World Cup fans came from overseas for the cheering. But they’re also doing a lot of chewing, delighting their hosts with rave reviews of North American cuisine.
"It’s greasy, it’s disgusting, but it’s absolutely glorious," Jack Goodwin, a soccer enthusiast from London, said about the American food he has tried in Dallas, Boston, New York and Atlanta.
“I don’t want to say this because it’s a little bit harsh, but the portions are a little bit larger
— a lot more tastier — so I can understand the, um, obesity here. I don’t want to be harsh, but yes, the food is fantastic here.”
Many fans are making a point to try regional specialties or chains they can’t find where they live, like In-N-Out Burger or Buc-ees convenience stores. Erling Haaland, a striker for Norway's World Cup team, posted a photo on X of himself outside Katz's Delicatessen in New York.
Harrison Murphy, who was traveling from London with his brother for the knockout rounds, had breakfast at a Chick-fil-a in Atlanta this week.
“Have you had Chick-fil-A? It was fantastic and so cheap. The sauces are free! It was remarkable,” Murphy said. "I said, ‘This is my first time, what should I try?’ The woman said, 'You’ve got to try the Chick-fil-A sauce. My God, was it fantastic.”
Gary Bishop had never heard of poutine — often considered Canada's national dish — until he arrived in Toronto for the World Cup. But the Glasgow, Scotland, resident proclaimed it “absolutely delicious.”
“It was like chips with gravy, cheese. But it was a really thick gravy. Different from back home. Vinegar, there was lots of vinegar through it,” said Bishop, who was sporting a Scotland jersey on a recent stroll through Toronto’s FIFA Fan Festival. “Really nice.”
Others are looking for a taste of home. Texas beer distributor Andrews Distributing welcomed a bus full of Dutch fans to its Dallas warehouse for Heinekens and dancing.
It’s a thrill for restaurant owners, from Cuban spots in Miami to barbecue joints in Kansas City and taco trucks in Mexico City.
“I have not seen anything like this ever in my life,” said Paul Barker, the principal and founder of Pauli’s, a Boston restaurant known for generously filled sandwiches and comfort foods. Fans from Scotland, Brazil, England and elsewhere have lined up for his famous lobster rolls and taken photos with staff members, Barker said.
“Food becomes a natural conversation starter,” he said. “It’s just been incredible for us to be part of this.”
Some chains are leaning into the World Cup. Waffle House, the all-day breakfast chain with 2,000 restaurants across the South, opened a pop-up shop in downtown Atlanta to sell branded soccer balls, jerseys and patriotic gear. In a statement, the chain said it was “honored by the enthusiasm and curiosity" shown by visiting fans.
For other restaurants, World Cup fever has been a delightful surprise. Whataburger, a Texas-based chain with 1,100 locations, found itself in the spotlight after fans from Japan and elsewhere posted on social media about their visits.
“The attention has been completely organic and honestly pretty entertaining,” Whataburger President and CEO Debbie Stroud said. “We knew the World Cup would bring the world to Texas and our footprint across 17 states. We just didn’t realize so many visitors would leave talking about a patty melt.”
Terry Black’s Barbecue, a small Texas chain, figured authentic barbecue would be on many fans’ must-try lists. It started sourcing extra meat more than a month ago for its locations in Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas, which are each about 20 minutes from the stadium where World Cup matches are played.
It takes Terry Black’s four days to season and prepare its beef brisket and 12 hours to barbecue it. The chain also smokes turkey, pork and sausages on its pits, which run 24 hours a day.
The crush of World Cup fans has meant a lot of extra planning, said Darien Kapture, the chain’s senior vice president of food and beverage operations. But it's also meant a lot of excitement, like the night Argentina supporters packed Terry Black's Dallas location to celebrate the team's victory over Austria, Kapture said.
“They were hooting and hollering and praising the brisket,” Kapture said. “It’s great to see that these folks are coming to America and getting to experience what we experience every day.”
Goodwin, the visitor from London who said he “blew his mortgage” on a U.S. World Cup tour with his dad, deemed Terry Black's barbecue “the most gorgeous food ever.”
“The best food we’ve had here is in Dallas," Goodwin said. “Texas barbecue. Unbelievable.”
Not every review has been positive. Some fans have complained about the high price of food in World Cup stadiums, for example. A British fan told the BBC that the breakfast tea he bought from Dunkin' was “not great.”
But for the most part, there have been more thumbs up than thumbs down. So many World Cup visitors expressed love for ranch dressing, for example, that the Transportation Security Administration issued a light-hearted reminder that tourists should pack bottles of dressing in their checked bags.
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AP Sports Writer Maura Carey contributed from Atlanta. AP Video Journalist Mike Householder contributed from Toronto.
