The Masters 2024: Rating all of the food at Augusta National’s affordable concessions stands

Augusta Nationals affordable and appetizing concessions stands

Is Augusta’s food appetizing as well as affordable? I rate all of the food and drinks at the Masters concessions stands

I’ve been at The Masters since Monday so, naturally, I’ve already worked my way through the full menu at the concessions stands around the course. But is a pimento cheese sandwich really any good? And what’s a moon pie? Read on for my ratings of every item available.

But before we get there, and to save me mentioning it in every item, let’s talk about the pricing – or more the value. I flew here from the UK just hours after spending Sunday afternoon at Wembley Stadium for a football (soccer) match where I paid £15 for a burger and chips, my nephew paid £10 for a ‘large’ cup of sweets, and a beer was £7.20. Prices are similar at golf events with The Open and The Ryder Cup charging a pretty penny for refreshments.

But here at Augusta National, you could follow me in going through the entire menu for $84 (if you wanted to try all five soft drinks and the three varieties of cookies).

One criticism – and they’re almost impossible to find of anything at The Masters; vegetarians are not very well catered for and there’s no consideration for vegans unless you want to eat fruit pots and peanuts all day.

With that said, let’s dive into the menu…

Masters sandwiches

Pimento cheese sandwich ($1.50) 4.5/5

The most famous item at The Masters Concessions stands, but what is pimento cheese? It’s cheese blended with mayonnaise and pimentos, which are a variety of chili pepper that is small, sweet, and mild. It’s spread pretty generously on a slice of bread and sandwiched with another. I love them and could eat them all day. Equally, I know people who’ve said they’re disgusting and smell like sick! That’s harsh but for $1.50 and with them being a Masters tradition, you have to try one (per day in my case) while you’re here and add them to your Masters viewing party menus at home.

Egg salad ($1.50): 3.5/5

Don’t be fooled by the word salad if you’re British. There’s no salad in sight here. This is what we’d call egg mayonnaise sandwiched between two slices of white bread. Again, if you’re a Brit, don’t be expecting massive slices of bread, either, it’s the equivalent of slices from those mini loaves we can buy, but still a decent snack. Grab a couple and a soft drink and you still won’t spend more than $5. Soft, fresh, tasty, and not overpowered by mayo. Just stand clear of anyone who doesn’t like egg as you open that green plastic bag. If everyone at Augusta opened one at once I think we’d have a tournament suspension on our hands.

Chicken salad on honey wheat ($3) 3/5

Again with the word ‘salad’. It’s blended chicken, mixed with mayonnaise, and, in fairness, I think there was a tiny piece of either celery or cucumber in mine. I whacked some Tabasco in mine for a little kick and it was decent enough but my least favorite of the first three and only saved from last place by another chicken offering (more on that soon). The honey wheat bread has more flavor than the white bread, but the feelings just a bit soft and lack any texture. Definitely not worth the extra $1.50 over pimento cheese and egg salad.

Pork Bar-B-Que ($3): 5/5

This is served warm and is by far and away the best sandwich on the menu. It’s effectively pulled pork, smothered in barbecue sauce and served in a white roll. You get loads of meat for your money, so it’s worth forking out the extra $1.50 over the Egg Salad or Pimento cheese. Smokey, soft, meaty – what’s not to like?

Masters Club ($3) 5/5

For me a club sandwich should be toasted, but this is ham, cheese, and turkey in a sesame seed-topped buttered white roll (effectively a burger roll). You get a couple of slices of ham, a slice of turkey, and a thick slice of soft, mild cheese. Looks and feels like a sandwich you’d put in saran wrap in your lunchbox for work but tastes great. Added a little American mustard to mine for a kick.

Ham and Cheese on Rye ($3) 5/5

Tough to choose between this and the Masters Club for my favorite. Delicious rye is packed full of ham (almost too much ham) and cheese. The cheese is soft and could do with a bit more tang to it if I’m being ultra-fussy, but the pickle relish/butter that accompanies it is great. My pick for the best value for money among the sandwiches.

Classic Chicken ($3): 2.5/5

Effectively a cold southern fried chicken steak in a fresh white bread roll. I’d recommend you don’t tackle this one without a drink because it’s pretty dry, but it’s edible if you bang some condiments on it, and does get better with more bites. Be far nicer if it was hot – effectively a Rustlers burger that hasn’t been microwaved.

