Rating Michigan Stadium's new food offerings for the 2026 season

Ann Arbor — It tastes good to be a Michigan Wolverine, at least it did for the assembled press sampling the new concessionaire offerings from Levy Restaurants, which will be taking over those duties at Michigan Stadium come fall. 

Michigan had previously contracted with Sodexo to provide concessions at Michigan Stadium.

A smorgasbord was on offer ahead of the Michigan spring game on Saturday, as Levy attempted to put its best foot forward with an offering of tailgate staples, Michigan local favorites and some more upscale items. There were also plenty of sweets to satisfy that sweet tooth (and keep several local dental practices open). 

Here is the menu they had on offer for Saturday, with what Mitten Football sampled in bold:

• Big House Nachos
• Block “M” Pretzel (it is shaped like the block M)
• Popcorn
• Zingerman’s candy
• Mini smash burgers
• Ooey gooey grilled cheese bites
• Prime rib sandwich
• Italian grinder
• Grilled vegetable wrap
• Goddess and gem salad
• Slow smoked pork sandwich
• The Dearborn all beef hot dog
• #13 Zingerman’s Reuben
• Michigan Mac and cheese
• Twisted Taters

From the dessert cart, the Chicago style cheese cake with a caramel drizzle. We also took cookies, based on each of the cakes on offer — there were several, plus milkshakes — along with coffee, soft drinks, iced tea and lemonade. 

This was a good showing, and obviously Levy is seeking to make a good first impression publicly before going live with these offerings come fall. 

Which items will be for sale and where — concourse, offerings for suites, etc. — isn’t entirely clear but the breadth and depth of the options is promising. 

So, here’s what Mitten Football made of the various items. 

Big House Nachos

This was a strong start. It appears the tortilla chips are either scratch made at some point in the process or purchased from a really good supplier. Nothing ruins nachos more than bad tortilla chips, and these were really good and sturdy and crispy without being greasy or overly salty. 

The queso was solid, and a great consistency and the tomatillo chicken had a nice flavor. The optionality with the various toppings — pickled jalapeno, pico, salsa, etc. — makes for a nice choose-your-own-adventure plate.

Rating: 8/10

Mini smash burgers

These were perfectly passable smash burgers, with a good soft potato bun, onions and american cheese with a zingy burger sauce. The cheese was nicely melted and it was appropriately slider sized. 

Could’ve used a bit more acid or bite from the sauce but I doubt anyone will ever be upset they had this at a game. 

Rating: 7/10

Ooey gooey grilled cheese bites

These had sat out for a bit so the bread was rather flaccid and lacked crisp or crunch. It tasted good though, and the cheese was silky and melty and not greasy. It looked like there were scallions in it, too, which added a nice depth of flavor. 

Just in general it lacked punch, though. 

Rating: 4/10

Slow smoked pork sandwich

This is perfectly on-par institutional pulled-pork. You cannot really go wrong with solid institutional pulled pork, and the sauce was nice with slaw and crispy onions as additional toppings. 

Sometimes it’s good to hit it in the fairway. 

Rating: 5/10

Dearborn all beef hot dog

Props to noting the Dearborn hot dog is all beef, for reasons that should be evident. But this might’ve been the surprise of the day. The hot dog had a good, lightly-charred cook on it and they’re clearly a quality all-beef frank. Onions and mustard were available, as required by law in Michigan, I think. 

The bean-free coney sauce was really well spiced, too. It is also named “Warde’s Detroit coney sauce” after Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel. 

Rating: 7/10

#13 Zingerman’s Reuben Sandwich

It is a Zingerman’s reuben. It is very tasty. What else is there to say? 

Can’t miss, really. 

Rating: 9/10

Michigan mac and cheese

The first big miss of the day, there was no misstep in the construction or conception of this but in the execution, I think. It seemed overbaked, which tended to mean the sauce leeched excess grease and the noodles were overcooked. 

The crust on top was tasty but more evidence that it had been baked a bit too long. 

Rating: 3/10

Twisted taters

These would’ve made more sense as just kettle chips, as the form factor of slice/spiralized potatoes fried on a skewer led to clumping and some non-crispy bits. It also made eating a bit clunky, when trying to bit through three or four slices of potato fused together in the frier. 

The dipping sauces were great. 

Rating: 5/10

Prime rib sandwich

The prime rib is fresh carved, but it’s deli-style so it’s served cool and not hot. This didn’t really hinder the sandwich, as the bread was a ciabatta-esque baguette and there was a healthy dose of horseradish. 

I’d gladly make something like this for a picnic myself. 

Rating: 8/10

Italian grinder

This was betrayed mostly by the bread being a bit too short and not glutenous enough. It started to fall apart like a lot of supermarket loafs do under stress, and this is likely because of the various stabilizers and preservatives various commercial bakeries use. The fillings were top notch, and the only critique there is for shredded lettuce rather than individual pieces layered. 

And the spicy giardiniera was really zesty. 

Rating: 6.5/10 (would be a 7 with better bread)

Chicago style cheesecake

The crust might’ve been like two minutes underbaked but the cheesecake itself was ethereal and light with real tang. Good stuff. 

The option to top it with caramel (the choice today), chocolate or strawberry only made it better. And there were a number of other desserts available. 

Rating: 8/10