OT: First time at Maryland’s Stadium
Sorry if this has been posted but I could not find it. I have tickets to the game and it will be our first time at this stadium.
What advice do you have, and where are some good spots to grab lunch before the game? Is there a time/location Michigan enters the stadium?
My kids will be with me, but they have been to a bunch of games before. Thanks in advance.
November 17th, 2021 at 8:27 PM ^
Crab cakes? Yes. Football? Eh...
November 17th, 2021 at 9:08 PM ^
Very true but it was the only meme I could find that incorporated a beloved state dish, football and Maryland. The .gif is way better but it was too large to upload.
November 18th, 2021 at 10:22 AM ^
You could go with this gif...
November 18th, 2021 at 10:33 AM ^
The multi-tasking one handed catch is what makes this legendary in my opinion. Not the amount of brain cells lost during the head crack and what I’m sure was a subsequent day/night of alcohol binging.
November 18th, 2021 at 6:21 PM ^
She makes sure to get every last ounce of beer. A total pro.
November 18th, 2021 at 9:56 AM ^
Crab cakes are good, but I'm partial to just ripping open some boiled blue crab myself, although steamed is also good.
November 17th, 2021 at 7:59 PM ^
I've been a handful of times with my kids - the one advantage of having Maryland in the Big 10 is you get a de-facto home game every other year. We'll be there Saturday.
College Park is...not Ann Arbor. The campus is meh at best and the restaurants just outside the campus are nothing to get excited about. There is no Zingermans or Frita Batidos or Red Hawk that is worth the trip. With a 330 game I'll probably eat beforehand and then head out to the stadium from DC around 145 or 2. You will want to buy parking beforehand at https://umd.aceparking.com/events/reserve/1072.
The stadium itself has pretty decent food, the best options are in the concourse by the endzone behind the student section. Good sausage, crab cakes, etc. The stadium has few redeeming features, but they do have an on-campus creamery with some special flavors named after Turgeon and Locksley. It will be cold but the ice cream is the best thing in the stadium.
Good luck with things and Go Blue!
November 18th, 2021 at 12:56 AM ^
The food options in College Park are middling, but hop on the metro and all of DC is at your disposal. The monuments are beautiful at night. Foodwise there's everything from prix fixe fine dining (Reverie, Mirabelle, Rose's Luxury) to Korean (Mandu) to Indian (Rasika) to French (both modern and classical), to Neapolitan pizza to Ethiopian to the Florida Ave Grill. If you want to eat some crabs, it's generally better to head to Baltimore or Annapolis.
College Park is meh, but the surrounding areas are cool. Rockville has some great asian restaurants and markets. Hyattsville/Edmonston has excellent Mexican/Salvadoran places, especially Taqueria La Placita, which is the best in an hour's radius for my money.
I wouldn't park in College Park on gameday. The park and ride in Greenbelt is free on weekends and will probably be deserted, and is a short metro ride from there to College Park. Plus the yellow/green line is an easy shot into Petworth/Columbia Heights/U St from there.
November 18th, 2021 at 8:50 AM ^
And there is free shuttle bus service at the College Park Metro staton to and from the stadium.
November 18th, 2021 at 10:26 AM ^
+1 for the Florida Avenue Grill mention.
November 18th, 2021 at 11:09 AM ^
Agree the stadium has decent game day food choices. If are coming from DC, why not take the Metro? Free shuttles from the station right to the stadium with minimal wait times and you don’t have to worry about traffic and parking.
November 18th, 2021 at 3:02 PM ^
I saw the weather report was 50 and partly sunny for saturday
only 5% chance of rain.
GO BLUE!
November 17th, 2021 at 8:05 PM ^
It's should be a quasi home game. Tons of alumni in the Maryland/DC area.
November 17th, 2021 at 8:06 PM ^
You should have a good time. I took one of my sons to the first time Michigan played in Maryland after Maryland joined the B1G.
I don't remember whether we ate nearby or not, but you can google the location and look for restaurants.
It'll take you a month of Sundays to get out of the parking lot if you park on campus in a designated game parking lot.
I'm pretty sure we got there at least 30 minutes before the game as I remember watching the team warm up.
There may be more Michigan fans than Maryland fans there in 2nd half if we are making turtle soup by then.
We didn't encounter any Maryland fans behaving like jerks.
November 17th, 2021 at 9:37 PM ^
rgard seen here, walking into the game with his son, lo those many years ago
November 18th, 2021 at 10:58 AM ^
Have to go to Amazon now and see if I can buy that song.
November 17th, 2021 at 8:25 PM ^
Lol, the above takes are accurate. Maryland Stadium is…ok? With respect to places to eat “nearby”, I’ve seen Silver Diner and IKEA Restaurant listed so…temper your expectations. There are, however, some fantastic places to eat up to 25 minutes or so away. Where are you traveling to the game from? Everything from Peruvian (locals claim Sardi’s in Beltsville is the best; nope, El Pollo Rico) or Portuguese (Nando’s Peri-Peri is GOOD; would recommend mango & lime) chicken to Lemon Slice Cafe in Silver Spring.
