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Cathy over at WeLoveDC.com has a terrific recap of Let Teddy Win Night, including some fantastic and funny photos by Chris Rief.
After reading the article, click through to Chris’s Flickr photostream for a great slide show that’s also a wonderful tribute to Nationals Park.
Photo by Chris Rief aka Spodie Odie
Filed under: The Movement | Tagged: Chris Rief, Nationals Park, welovedc, welovedc.com | Leave a Comment »
Yesterday MSN’s Delish.com published it’s list of Home-Run Hot Dogs: The Best Dogs from America’s Baseball Stadiums, and cracking the top 24 was our own Nationals Park Ben’s Chili Bowl Half Smoke, “All the Way,” of course.
I’ve written in praise of the Ben’s Chili Bowl Half-Smoke before. It was nice to see it crack the list, but it definitely deserved a spot higher than #22. Writer Kiri Tannenbaum chose to give higher billing to a variety of dogs topped with oddities like blue cheese, bacon, brisket, tortilla strips, and even mayonnaise.
Comments are open, if you’d like to let Kiri know what you think.
Flickr photo by Steve Masters
Filed under: Presidents Race | Tagged: Ben's Chili Bowl, Ben's Chili Bowl Half Smoke, Ben's Chili Bowl Nationals Park, Food, Nationals Park, Nationals Park Food | 2 Comments »
When the Washington Nationals brought in the Levy Restaurant group to replace Centerplate a year ago, expectations were high for a major improvement in concession variety and service.
Perhaps they needed a year to get their bearings, because Levy has followed the incremental changes of 2009 with a number of very large wholesale changes for the 2010 season that begins today at Nationals Park.
THE GOOD
Red Porch Expansion. Rows of seats were removed to create more in-stadium dining tables for the centerfield Red Porch restaurant, and the menu was expanded to include new items like a Southwestern Steak Salad that’s big enough for two. You can reserve one of these tables in centerfield for one hour of any game during the season by calling 202.640.7947. [2011 UPDATE: The Red Porch no longer takes reservations.]
No more Papa Johns. Since RFK days, Nats fans — especially Nats fans with kids — have suffered with tiny, doughy, Papa John’s mini pizzas, while Club level ticketholders enjoyed the option of Flippin’ Pizza slices.
Thankfully, Papa Johns has been banished from Nationals Park, replaced by Flippin Pizza stands selling actual slices on every level of the Park (behind Sections 115, 214, and 311).
Victory Knot Pretzel. Only available in the Red Loft, this popular item imported from other stadiums where Levy runs concessions is a 2 pound pretzel in a pizza box with three sauces for dipping — a sweet cinnamon creme, a spicy chipotle honey mustard, and savory beer cheese. You definitely want to share this item.
Healthy Cart. Give the Nats high marks for listening and trying. Fans on restricted diets, or who just want to eat healthy — even at a ball park — will find gluten free items, chopped vegetable salads, low fat wraps, and yogurt parfaits at this cart which moved to a better spot on the very busy main concourse behind the 3rd base stands. Alas, on Saturday afternoon, when the lines were 15 minutes deep at every concession stand from hot dogs to beer, the Healthy Cart was the only visible vendor in the Park with no waiting.
THE BAD
Ridiculous waits. You really want to cut these people some slack since it’s the beginning of the season, but 2 years of experience tells us not to chalk this up to “working the bugs out.” As in previous years, we saw people reach the front of the line and still have to wait 5 minutes for simple food orders while a more-than-capacity staff stood around waiting for the next guy to fill the order.
Really, people. The limited menu at your food stand is designed to keep things efficient and fast. So why do I wait several minutes for a hot dog after I’ve reached the front of the line? A notable exception continues to be the Hard Times Cafe concession, where every employee seems to understand why they are there, and the line always flies.
