The Best of Spring Training

If you love spring training as much as we do you know it isn’t just about baseball, it’s about the whole experience. We often find ourselves wondering where to go before or after a game, especially one that isn’t in our ‘hood. Look no further, Lauren Saria, Food Editor of Phoenix New Times has compiled the best places to go right by every stadium.

Salt River Fields, Scottsdale

Grassroots Kitchen and Tap is only about two miles away from Salt River Fields, spring training home to the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Colorado Rockies. The casual New American restaurant makes a great spot for a pre-game drink or a post-game meal, and serves a mean smoked brisket sandwich, not to mention burgers, Southern classics like shrimp and grits, and more. Plus, happy hour goes from 3 to 6 p.m., during which time you can snag craft beers for $4, cocktails for $6, and a full one and half pounds of chicken wings for just five bucks.

Sloan Park, Mesa

This new spring training stadium for the Chicago Cubs is designed to make you feel like you’re at Wrigley Field – so why not go all in on the Windy City theme and round out your experience with a trip to Portillo’s Hot Dogs? The Tempe location of the Chicago-based restaurant chain is less than two miles from the Cub’s spring training stadium and is the hands down best place for an authentic, Chicago-style, dragged through the garden hot dog in metro Phoenix. Don’t forget an order of cheese fries and a chocolate cake shake to complete your meal.

Camelback Ranch, Glendale

Camelback Ranch is certainly one of the Cactus League’s more impressive looking stadiums, but its West Valley location doesn’t exactly make it the most accessible. On the upside, the ballpark, home to the Chicago White Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers, is less than five miles from the Westgate Entertainment District, where you’ll find plenty to do and see both before and after the game. For a real party atmosphere, hit up Saddle Ranch Chop House, a giant, Western-themed restaurant and bar where you can nosh on everything from steaks and ribs to nachos and black truffle mac n’ cheese. Oh, and did I mention there’s a mechanical bull?

Goodyear Ballpark, Goodyear

Valley sports fans will know the name Dan Majerle, but did you know the former Phoenix Suns player and coach has a sports bar and grill about five miles away from Goodyear Ballpark, home to the Cincinnati Reds and Cleveland Indians? The upscale sports bar, Marjerle’s, is the kind of place with something for everyone, whether that means a cold beer, juicy burger, or addicting-ly good thin cut fries. For food, I suggest the tenderloin sliders, Mama Majerle’s burger, or the Fried Chicken Salad – it comes topped with hardboiled eggs, avocado, and strips of fried chicken for a salad that’s definitely not going to leave you hungry by the 7^th inning strech.

Surprise Stadium, Surprise

Kansas City Royals and Texas Rangers fans looking to catch a spring training game will have to head west…way west to Surprise Stadium. The good news is that when you’re out there, you’ll be less than two miles from Irish Wolfhound Pub, a friendly local spot for Irish fare and cold brews. Belly up to the handsome wooden bar and order from the lengthy tap list, which includes everything from PBR and Coors to favorites from across the pond including Guiness, Smithwicks, Harp, and Bass. Pair your pint with an order of Reuben Fritters (as in, fried corned beef, swiss, and sauerkraut) or something more traditional like fish and chips, pub steak, or corned beef and cabbage.

Tempe Diablo Stadium, Tempe

Since it’s one of the most centrally located Cactus League stadiums, there’s plenty to eat and drink around the Los Angeles Angel’s Tempe Diablo Stadium. For drinks, try Boulders on Broadway, a casual spot that’s just three miles from the ballpark. It’s a well-loved neighborhood spot, but the real draw is the beer selection: Boulders stocks 30 beers on draft and more than 70 varieties by the bottle. On the other hand, if you’re looking for a serious place to get some grub, you’ll want Little Miss BBQ. It’s the city’s best spot for Texas-style ‘cue and it’s only about a five minute drive from Tempe Diablo Stadium. The only catch is that the spot’s only open for lunch – oh, and plan on arriving close to opening time or else you may have to wait in a substantial line for you food.

Maryvale Baseball Park, Phoenix

Milwaukee Brewers fans pretty much pulled the short stick when it comes to spring training stadiums. But the slim restaurant pickings in the surrounding neighborhood do include a West Phoenix location of Los Reyes de la Torta, one of the more popular local spots for Mexican sandwiches. Located less than two miles from the ballpark, the restaurant serves gigantic sandwiches like the Del Rey. You’ll need two hands to tackle this combination of ham, cheese, pork sirloin, breaded beef, sausage and Mexican sausage, oh and an egg.

Hohokam Stadium, Mesa

Hohokam Stadium, spring training home to the Oakland Athletics, is cozy and charming – much like Republica Empanada, the family-owned Latin restaurant you’ll find less than two miles from the ballpark. With a pretty impressive selection of craft beers and a dozen types of savory empanadas to choose from, you’re almost guaranteed to find something you’ll like. Personal favorites include the Boricua, which comes stuffed with rice, pigeon peas, and ham cooked in a flavorful sofrito sauce, and for dessert, the Dizzy Fig, which features local figs, mozzarella cheese, and dulce de leche sauce.

Peoria Sports Complex, Peoria

San Diego Padres and Seattle Mariners fans probably know a thing or two about good seafood, so it’s pretty lucky that the teams’ spring training stadium is just about five miles away from the Peoria location of Angry Crab Shack. This well-loved local chain of restaurants specializes in Cajun-style seafood boils, as in finger-lickingly good crab, crawfish, shrimp and more.  Diners get to pick their own sauce, heat level, and type of seafood – just make sure to sport that plastic bib or risk getting sauce all over your brand new Kemp jersey.

Scottsdale Stadium, Scottsdale

Located in the heart of Old Town Scottsdale, the San Francisco Giant’s spring training stadium is the hands-down best stadium if you’re looking to party hard before and after the game. There’s no shortage of bars and restaurants within close distance of the park, but if you’re a real Giants fan, the obvious choice has to be RnR, a high-energy restaurant and bar that goes full-on black and orange during Spring Training season. On Sundays, look forward to bottomless bloody marys and mimosas and plenty of other food and drink specials and special events on every game day.