Blog ESPN: Chicago sports food vendors not that disgusting

Pulling from vomit-inducing health inspection summaries, ESPN reports that, shockingly, Chicago's sports venue vendors aren't slowly poisoning area fans. In fact, with the exception of Soldier Field, inspectors found "no major or critical violations" of the health code in 2009. Of course, the inspection happened during the day, when no major sporting events were happening or vendors were present, but we digress. 

Unfortunately for Bears fans, 12 percent of Soldier Field vendors were cited for violations, almost all of which were due to a lack of hot water. Here's hoping the cotton candy spinners and brat bun stuffers wear gloves.

Other cities and stadiums didn't fare so well, so Chicagoans have reason to boast. At the Pepsi Center in Denver, 67 percent of vendors had violations, including one bar where "inspectors found phorid flies, sometimes called coffin flies, in a bottle of cognac." 93 percent of vendors at American Airlines Arena, home of the Miami Heat and, now, Lebron James, were cited, and inspectors found "several safety issues related to electrical wiring and ... gas boilers." Ford Field, home of the Detroit Lions, had a ton of violations, including one employee's half-eaten hamburger in a warming unit. Perhaps the grossest violation occurred at decrepit Sun Life Stadium in Miami, home of the Florida Marlins and Miami Dolphins, where "in June 2009, an employee complained anonymously that small insects and other debris were blended into frozen alcoholic beverages at a stand where equipment wasn't being cleaned. When inspectors checked, they issued a critical violation for a buildup of slime inside the frozen drinks machine."