DEC 5, 2024 | ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT | By Anya Potsiadlo, Olivia Harris, and Olive Janerico
When we bought our tickets to go see our hometown team, the Golden State Warriors, play at Ball Arena for the NBA in-season tournament a few weeks ago, we had no idea what the match would entail. However, we realized we were in for a delightful series of events upon remembering that it was Tuesday, a word often promisingly preceded by the word, “taco.” Such was the case at Takiza Taco and Tequila Bar, and with its prime location next to our parking lot and good Yelp reviews, we didn’t need any convincing to walk in and grab some pre-game provisions. When we arrived, we were promptly greeted by our hostess, who immediately complimented our jerseys. It wasn’t clear until she admitted that she was also a Bay Area native whether she was making fun of us like the other patrons at the restaurant.
Intending to save room for the snacks we would surely consume inside the stadium, we all opted for one street taco and also ventured into the extensive drink menu. I got a Jalapeño Paloma and Olivia ordered the Coconut Ranch Water. They arrived quickly, and after trying a sip of each other’s, we decided to switch drinks. Next came our tacos, which were packed full of fixings, but we nonetheless gobbled them down within seconds. When the bills arrived at the table, we knew we’d made the right decision because Olive, who ordered water as her beverage, only paid $4 for her meal because it was Tuesday.
When we exited the restaurant, we realized we had no idea where we were going and decided to follow some of our enemies — fans in Nuggets jerseys — to the stadium. We got to our seats, which were in the nosebleeds, and immediately started scoping out open spots that were closer to the action. We decided to put off moving seats for the time being. The game was close from the beginning, and the energy was radiating even up to section 366, where we shared a moment of camaraderie with some other Golden State Fans nearby and also witnessed a verbal assault, not directed towards us thankfully.
Soon our hunger and ambitions got the better of us, so we headed downstairs. We did a full lap around the stadium before settling for a bacon and nacho cheese loaded baked potato as well as a Breckenridge Brewery Christmas ale, both of which came with us on our next journey to sneak into a lower section. To spare you the details of our six different failures, we’ll skip to the part where, by the end of halftime, we were back in our original seats. On our journey, we also acquired prizes from a claw machine at which the tokens were empty recyclable cans and bottles — Ball Arena is super into recycling.
When the third quarter was over, we needed to make our second expedition to find, of course, more food. Along the way, we added to our calculations the ratio of fellow Warriors fans who forced us to initiate the “go dubs” cheer versus those who acknowledged us first. We did lose count, but it’s sitting pretty somewhere around 20:1. Our sweet treat options were limited because many vendors had closed at this point, but Olivia and I chose to split a horrendously priced $9 cup of freeze-dried gummy worms, which contained maybe six worms max. Olive paid only $3 more for a Smashburger, which met all expectations.
After a nail-biting fourth quarter, the Warriors were unable to pull out a win so we promptly zipped our jackets over our Golden State shirts so that we weren’t harassed on the way out. A moment of Bay Area-sports-related consolation occurred when we found a French Bulldog to pet, who was named Debo (after Debo Samuels) on our way out.
Our final taste of Ball Arena happened on our way down the elevator, which was a great life hack to skip the long escalator line, when a woman offered us popcorn from the club level. “Is that a real offer??” Anya asked excitedly because popcorn is her favorite food. She extended the bucket towards us as she eagerly shared how it was the perfect mix of normal and movie theater popcorn. Anya agrees with her assessment.Overall, Ball Arena had much to offer us and we gave it a final fun rating of 10/10, with a recycling consciousness rating of 11/10, and food rating of 8.4/10. We wish we had thought of this when the Warriors were in town last year, and would definitely recommend making the drive up to Denver when your hometown team is here to face the Nuggets. Being the intruder on enemy territory is something you truly have to experience for yourself.