Terry Foster

Lions hope grub will grab fans

We all know a hot dog is the perfect comfort food for a Tigers game. But what is the perfect food for a Lions game?

I bring this up because the Lions announced an all-you-can-eat section at Ford Field this season. The Lions did a survey a few weeks ago asking fans if adding a grub section might lure them to more games.

The response was positive, so the Lions have set aside 5,500 seats at Ford Field where fans get all the hot dogs, bratwurst, chips, cheese nachos and soft drinks they can handle.

But here is the critical question. What is the perfect food for football?

This is a stumper

"Ohhh. Wow. That is a dang good question," said Lions fan Chris Meller from Fraser. "When I go to a Lions game, the first thing I get is nachos. ... I don't know why."

And isn't chili always a great choicefor football games?When I watched games at Tiger Stadium we always got chili and hot chocolate because it was so cold out.

Lions president Tom Lewand said the top sellers at Ford Field are nachos, hot dogs (I guess I was wrong about hot dogs at football games) and pizza. He said the all-you-can-eat concept adds to the value of Lions games.

"We know more than ever that we need to be sensitive to the value that we create, and that starts with the product we put on the football field on Sunday afternoons," Lewand said. "But it is important to explore other values ... and it should be fun. That includes people getting their money's worth."

The view's the thing

Nicole Westrick of Casco is a die-hard Lions fan. She arranged her fall 1997 wedding to husband, Bill, around the Lions schedule so she wouldn't miss a game. Westrick doesn't care if the Lions serve food as long as she can see the game.

"I will say Herman Moore's bakery (Amore) has a great chocolate chip cookie," she said. "But I just go to games. ... I actually watch."

The Lions have added a number of ticket packages with tickets as low as $30 to ease the pocketbook. That makes sense because every franchise in Detroit is suffering because of a weakened economy.

"I would rather there be cheaper tickets," said Brandon Caroland of Roseville. "I don't eat that much when I go anyway. That (all you can eat) would not be of value to me."

Terry's Town terry.foster@detnews.com (313) 222-1494