This is one of those news releases where I saw it and thought "I bet there are people who will care about this!" From the desk of I have no idea, and made available on Mariners.com:

The Seattle Mariners today announced the installation of four electric vehicle charging stations that will be available for public use at Safeco Field.

It's important to understand that the release says "at Safeco Field", rather than "in Safeco Field". The Mariners will not allow people to charge their electric cars in Safeco Field, which is too bad, since that would have fit nicely with an earlier photo caption. It is also not too bad, because then there would be electric cars in Safeco Field. The ground rules would have to be re-worked and everything. Obnoxious.

The charging stations are located on some plaza next to the Safeco Field parking garage, which - I have to be honest, here, I didn't know there was a Safeco Field parking garage. I know there's a garage between Safeco and the football stadium. Is that the Safeco Field parking garage? Is there another Safeco Field parking garage? The charging stations are close to wherever the Safeco Field parking garage is. So that could be a fun mystery.

My favorite line from the news release, which is like identifying my favorite leaf from the pile of dead fallen leaves:

Anyone can plug into the charging stations 24 hours a day, even on days when the Mariners are not playing.

It's good that it's this way, and it ought to be this way, but it would have been funnier the other way, where the charging stations only function as long as the Mariners are playing across the street. Drivers with uncharged vehicles would end up praying for more foul balls and pitching changes. Outs would be met with exasperation, while hits and long at bats would be received with delight. There would be a whole new segment of the Seattle population hoping for a big bat instead of a continued commitment to pitching and defense, which come to think of it, no, that would suck and be stupid.

If you've been reading this post and waiting for actual insight, then I've got bad news, because it turns out I am woefully underinformed when it comes to the field of automobiles. It took me twelve minutes to Google yesterday's Koenigsegg reference. My first thought was that it sounds really weenieish to have to plug in your car, but then I realized that we all have to plug in all of our cars, and also I am a weenie. So basically, here is what you need to know:

• The Seattle Mariners have installed electric car charging stations
• That is good
• I think?

I cannot believe I am considered an authority on things. Any things.

I'd been thinking about posting something on this for a while, but wanted to wait until it was deep enough into the season for all the kinks to be worked out. If you have gone to The 'Pen at Safeco, what has been your experience? If you haven't, why haven't you? Are there parts of it you wish were different?

Centerplate, the company that oversees the culinary operations at Safeco Field introduced a host of new options last season. The easy response would be to decry the yuppification of a baseball stadium away from the standard hot dogs and peanuts and maybe make a comparison to Seattle as a whole. I think that's short-sighted and a cantankerous attitude though. Variety is interesting and as someone who can never anticipate what food I will end up craving, except to know that it will not be whatever I ate last, I appreciate having lots of options.

They aren't standing pat in 2011 either and continuing the diversity trend, they're also rolling with the foodie movement ongoing in Seattle currently. Ethan Stowell who runs Tavolata, Anchovies & Olives, How to Cook a Wolf and Staple + Fancy is consulting on revamping the whole market to make it more restuaranty and will also open up two new stands. Hamburg + Frites will be a burger joint and La Crêperie will serve crepes because crepes are awesome and why not?

If you aren't from Connecticut, you might not be familiar with apizza, a regional style of pizza native to New Haven. Apizza is closest in resemblance to Neapolitan style. Among the many great pizzerias in New Haven, perhaps the most highly regarded is Modern Apizza, being named one of the best ten pizza places in the country by Playboy and having won a reader poll in New Haven 12 years running. The man who runs Modern Apizza, Bill Pustari, will be opening up the creatively named, Apizza.

Roberto Santibañez is one of the better known Mexican cuisine chefs in the country. He's running or has run eateries and food trucks across the US and Mexico to great acclaim. See here, here, here and here. He will have either one place called Flying Turtle Cantina/Tortugas Voladoras or those might be two separate restaurants. I cannot tell from the releases. I have a hunch that they will be serving Mexican food.

Not only is this an increase in choices, but based on the people involved, a big push to increase the quality as well. Coupled with the permissibility of being able to bring your own food in and Safeco might be rapidly becoming among the best stadia at which to eat. That's a plus because if the product on the field sucks, at least the products in the concourse can be captivating.

Not everyone will be interested in the new fare or what it will likely cost, but that's okay. Nobody forces you to purchase concessions. Besides, the hot dogs are still there, the pretzels are still there, the peanuts are still there and you better believe the beer is still there.

Originally, there were only going to be four parts to this series, but...Kermit? Sure, Kermit. Kermit suggested a fifth part intended for the out-of-town tourist. When people come by looking for information on Safeco, they generally aren't doing so as a Seattle native. They're coming in from somewhere else on a trip, and these people will often ask for ideas of other things to do in the area when they're not at a baseball game.

So this is a thread for that. In this thread, we discuss things to do in and around the city of Seattle. Um. Go nuts.

So, as tempting as the concession stands can be, let's face it - a lot of people don't want to get all their food and drink inside. The stuff is expensive. Most of it is bad for you. The selection is limited. The waits are long, and you don't want to miss any of the game. And so on and so forth.

