Skip the tailgate, go downtown
The stadium is 2 miles away, and the restaurants and clubs are air-conditioned.
Tailgating isn’t for everyone, especially this time of year, when the heat and humidity team up to take out fans like LSU's beatdown of Clemson last week.
RedEye has another option: Spend the afternoon downtown, where you can eat and celebrate in air-conditioned comfort while watching college football on TV.
Tiger Stadium is less than 2 miles away, and if you eat at Pastime Restaurant, you can take its shuttle to the game. If you ride a bike, hop on the levee trail to pedal to Tiger Stadium in less than 15 minutes.
Catch a ride to the game
Pastime Restaurant: Park downtown, eat lunch and ride the Pastime bus to the game. Afterward, take the contraflow route back through downtown, stop at Pastime for a victory pizza and let the traffic thin out before heading home.
Watch the game, eat and drink
Bayes Oyster Bar: Opens at 3 p.m. with cocktails, oysters and free Fireball shots after LSU touchdowns.
Cecelia Creole Bistro: One of the best restaurants in the parish opens at 4 p.m. Saturday. The new Catahoula Room is worth a pre-game visit.
Danny’s Dive Bar and Grill: Known for great burgers and a kitchen that stays open late. Cheap eats as well.
Somewhere Neighborhood Bar: Good food, drinks and football on TV, plus late-night kitchen hours.
Squeaky Pete’s: Downtown's only country music bar, with sports on multiple TVs and drink specials during games. So cheap a college student can afford it.
Brickyard South: The new Dearman’s South food venue is now open at Baton Rouge's "unofficial dive bar." Add in the diverse crowd, and it becomes a fun place to people watch. After-game party with a DJ starts at 10.
Try your luck
Bally’s Baton Rouge: Catch the games on a 46-foot video screen inside the newly renovated landside casino. It includes a restaurant, a sportsbook and a renovated hotel.
