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Strawberry buffalo chicken tenders are the signature dish at Houston Stadium during the 2026 FIFA World Cup.<\/p>\n
Aramark Sports + Entertainment<\/p>\n
Houston is known for its fajitas. Its\u00a0barbecue. Its Viet-Cajun crawfish<\/a>. Its kolaches<\/a>.<\/p>\n But at Houston Stadium, for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the city\u2019s signature food isn\u2019t any of those things. No, it\u2019s a basket of slightly sticky, candy-red chicken tenders \u2014 dressed in a strawberry buffalo glaze.<\/p>\n WORLD CUP FOODS: Nine countries will play in the World Cup in Houston. Could we find each of their foods here?<\/a><\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n They arrive four to a basket with a pile of fries, and sell for $17.65. Almost pinkish in some light, the tenders combine a faint and fruity sweetness with the mild spice of a concession-stand meal hesitant to scare off any customers. Plain white chicken meat hides inside the neon shell.<\/p>\n As for how this became Houston\u2019s signature?<\/p>\n \u201cHouston’s one of the most diverse cities in the world, obviously,\u201d said Brent Culp, Aramark\u2019s concession chef and the mastermind behind the dish.\u00a0<\/p>\n But for a stand-out stadium snack, he continued, \u201cYou want to find something that isn’t too strange, but also is well-received. This is something that is not too far out there, but also just a good flavor overall.\u201d<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Tossed tenders have long been popular at the stadium (NRG Stadium, before the World Cup came to town). To dream up this variant,\u00a0Culp sat down to think about flavors that were \u201coutside of the boxes.\u201d<\/p>\n He remembered visiting Atkinson Farms out in Spring as a child, where his family would pick ripe strawberries<\/a> and boil them with Fresno chiles into a hot sauce. He \u201cput two and two together\u201d and decided to put the flavor combo on chicken, blending buffalo sauce, cayenne and strawberry puree.<\/p>\n