We’re in the heart of gridiron season when adrenaline runs high! And that means tailgating and lots of food. Through the years, tailgating has advanced from horse-drawn wagons to automobiles with open tailgates, plastic coolers and portable grills in sports arena parking lots.
As tailgating evolved, favorite game-day foods shifted away from stadium-style hot dogs and hamburgers, and leaned into elevated, upscale versions of comfort food. The settings also changed into DIY-on-site-big-grill cooking of everything from brisket to burgers and pulled pork served amid pop-up-tent cities, with community-style experiences in even bigger parking lots and nearby-outside venues.
In-Home Watch Parties
But tailgating’s sister, if you will, is a different genre that moves the concept into its own uniquely memorable experiences. You and your friends can root for your team, enjoy the atmosphere and camaraderie–and especially the fantastic easy-to-grab food–in the comfort of your backyard or inside your home where crowds and weather aren’t problems. Just invite your pals and soak in the collective energy as football, or any sport for that matter, plays out on your big-screen television.
Curated Menus
And who can kick off a watch party without an impeccably curated menu? Sure, charcuterie boards are must-haves for the occasion. But caterers are also serving gourmet eats like hot dips and handheld sliders that satisfy every fan’s taste buds. The sky’s the limit on popular choices including Sloppy Joe Nachos, Jalapeño Poppers, all kinds of wings, Hot Spinach Artichoke Dip, Buffalo Chicken Dip and standard favorites:Seven Layer Dip, Cowboy Caviar, Queso and Guacamole.
Tiffany Avila owns The Hometown Chef Catering Co., with service areas that include The Woodlands. The chef in the kitchen is her husband. Classically trained in formal culinary arts, Julio Avila–known as “Chef Julio”--makes everything from scratch and elevates each morsel into an art form. The Avilas are all about making it personal–not only individually tailoring the menu–but also offering hospitality alongside a seamless catering experience.
Hometown Chef caters just about any type of event, including a lot of game watch parties. “We have one client who annually hires us for a catered Super Bowl party,” Tiffany says. “We cater a lot of Super Bowl and World Series parties, and many major sports event parties.”
For those watch party gatherings, Tiffany’s clients usually lean into food choices that create “more of a grazing concept. We are hired to make a lot of comfort food, and food in small bites so that guests can watch the game. Get a snack or a drink, and then watch again, and back and forth. Clients often order a lot of light and hearty bites. We also provide seltzers and canned drinks, and we have a bartending service.”
The Hometown Chef serves up a lot of mac and cheese. Fans especially love their pulled pork with jalapeño coleslaw sliders. But they enjoy their other choices of meat sliders with cheese–and especially their cheeseburger sliders.
“One of our key phrases is ‘Be a Guest at Your Own Party,’” says Tiffany. “The caterer should be taking care of everything so hosts can enjoy their own events. We arrive, set it all up, and lay it all out. We feed the guests, and we clean up. Ours is a full service catering company. Hosts shouldn’t even have to replenish the ice buckets or anything. And obviously we provide excellent food.”
So, find your culinary voice and fuel the excitement with the best game-day spread in the neighborhood. That game only happens once, and the right menu will not only make the experience memorable, but will also nourish friendships for a lifetime.
“We are hired to make a lot of comfort food.”