Breakfast – Served until 10 am

Masters Blend Fresh Brewed Coffee ($2): 4/5

It’s not going to win awards, but it’s decent enough coffee, and the speed at which it sells ensures it’s piping hot and fresh. A good-sized Masters cupful for the price and available with or without cream and in decaf. Only criticism, the cups are really hot if you’re carrying them far and haven’t purchased a Masters cup holder. TBF they’re designed for the beer cups so if you’ve already had one of those before your morning caffeine hit then a hot cup is going to be the least of your concerns.

Chicken Biscuit ($3): 3.5/5

A grower, not a shower. I’ve tried it twice and found it bland and dry on the first go. Second time round it was far more pleasant – probably because the chicken seemed to have more flavor, was hotter and the biscuit (a bread with a firm crust and soft, crumbly interior, almost like a scone, for our British readers) was more moist. There’s a theme here with my views of the chicken items on the menu, but I wouldn’t be rushing to have this, especially if they have the breakfast sandwich.

Breakfast Sandwich ($3): 5/5

Egg, bacon, sausage, and cheese in a bun. This is breakfast! It could do with some ketchup – something that is lacking at the concession stands – but a few shakes of hot sauce took this to a new level. I’ve only eaten one, but would happily have this for breakfast (and lunch, then two for dinner) every day of Masters week.

Blueberry Muffin ($2): 5/5

Unlike ‘salad’ in the sandwiches, the good news is that the blueberry muffins contain blueberries. And lots of them. A blueberry muffin can be flavorless but this was soft, fresh, sweet, and tangy all at once. Some crystalized sugar on the top gives a nice little crunch and it’s a good-sized muffin. Perfect with the fresh coffee.

Fresh Mixed Fruit ($2): 5/5

Melon, strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries in a cup. Sweet, refreshing, delicious, and the closest thing to health food you’ll find at concessions. Doubtful you’ll be asking for it on day one but, in my experience, you’ll have two or three by day three!

Snacks

Chips (crisps, $1.50) – Plain 4/5; BBQ 4/5

It feels a little odd that chips are the same price as some sandwiches, but I’m committed at this stage and they’re decent-sized bags. They’re effectively kettle chips and the plain flavor is salted. A little greasy on the fingers but crunchy and not salted to the point of burning your tongue (which I can’t say of the fries I had from a nearby restaurant at dinner this week). The BBQ flavor chips are practically orange with all of the seasoning and eating a full bag at once left my mouth a little dry, but the flavor is delicious and unmistakably BBQ – sweet and tangy.

Peanuts ($1.50): 4/5

I’m a huge fan of peanuts and this is a decent-sized bag – probably twice the size of one I’d find in a British pub as a bar snack. The peanuts themselves are also generous in size, have a great crunch to them, and are dusted in just the right amount of salt. Again, greasy on the fingers, but that’s salted snacks for you!

Southern Cheese Straws ($2) 5/5

Yes, please. Crunchy but crumbly at the same time, a tangy cheese flavor pops through from every bite of these mini straws and there’s plenty in the bag to satisfy your snacking urges. The best of the savory snacks.

Mini Moonpie ($1) 1/5

I may have to put my hard hat on when I leave the building, but I don’t get the fuss. Perhaps it’s my UK pallet, but more likely it’s because they’re meant to be microwaved for ten seconds before you eat them and mine wasn’t. To me, they taste like a Wagon Wheel that’s been left out to go soft. It’s effectively some marshmallow sandwiched in some thin cakey/sponge and thinly coated in chocolate. Delicious, right? Nope. Tastes of additives and left me reaching for a drink to clear the taste.

Cookies ($1.50) 5/5

There are three choices – Chocolate Chip, Georgia White Chocolate Pecan, Oatmeal and Raisin – and they’re all great. They’re cookies, of course they’re great. Soft, chewy, sweet. If I had to rank them in order I’d go for Oatmeal first, then White Chocolate, then Chocolate Chip. But I’d highly recommend you carry out your own taste test as a matter of urgency.

Georgia Pecan Caramel Popcorn ($2) 4/5

Big chunks of popcorn dipped in pecan caramel with some big pieces of salted pecan thrown into the bag for good measure. Crunchy yet soft, sweet yet bitter, they coat your mouth with a beautiful flavor. A bag is far too sweet to devour in one sitting unless you want to spend a couple of hours feeling sick, hence the dropped mark.

