When the Minnesota Golden Gophers kick off the 2026 season at Huntington Bank Stadium on Thursday night, there will be several new foods awaiting the influx of Gophers fans to give them a shot. Minnesota’s food and beverage partners with Aramark Sports & Entertainment have come up with several new food items for fans to try ranging from new partners serving sushi and new salads and healthier fare to an influx of new food items featuring Austin, Minnesota’s own SPAM. We here TDG along with other members
of the media got a sneak peek at several of the new foods last Friday and we are here to give our honest opinions on what you can try for the first time on Thursday night. There is the usual disclaimer that some of these items may be better or worse depending on when you get them—of course things immediately out of the fryer will be better than if that sat under a heat lamp for a bit, etc. But in general, here is what we think of the new food items.
The Best of the Best:
Dill Dry Rub Chicken Wings: 9.75/10— Suites Only
We unfortunately start with a bit of a tease as these wins were ELITE. The dill dry rub was absolutely fantastic, and even at a tasting where they sat around for a bit the skin was crispy and had a great bite. Alas, these will only be available if you are a high roller in one of the suites this season. But these might be a reason to get a bunch of friends together and get one for a game. Only slightly kidding.
Asian Street Tots: 9.5/10 Club Cambria
Another one that unfortunately is not available to the entire stadium, but these were great. Fresh tater tots topped with a gochujang BBQ glaze, crispy chicken, kewpie mayo, picked red onion, napa slaw and green onions. The flavors were perfect together, there was a slight bit of heat, but just the right amount, and I could house a plate of those without blinking.
Buffalo Chicken Egg Rolls: 9/10 Club Cambria and Section 103
The first item us commoners can get in the main seating bowl, but also available up in Club Cambria. These were delicious, crisp outside, good buffalo flavor but not too hot sauced chicken inside. Dangerously poppable. Probably not a full meal but a good snack.
Bee’s Knees Sausage Link: 9/10 Links Sections 109, 140
You may remember a version of the Bee’s Knees sausage from last season—that one was sliced and on a bun with a beer cheese sauce and other additions. It was good but messy. This one is a much better version and easier to eat. This is a sausage only available at Huntington Bank Stadium made by Hormel that is an italian sausage and infused with hot honey. It has a moderate kick—but not much more than Minnesota spicy. The favor is intense and is really well rounded. It’s topped with peppers and onions which also accompany it perfectly. Definately a winner in the sausage category.
The Really Good and Still Recommended
Bourbon Chicken Sandwich: 8.5/10 Goldy’s Grill Sec 105, 131
This was a really good sandwich. Nice brioche bun, we had the grilled version which was a nice breast fillet, great bourbon glaze and the asian slaw was a perfect addition. With Chick-Fil-A not returning this season, this should fit your chicken sandwich needs really well.
SPAM Corn Dog: 8.5/10 Curds & Cakes Sect 123 & West Plaza
Yes, really. It was your classic corn dog, but the SPAM sausage just worked. Maybe the name will turn some off, but it shouldn’t. This was a really good version of a corn dog and one I’ll definitely seek out at least once this season.
SPAM Fries 8.5/10 Club Cambria
Thin strips of SPAM are breaded and fried, served with a spicy maple aioli. Again, if nobody had told you that was SPAM, you would have no idea. It was flavorful and crispy and the aioli cut some of the richness well.
Churro Fry Sundae: 8/10 Scoop’d Section 117
These are thin, fry-like mini churros in cinnamon sugar topped with ice cream and a chocolate drizzle. At the tasting we were only provided the churros drizzled in chocolate sauce but they were crisp and tasted great. Adding the ice cream might get a little messy, but it definitely won’t hurt the taste at all.
Original Fried Chicken: 7.75/10 West Plaza
A new vender to Huntington Bank Stadium, but one that should be very familiar to Minnesota professional sports fans, Official Friend Chicken will be on the West Plaza this season. They will be serving chicken tenders and fries. This is one of those if you catch them fresh out of the frier, then you might add a point to this grade. At the tasting the chicken strips were under a heat lamp and had a bit of their crunchiness. The flavor was still good though. The scoop like fries are a game changer though. They were really tasty and perfectly shaped to scoop up any continued you prefer.
Salads & Sides 7.5/10 Section 127
Another new vender to Huntington Bank Stadium, Salads & Sides looks to provide some healthier options to Gophers fans. For the tasting they had their Cowboy Caviar and an asian noodle salad. Both were good, nothing earth shattering but a good healthier option if you are sick of sausages or fried food. They will also have smaller appetizer like snacks for sale including fruit and veggies with dip, chicken bites, and pickle bites. Perfect for you protein maxxing bros.