Everybody has his own reason, but the bottom line is that, of all the stuff that gets consumed before, during, and after a Mariners game, only a fraction of it originates inside the stadium. Which is why, here in part four, we discuss eating and drinking outside Safeco Field. While it doesn't fit under the category title, this also includes stuff you buy outside and bring in.

I don't think I'm typing very clearly, because I had a big lunch and I can't really focus on words at the moment. Basically,

1) What kind of stuff do you like to pick up outside and bring through the gates?

2) Where do you prefer to grab a pre- or post-game drink or meal that's nearby?

Personally, I'll never understand why anyone would wait until they're inside to buy a bag of peanuts. As far as actual establishments are concerned, I can't say enough about Collins Pub. It's a few blocks away from the stadium and a bit of a walk, but this distance keeps it from being overrun and annoying the way Pyramid and Elysian so often are, and they also class up the joint with a diverse selection of food and drink. While it isn't real cheap, I've yet to have a bad experience. Especially if Amy's waiting our table.

What is a baseball game without a snack and a beer?

A baseball game without a snack and a beer is, for one thing, a way cheaper baseball game, but it's also a baseball game of lesser satisfaction. It's a baseball game you spend jealous of other people eating and drinking, the way you might spend a particularly frugal vacation to Europe jealous of people with clean shirts. Nobody's ever happy about spending nine innings empty-handed. The justifications are always "it's too expensive" or "it's bad for you" or "they don't have a good beer selection," but you always still want something. Although one might identify our compulsion to eat and drink during sporting events and movies as a leading contributor to our nation's struggle with obesity, to hell with taking a stand and changing the world. You walk into the park, you smell the smells, and you're tempted.

Safeco's not lacking for temptations. And this is actually a good time for this thread, as they've rolled out a bunch of new concession stands that as of yet may not have many reviews. And so, here in part three, we discuss eating and drinking inside Safeco Field. If you've got a certain stand you frequent outside the gates, save that for part four. This is about Ivar Dogs, shishkaberries (the snack, not the weed), and everything in between.

I'll go ahead and get "garlic fries" out of the way. Everybody likes the garlic fries. Get the garlic fries.

Continuing from yesterday, we move on to our second thread concerning the whole experience of visiting Safeco Field. In this one, we discuss parking and/or getting there. Safeco doesn't really have much in the way of stadium parking, so it seems like everybody has a different way of getting to the game.

In the past, when I've gone to games, I've stayed with friends who either lived close enough to walk, or who preferred to drive and then look for free parking about a mile south of the stadium in the graffiti district. Why not park closer? When I was up for the home opener, I ran across two lots charging $45 and $40 per vehicle. There is a fortune to be made in the parking business, and that's just...really? People would really pay that much? Don't get me wrong, I'm one of those people who'd rather take it easy and pay a little than spend 25 minutes frantically searching through traffic for a small open space on the curb, but I'm not going to pay more to park my car than I'll pay to attend the event to which I'm driving in the first place. $45 could buy you 15 bags of lightly salted peanuts outside the gate.

Granted, I imagine these were extraordinary prices given the nature of the event, but still: parking can be expensive, and annoying.

Now that I live in Portland, I've gone up twice and both times stopped at the park & ride station in Tukwila to ride the light rail. Parking was difficult to find before the home opener, which makes sense, but more often than not this is a solid plan if you're coming from outside the city and don't want to deal with the hassle of driving into town. Parking is free, the light rail runs often, it costs like $4.50, and it drops you off next to the stadium. I love the light rail. Comes with the side benefit of granting you an extra 30-45 minutes to sober up if you drank at the game and have a drive home staring you in the face.

A couple days ago we got the latest fanpost from someone asking about attending Safeco Field. We've had a ton of these fanposts before, and the community's always good about answering and giving advice, but it occurred to me that there's no easy way for people to look these old threads up, nor has there ever been such a thread on the front page. Which is weird, given that this is a Mariners blog and all. So I decided it'd be a good idea to open up a Safeco feedback/suggestion thread to be locked to the sidebar for future reference.

Well, it's not one thread. It'll be four threads. This is the first of four parts:

Part 1: Tickets & seating
Part 2: Parking/getting there
Part 3: Food/drinks inside
Part 4: Food/drinks outside

So, off we go. Tickets & seating. How do you prefer to get tickets? And, more importantly, where do you prefer to sit? Are you a bleachers person? Infield upper deck? Field level? Does it depend on the time of day? What do you consider to be the best deal, or the best experience?

I can't say a whole lot myself, given that my Safeco experiences have been limited. I've sat in the outfield once, for the 2009 home opener. I'm generally happy with the upper deck, because I'm easy to please, but I've also sat in the first row of the Diamond Club behind home plate before, and that is something that everyone ought to do at least once, if they can afford it. But ultimately, I don't have any strong opinions. If you do, go nuts. And let's please try to keep this and the future threads on-topic, as I hope that they will become a valuable resource to new visitors.