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Stadium Review - There's No Place Like Home
Traveling to five different NFL stadiums during the first eight
weeks of the regular season, really makes you feel nostalgic for
your home stadium. There’s just something comforting about returning
to Ralph Wilson
Stadium in sleepy little Orchard Park, NY to watch my
hometown Buffalo Bills lock horns with any team. So my
journey during Week 9 of the NFL season back to Stadium #1 on the
Quest for 31, was like visiting an old friend. I don’t know if it’s
the scent of
fire pits and barbecued meats on a crisp autumn day,
the renewed energy in Western New York surrounding the resurging
Buffalo Bills, or the thrill of octo-funneling a beer with seven of
my friends at the Bills Bus with Tailgating Guru, “Sport”. But
for fans of the National Football League, the tailgating experience
at One Bills Drive is definitely second to none.
As always, the men of the Steiniger clan (and a couple of Dobler’s
for that matter) select one Buffalo Bills home game a year to serve
as our testosterone-filled football weekend retreat. We rent an RV,
pack it full of raw meats, sweet and salty snacks, and BEER, lots of
BEER, and head down to the RV lot at One Bills Drive on Saturday
afternoon. There we begin our yearly ritual that harkens back to the
days when we actually rented a U-Haul truck for the weekend retreat.
This was all before realizing that an RV provides those fine
amenities we’ve grown accustomed to in civilized living. Ah, but
sometimes I miss those frigid nights sleeping on a corrugated steel
floor and the looks you get from RV owners as the orange and white
U-Haul pulls up next to them, but I digress …
Western New York is prime tailgating country, and Buffalo Bills fans
have a long, storied history of
parking lot tailgating, a tradition
that dates back to the Ol’ Rock Pile or War Memorial Stadium. So to
honor those that came before us, I assembled a menu of weekend
delights to tantalize any NFL fan’s taste buds. Lunch was to be a
fantastic Seafood Boil. We grabbed a multi-tiered steamer and filled
it with crabs, mussels (for the novice, mussels are actually quite a
bit tastier than clams and much less rubbery), shrimp, scallops, and
catfish nuggets (for the record, I’m still not sure what catfish
nuggets are, did we get a bunch of scraps that couldn’t be sold
otherwise?). To provide the necessary fiber, we added red skinned
potatoes, corn, and squash to the boil. When fully cooked, we
feasted on seafood and steamed vegetables that were accented by a
Thai-inspired curry vegetable dish donated by Dhini of the fantastic
Dhini’s Café near Klein and Hopkins in Williamsville, NY. Dhini’s
Cafe provides gourmet Asian and American cuisine that should not be
missed.
That evening we dined on grill-seared tuna steaks and roast beast,
slowly prepared on the
Grill Pro Rotisserie that I purchased for the
weekend’s activities. We dipped the tuna steaks in a wasabi and soy
mixture and accented it with pickled ginger. As for the roast beast,
in Buffalo it can only be eaten on a Kimmelweck roll with plenty of
horseradish, as the “Beef on Weck” sandwich is a local staple.
In preparation for the rotisserie roast beast, I consulted Felton
from my trip to the
Georgia Dome, to recommend a
suitable dry rub. Felton suggested a simple, but tasty
solution, he told me to combine French Onion soup mix with a stick
of softened butter - it was excellent. Sunday was dogs,
burgers, and local sausage accented with a special Texas Chili sauce
prepared by my Aunt every year … someday we’ll need to get that
recipe.
Gameday was amazing. The parking lot is abuzz with meats grilling
and beer swilling. I even met up with a fellow Quester from
Bengal Trailer LLC who made the
trek with his crew from Cincinnati. Tony Adams showed me around
their
Cincinnati Bengals mobile party wagon complete with
electronics, plush seating, and onboard beer kegs. Tony and Co.
drive a short bus decked out in Bengals colors that tows the most
amazing trailer, complete with a full sized grill and deep fryer.
They even offered me a beer from the tap located on the side of the
bus … Blue Moon Pumpkin Ale, an excellent choice! Tony and the crew
road trip to four Bengals games a year, bringing with them that
impressive trailer that serves as a mobile command for Bengals fans
on the road.
The game itself was a thrilling
Buffalo Bills victory over the
Cincinnati Bengals. The Bills offense heralded the return of JP Losman under center and featured the coming out party of rookie
running back Marshawn Lynch, who I personally lobbied for selecting
on draft day. No one of import was there to hear my sage
advice, but I lobbied nonetheless. Losman had a fantastic day
lofting long balls to Lee Evans and Josh Reed, and Marshawn had a
career day punishing the Bengals defense through his trademark slash
and dash style. The capper was a touchdown strike thrown by
the golden arm of Marshawn Lynch to tight end Robert Royal for the
go ahead score. My highlight for the weekend was actually
being able to meet Marshawn and his mother Ms. Lynch after the game,
thanks to the Post Game Access Guest Pass provided by couple of
friends (I owe you big time Bobby and Kenny). Damn, it’s good to be
home.
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