THE ART OF THE TAILGATE
by duluth, September 2, 2009 | Permalink
It’s hard for me to describe how I feel about college football. It was part of the rhythm of my childhood, something that flowed through the fall as easily as the leaves that fell from the oak trees in our yard. On Saturdays the game was the destination, and all the hours around it was spent in preparation, discussion and dissemination—always over a plate of food.
The color, the pageantry and the tradition of college game day was so embedded in me that there was no question that when I wanted to go off to college it would be at a school where the art of the tailgate was practiced. I have been lucky enough to travel to many college campuses to observe this practice and let me tell you, when someone hauls their great-great-great grandmother’s twin candelabras, 20 racks of ribs and a 32”-inch flat screen with a satellite dish out of the back of a Ford F-350 you know they’re serious about partying before the big game. And probably during and after the game, too.
College football tailgating is about feeding the community. After a memorable late night game (well, I’d like to forget the score but we won’t dwell on that) my tailgating pals and I found ourselves stuck in a traffic jam in an on-campus lot with a mix of fans from both teams—always a treacherous predicament. And we were hungry, real hungry. No problem—my resourceful, grill-loving husband pulled out a hibachi and five packs of bratwursts, and faster than you can whistle a college fight song we had struck a bond of food with our fellow football fans, red and black and orange and blue-clad fanatics peacefully commiserating or gloating over steamy hot brats. It was a beautiful night.
So no matter the color of your jersey, the food is the key. It can be as simple as pork barbecue sandwiches and some beans on a paper plate, seared pork tenderloin with an elaborate balsamic sauce served on Mother’s best china, or a piping hot bowl of sausage gumbo with a slab of crusty bread. Where to start? Check out the “Goalpost Gourmet” selections at our Whole Foods Market Johns Creek. We’ve got a great assortment of tailgate staples on sale. As the season gets fired up we’ll feature lots of new recipes in our store that are perfect for tailgaters, and we’ll be sampling some of our great game day products. And if it’s fourth and goal and you still don’t have a clue, our Prepared Foods and Catering department are ready with a slew of tailgating goodies to go.
During the season and all the way through the bowl games, I’ll be posting tailgate tips and recipes. Got one to share that features something from our store? Send it in and we’ll post it. And for the record (and at the risk of stirring up some good, old-fashioned trash talking): War Eagle!
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4 Responses to “THE ART OF THE TAILGATE”
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September 2nd, 2009 at 5:04 pm
nothing like tailgating in the “horseshoe”…
go buckeyes!!!
September 3rd, 2009 at 11:49 am
Nothing’s better than tailgating under the oaks in Old Campus. Go Dawgs!!!
September 3rd, 2009 at 11:29 pm
War Eagle, Ya’ll!
September 8th, 2009 at 8:27 am
Hah! A blog about college football is always sure to elicit a response. thanks for commenting and stay tuned for tailgating tips and menus throughout the season.