3 NFL tailgate options on Long Island to try
Long Island Tailgate company provides food, drink, games, to the customers during the tailgate party at the Jets game. Nick Rohrs, Mastic, Matthew Rizzuto, Smithtown, Steve Johnson, E. Islip, Nolan Walker, Shirley, Michael Laronea, Hicksville, and Tom Rohrs, Mastic, are chatting during the tailgate, East Rutherford, Oct. 9, 2022 Credit: Bruce Gilbert
The NFL season is officially underway, and with that comes tailgate parties.
Elevate your game day experience by letting a Long Island company do the work for you, whether that means getting you to and from the stadium and setting up a buffet; finding your own transportation, but letting someone else handle the ins-and-outs of your parking lot fun; or getting someone to pull up to your front door with a mobile party trailer so you can tailgate without leaving your house.
Here's the lowdown on three ways to tailgate the New York Jets and Giants games at home or at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
The all-inclusive Long Island Tailgate experience takes care of transportation from Long Island to MetLife, plus food and drinks once you arrive.
Starting at 7 a.m. on game day, fans meet off Exit 63 on the Long Island Expressway to hop on a 56-passenger bus, equipped with a restroom. The bus makes two more stops en route to the stadium off exits 49 and 32. Lisa Petosa, who runs the company, says she’s open to at-home pick up for larger groups.
Expect to reach MetLife around 10 a.m., where the parking lot tailgate gets started with games like Kan Jam and cornhole, plus music and a fire pit.
As for food, Long Island Tailgate specializes in barbecue, offering a menu of hamburgers, hot dogs, sausage and peppers, spare ribs and marinated grilled chicken, plus potato and macaroni salads and corn on the cob. All barbecued food is cooked on-site. Customers also have the option to instead order hero sandwiches and wraps, plus sides catered by a deli of Petosa’s choosing. Soft drinks and water are included; tailgaters can bring their own alcohol.
The bus leaves the grounds about 30 minutes after the game to return home.
COST Transportation and food: $125 per person; food only: $60 per person for all you can eat and drink.
INFO 516-551-2169; longislandtailgate.com
Tailgating has its perks when you hire a catering business to take care of the meat and potatoes for you. AAA Royal Catering supplies the grub made in a commercial kitchen in Hauppauge, plus a chef, bartender and servers. The crew meets its tailgaters at the stadium at a set time and they “stay as long as needed,” owner Tony Luparello says.
In addition to the food, they’ll have buffet tables, paper goods and soft drinks in tow. A bartender is able to serve alcohol, but the customer is responsible for bringing it; a chef who barbecues on the spot serves hamburgers, hot dogs and the like. If a Southern barbecue of brisket, fried chicken, pulled pork, ribs, etc. is preferred, the chef prepares and barbecues the food at the kitchen on Long Island. The menu goes beyond this to include pig roasts, hors d'oeuvres, wings, chili, deli-style fare and other foodstuffs. With AAA, the customer is in charge of all things parking related, including permits if necessary.
COST $250 for travel, plus food and drink packages (starting at $80.85) and waitstaff (starting at $150 per person for four hours); parking passes vary by ticket holder; more info at ticketmaster.com/nfl
INFO 516-797-5539; libbq.com
For those who don’t want to travel far to tailgate the Jets or Giants, consider the Mobile Man Cave. Owner Benjamin Filippi brings the tailgate to you with his 25-foot enclosed trailer that’s set up like a party room, complete with couches, televisions — three of them dedicated to various gaming systems and one of them to the football game — and a fire place. The "cave" can accommodate up to 15 people at a time.
Outside, a 65-inch TV, meant to watch the game on, along with cornhole, Kan Jam, horseshoe and Connect 4 and speakers for music are set up, plus seating for about 20 people. The Mobile Man Cave is permitted to pick up food, transport and keep it at temperature until it’s ready to be served. Bring your own drinks — staff can help serve host-supplied beer and wine, too. Expect at least two employees to arrive an hour before kickoff and stay through the final whistle. The Mobile Man Cave is available for bookings in Nassau and Suffolk.
COST $725 for four hours; $125 for each additional hour.
INFO 516-260-6195; mobilemancaveparty.com
The NFL season is officially underway, and with that comes tailgate parties.
