Take Me Out to the Ballgame!

Buy me some peanuts and crackerjacks...and fresh fruit?  It's officially baseball season again, and as the New York Yankees begin their quest for the 28th World Championship, I figured I'd weigh in on the food options available to fans at Yankee Stadium.  To my pleasant surprise, the stadium has introduced Melissa's Farmer's Market, offering fresh fruits and vegetables including apples, pears, bananas and carrots!  They costs a little more than at most NYC fruit stands, but cheap in comparison to the other food options (especially when it comes to the nutritional bang for your buck!).



Melissa's Farmers Market, Yankee Stadium

 In addition to fruits and vegetables, Yankee Stadium provides hungry patrons with an incredibly wide range of food choices.  The stadium boasts a family friendly Hard Rock Cafe, upscale dining at NYY Steak, and a plethora of concession stand options.  At $5 for one hot dog or a slice of pizza, you will be paying the price with both your wallet and waistline.  Due to New York City regulations, calorie counts are listed for all foods sold at the stadium, but as studies have shown, this often does not impact the choices people make.  (Refer to this NYTimes article.)

Here are just some of the many food options and their calorie counts:

NY Pretzel-630 calories
Nathan's Hot Dog-320 calories
Nathan's Crinkle Cut Fries-1236 calories
Nachos-1410 calories
NYY Popcorn Tub-2473 calories
Ice Cream Helmet-550-590 calories
Souvenir Cup Budweiser-290 calories

While I won't argue that hot dogs and baseball go hand in hand, keep in mind you can still make smart choices and stay nutritionally balanced.  Also, most stadiums will let you bring your own healthy snacks like trail mix or granola bars.  So head out to a game and feel confident about your food choices! And ROOT, ROOT, ROOT for the YANKEES! :)