If you would have told me 10 years ago that someday I’d be able to buy an empanada at Holman Stadium, I’d have asked you what you’re vaping.

Historic Holman Stadium has been better known for its parade of minor league baseball teams, including hosting the first integrated baseball team in the modern era. Even Aerosmith and Whitney Houston belted out the hits there. But I digress. Food has never been a Holman centerpiece in the modern era.

This Saturday, Holman Stadium’s ongoing reinvention continues with the Third annual Southern New Hampshire Food Truck Festival on Amherst Street. It makes me smile for two reasons. Holman Stadium’s efforts to remain relevant and the food truck culture has finally blossomed these past few years in New Hampshire. And, I love empanadas. OK, that was three reasons.

The five-hour festival starts at 1 p.m. Saturday and will also include craft brews, live music and a corn hole tournament.

In contrast to Holman Stadium, I recently took in a Red Sox game at America’s most beloved ballpark, Fenway Park. I will give them credit. Fenway today is a better experience than my first visit in 1984. Parking isn’t much better, though. For $45, you get to participate in a precision parking game where your ability to squeeze into a tight spot is critiqued by the attendant who wasn’t amused when I asked him if I could borrow some Vaseline because of the tight fit.

As we were gifted with front row seats, we could tell what flavor of Altoids the ball girl was chewing. When you sit that close, apparently you are also gifted with a printed menu titled “Dugout Seats.” The meal choices rivaled those of a food truck festival selection, complete with calories listed. I guess people who sit that close and who might be seen on TV, are concerned with their appearance and want nutrition information. I did not. Despite living in an era of high-def TV, I took my chances and did not even shave that day, despite being in TV camera range.

Fenway’s menu for the elites includes your standard issue Kayem Fenway Franks (490 calories), Cuban panini, lobster roll and even a desert page that featured a chocolate chip brownie. The biggest shocker? The entrée I would have thought to be among the healthiest, lumbered in at 1,020 calories: The black bean and quinoa burger with bean sprouts and avocado aioli. For 40 more calories, you can have a real beef burger with real toppings: cheese, Thousand Island dressing and a side of fries.

A line 30-deep on the concourse waited 15 minutes for a $5 Dunkin Donuts coffee on this chilly 57-degree night at Fenway.

Back to Holman Stadium and the wheels with meals. How can you possibly resist a food truck called, “The Forking Awesome Food Truck,” or “Chicks and Dogs Rolling Diner?” When I attend this Saturday, I will not be looking for the “Black Bean and Quinoa Gutbuster King of Calories” food truck.

Contact Mike Morin at mikemorinmedia@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter at @MikeMorinMedia. His column runs the first, third and fifth Tuesdays of the month.

Newsletter