May 6 (Bloomberg) -- Ballparks across America are known for serving forgettable, overpriced food. That’s the only way to excuse the dining options at the new Yankee Stadium.

The Steinbrenner family, criticized for authorizing exorbitant player contracts that yield disappointing results, has built a $1.5 billion stadium that dishes out disappointing cuisine.

If only things weren’t so different at a neighboring ballpark. Consider the humble hamburger: One of the best I tried this year was at Citi Field, the new home of the Mets in Queens; the worst was during a Yankees game.

The Citi burger came courtesy of a local New York mini chain: Danny Meyer’s Shake Shack. The juicy meat crumbled easily in the mouth. I washed it down with an eggy frozen custard shake. Total cost: $12.25.

Johnny Rockets, an international chain, is to blame for the Yankee burger. The rubbery, incinerated meat tasted as if it had been sitting under a heat lamp for 30 minutes -- the tomato on top was just as hot as the burger. A saccharine milkshake was less a beverage, more a tall cup of ice cream. Total cost: $16.

Citi Field serves spicy, tender skirt-steak tacos courtesy of New York chef Floyd Cardoz. The Yankees serve ground-beef nachos from a U.S. franchise: Moe’s Southwest Grill. The meat looked like prison slop.

The Mets have brown Brooklyn beers for $7.50. The most readily available dark brews I found at Yankee Stadium were $11 at Beers of the World -- cash only.

Bland Steak

This explains the failure of the concessions in the Bronx: While the Mets gave fans city restaurateurs serving impressive fare at reasonable markups, the Yankees have constructed the equivalent of a pricey shopping-mall food court.

To be fair, there are big names involved here. A Lobel’s kiosk served me a bland steak sandwich for $15.

April Bloomfield of The Spotted Pig and other well-known chefs are scheduled to cater at a club for fans with $500-plus “Legends” tickets (in-seat wait service and food included).

The lower dining level of the Legends Suite Club, during two recent games, looked like a hospital cafeteria at midnight. It appeared mostly empty. Maybe it’s the price. Or maybe it’s the recessed view of the field. Two other venues, Hard Rock Cafe and NYY Steak, have no view of the field. That means you have to watch the game on TV even though you’re at the game. Brilliant.

At least NYY Steak emphasizes the vicarious experience. Low ceilings, hard floors and a lifelike sound system provide deafening, stadium-worthy noise levels.

Hard Candy

Our beef and lobster were a tad overcooked, underseasoned and very expensive: $47.75 for a ribeye; $54.75 for the surf and turf. Avoid such desserts as Jolly Rancher panna cotta (dense and cloying) or a Yoo-hoo float (even worse).

There is some good news. Yankee Stadium, which looks like a giant white mausoleum, is pretty, and seats are often available at half-price via secondary dealers like StubHub. We purchased cushioned, field-level accommodations for $55. As it is at the Legends section, wait service is available in these cheaper seats -- except the food’s not included.

You wave your menu, an attendant arrives, and you purchase a Manhattan, which is under-vermouthed and too bitter. It costs $15 before the 20 percent service charge, which your server doesn’t mention so you accidentally tip him on top of that. If you ask about the charge, you’re told the service fee is “not a gratuity.”

Tickle My Frickle

The in-seat menu offers a variety of ballgame style-fare, like a $12 cheesesteak from Carl’s (bready, underseasoned), chocolate-covered cheesecake on a stick (tastes even worse than it sounds) and a pulled pork sandwich (tender yet forgettable).

That’s not the same swine you get at Brother Jimmy’s, a New York barbecue outlet with kiosks at the stadium. Those sandwiches, unavailable via wait service, yielded soft, vinegar- laced meat. Smoky brisket stretched apart like an accordion. Frickles -- fried pickles -- are an easily acquired taste.

Pair the meat with garlic fries, which are available at a kiosk called Garlic Fries. They make things easy. The crispy fries are coated in minced garlic and salt. Warning: You will smell.

Want dessert? Vendors sell pints of Turkey Hill ice cream for $6. That’s about the same price as a Manhattan grocery store, but if you’re ordering pints of ice cream at a ballgame, you have other problems.

The Bloomberg Questions

Cost? This sets the tone: $9 bottles of Bud Light.

Sound level? Loud in left field, where fans heckle Johnny Damon.

Date place? Baseball is more “bromance” than romance.

Inside tip? Many laptop bags are banned at Yankee Stadium. You can check your luggage at Stan’s sports bar across the street for $7.

Special feature? Excellent fare from Brother Jimmy’s.

Private room? Sure, for a baseball player’s salary.

Will I be back? Frequently for the games, not for the food.

Yankee Stadium is at One East 161st St., Bronx. Information: http://newyork.yankees.mlb.com.

(Ryan Sutton writes about New York City restaurants for Bloomberg News. The opinions expressed are his own.)

To contact the writer of this column: Ryan Sutton in New York at rsutton1@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: May 6, 2009 00:01 EDT