Signage.The menu signage continues to prioritize adherence to corporate design standards over actual usefulness. The reimagined Taste of the Majors stand is a case in point. Gone are the wonderful garlic fries and other goodies from major league parks. Now pretty much all they sell is foot-long hot dogs. The menu, unfortunately, lists “DC Dog,” “Phillies Dog,” “Braves Dog,” “Mets Dog”… You can wait in line for 15 minutes to get to the front before finding out what the difference is between these various foot longs. By the 4th inning of the exhibition game, the staff had already given up on explaining the menu, and was just asking people when they got to the front what they wanted on their hot dogs.
Bottomless popcorn. A new gimmick this year is the Bottomless Popcorn available at any Nats Dog stand. For $5.75, you can get a huge bucket of popcorn — enough to make anybody sick. For $7.00, you can get the “Bottomless Popcorn,” which comes with free refills throughout the game. The catch? You can keep coming back for refills, but the Bottomless bucket is about 1/3 the size of the regular-sized bucket. Is this a smart way to please your customers and keep lines short? Adding insult to injury: my sister just asked for the smallest size popcorn, and was sold the bottomless variety.
The Chicken and Waffle Sandwich. OK, I’ll admit I haven’t tried it, but I really am scared of this thing. Available at the new Change Up Chicken stand behind Section 130 on the main concourse, it features fried chicken on top of waffles, covered in syrup. Defibrillator not included.
Running out of food. When you charge $11 for a sandwich or $9 for a hot dog, I assume your margins are high enough to account for a little waste, so it’s really frustrating when you run out of food in the 5th inning. The Dupont Deli behind section 227 used to have some very nice salads, but notoriously was supplied with only 4 or 5 of them to last the whole game. This year, the salads have been replaced with hot panini sandwiches — grilled cheese, italian, or turkey. They were out of grilled cheese before Saturday’s game even started.
Filed under: Nationals Park | Tagged: Bottomless Popcorn, Change Up Chicken, Chicken Waffle, Concessions, Dupont Deli, Food, Hard Times Cafe, Levy Restaurant Group, Levy Restaurants, Nationals Park, Nats Dog, Red Porch restaurant, Taste of the Majors | 7 Comments »
A huge crowd filled Nationals Park for this afternoon’s game between the Washington Nationals and Boston Red Sox. The year’s only exhibition game in DC was meant to be a final warm-up for the season that starts Monday. Nats fans were simply grateful that this one didn’t count.
With Craig Stammen spotting Boston an early lead, and Tim Wakefield shutting down the Nats on the field, the faithful looked to the 4th-inning presidents race for signs that 2010 would be different.
Instead, what transpired suggested that the conspiracy that continues to deny Teddy Roosevelt his first presidents race victory is alive and well.
Teddy had raced out to an early lead over the other presidents when That Cat, who has foiled Teddy numerous times in the past, appeared from the centerfield fence. Chasing down the presidents, the Cat tackled Abe, Tom, and George in succession, but ran into a stiff-arm from Teddy Roosevelt.
Teddy held off That Cat, pushing him to the ground just before crossing the finish line, but Screech stepped in and immediately disqualified Teddy for “unnecessary roughness.” For the first time ever, That Cat was declared the presidents race winner.
Video courtesy of YouTube member lfahome
Filed under: Nationals Park | Tagged: "That Cat", Chicken Waffle, disqualified, Exhibition, Flippin Pizza, Nationals Park, Screech | 3 Comments »
Dave Matthews Band will perform at Nationals Park on July 23, as part of its tour for the its album, “Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King”. They are joined on the tour by Zac Brown Band.
The Washington Nationals announced the concert today. Tickets and parking will go on sale to the general public on Friday, February 26 at 10:00 a.m. through tickets.com.
This is the 2nd concert in Nationals Park history, following last year’s successful Billy Joel and Elton John concert.
Photo by Flickr member Dena Flows
Filed under: Nationals Park | Tagged: Concert, Dave Matthews, Dave Matthews Band, Nationals Park, Zac Brown, Zac Brown Band | Leave a Comment »
The Washington Nationals today announced the schedule for their 2010 “Winter Caravan”, in which members of the team will tour the Washington, DC area to meet fans and promote the upcoming season before heading south for spring training.
