Huntington Bank Stadium is a gorgeous place to watch college football. It also boasts the best food and beverage offerings of any sports venue in the Twin Cities.

Hosting their annual media tasting day, the Gophers and Vokracka brought it again. Fans should be excited when searching for options throughout the concourse this season.

A venture into something new

I wouldn’t describe myself as a foodie by any means, but I have become much more adventurous and willing to try new things in recent years. Nothing about pastrami is something I’d shy away from, I’ve just never had it. That changed on Friday when I doubled life experience with the new Pastrami Dog and MN Hot Pastrami Sandwich.

Despite being a fan of hot dogs, it was actually the sandwich that ranked better for me. The deli mustard and harvarti dill cheese were great complements. I don’t believe I’ve had rye bread before (yes, again, I’m aware), but that was a nice flavor boost as well.

The hot dog was good, but I typically don’t venture too far beyond traditional condiments. Pastrami on top was fine, and I’m a mustard fan. Miss me with the sauerkraut though.

Bring on the meats

If you’re a carnivore, there’s plenty of the new offerings that you’ll find to your liking. The Bee’s Knees is an italian sausage sandwich served on a baguette. The sausage is infused with hot honey, and the spicy beer cheese goes great with it as well.

There’s the Short Rib Roll, which is actually served on toasted milk bread. Typically I’m not a coleslaw fan, but the housemade version to top this sandwich off was really nicely done.

I have never met a grilled cheese sandwich I didn’t like, and the adult versions are that much better. The Jalapeno Popper Brisket Grilled Cheese is what I started off with, and it’s a win. Brisket bacon, cheddar and pepper jack, and cream cheese all come together on the toasted milk bread to form a perfect combination.

There’s also a new Cheeseburger Poutine which is bedded atop crispy tater tots rather than deep fried cheese curds. The curds are mixed in without batter, and I enjoyed the tangy burger sauce. A Pork Cubano has been added and is every bit as good as the typical Cuban sandwiches you have previously tried.

I prefer most meats of turkey, but I do have to give Vokracka and the Gophers credit for the presentation on the Turkey Leg. Nothing presents a better image than a Gopher fan with a beer in one hand and meaty turkey leg in the other while watching the destruction of Wisconsin unfold.

And the winner is…

Like any carbohydrate-loving human being, pasta is my North Star. The Buffalo and Italian Tortellini hit like an Anthony Smith sack from the blindside. Deep fried with either buffalo sauce or marinara and then garnish with straightforward accompaniments, they are simple and perfect.

Not to be outdone, and again not shockingly with this palette, the Pizza Mac & Cheese was a win. I’ve tried multiple different types of macaroni and cheese, but never considered putting a pizza spin on it. The ribbed pepperoni is the perfect touch of flavor, and tossing in that hot honey Italian sausage was a good choice as well.

See it to believe it

It’s not quite the Land of 10,000 Calories, but you’ll definitely need additional mouths to help you eat the Giant Touchdown Taco. This thing definitely dwarfs the size of a regulation football, and it’s complete with chicken tenders, french fries, lettuce, cheese, pico de gallo, and spicy ranch. The side of chips and salsa is a good touch as well.

At $28.99 this may be the best value at any stadium across the country. It will be served in Club Cambria and is definitely something that is intended to be shared. I’d guess the Gophers won’t be inviting Joey Chestnut to scarf this thing down because he’d probably complete it in five minutes or less.

Sorry I missed dessert

I can do without sweets for the most part. I’m more of a savory foods kind of eater. Different boxes of candies littered the presentation and there was a whole table decked out in cakes and pastries as well. If you have a sweet tooth, the Gophers have you covered.

The new signature item is dubbed The Gopher Tail. A waffled croissant is topped with vanilla ice cream, chocolate, caramel, and chocolate chips. Eat your heart out.

Feeling more than full, and plenty ready for a nap, it was time to head out. The Gophers welcome everyone back on Thursday night for their regular season opener against the Buffalo Bulls.

Whether coming for the game, or just being there for the fun, there’s plenty of new food to keep you company along the way.

Related: How to Watch Minnesota Gophers Games

What new for Minnesota Gophers at Huntington Bank Stadium?

Gone are the days of hot dogs and Cracker Jack’s at sporting events. They are all technically still present, but venues have pushed the bar much farther forward. Huntington Bank Stadium has a bunch of new offerings for Minnesota Gophers football games this season, and they showed them off to media on Friday.

