I Ranked 5 Of The Brand-New Snacks Coming To The 2023 Calgary Stampede (PHOTOS)

La Catira Picosa (Spicy Blonde) Arepa: 9/10

Where: Arepas Ranch

This was absolutely my favourite thing I got to try and it was actually pretty surprising. It's definitely less outrageous than some of the other menu offerings (it's no peanut butter pickle dog), but damn was it delicious. The arepa was filled with really flavourful shredded chicken, cheese and avocado and it came with a home made habanero sauce that i'll dream about.

I'll definitely be taking a break from a diet of mostly corndogs to try this again when Stampede starts.

Sweet Chili Heat "Diablo Dog": 8/10

Where: Burgers & Wurst

It's kind of standard fare at Stampede to have hot dogs or fried chicken covered in Cheetos or some other bizarre chip combination. However, this one really took me by surprise with how good it was. The owner explained that they use actually sweet chilli Doritos in the mix for the sausage and you can really tell.

I would 100% grab another one of these any day.

Elkeroni Pizza: 7/10

Where: Avatara Pizza

I'm not the most adventurous when it comes to meat products so if I'd seen an Elkeroni Pizza out in the wild, I can't say it would be my first choice. However, I did get to try a slice and I wasn't disappointed.

It was just a very tasty pepperoni pizza. I wouldn't necessarily have known the pepperoni was made using elk which surprised me. I liked the handful of arugula that made me relieved to be eating something that resembled a vegetable. I'm not sure if I'd get it again just because it didn't completely blow my mind but if you're just craving pizza, it's worth a try.

Mini Donut Boba Lemonade: 5/10

Where: Family Squeezed Lemonade

It's not Stampede without lemonade and I'm ashamed to admit just how much I tend to drink over the 10 days so I was excited to try this new flavour.

The headline here is it's SO SWEET! Sugar lovers are going to want to get their hands on it. The recipe uses a "mini donut milk" combined with lemonade which makes it kind of tart but also creamy and it's a very weird sensation, especially when you add the popping boba into the mix.

While I definitely enjoyed trying it for the novelty and the photo opps, I'm not sure I could drink a whole one by myself.

Habanero Cherry Ice Cream Taco: 4/10

Where: V Burger

While I'm not that into sweet food, ice cream is one exception to the rule so I was super excited to give this taco a try. It's plant-based and gluten-free which is definitely a rarity for Stampede.

All in all, I really liked the ice cream, the taco shell and chocolate. However, the cherry filling and candy pieces on top were way too sweet for me and overtook all the other flavours. I also didn't get a huge amount of habanero spice which is probably great news if you were put off by the heat.

Spider Bao

Where: Dumpling Hero

The first of thing I couldn't actually try was the Spider Bao. No, it's not actually a deep-fried spider (shudders). It's actually a whole soft-shell crab served up in a bao bun. It was enormous and looked super tasty.

Super Seafood Michelada

Where: Happy Fish

If you're a Caesar lover, you're probably going to want to check this out. The take on a classic Mexican Michelada is any seafood lover's dream with shrimp, octopus and squid along with tons of fruit, cucumber, orange soda and Clamato. The cups are absolutely huge and it looks like a meal in itself.