Participating players and front office staff include new acquisitions Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez, Brian Bruney, and Matt Capps; manager Jim Riggleman; and players Adam Dunn, Ryan Zimmerman, John Lannan, Nyjer Morgan, Josh Willingham, Tyler Clippard, and Craig Stammen. Prospects Danny Espinoza, Ryan Speier, and Drew Storen will also participate in the first 3 days of activities. Nats broadcaster Rob Dibble will moderate the sessions.
The 10-stop tour will run from January 27th to January 31st, culminating in the second annual Natsfest on January 31st at Nationals Park.
Wednesday, January 27
11:00am – 12:00pm
Unity Health Care’s Southwest Health Center, Washington, DC
Meet-and-Greet and Book Donation
1:00pm – 3:00pm
Hard Times Cafe, Arlington, VA
Autograph Session
5:00pm – 7:00pm
Build-A-Bear Workshop, McLean, VA
Autograph Session
Thursday, January 28
12:00pm – 1:00pm
Ben’s Chili Bowl, Washington, DC
2:00pm – 4:00pm
USO of Metropolitan Washington Warehouse, Ft. Belvoir, VA
Care Package Assembly
6:00pm – 8:00pm
Potomac Nationals Pfitzer Stadium, Woodbridge, VA
Autograph Session
Friday, January 29
1:00pm – 4:00pm
Hot Stove Luncheon hosted by David Gregory,
Nationals Park, Washington, DC (Ticketed Event)
5:00pm – 8:00pm
Washington Capitals Game, Verizon Center, Washington, DC
Autograph Session
Saturday, January 30
11:00am
Children’s National Medical Center, Washington, DC
Atrium Visit with Patients
1:30pm – 3:30pm
Prince George’s Sports & Learning Complex, Landover, MD
Press Conference and Skills Demonstration & Autograph Session
Sunday, January 31
11:00am – 4:00pm
NatsFest, Nationals Park, Washington, DC (Ticketed Event)
If the second annual NatsFest is as good as the first, it will be a guaranteed good time for Nats fans. Expect long lines for to get autographs and take photos with Nationals players, but fans will otherwise roam freely in Nationals Park, tour the clubhouse, participate in question-and-answer sessions with the likes of Stan Kasten, Mike Rizzo, Jim Riggleman and George Will, and even take your shot in the Nationals batting cages for a $1 donation to the Nationals Dream Foundation. Nationals Season Ticket Holders will receive up to four complimentary tickets per account and additional tickets should be available soon for purchase at Nationals.com.
Filed under: Presidents Race | Tagged: adam dunn, brian bruney, Craig Stammen, danny espinoza, Drew Storen, ivan rodriguez, jim riggleman, John Lannan, josh willingham, matt capps, Nationals Park, Natsfest, natsfest schedule, Nyjer Morgan, rob dibble, ryan speier, Ryan Zimmerman, Tyler Clippard, Washington Nationals, winter caravan | Leave a Comment »
The Washington Nationals have once again released a coupon code “for Teddy’s friends”: Order online at Nationals.com using Coupon Code “TEDDY” and get half-price tickets in select seating sections for the series starting Tuesday night vs. the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The coupon code is valid only for online orders and may be used to get outfield box seats, outfield corner, or mezzanine seats for $15.00 to $18.00 each.
This homestand is your last chance to cheer on the Nationals — and Teddy — in 2009, while getting a glimpse of young September call-ups including hot infielder Ian Desmond.
Tuesday night kicks off “Screech Week” with T-Shirt Tuesday, and a free Screech t-shirt for the first 10,000 fans.
The Screech theme continues with a new promotion on Sunday, September 27. The first 5,000 kids age 12 and under entering Nationals Park will receive a Build-a-Bear Workshop Screech doll — possibly the highest-value promotional item we’ve seen given away at the ball park.
Note also that $5.00 walk-up grandstand tickets have been readily available before the game for the recent series’ vs. the Marlins and Phillies. Grandstand tickets are available before the game at the Nationals ticket windows outside the Center Field Gate.