November 17th, 2021 at 8:36 PM ^
Coming from Philly
November 17th, 2021 at 11:22 PM ^
Sardi's is so overrated IMO. When I worked at a school in PG county, they would order from their frequently for events.
November 18th, 2021 at 1:08 AM ^
Agreed. Super Chicken in Falls Church is the best in the area in my book.
November 18th, 2021 at 2:52 AM ^
That's a good one. I did like the traditional Pollo Rico in ARL. But I think you can get fried yucca at Super Chicken so that kind of decides the case.
November 18th, 2021 at 6:16 AM ^
If you haven't had El Pollo Rico in Silver Spring you are missing out.
November 18th, 2021 at 10:29 AM ^
Tell them! I think the one in Silver Spring was, um, raided, and the one near Montgomery Mall caught on fire (may have been restored).
November 17th, 2021 at 8:38 PM ^
Figure out the maximum distance you're willing to walk to/from the stadium, and park there. In 2019 I parked at the Regents Drive Garage, close to the field. It took 30-plus minutes to start moving out of there after the game, and another 10 or so to actually reach the exit.
High of 49 on Saturday, so that's something to consider.
November 17th, 2021 at 8:46 PM ^
Dress warm! I went in 2017 (also a 3:30 kickoff) and it was one of the coldest games I’ve ever been to, especially since available on-campus parking is pretty spread out and a decent walk from the stadium (worth reserving though. Someone posted the link above.). People are dumping on the campus but I found it pretty nice.
November 18th, 2021 at 6:27 PM ^
The campus is pretty.
The town is crap and surprisingly dead before and after a game. There is nothing like the walk down State Street to the game in Ann Arbor, or even back after the game for that matter.
It does not feel like the festival that a game in Ann Arbor does.
November 17th, 2021 at 9:07 PM ^
It’s practically a home game. In 2019, the crowd was 60% Michigan at least.
The campus is nice in a mid-Atlantic way but pretty plain. They have a ton of construction going on to modernize the campus.
In terms of things to do, it’s sorta in the suburbs. But take the Greenbelt Station/College Park metro downtown to DC (only a few stops from the campus) and you’ll have a good time that blows just about any city out of the water.
November 17th, 2021 at 9:09 PM ^
I went in 2015 and everything about the campus, stadium, and gameday atmosphere was very meh. It was probably 40% Michigan fans at the start and about 75% by the end of the third quarter. We took a charter bus from Bethesda so didn't have to worry about driving, but I recall waiting forever to get out of the parking lot we were in and that the Metro shuttle lines were loooong.
They do serve beer so there's that.
November 17th, 2021 at 10:04 PM ^
I’d highly suggest tailgating. It’s fun and there should be about 50% Michigan fans there (and MD fans are super nice too).
if you can’t, than I’d suggest going to a rando chain (it won’t be packed) on Rt 1 and taking an Uber to the game.
November 18th, 2021 at 8:53 AM ^
+1 on the tailgating plan - so long as you get your parking spot online before you go, that's the easiest thing to do. One does have to remember that when you add tailgate drinking and beer in the stadium together, it can hit you hard in the fourth quarter!
I see lots of complaints about the traffic but it's no different than traffic for anything involving crowds usually is around the DC area.
November 18th, 2021 at 6:29 PM ^
The area around parking lot C1 near the Armory building is where a lot of Michigan fans will tailgate. There is no official Michigan alumni tailgate this year, but that is the area it is held in, and Michigan fans will likely still tailgate there.
November 18th, 2021 at 12:20 AM ^
Avoid the concession lines if you can. I spent the entire halftime and 8 minutes of game time trying to get a freaking hotdog. But they do server beer!
I was at the game maybe 6 years ago that was moved from a night game to a nooner due to an impending hurricate. It was cold and wet but luckily the stands were virtually empty of Maryland fans and we were able to move to better, covered seats. I think the time change was the cause of the poor concession experience because the cashiers had no clue how to make change or multi-task to any degree.
November 18th, 2021 at 6:32 PM ^
Yes, go to the concessions 3 - 5 minutes before halftime.
November 18th, 2021 at 2:50 AM ^
Before Germany, I lived in the DMV and after Hurricane Joaquin pushed the 8pm start back into a nooner, I got cheap tix for my son and myself (his first UM game).
There was a park n' ride on campus (near the Metro stop I believe) that worked quite well. <10-min bus ride to the stadium. Plenty of parking spots (compared to demand), no line of cars to enter.
I don't know anything about College Park eateries. Plenty of great options in the District, maybe the U St. corridor.
Hit JoJo's or Twins (if still open) for jazz on Friday night. JoJo's has better drinks, Twins better jazz.
