basic cheddarwurst, and it goes with baseball like it's wearing matching satin bar jackets.

DW: GET IT! They've taken what's already my Target Field must-get, Kramarczuk's, and injected molten cheese into it? For me at least, that fact renders the rest of this list moot. 

Hrbeks Bloody Mary, $23

SM: People actually buy these. I saw them. (The newest version is only available on Sundays, and it adds a breakfast sandwich to the tower.)

DW: Hahahahahahahaha. 

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