Filed under: Nationals Coupon Code, Nationals.com coupon codes, T-Shirts | Tagged: Free T-Shirt, Nationals coupon, nationals coupon code, Nationals Park, nationals t-shirt, nationals t-shirt tuesday, nationals t-shirts, Nationals ticket coupon, nationals.com coupon, Nationals.com coupon codes, Screech, t-shirt tuesday, t-shirt tuesdays, T-Shirts, tshirt tuesday, tshirt tuesdays, washington nationals coupon, Washington Nationals T-Shirt, Washington Nationals T-Shirts, washington nationals tshirts | Leave a Comment »
In an unprecendented turn of events, the Washington Nationals announced during Saturday night’s game that racing president and fan favorite Teddy Roosevelt had been injured during pre-game warmups and would not participate in the presidents race.
With the Nationals trailing the Florida Marlins in the top of the 4th inning, the Nationals Park announcer said that Teddy’s status was “day to day.”
Sure enough, when the presidents race began, Teddy was nowhere to be seen.
It was “Pups in the Park” night at Nationals Park, with the Washington, DC Humane Society running its adopt-a-pet program for fans in the outfield picnic area, and dog owners invited to bring their dogs to the game. The sold out promotion filled up section 201, where Humane Society volunteers helped keep
an eye on the pets and their owners.
In keeping with the spirit of the evening, George Washington took the early lead in the 4th-inning race, and dropped a fire hydrant along the outfield warning track. Abe Lincoln tripped on the hydrant, leaving George with a clear path to another first place finish.
Photo of Teddy Roosevelt by Anthony Gualtieri
Video by YouTube member TheTeddyRoosevelt
Filed under: Presidents Race | Tagged: adopt-a-pet, dc humane society, dogs, Florida Marlins, humane society, injury, marlins, Nationals Park, pets in the park, scratched, Teddy Roosevelt, washington humane society, Washington Nationals | Leave a Comment »
It was Christmas in July tonight at Nationals Park, with the U.S. Marines Corps Reserves on hand all weekend collecting toys for the Toys for Tots Foundation; and for a brief time, it appeared that the fans in attendance were in store for an early gift in the form of victory for Teddy Roosevelt.
But a day after Teddy failed to win even after tackling the other presidents, only the most optimistic of Teddy supporters could be convinced that the second half of the season would be different for #26.
Washington Nationals mascot Screech provided a clue about what was in store when he appeared in a Santa Suit to take his customary place at the finish line.
When Teddy burst out of the centerfield gate in full Santa regalia, he looked unbeatable, staking a big lead as he approached the first base stands.
Unfortunately, Teddy has never been good at multitasking, and when he reached into his big red bag and began tossing Webkinz stuffed animals to the fans, the other presidents passed him by. Teddy never finished the race.
The 4th annual Toys for Tots drive continues for Saturday’s and Sunday’s games at Nationals Park. The U.S. Marines will be stationed at all gates to accept donations from gate opening until the end of the fourth inning. The toys collected will be distributed to non-profit organizations and pediatric wards in the D.C. metropolitan area.
Filed under: Presidents Race | Tagged: Chicago Cubs, Christmas in July, Nationals Park, Presidents Race, Santa, Screech, Teddy Roosevelt, Toys for Tots, Webkinz | Leave a Comment »
Nationals Park in-game host Clint Khoury has drawn more than occasional scorn from those purists who think the stadium hype during games distracts from the baseball at-hand. If you fall into that category, then it appears you are due either for some relief, or for double the pain, depending on your perspective.
Fans at Saturday’s Washington Nationals exhibition game vs. the Baltimore Orioles were asked throughout the night to vote via text message for the new Nationals “co-host,” with profiles of the three contestants — all women and all beauty pageant veterans — repeatedly shown on the giant HD scoreboard (photo courtesy of fellow Nats blogger Miss Chatter).
Now the Nationals have opened the voting to the general public, with votes being accepted online now through Tuesday, April 14, at 3:00pm.