Georgia Peach Ice Cream Sandwich ($3) 5/5

The thing of the Gods. If this was on the menu at The Open you’d pay twice the price, if not more. Two soft vanilla cookies sandwich a massive slice of Georgia peach ice cream, which is firm enough to last the duration as long as you’re not planning to save some for later. The peach flavor is subtle but comes through and the sweetness of the cookies isn’t overpowering. Even if you’re watching your weight we’d recommend you try one of these. You can burn it off by powerwalking your way to Amen Corner while reminiscing about the deliciousness. I can only hope that next year’s Masters Gnome is holding one of these.

Beverages

Soft Drinks ($2): 5/5

I’m not going to rate all of them separately but I’ll give them all a mention. All of the soft drinks come in a high-quality clear plastic Masters-branded cup that you can take home as a memento. They’re pre-poured due to the volume of people flooding through concessions so if you want one without ice then you’ll need to ask. The ice is as clear as glass and there’s something about soft drinks that hits differently in the states – we’re assuming it’s the amount of high fructose corn syrup they use. The cola and diet cola is fizzy and exactly what you want on a warm day. The still lemonade is overly sweet (don’t get one with the popcorn) and the sort of yellow you’ll be peeing if you only drink, well, still lemonade, but that’s easily done because it’s absolutely addictive. Lemon-lime is refreshing (and effectively Sprite) but the Sports Drinks has an overly fake flavor and wasn’t for me, although it did help me power up a few more of Augusta’s massive slopes.

Fresh Bottled Water ($2): 5/5

It’s cold… it’s clean… that’s what I call some high-quality H2O. Oh, and it comes in a Masters branded bottle. Enough said. Five stars for water? Well, yeah. It keeps you alive, is only two bucks and when you’re walking miles across undulating ground with temperatures hitting 80, it’s a better choice than a beer even if it doesn’t hit the same.

Brewed Iced Tea ($2) 5/5

As a man from the land of hot tea, iced tea has never been my go-to choice, but this is really good and arguably the most refreshing drink out of the options. You can choose from sweetened or unsweetened depending on your tastes. I went for unsweetened, because that’s how I drink my tea when it’s made in a pot and everything else has so many sweeteners added that my bloodstream needed a break. Black tea, ice cold with a lovely bitterness. Now I just need a biscuit (UK not US) to dunk.

Crow’s Nest ($6) 5/5

Brewed exclusively for The Masters and only available during tournament week, Crow’s Nest is a light and refreshing wheat ale. It reminds me of Blue Moon, which I’m a huge fan of, and I love that it comes in a green Crow’s Nest cup that you can take home. Even if you don’t like beer, it’s worth $6  (beer has gone up by a dollar for 2024) just to get one of those.

Domestic Beer ($6) 4/5

It’s a bit of a sweeping generalization, but this tastes like American beer. It’s crisp and refreshing on a hot day and very easy to drink. It’s probably ideal for an event where they don’t want the fans becoming too raucous because it doesn’t taste overly strong and having sampled two (after I completed work on the practice days) I hadn’t noticed any ill effects – unless the guy who I thought was dressed as a gnome was actually a lifesize gnome. Served in a green Masters-branded plastic cup, which you can take home. And it’s not a case of them refilling the same cup when you go back for more. If you choose to drink 10 beers or 10 sodas, you’re getting 10 cups… and probably diabetes.

Import Beer ($6) 4.5/5

Darker than the domestic beer and a little fuller in my completely uneducated view. You’ll be pleased to hear I sampled this on a different day to the Crow’s Nest and Domestic to see if it had any effects and no human gnomes were seen. All the beers are good but Crow’s Nest gets my vote every time.

White Wine ($6) 3.5/5

Tricky one, this, as I’m not really a white wine fan. Instead, I bought one, had a sip, and then offered it to a patron who was already drinking one to get her view. “Dry and fruity. A little bit sharp,” she told me. Can only assume she was a sommelier with that level of detail. Ultimately, if you’re a wine drinker, it’s your only choice so you can either buy one or not… and we all know you’re going to buy one.

So that’s it, menu complete. I’m now off to walk the course to burn off my research for this project. And I’ll probably grab an ice cream sandwich for the stroll.

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About the Author

Rob Jerram – Digital Editor

Rob specializes in the DP World Tour, PGA Tour, LIV Golf, and the Ryder Cup, spending large chunks of his days reading about, writing about, and watching the tours each month.

He’s passionate about the equipment used by professional golfers and is also a font of knowledge regarding golf balls, golf trolleys, and golf bags, testing thousands down the years.

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