This season @GopherFootball will have over 27 different drink options. Pre made cocktails are introduced for the first time. pic.twitter.com/6uWwLVrRdV

— Ted (@tlschwerz) August 23, 2024

The Gophers have provided alcoholic drinks at Huntington Bank Stadium since 2012. They were initially only offered in premium seating areas, and have since expanded. That offering grows in a big way for 2024. This season there are more than 27 different drink options, including batch cocktails (thanks Gray Duck Spirits) for the first time. Happy Thursday spiked seltzer is a new offering, as are multiple canned win options.

Lots of new food options for @GopherFootball this year.

Cocktail on tap options are coming for the first time. pic.twitter.com/SdN621H8Pl

— Ted (@tlschwerz) August 23, 2024

Multiple new food options are present as well. The Walking Sundae includes mini Oreo or Nutter Butter treats with chocolate mousse and whipped cream. Chicken, Waffle, Taco is now an offering at Goldy’s Grill, and Minny Bowl’s are a stadium take on the KFC bowl style food.

Related: Minnesota Gophers Football Commits 2025: Latest Gophers Recruiting News, 2025 recruiting tracker

Self-serve beer portables have expended throughout the stadium as Minnesota attempts to speed up wait times. As fans await Fleck’s Gophers first victory, plenty of new enticing options around the stadium will greet them.

What are the best food offerings at The Bank?

Although the Minnesota State Fair is supposed to dominate food reviews at this time of the year, the Gophers took center stage on Friday. Trying the literal smorgasbord of options, a few really showed out.

• Chicken Bacon Boom – A take on a traditional chicken, bacon, ranch sandwich. The boom sauce replaces the ranch an is a chef-driven concoction that incorporates a salad dressing. Might have been the best offering.
• MN Original Brat – Corn dogs have been around forever, and especially at this time of the year. A brat inside of the outer cornmeal is a new take though, and it works great.
• Minny Bowls – Different options here include either Swedish meatballs and lingonberry sauce, or chicken bites and cheese. You really can’t go wrong with either and they are a perfect hearty food for fall.
• Phoritto – A Vietnamese dish packed into a burrito. Pho noodles, brisket, jalapenos, it’s a great pairing. Maybe a bit spicy, but I liked this overall combination.

The phoritto is traditional Vietnamese pho with brisket inside of a burrito. New “Minny Bowls” are great. Swedish meatballs or chicken bites in a concoction that takes the KFC idea up a notch. pic.twitter.com/zkmRBDejky

— Ted (@tlschwerz) August 23, 2024

There were several other winners as well. The truffle lobster mac and cheese will be available in premium seating areas around the stadium. Short rib grilled cheese was a nice offering as well. If you wanted to do a food tour during a football game, you’d have plenty of options with the Minnesota Gophers.

Related: Confident PJ Fleck Says Doubters are Sleeping on the Minnesota Gophers

Minnesota is set to move into a new era of Big Ten football. A tall task is in front of Fleck and his Gophers. Star left tackle Aireontae Ersery was on hand for the food tasting though. As an appetizer for the action on Thursday, it seems Minnesota is ready to eat.

Last season’s dead and gone game day atmosphere without fans in attendance will be flipped on its head tonight when Gopher fans return to “The Bank” for one of the most difficult opening matchups in school history. The Ohio State Buckeyes are ranked #4 in the country entering the season and they’re the only legitimate National Championship contender in the Big Ten. Win or lose, there’s a ton riding on this week 1 matchup for both schools.

out of the darkness
under the lights pic.twitter.com/becrSfDN5N

— Minnesota Football (@GopherFootball) September 2, 2021

Did you just say “win”?

How confident am I that Minnesota will pull a historic upset in Dinkytown this week? Honestly, I think that’s the wrong question for the wrong side of the midfield coin toss. The better question should be posed to Ohio State fans and media. How confident are they entering this week 1 matchup vs another Big Ten opponent?

If the polled Ohio State faithful chose honesty in their answers, they’d probably have to admit that this is the wrong year for a power five opening matchup. In fact, I will double down and bet this is the best possible time to host a game vs the buckeyes in a decade.

Why? The unknown.

Power Five Opener

Urban Meyer took over the Ohio State job before the 2012 season. If there was one moment you'd want to host the Buckeyes since then, it'd be tomorrow night.

— Minnesota Sports Fan (@realmnsportsfan) September 1, 2021

Like many schools, Ohio State doesn’t normally open their season vs the cream of the college football crop. They’ve played legitimate P5 schools less than a handful of times during the Meyer/Day Era and the 2021 Gophers are probably the best of the bunch. OSU dominated Nebraska in last season’s opener, put up 71 on Oregon State in 2018, beat up Indiana in 2017 (before the Hoosiers were good) and disposed of a mediocre Virginia Tech team in 2015.

