{"id":637144,"date":"2026-03-22T12:43:44","date_gmt":"2026-03-22T12:43:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/637144\/"},"modified":"2026-03-22T12:43:44","modified_gmt":"2026-03-22T12:43:44","slug":"mets-discussion-highlights-from-the-new-at-citi-2026-event","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/637144\/","title":{"rendered":"Mets discussion: Highlights from the New at Citi 2026 Event"},"content":{"rendered":"

One of the highlights of each spring is the New at Citi event held by the Mets to showcase what fans can expect from Citi Field in terms of new experiences, giveaways, and, most importantly, food and drink. While there wasn\u2019t a whole lot discussed in terms of giveaways or ballpark amenities that we didn\u2019t already know, I did get to sneak a peek at some of the promotional items for the first half of the year.<\/p>\n

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As expected, the Bobby Valentine disguise kit was among the highlights. For an already mustachioed and glasses-wearing man, I fear it won\u2019t fully hide my identity, however.<\/p>\n

But let\u2019s get to the food. All told, there were nearly 40 items making their debut at the New at Citi event this year, as can be viewed in this frankly overwhelming shot of them all.<\/p>\n

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A revamped beer list (including the long sought after Maine Lunch IPA), a partnership with Hendrick\u2019s Gin and some new canned cocktails highlighted the drink selections, but the real star of the show was the food.<\/p>\n

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Mookie Wilson was on hand to introduce his new \u201cLegacy Catering by Mookie Wilson and Family\u201d presence in the Hudson Whiskey Club with his Smoked Pulled Chicken Sandwich. Mookie might be the happiest man in all of America, and his grin, friendliness, and passion for the food was evident, as was just how delicious the sandwich tasted.<\/p>\n

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A returning presence was that of Adam Richman, best known as the host of Man Vs. Food and the proprietor of \u201cAdam Richman\u2019s Burger Hall of Fame\u201d in section 105. His new Caprese burger was a standout, made with a meatball mix patty, a basil aioli, fresh mozzarella, and heirloom tomatoes.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m always skeptical of a chopped cheese purchased outside of a bodega, but the \u201cNY Chopped Cheese Patty\u201d from Chef Kwame\u2019s Patty Palace in section 415 was easily the most authentic tasting chopped cheese not purchased in a foil wrap.<\/p>\n

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I am similarly skeptical of ballparks trying to capitalize on viral trends, because they\u2019re never done quite right. However, in the case of the 9-9-9 challenge, that\u2019s probably a good thing for everyone involved. Nine mini hot dogs and nine four oz. beers is a far more responsible, safe, and non-day-ruining approach to the viral challenge. The best part of this is that because it is offered at the new Willets Point Brewery (formerly Mikkeler, formerly Ebbs), the beer won\u2019t boil in the sun.<\/p>\n

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Also at Willets Point Brewery is maybe my second favorite bite I had all day: a reuben potato skin. Goodness gracious was this tasty.<\/p>\n

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The Wok n\u2019 Roll egg rolls have been a hit for the past few seasons, and this year looks to have a whole slew of interesting combinations. The two that were available for trial were the Boston series\u2019 clam chowder egg rolls and the new dessert offering, cookies and cream. The clam chowder was a surprise, both in terms of its flavor\/consistency, and how well it worked. I was a skeptic going in, but it delivered. The cookies and cream was also delicious, but it will take a lot for a dessert egg roll to top the Italian rainbow cookie egg roll. It will always live in my heart.<\/p>\n

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The Mets\u2019 hospitality department really leaned into the Apple theme this year, and bless them for it. In addition to a candied Home Run Apple (available at multiple locations), there were also Apple Pie Nachos from Dole Whip (Taste of the City), Shake Shack Home Run Apple pie shakes (Taste of the City), and mini-Home Run Apple pie cheesecakes from Pat LaFrieda\u2019s Chop House in the Clover Club. If you\u2019re willing to spend the dough to eat there, I also recommend the tomahawk steak, which was easily the best bite of the day, but one I\u2019ll probably not eat during the season because I\u2019ve got two kids entering college in the next decade.<\/p>\n

Some other honorable mentions: the new Coca-Cola Food Truck had Tacos de Nopales, which is grilled cactus, and it was absolutely delicious. The Mister Met-shaped Whoopie Pie (various location) was so sweet I nearly passed out, but it was great. There\u2019s a new French Dip stand (Section 132), and it was fantastically lean and the au jus was a surprising texture but really, really tasty. There\u2019s also a new Roast Port sandwich (Section 105) that really hit the spot. The fried pickles and Oreo churros from the Metropolitan Fry Factory (Taste of the City) will be what my wife and daughter will delight in when we hit Citi later this year. The various pizza options were way better than ballpark pizza had any right being, especially the classic cheese from Napoli\u2019s (Section 102).<\/p>\n

And last but not least, if you hit a day game after a night out and need a classic hangover cure, there\u2019s now a bacon, egg, and cheese from the Amazin\u2019 Deli (Section 139). Call me when they add Taylor Ham.<\/p>\n

Thanks as always to the Mets and Citi Field for hosting such an incredible day. I\u2019m still full 48 hours later.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"One of the highlights of each spring is the New at Citi event held by the Mets to…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":637145,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2396],"tags":[5,101,73995,4,1690,61,2548,4203],"class_list":{"0":"post-637144","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york-mets","8":"tag-baseball","9":"tag-mets","10":"tag-mets-discussion","11":"tag-mlb","12":"tag-new-york","13":"tag-new-york-mets","14":"tag-newyork","15":"tag-newyorkmets"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/116272891188379995","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/637144","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=637144"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/637144\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/637145"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=637144"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=637144"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=637144"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}