The Game Day Burger: 7.5/10 Premium Areas
A burger served in the premium areas with fontina cheese, bacon, crispy onions, a nice slice of tomato, and tangy burger sauce. It was a decent burger. Again only available in premium areas. Grill your own at your tailgate normal fans.
The Rest of the List
Minni Joes: 7/10 Sandwich Cart-Sect 142
These were sloppy joes sliders with American cheese, pickles and a bistro sauce. They were fine. If you really like a sloppy joe, its worth a shot. Not earth shattering, but not bad.
Sushi Flip: 7/10 Uffda Section 143 and Club Cambria
The coolest thing about this item is the little “push pop” contraction that the sushi is served in and how you get it out to eat it. It’s a gimick, but it’s a a fun one. They will serve two kinds of sushi—a Spammer roll with rice, seaweed, sesame seeds, SPAM eel sauce and tempura flakes and a Chicken Teriyaki roll with rice, seaweed, sesame seeds, grilled chicken, cucumber shredded carrots and a teriyaki sauce.
I liked the chicken one best, but am not a sushi connoisseur in any form. Its definitely something different.
Black Bean Burger: 6.5/10 Hall of Favs Section 110, 139
It’s veggie burger. But it actually was a pretty flavorful one. So if that’s your burger of choice I think you will enjoy it. But just from an overall omnivore, I’ll always take the meat burger over the veggie one. Well….hold that thought for a few more foods.
Chicken Caprese Sandwich 6/10 Goldy’s Grill Sec 105
Could definitely be one of those times that the tasting did not match up with the actual item, but this was not amazing. The bun overwhelmed the chicken, and the small piece of fresh mozzarella was indifferent to the taste. The bourbon chicken sandwich was significantly superior.
SPAM Stadium Dog: 6/10 Sizzle Section 135
It’s a hot dog made out of SPAM. It was fine. Honestly not very different from your classic hot dog. But it was just a plain dog. The corn dog was much superior.
Kimchi Dog: 5.5/10 Links—Section 109 and 140
It’s a hot dog with kimchi and gochujang sauce on it. I didn’t think the slimy kimchi went well on top of the dog. If you like both flavor profiles you might be higher on it than me, but in my opinion it did not work.
Smash Burger Tacos 5/10 Goldy’s Grill Section 131
This just did not work. Awkward to eat, the tortilla shell was either soggy hard shell or a heat lamp baked and crisped soft shell and regardless had zero structural integrity. I get the concept, but this was not well done.
BONUS ITEM:
North Star Apple Crisp Ice Cream 8.75/10
This ice cream was created by CFANS (College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences) in celebration of the University of Minnesota’s 175th anniversary. It is a creamy vanilla base with apples, oat crumble, and a swirl of Minnesota-grown aronia berries. It will be available in the stadium while supplies last, which is not anticipated to be the full season. It’s unclean exactly where it wil be available—but seek it out. It was delicious.
Other Odds and Ends:
Two other new concession partners this season include Papa Pete’s Mini Donuts taking over that niche. They also sell at multiple of the Twin Cities pro sports venues. Additionally Cold Stone Creamery will be available in Sections 121 and 131. Additionally a new MN Snack Mix will be sold in Premium Sections and in the Hall of Faves in Section 110 and 139. This will include a mix of gardettos, goldfish crackers, popcorn, M&‘s and caramel puff corn. It will be sold in a Minnesota branded take home cup as well—but not the one shown below.
Other returning partners include Drew’s Popcorn who are celebrating their 20th anniversary in popping corn for Gophers fans in Sections 112 and 137, Original Hockey Mom Brownies in Section 100, The Lotus Vietnamese in Section 143, Brat Dog who are still on the West Plaza but will move down a bit from their former spot, Curds and Cakes in Section 123 and the West Plaza, Parlour Burger on the West Plaza and yes all proceeds still go back to Dinkytown Athletes from burgers sold in the stadium, Maui Wowi in Sections 199 and 131, Domino’s Pizza in Sections 107, 115, and 125, and BBQ Cabin in Section 114.
Fun Drink Cups:
The Gophers have also added some new fun drinking cups for Minnesota fans to take home as souvenirs. A year after starting their athlete NIL souvenir pop cup edition there are two new ones this season for Gophers fans to collect. One will feature the offense and have Drake Lindsay on one side and Darius Taylor on the other. The second cup will feature the defense and have Anthony Smith on one side and Maverick Baranowski on the other.
Additionally the Gophers will be selling different cocktails in cups that include mini buckets, and these awesome mini-cooler cups. The cooler cups likely will not be available for the season opener but they are hoping to arrive by the Mississippi State game.
A full stadium map of all the food locations is below.