Kate Michael could have the inside track on local votes, as she has been an emerging personality in DC media for several years, and knows a few things about promoting herself on the internet. The former Senate staffer and Miss District of Columbia threw out the first pitch at a 2007 Nats game (alas, quite weakly), and represented DC in the Miss America 2007 pageant. She boasts a personal web site, a separate blog called K Street Kate, and over 700 followers on Twitter. Her enthusiasm for new media could barely be contained on a recent episode of internet talk show The District Dish:
Guerin Austin is a former Miss Nebraska USA (2004), and for what it’s worth appears to have become blonde only recently.
The self-proclaimed “military brat” claims to have moved over 20 times, and is a former competitive figure skater with a degree in broadcast journalism and experience as a TV journalist and host.
What Austin lacks in DC connections she appears to make up for in “emcee” experience on a variety of television shows. Her demo reel gives a pretty good sense of what she’d be like as Nationals Park co-host:
Yolanda Makle is the only one of the three contestants who has experience with the Nationals, having spent last season as a member of the Nat Pack while juggling a full-time job as a telecommunications engineer (I caught this photo of Makle during the 7th inning stretch at last season’s Nationals Park 70s Night).
The striking DC mother of two is another pageant circuit veteran, having represented Puerto Rico in the 2006 Miss United States pageant and currently holding the title Ms. Belleza Latina 2009. She is an active volunteer in the community, has a blog and boasts just a handful of followers on Twitter.
Makle’s community service, DC roots, love of sports, and experience on The Nat Pack might otherwise make her a favorite in my book, but I don’t think I could cast my vote for somebody who openly calls Abe Lincoln her favorite racing president. Ouch.
Online voting ends Tuesday, April 14, at 3:00pm, with the winner to be announced at the Nationals game vs. the Marlins on Friday, April 17th.
Filed under: Nationals Park | Tagged: Clint Khoury, Guerin Austin, K Street Kate, Kate Michael, Nat Pack, Nationals co-host, Nationals Park, The DC Dish, The Nat Pack, Twitter, Yolanda Makle | 1 Comment »
The Washington Nationals have announced that they will be hosting open auditions this Saturday, March 7 for those who wish to sing the National Anthem this season at Nationals Park.
The first 100 performers to register through e-mail at anthem@nationals.com will have the opportunity to show the powers that be that they have the pipes to perform during a Washington Nationals home game this season. All applicants will be asked to perform the anthem behind home plate facing the seating bowl as they would during the season.
Applicants are asked to include the following in their e-mail:
– Performance Resume (If applicable)
– Headshot (or recent picture)
– Voice (and Instrument type, if applicable)
On Saturday, registration will begin at noon and end promptly at 12:30pm, at the Centerfield gates. Parking will be available in Lot C, located on the corner of First and N Streets, SE. Only the person auditioning will be allowed to enter the ballpark, except for contestants under the age of 18 who must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. Renditions must be kept under 90 seconds.
If you can’t make it Saturday, you can still send an application via email along with a tape, but Nationals Entertainment Director Tom Davis reports that the team receives thousands of requests, so showing up Saturday may be your best bet to stand out.
My vote, however, goes to these kids!:
Filed under: Nationals Park | Tagged: National Anthem, National Anthem Auditions, Nationals Park, Tom Davis | 2 Comments »
As promised last week, the Washington Nationals announced today that the first-ever rock concert at Nationals Park will be a blockbuster.
Bill Joel and Elton John will give a joint concert at Nationals Park on Saturday, July 11, at 7:30pm, as part of their Face to Face tour.
According to the Nationals, John and Joel “will open the concert together with a series of duets, playing twin pianos and trading vocals. Each artist will then perform a set with their own band. The grand finale reunites the two at center stage with their supporting musicians for a closing encore.”
Tickets go on sale on Saturday, February 28 at 10 a.m. through Tickets.com.
Filed under: Nationals Park | Tagged: Billy Joel, Concert, Concerts, Elton John, Nationals Park | 1 Comment »
A record number of contestants showed up at Nationals Park today for what has quickly become an annual Presidents Day weekend ritual in Washington, DC — the Washington Nationals presidents race auditions.
