The Ultimate Tailgate Checklist (Plus Easy Tailgate Food Ideas)

Some of us treat game days like a holiday. Others believe tailgating is the game.

Like Nick Keith, who fell in love with barbecuing years ago while tailgating at Raiders games with his friends. His buddy would bring a little Weber grill, and he’d make ribs, chicken, hot wings. Soon after, Nick started cooking for other people.

“When I see their reaction to what I make, it’s a dopamine hit. It makes you just want to get better and better at your craft.”

Since it’s peak tailgating season, we thought we’d offer some unsolicited advice for those of you who (rightly) believe food is the main ingredient to a successful game day. Besides our team winning, but hey… we can only control the controllables.

Below you’ll find the full checklist, what to cook, how much of it to make, and the one thing most tailgate guides skip entirely.

The tailgating essentials checklist

Here’s the thing about on-the-go grilling: the fastest way to ruin a tailgate is to pack like you’re moving house. Nobody wants to spend the first hour unloading.

So we’ve split this into what you actually need and what’s nice to have.

The 9 things you actually need for a successful tailgate 

1. A portable grill. We like the Weber Q series — a Q1200 handles a small crew, and a Q2800 covers a bigger group. (Wirecutter also has a good roundup if you want to compare.)
2. Fuel. Full propane tank, or charcoal plus a chimney starter. Check the tank before you leave. 
3. A few prep tubs. Pack your meat, your sides, your rubs, all of it, in one sealed container that rides in the trunk without leaking. This 3-pc set means one tub for the main, one for sides, one for whatever’s left. (These can double as serving tubs or cutting boards, too!)
4. Grilling tools. Tongs, spatula, mitts. The Pro Tools Bundle covers it.
5. An instant-read thermometer. Keeps you from serving undercooked chicken to twelve people in a parking lot. Here’s a good option, if you don’t already have one. 
6. A way to keep food hot. More on this below!
7. A cooler with ice. For drinks, and for anything raw that hasn’t hit the grate yet.
8. Plates, forks, napkins, trash bags. Easy-to-forget essentials. Just keep a to-go bin ready for these things. 
9. Paper towels and a jug of water. Because there’s no sink at the parking lot.

How much food do you actually need?

There’s nothing worse than running out of food, and this is the question that gets everybody second-guessing whether they bought enough food at about 6 a.m. on game day.

The general rule for barbecue is about ½ pound of raw meat per person when the meat is the main event. From there:

And remember: people don’t eat a single meal at a tailgate. They graze for four hours. So plan slightly more than what you’d make for a sit-down dinner with the same number of people, and bring something to pack the leftovers in.

Tailgate recipe ideas, sorted by how much work you want to do

Easy dishes

You can’t go wrong with brats and hot dogs, and to make it feel special, go absolutely overboard on toppings. Nobody has ever complained about a well-stocked topping bar. 

Burgers are the other can’t-go-wrong crowd-pleasers. Try these cheesy onion smash burgers — smash burgers cook fast, which matters when you’re working on a small grate.

If you want a crowd-pleaser

Wings! These are Nick’s favorite protein to make for tailgates, and for good reason: they’re versatile, they feed a lot of people, and you can take them in any direction you want. His sriracha sunset wings are worth the extra effort, and these elote-style wings might be worth a shot if you want something familiar, but a little different.

Oh, and this candied sriracha bacon recipe is our pick for keeping people happy while the main course finishes. It disappears in about ninety seconds, though.

If you want to show off

Prep the pork (or your protein of choice) ahead of time at home and serve tacos or taquitos at the lot. Same with our surf and turf Cajun fajitas — do the prep in a tub the night before, and all you’re doing in the parking lot is grilling and serving.

If you REALLY want to show off, these Texas Twinkies (cream cheese and brisket stuffed in jalapenos and wrapped in bacon) are the most impressive thing you can hand someone.

And remember: the best tailgate food is mostly made at home. The parking lot is where you cross the finish line, not where you start.

The part most tailgate checklists skip

You cooked at 9 a.m. Kickoff is at 1.

So here’s a question: where is that food sitting for four hours?

The USDA danger zone is 40°F to 140°F — the range where bacteria multiply fast. Cooked food shouldn’t sit in that window for more than two hours total, and only one hour if it’s above 90°F outside. 

This is where the cooler-and-towels routine falls apart. A cooler full of damp towels loses heat faster than people think, and you can’t tell from the outside when it’s dropped below the line.

Two things can help fix this:

1. The Rest EZ® BBQ Blanket is an insulated bag with a heat-reflective interior, built for exactly this. Cook at home, wrap it, zip it, and it holds heat on the drive and through the pregame. It’s also doing double duty as your resting setup, which is a step worth not skipping anyway — we wrote a whole guide on resting if you want the full story.
2. The Rest EZ® ‘Que Crib is a great upgrade for bigger crowds. Insulated, latching, and roomy enough to nest two XL prep tubs inside, so your whole operation travels as one unit. Call it a meat fridge. We won’t stop you.

Please note: Insulation slows heat loss; it doesn’t stop it. If you’re holding food for more than a couple of hours, put a probe in it and actually watch the number. When it approaches 140°F, it’s time to serve.

Tailgate FAQ

What should I bring to a tailgate?

At minimum: a portable grill, fuel, grilling tools, mitts, a thermometer, a prep tub for transport, a cooler with ice, plates and utensils, trash bags, paper towels, and water. Everything else is a nice-to-have.

What’s the easiest food to make at a tailgate?

Brats, hot dogs, and smash burgers. They cook fast on a small grate, they’re hard to mess up, and they scale easily to however many people show up.

How do I keep food warm at a tailgate?

Use an insulated resting blanket or an insulated resting station rather than a cooler full of towels, and keep the internal temperature above 140°F. Check it with a thermometer rather than guessing.

How much food should I make per person?

Roughly ½ pound of raw meat per person when meat is the main dish, or 4–6 wings per person if wings are the main. Plan slightly over for a tailgate, since people graze rather than eat one meal.

Can you tailgate without a grill?

Yes. Cook everything at home, hold it in an insulated blanket or resting station, and serve it out of a prep tub. Pulled pork, wings, and anything taco-shaped all travel beautifully.

In summary: Your tailgate checklist at a glance

Here's the whole thing in one place.

The best tailgate food is simple, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t do any prep work. Prepping (cutting veggies, smoking meat, etc.) should mostly be done at home. The parking lot is where you cross the finish line, not where you start.

The five things you can't skip: a portable grill with fuel you've actually checked, a prep tub to haul everything in one sealed container, grilling tools and mitts, an instant-read thermometer, and an insulated way to keep food hot.

How much to make: about ½ pound of raw meat per person, or 4–6 wings each if wings are the main. Plan a little over, because people graze at a tailgate instead of eating one meal.

What to cook: brats and burgers if you want easy, wings if you want a crowd-pleaser, anything taco-shaped if you prepped the night before.

The number that matters most: 140°F. Keep your food above it the whole time it's sitting in the lot, and check with a thermometer instead of guessing.

Do those five things and the rest is just picking a playlist!