All I remember about the game experience was (A) the line for hot chocolate took 40 minutes and I got myself a beer in 90 seconds, (B) I was surprised the guys behind me were as profane as they were, and (C) UM scuffled profoundly with 3 punts, 3 TO, 1 FG, 1 missed FG, before a short TD and then Chesson put it away on a long jet sweep.
November 18th, 2021 at 10:38 AM ^
Seconding Twins, great jazz. Plus it's right near Ben's.
November 18th, 2021 at 8:47 AM ^
Enjoy the game. Went two years ago and sat behind the Michigan bench about 25 rows up. Seemed like the majority of the fans on that side were Michigan fans.
November 18th, 2021 at 8:53 AM ^
Get one of the giant crab pretzels (worth the price) and share it with your kids: https://dbknews.com/2016/08/12/article_d5c030ac-3c6f-11e4-b33c-001a4bcf…
November 18th, 2021 at 9:26 AM ^
If you want the local on-campus/historical place experience, try to get into RJ Bentley's which is an analog to Ann Arbor's Brown Jug Restaurant. The Marathon Deli in College Park was featured on the BTN's Campus Eats show, but I found it underwhelming and had to share my lunch with a lot of flies. Have fun!!
November 18th, 2021 at 9:47 AM ^
Lorch of the Flies?
November 18th, 2021 at 9:40 AM ^
Growing up .5 mile from that dump I have a pretty decent perspective. First, it's basketball season and their fans don't care about football once it starts. If Michigan scores 1st all their fans will leave. You will see a lot of Maize and Blue....a lot. You can also drink at the stadium.
They do have a couple decent breweries outside of Collge Park.
November 18th, 2021 at 11:22 AM ^
The campus is nice, not sure where the hate is coming from. Its not stunningly beautiful but neither is Michigan's if that is your bar. They have the longest mall in the country on a college campus and its a relatively standard college campus in terms of the building architecture. There isn't really any great eateries that are going to be walking distance from campus/stadium but there are plenty of fine places.
Just as heads up for everyone saying take the metro into/out of DC, the metro is currently running reduced capacity due to an investigation into the new rail cars from a derailment. Trains that were normally running every 5 to 8 minutes on lines are now every 20 to 25 minutes so you should factor that in.
November 18th, 2021 at 11:53 AM ^
I was really psyched to try them, but unfortunately Chickie and Pete's Crab Fries do not actually have any crab on them.
November 18th, 2021 at 11:58 AM ^
For a sense of what their stadium will be like...last time we played at Maryland in 2019 I was still in the beer line when the game kicked off. I heard really loud cheers from the stadium and thought "...here we go again" like they had a big play against us to get on the board first.
Turns out there was a big play to start the game...Giles Jackson (LOL) returning the opening kickoff for a touchdown. That got the loudest cheers for either side all afternoon. They are a pretty apathetic fan base when it comes to football.
November 18th, 2021 at 12:50 PM ^
I went to Maryland for undergrad. Most of the other suggestions will be difficult to get to with traffic.
Here are some places I recommend within walking distance of the stadium.
- Lunch: The Board and Brew (sandwiches, coffee), Sweetgreen (a salad bowl chain), Looney's, Vigilante Coffee (one of the best coffee roasters in the mid-Atlantic).
- Bars - Bentleys (will get very busy), Cornerstone, or Looney's
Maryland fans don't really care too much about the football team winning. These games are an opportunity to get together with friends and family. The Maryland area sends tons of kids to elite colleges like UM - I think everyone should be very cordial and inviting.
Unfortunately, many of the comments re: the campus are correct. The amount of construction is obscene, but many of the new buildings are state-of-the-art. I recommend going to the Mall and going to visit the Frederick Douglass statue.
I hope everyone has a great time!
November 18th, 2021 at 12:56 PM ^
Thanks for the feedback everyone! I appreciate it. GO BLUE!
November 18th, 2021 at 1:21 PM ^
I'll be in Lot 11b. Black jeep wrangler with a white pop-up canopy. Stop by for a beer brat and a Molson. I'll also extend a gracious offer for me and one of my friends to kick your ass in KanJam.
November 18th, 2021 at 1:46 PM ^
Franklins in Hyattsville is a good choice. If your kids are younger, they'll love the adjoining toy store. Still on Route 1 but a little closer to DC in Mount Rainier is Pennyroyal Station. Great comfort food.
November 18th, 2021 at 2:43 PM ^
Agreed with everyone else about College Park. Where to get lunch depends on what kind of food you want to eat. The best pho in the DC area, Pho 75 in Langley Park, is in a strip mall about 10 minutes down University Boulevard from campus. The food is amazing (great Vietnamese iced coffee, too) but the place is a dive. Franklin's in Hyattsville is cute and has good classic Americana food and its own beers. Gourmet Inspirations is a great dim sum place in Wheaton, a little farther away. And if you've got time to go into DC then there's a million good options.