Seventy finalists — 20 more than the previous year — were invited to compete for the approximately 20 open spots on the Nationals’ mascot team.
As was the case at last year’s auditions, Teddy Roosevelt failed to make an appearance (he is “in training” for the upcoming season, says Nationals Entertainment Coordinator Tom Davis), so the finalists took turns racing and performing as George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Abraham Lincoln. As always, SBF at the Nats320 Blog has a fantastic recap of the days activities, along with more photos. There was a nice video story over at WLJA News, and the following from WTOP News and The Washington Times, respectively:
[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b8kRyzTTG-4]
Lost in the excitement over today’s auditions has been the news that tomorrow, Presidents Day, will mark the first-ever Nationals presidents race on ice. Members of the Nat Pack are heading to Long Island, New York for a running of the presidents race on skates between periods of tomorrow’s hockey game between the New York Islanders and Pittsburgh Penguins. I’m counting on Teddy to show up for that spectacle, but hope he doesn’t injure himself before we even get to spring training!
Photo courtesy of Nats320
Filed under: Presidents Race | Tagged: Nationals Park, Nats320, New York Islanders, Pittsburgh Penguins, presidents race auditions, Presidents Race on ice, Tom Davis | Leave a Comment »
This morning, Steven over at the Fire Jim Bowden blog posted his ideas for improving the fan experience at Nationals Park. Some of the ideas may not be practical, but I hope Stan Kasten takes it seriously. Some of the no-brainers include allowing fans to watch batting practice, and calling off the security guards when a fan throws back an opposing team’s home run. And yes, I’d like to know what happened to that planned big baseball over the red loft.
Possibly the best and biggest no-brainer of an idea is opening up the gates after the 11th inning and during the Saturday night movies. You’d be giving something away for free without cannibalizing revenues, boost concession sales, and specifically give back and build relationships with the community immediately surrounding Nationals Park. Check it out.
Filed under: Nationals Park | Tagged: Fire Jim Bowden, Nationals Park, Stan Kasten | Leave a Comment »
With the Washington Nationals on the road, and the season in it’s final month, it’s been a quiet couple of weeks at Nationals Park. The biggest news was the announcement that season ticket prices for 2009 would be lowered in several sections around the stadium. The outfield seats had been the most overpriced, but it’s good to see the team has recognized the mistake and corrected things. Next season, the TV cameras may still show empty seats behind the batter, but there will at least be a chance we’ll see butts in the outfield seats when they show a pitcher.
As the sun sets on the first season at Nationals Park, what better excuse for catching one last ball game than to check out some of these cheaper sections for next season. Good tickets are available at nationals.com (use coupon code EMETS for 30% off selected seats to the next series), and despite the ongoing negative ad campaign by Metro, parking at Nationals park remains cheap, easy, and plentiful!
The Mets, Padres, and Marlins will be in town for ten games, and the team is pulling out all the stops to fill the home stretch with promotions:
Tue 9/16: Free T-Shirt Tuesday
Wed 9/17: St. Patrick’s celebration with free green Curly W hats
Fri 9/19: Free camouflage Curly W floppy hats
Sat 9/20: Free team photo & schedules + Saturday night move “Field of Dreams”
Sun 9/21: Free kids backpack and Family Fun Day activities
Tue 9/23: Free T-Shirt Tuesday
Wed 9/24: Free Curly W fleece scarf
Thu 9/25: Fan appreciation night
Of course, with the campaign season now in full swing, we could also see the presidents race take on some election-season overtones. With the candidates all trying to position themselves as outsiders, maybe it’s time for the original original maverick — Teddy Roosevelt — to taste victory!
Photo by Flickr member Liliang
Filed under: Nationals Park | Tagged: Florida Marlins, Free T-Shirt, Nationals Park, Nationals Promotions, New York Mets, San Diego Padres, Saturday night movie, t-shirt tuesday, ticket prices, tshirt tuesday | Leave a Comment »
Let Teddy Win T-Shirts