Elevate your game day experience by letting a Long Island company do the work for you, whether that means getting you to and from the stadium and setting up a buffet; finding your own transportation, but letting someone else handle the ins-and-outs of your parking lot fun; or getting someone to pull up to your front door with a mobile party trailer so you can tailgate without leaving your house.
Here's the lowdown on three ways to tailgate the New York Jets and Giants games at home or at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
FOR THE ALL-IN-ONE FAN
Long Island Tailgate company provides food, drink, games, to the customers during the tailgate party at the Jets game. Brother and sister owners, Louis Peluso, Lydenhurst, and Lisa Petosa, Plainview, are preparing the food, East Rutherford, Oct. 9, 2022 Credit: Bruce Gilbert
The all-inclusive Long Island Tailgate experience takes care of transportation from Long Island to MetLife, plus food and drinks once you arrive.
Starting at 7 a.m. on game day, fans meet off Exit 63 on the Long Island Expressway to hop on a 56-passenger bus, equipped with a restroom. The bus makes two more stops en route to the stadium off exits 49 and 32. Lisa Petosa, who runs the company, says she’s open to at-home pick up for larger groups.
Expect to reach MetLife around 10 a.m., where the parking lot tailgate gets started with games like Kan Jam and cornhole, plus music and a fire pit.
As for food, Long Island Tailgate specializes in barbecue, offering a menu of hamburgers, hot dogs, sausage and peppers, spare ribs and marinated grilled chicken, plus potato and macaroni salads and corn on the cob. All barbecued food is cooked on-site. Customers also have the option to instead order hero sandwiches and wraps, plus sides catered by a deli of Petosa’s choosing. Soft drinks and water are included; tailgaters can bring their own alcohol.
The bus leaves the grounds about 30 minutes after the game to return home.
COST Transportation and food: $125 per person; food only: $60 per person for all you can eat and drink.
INFO 516-551-2169; longislandtailgate.com
FOR THE STADIUM FAN
AAA Royal Catering can deliver food and have its staff stay from set up to clean up at your tailgate at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford. Credit: @frame_this_photography/Kevin Nguyen
Tailgating has its perks when you hire a catering business to take care of the meat and potatoes for you. AAA Royal Catering supplies the grub made in a commercial kitchen in Hauppauge, plus a chef, bartender and servers. The crew meets its tailgaters at the stadium at a set time and they “stay as long as needed,” owner Tony Luparello says.
In addition to the food, they’ll have buffet tables, paper goods and soft drinks in tow. A bartender is able to serve alcohol, but the customer is responsible for bringing it; a chef who barbecues on the spot serves hamburgers, hot dogs and the like. If a Southern barbecue of brisket, fried chicken, pulled pork, ribs, etc. is preferred, the chef prepares and barbecues the food at the kitchen on Long Island. The menu goes beyond this to include pig roasts, hors d'oeuvres, wings, chili, deli-style fare and other foodstuffs. With AAA, the customer is in charge of all things parking related, including permits if necessary.
COST $250 for travel, plus food and drink packages (starting at $80.85) and waitstaff (starting at $150 per person for four hours); parking passes vary by ticket holder; more info at ticketmaster.com/nfl
INFO 516-797-5539; libbq.com
FOR THE HOME TACKLE
The Mobile Man Cave pulls up to your house for an at-home tailgate party. Credit: Mobile Man Cave
For those who don’t want to travel far to tailgate the Jets or Giants, consider the Mobile Man Cave. Owner Benjamin Filippi brings the tailgate to you with his 25-foot enclosed trailer that’s set up like a party room, complete with couches, televisions — three of them dedicated to various gaming systems and one of them to the football game — and a fire place. The "cave" can accommodate up to 15 people at a time.
Outside, a 65-inch TV, meant to watch the game on, along with cornhole, Kan Jam, horseshoe and Connect 4 and speakers for music are set up, plus seating for about 20 people. The Mobile Man Cave is permitted to pick up food, transport and keep it at temperature until it’s ready to be served. Bring your own drinks — staff can help serve host-supplied beer and wine, too. Expect at least two employees to arrive an hour before kickoff and stay through the final whistle. The Mobile Man Cave is available for bookings in Nassau and Suffolk.
COST $725 for four hours; $125 for each additional hour.
INFO 516-260-6195; mobilemancaveparty.com
