If you have lived in the Madison area for any amount of time, chances are you have heard of the Madison Mallards — the minor league (?) baseball team that plays during the summer months at Warner Park. I put a question mark next to “minor league” because I am not really sure how they are classified… I actually learned at the game that the Mallards are not affiliated with any major league team and are not part of the AAA leagues. Since I have practically no knowledge of baseball, I am not going to pretend to know what kind of team the Mallards are other than a baseball team with minor league flair, so let’s just leave it at that.

Regardless of their minor league status or lack of affiliation, the Mallards are an organization that can crank out an impressive level of evening entertainment. It certainly helped that we purchased tickets in the “Duck Blind,” which is a section with tiered levels of bar tables and includes all you can eat food and beer.

There were plenty of options for food ranging from classics like burgers and brats to things you might not necessarily see at baseball concessions such as pulled pork and hop smoked sesame chicken. Sides to choose from included potato salad, cole slaw, cranberry chicken salad, fries, and cheese curds. Considering the food was concession style, I was impressed. The pulled pork was killer and the cheese curds… well, you can’t go wrong.

The only drawback to the food selection would be if you were vegetarian or vegan. Most of the options were classic grilled meats; although, there was a black bean burger on the menu for those with dietary restrictions. However, that’s about as far as it went.

The beer selection was impressive as well. There was a good selection of local craft beers from breweries such as Great Dane, One Barrel, Wisconsin Brewing, and Potosi, as well as a selection of domestic brews.

Considering how much I ate and drank, the ticket price of $34 was more than worth it.

Just a “heads up” … it may be necessary to wear a helmet if you decide to attend a Mallards game. It just so happened that one of our friends was hit in the head with a foul ball. Though she ended up with a walloping goose egg on her noggin, she assured everyone she was okay by toasting the crowd with her beer. She ended up getting a few free tickets out of the ordeal, so maybe it was worth it? I guess you’d have to ask her. If anything, I was disappointed we didn’t try to get more out of the situation. Maybe some free hats? A meet and greet situation? T shirts? I guess there’s always next time…

To get to the nuts and bolts of the review, here are the numbers:

• Atmosphere — 4
• Service — 3.5
• Vibes — 4
• Post-Up Worthy — 4.5
• Overall — 4 Hops

Moral of the story… if you are ever looking for something to do on a nice summer night in Madison, try going to a Mallards game. Even if you don’t like baseball (like myself), there is something to going to the stadium, sitting in the crowd, soaking up the vibes, eating a brat, and throwing back some beers that is a lot of fun. And, if you are planning to have a couple brews and get some food at the concession, it is worth the money to go with the Duck Blind. Just make sure you don’t get blindsided by a foul ball.