"game day" news and stories

This week, convenience-store chain 7-Eleven announced it would begin carrying its own budget brand of beers, dubbed Game Day. The news made me do a double take, nearly causing me spit out the sublimely hoppy Stone IPA I was drinking. Was 7-Eleven angling to be my low-cost craft-beer salvation?

Mmm...not exactly. As expected, the decision was driven less by a desire to sell great brews than the bottom line. Beer purchases in convenience stores dipped 4 percent last year, according to research group SymphonyIRI -- nearly double domestic beer sales' 2.2 percent decline.

But the silver lining is that purchases of sub-premium beers (Keystone Light, Natural Light) actually ticked up. Customers haven't stopped drinking. They just want to pay less for a buzz.

Sometimes this gambit pays off, such as the medal-winning Mission Street pale ales and IPAs that California's Firestone Walker brews for Trader Joe's. But brand-wise, Trader Joe's sits on a slightly more elevated plane than a convenience store selling unnaturally glistening, endlessly rotating hot dogs.


Would you buy budget beer from 7-Eleven? Spill it in the comments.

I certainly had fun during Super Bowl Week here at Slashfood, but an entire week is nothing compared to the actual Game Day. It's here! It's today! I have been waiting all month year for this day!

Slashfood friends, if there is one course I love to eat, one way of eating that I prefer above all else, it's snacking on teeny tiny bites and appetizers. Even if I weren't going to be on the West Coast watching the Super Bowl this afternoon as opposed to evening, I'd still serve appetizers all-event long, making "courses" out of each of the different types of appetizers. Here is my Ultimate Game Day Menu, and if it happens to read like the Appetizer section of a sports bar or any of those large chain restaurants, well, now you know a little bit more about the foods I love.

Chili is a Super Bowl staple.

Not only does chili have a high taste return on the fairly low preparation investment, especially if you prepare the day before in a slow cooker, but chili is something that can be perfectly adjusted to your and your guests' particular tastes. I like offering two kinds of chili to accommodate both carnivorous guests (though there always seems to be an argument about whether beef chili should be made with ground beef or steak) as well as vegetarians. Chili can be served as a dish by itself, or as an accompaniment to hot dogs, hamburgers, on French fries, or nachos.