Inglewood’s SoFi Stadium is one of the world’s great modern football arenas. Gazing at the ovular, dual-sided jumbotron over the field will forever take our breath away—and give us low-grade vertigo. If only the food situation were as impressive. Despite many dishes that sound great on paper, the concession stands here are loaded with culinary landmines. But there are glimmers of hope if you know where to look. Use this guide—broken into specific categories—to know exactly what to eat and what to avoid.
What our ratings mean
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No rating: This is a restaurant we want to re-visit before rating, or it’s a coffee shop, bar, or dessert shop. We only rate spots where you can eat a full meal.
THE GOOD
photo credit: Jessie Clapp
Chicken Loaded Nachos ($17)
Location: Olvera St., Section 203, 232, 333, 427, 457
SoFi really said, “Let's throw every topping into a box and call it a day.” For stadium nachos, that’s a winning strategy. This absolute brick of an appetizer is so doused with refried beans, nacho cheese, sour cream and pico de gallo, that you’re barely able to recognize the tortilla chips. Which is not a complaint.
photo credit: Jessie Clapp
Shredded Beef Burrito ($18)
Location: Olvera St., Section 203, 232, 333, 427, 457
The bar for mass-produced tortillas at sporting events is on the floor, so we were pleasantly surprised that the ones used at SoFi are made by Burritos La Palma. The soft, chewy, golden-translucent wrappers are the clear highlight of the burritos here. As for the filling, the seasoned beef, rice, and beans combine to form a salty mush, but the kind of salty mush you want for game day fuel.
photo credit: Jessie Clapp
Churro Bites ($10)
Location: Olvera St., Section 203, 232, 333, 427, 457
Hot churros, but bite-sized. Unless you’re the biggest killjoy at the stadium, you’ll quickly inhale these poppable desserts. They’re lightly rolled in sugar, come with chocolate dipping sauce, and don’t leave you with greasy fingertips, so you can text your friends if you get lost walking back to your seat.
photo credit: Garrett Snyder
Stromboli Dog ($15)
Location: San Vicente Blvd., Sections 205, 314, 340, 416, 445
This dough-wrapped pepperoni and cheese dog reminds you of something you’d find in a hot case at Auntie Anne’s Pretzels, which in SoFi terms puts it in the elite tier. The crust is moist and flaky like a Thanksgiving crescent roll and there’s a healthy amount of molten mozzarella in the middle. Don’t spare the marinara dipping sauce.
THE MEH
photo credit: Jessie Clapp
Poke Nachos ($17)
Location: 200-Level North Concourse, Section 201
Raw fish? At a football stadium? Going against all intuition, these sushi-adjacent nachos are quite decent. The ginger-marinated ahi is solid quality, plus there’s enough sweet soy sauce, mayo, and sriracha drizzled on top, that’s mainly what you’ll taste anyway.
photo credit: Jessie Clapp
Sonora Dog ($16)
Location: Olvera St., Section 203, 232, 333, 427, 457
If you must have a hot dog inside Sofi, go out of your way and find the Sonora Dog. It won't blow you away, but any hot dog topped with refried beans, pico de gallo, mayonnaise, and avocado crema is better than a plain one.
photo credit: Jessie Clapp
Orange Chicken Bowl ($17)
Location: 300-Level North Concourse, Section 306
If your bar for decent orange chicken is for it to taste something like Panda Express, you’ll be into SoFi’s version. It also comes on a bed of fried rice, which adds little flavorwise, but will fill you up.
photo credit: Jessie Clapp
Texas Twinkies ($15)
Location: 200-Level South Concourse, Section 230
These bacon-wrapped, brisket-stuffed jalapeños sound intriguing, but make sure you’re a tangy barbecue sauce fan before ordering, because that’s the main flavor here. While we don’t mind the amount of sauce on these “twinkies”, we do mind how messy they are. The chewy bacon slides right off and the brisket inside flops out after one bite. Have napkins (or a bib) ready.
THE DIABOLICAL
photo credit: Jessie Clapp
Beef Pho ($17)
Location: 200-Level North Concourse, Section 201
No. No no no no no no no no. We’re not sure what’s more flagrant here: that they forgot the noodles with our order or that you’re essentially handed a loose cardboard box filled with murky broth just sloshing around. Send this pho straight to stadium concessions jail.
photo credit: Jessie Clapp
Cheeseburger ($16.50)
Location: Fairfax Ave., Sections 211, 235, 314, 340, 404, 433
You can find this burger at various concessions around the stadium and it will be horrible no matter which kiosk you order it from. We’re not sure we’ve ever bitten into a burger where the bun, patty, lettuce, and tomatoes all have the same texture: mush.
photo credit: Sylvio Martins
Shrimp Po'Boy ($19)
Location: Level 2, Sandwich Stand, Section 103
Unfortunately, nearly all of the sandwiches at SoFi come on the same puffy oversized roll, which is chewy enough to make your jaw hurt and dry enough to rob you of saliva. We thought the cornmeal-crusted shrimp in this hulking po’ boy might help the situation, but those salty, soggy fried crustaceans were just as disappointing. Skip.
photo credit: Jessie Clapp
Pork Adobo Bowl ($17)
Location: 300-Level North Concourse, Section 306
SoFi owes an apology to the Filipino consulate. The grayish overcooked pork, the utter lack of savoriness or tanginess, the mushy rice—it’s tough to know where to start with this very odd adobo. We're not sure why there are green beans in the mix, but they're this dish's only redeeming quality.
PARKING LOT BONUS
photo credit: Garrett Snyder
Bacon-Wrapped Dog ($8) & Modelo Can ($5)
Location: Anywhere immediately outside the stadium
Before and after any event, you’ll find legions of hot dog carts and bootleg beverage vendors all around the SoFi campus. Consider them a public service. They’re not officially sanctioned, but it doesn’t get any more iconic than the fully loaded bacon-wrapped dog and Modelo-from-a-cooler combo.