Our Trip to Kauffman Stadium

Greetings Royals fans!

I was here a few weeks ago asking for tips on your ballpark for an upcoming trip. I am now back, and wanted to give you a mini-report on my time in KC!

My wife and I hit the St Louis Cardinals game the night before, and drove over in the morning, arriving in KC around 2pm. We stopped at Arthur Bryants for lunch. To say that this was the best meal I have ever had would be underselling it. We bought NINE bottles of sauce to bring home. Now that I am home, I wish I had bought more. Best pulled pork ever. EVER. No comparison. Went to the BBQ Shack the next day in Paola (From Diners, Drive Inn's and Dives) and was massively disappointed. Arthur Bryants was just amazing, and also a very stressful ordering experience. I saw some kid almost reduced to tears because he didn't order correctly. It was amazing. Great recommendation.

We stayed about 3 miles from the park at a national hotel chain and had a pretty easy drive to Kaufmann. The first ‘wow' moment I had was due to the fact that the Chiefs and Royals parks are next to each other, and its just neat to see both so close. Parking was pretty easy, and there were fans tailgating, which is not something I am used to for baseball in Minnesota since we don't have a large lot next to our new field, or our old crappy Dome. I wore my Twins hat, and got no guff from anyone. (Anyone with a brain would have known that the Twins and Royals both hate the WhiteSux with a red hot fire passion, so I think that helped) We also got a free All Star Game Selection t-shirt giveaway at the gate, which was a nice surprise.

We walked the concourses around the whole ballpark before the game, and during the later innings. This park is one of the most visually unique I have ever seen. I thought, at first glance driving by, that the seating bowl looked like a boomerang. Very cool, very different. The team store was fun, but I think they are all pretty much the same nowadays. The vendors seemed to have some interesting offerings too. The outfield was brilliant though. We went on a very sunny day, and got some amazing pictures of the right field statues with fountain water behind them and the sun behind the water. Pretty much the most beautiful pictures ever. The fountains were wonderful, and we, based on your fine feedback, did NOT ask the ushers what would happen if we jumped in.. Besides, if you just LOOK DOWN in the water, it does not look like a fun swim. Enjoyed the KC Royals statue of Liberty too, that was a great photo-op! The jumbo crown screen was interesting as well. Huge, and appropriate for the team logo. Very easy to read and stay up on the stats of the game. I filled out a fan experience survey and told them they should partner with Crown Royal. Just seems to make sense.

We sat behind home plate and had great seats, next to another fan on a stadium pilgrimage also. The game was entertaining, although the stupid WhiteSux won. There were actual cheerleaders who threw both shirts AND hot dogs. I thought that was weird at first, but ended up thinking it was pretty cool, since it really seemed to get people more into the game. (I only say weird because I had never seen cheerleaders at a baseball game before) (Still think its weird to throw hot dogs..) One of the cheerleaders came around later in the game and gave out free metal Royals pins, which totally charmed my wife and made her day. (I'm sure if we bought one in the store it would have been $5.95-so it was a really nice treat)

The outfield seemed to have a ton of fun stuff to offer families, and I appreciated how much thought went into making that a real experience for people. As for food, I decided that I was going to eat a hot dog at each ballpark to rate the best and the worst. I am sorry to say that Kauffman takes the cake for the worst hot dog. I waited in line to get a dog at one of the (I have no idea how to spell it) Scheizwers Sausage booths, but the vendors working it were pretty much not there mentally and could not seem to figure out how to take orders or help people, and when I finally got up to order, they did not have any hot dogs currently cooking so rather than waiting 10 minutes, I ordered one from the regular vendors. It was just really bad. The bun tasted about a month old, and I only managed one bite. But, that was the worst thing that happened during an otherwise excellent overall experience. One other note, the vendors walking the isles were...interesting. Some of the most unique and odd looking folks ever. Vendors are a special breed, I realize, and my hats off to them for hauling all that crap up and down stairs in the heat. We also got some ice cream and a giant cookie in the outfield and some kettle corn during the game, all of which were fantastic.

Great overall experience and I hope to make it back sometime! I think you will do a great job with the All-Star Game, and get some good well deserved kudo's! Thanks again guys-