If Minnesota is the team we think they are, this will be the eldest and deepest competition the Buckeyes have faced to kickoff a season in a long time. Veteran depth is key in this conversation because youth is a big part of the 2021 Ohio State team and another reason why this is the right time to play the Big Ten powerhouse.

OSU youth at QB and on defense

Ohio State lost all four of linebackers who took meaningful snaps last season. As we all know, those LB’s will be replaced with some of the best recruits in the country for their respective classes but a wealth of stars doesn’t always translate to the field. Especially right away.

In theory, their youth at linebacker could compound the many issues Ohio State had in their secondary last season. If Minnesota’s offensive line, which is supposed to be a major strong suit, can hold up against OSU’s defensive line… Mohamad Ibrahim and Tanner Morgan could thrive. Our own Stephen Strom wrote about some of these keys to a Gopher victory earlier this week.

But Minnesota putting up points on a turned over Buckeye defense might not matter in most years. But 2021 isn’t “most years” for the Ohio State offense. Their starting quarterback, CJ Stroud, is a redshirt freshman and he’s never thrown a collegiate pass. It’s been a long time since OSU’s entered a season with a quarterback this unknown.

Justin Fields led Ohio State to the National Championship last year.

C.J. Stroud looks to follow in Fields’ footsteps this Thursday in OSU’s season-opener vs. Minnesota

New QB1. New era in Columbus ⭕️ pic.twitter.com/w4SlDYdL4s

— Bleacher Report CFB (@BR_CFB) September 1, 2021

Even when Urban Meyer took over in 2012, he had (SO) Braxton Miller, who started as a Freshman for most of 2011, before Meyer took over.

Nobody’s ready for this new-look Gophers

The Minnesota Gophers, on the other hand, have all of the veteran depth. Unless you’re looking at the wide receiver position, which is featuring a lot of new faces and health concerns with their #1 guy, Chris Autman-Bell. Outside of WR, however, Minnesota has one of the most veteran-laced lineups in the country, both offensively and defensively.

Tanner Morgan has been taking starting snaps under center since 2018 and Mohamed Ibrahim’s been taking handoffs from him for a lot of that time. As previously mentioned, the same o-line has been blocking for both of them, too. If the passing game can keep up with the rushing attack, moving the ball shouldn’t be a problem vs this Ohio State defense.

The Minnesota defensive side struggled mightily, itself, last season. Most of that malfunction was vs opposing rushing attacks. Running backs could be seen busting through the middle of the Gopher defense multiple times per game in 2020.

So, PJ Fleck made very specific transfer portal additions up the middle in the offseason that have already appeared to payoff in camp. From what I’ve been able to watch, the defense has actually been better than the offense and should surprise opposing offenses to start the season.

Especially a young QB named CJ Stroud.

Prediction

And that’s exactly what happens Thursday night. #RTB

Minnesota: 41
Ohio State: 31

Mo Ibrahim: 170 YDS, 2 TD
CJ Stroud: 220 YDS, 2 TD, 3 INT pic.twitter.com/BG0rdnnrI6

— Minnesota Sports Fan (@realmnsportsfan) September 2, 2021

Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan

The Minnesota Gophers Football team has played at TCF Bank Stadium since its inception in 2009. They last played there on November 20 and, outside of winning vs Purdue, it was just another “normal” 2020 home-game without fans.

Then, they were struck by “the invisible enemy”, closing down TCF and their other facilities for two weeks. The cancellations included one last home game vs Northwestern and left only road games at Nebraska and Wisconsin on the 2020-21 schedule.

Monday, we found out the victory over Purdue will be the last game played at TCF Bank Stadium… ever. Sunday, it was announced TCF Financial sold-out to Huntington Bank, an Ohio-based company, who will phase out the TCF brand.

That will include the football stadium at the University of Minnesota, which will (probably) become “Huntington Bank Stadium” by next season (per the Star Tribune).

“It will become Huntington over time,” Steve Steinour, CEO of Huntington, told the Star Tribune regarding the stadium’s name. “We run with a single brand. But we want to be sensitive to the history and the legacy of TCF, and the stadium, so there’s work we’ll have to do with the university and other interested parties.”

Star Tribune

The interesting local nugget to this is that TCF is paying the University of Minnesota $35 million over 25 years for the naming rights to TCF Bank Stadium. #Gophers https://t.co/7zxJrZdiLd

— Jeff Wald (@JeffWaldFox9) December 14, 2020

TCF Bank was paying the University of Minnesota $35 million through 2030 to have their name on the football stadium. Huntington will now cut that check. Sometime in 2021, all TCF banks will become Huntington banks too.

Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan