When the Oklahoma City Thunder hosted the first home game of the 2026-27 season on Thursday, Oct. 22, guests at Paycom Center had more than basketball to look forward to.
This season’s food and beverage offerings are rooted in Oklahoma traditions and reflect just how far Oklahoma City’s food scene has come over the last two decades. As a diehard Thunder fan, I was delighted to have a courtside seat to tuck into this season’s menu during a recent media preview.
The food and beverage program at Paycom Center is managed by Levy, a national hospitality company that operates locally under the name Loud City Hospitality. Levy has overseen premium dining at the arena since 2009 and expanded its role to include all concessions in 2023. The Thunder recently announced that Levy will continue as the food and beverage partner at the new Continental Coliseum, scheduled to open in 2028.
Tip off with the birria nachos. Forget the stadium nachos of yore: These got an upgrade with house-made kettle chips, queso blanco, pickled red onions, lime and cotija. These nachos put that radioactive cheese sauce firmly in the rearview mirror. They were also served in the cutest little carrier. Before you judge me for calling it cute, all the guys at our table agreed. Find them in CompSource Commons (formerly Jack Daniel’s Old No. 1).
Along those lines, the street corn salad is a perfect snack, especially for fans craving something fresh. The combination of sweet corn, cherry tomatoes, Fresno chiles, burrata and cotija with aji verde dressing is an MVP. It’s a treat that isn’t also a gut bomb, just a starchy, satisfying salad. A similar recipe made the rounds this summer, at least on my yummy mummy algo. It’s good to have game-day food that doesn’t destroy the week’s calorie budget. Sadly, this dish is only available in the suites, so let me know if anyone with suite seats is looking for a new friend who happens to be a food writer.
On the other end of the caloric spectrum, we tried the chicken fried steak sandwich, available at Hochatown Stillhouse. Few things say Oklahoma quite like chicken fried steak, and Paycom Center’s version tucks the comfort-food classic into a brioche bun with black pepper gravy, crispy tobacco onions and bread-and-butter pickles. This was rich and substantial, and although I’ve never even thought about “crispy tobacco onions,” you can bet your bottom dollar I’ll be figuring that recipe out ahead of the impending green-bean casserole season.
The buffalo chicken dip was delicious, and it seems like a perfect fit for arena eats. The creamy, garlicky chicken dip is paired with house-made kettle chips. Easy to share, and rich enough that you’d be smart to split with a seatmate. Find this in CompSource Commons.
My favorite item of the evening absolutely shocked me. The struggle meals of my childhood made me swear off bologna long ago, so I was reluctant to even try the bologna panini. But I’m also a Made in Oklahoma girlie, so I opted to sample the selection, made with Seikel mustard, slaw and Head Country Bar-B-Q sauce. It was absolutely perfect, a delightful blend of flavors and textures and a welcome departure from the standard chicken, beef or turkey. I would be hard-pressed to order anything other than this the next time I’m at a game, so look for me in Sections 113 and 312.
In addition to the selections provided by the team at Loud City Hospitality, we also enjoyed some items by local partner restaurants. Eddie’s will serve its famous wings, but my standout was Eddie’s Cajun pasta. It was flavorful and filling, with just the right amount of spice. Empire Slice House is back with those massive thin-crust slices you know and love, and Boomarang Diner is always a reliable pick for kid-friendly fare.
One final note: The simple, salty pretzels from Perfect Pretzel truly live up to their moniker. No notes, no qualifiers. Especially if you’re ballin’ on a budget, you learn to be happy with a pretzel and a drink. It’s standard game-day fare for my family, and as some famous figure probably said, you only regret the pretzels you don’t eat.
This article appears in Fall Flavors.