AL.com had a chance to explore Atlanta's brand new Mercedes-Benz Stadium on a walking tour Tuesday, and, aside from some rough edges, it is just about ready for prime time. The roof won't retract for the Alabama-FSU game (or any August/September events) as the roof's automation is fine-tuned and to save 70,000 people from the early September heat.
What should fans expect, if lucky enough to have a very hard-to-get ticket to Alabama vs. FSU in the Chick-fil-a Kickoff, which is also the first regular season game of any sport to be played in the new stadium?
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Entry to the stadium
When you arrive you'll be greeted by the new Falcon sculpture. It is made of stainless steel and was sculpted by Gabor Miklos Szoke, who works out of Budapest and Atlanta. You're lucky to have a ticket to this one, the prices are high and the tickets are in low supply.
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When you first enter your eyes will be drawn to the 1100-foot circular video screen - its hard to grasp the size and scale of it, but it is longer than any building in Atlanta is tall, for a start. The board can be seen from any seat and is located just below the retractable roof.
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Molly B's, a cafe, sits with a great view of the field near the main entry as stadium - this is on the eastern side of the main south entry on the 100 level.
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Seating views
Now for some views from different spots in the stadium. Here is a view of the field from the southeast 100 level seats.
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Here's the southern view from the northern 200 concourse, from the AT&T Perch.
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Here's a view from the northeastern 200 concourse seating.
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This is approximately what you'd see with a field level seat on the northwestern side looking southeast.
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Hungry?
When you decide to take a break and grab a bite there are a lot of vendors, many local and most voted in by Atlanta's fanbase, including the Atlanta Grill.
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Here's Capital Crust for pizza.
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Kevin Gillespie's Gamechanger restaurant is featured in the AT&T Perch on the 200 level and will offer higher end, but still reasonably priced foods.
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Fresh Mex is another vendor...
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The 300-level amenities include a community outreach restaurant, the West Nest, which focuses on hiring from Atlanta's westside community, just one of many community outreach programs in place.
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Alabama fans will feel right at home when they find Jim 'n Nicks.
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FanFare will offer classic stadium treats.
Vasha Hunt | vhunt@al.com
What's on the menu?
Here are some samples from the menu's of a number of vendors, starting with Molly B's.
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Here's what Kevin Gillespie's Gamechanger restaurants offering.
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West Nest menu items include many of the promised low-price items like $2 popcorn and $5 burgers.
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FreshMex's menu also features the low prices promised.
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Other fun things to do
AT&T's Perch will feature food and video screens, geared towards fantasy football fans looking for some other things to do when wandering the stadium. We haven't yet seen the 100-level beer garden, but one cool fact is fans won't need a special ticket to access the Perch or the beer garden, and fans are free to roam all three levels with any ticket.
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Multiple video boards are a big feature in the AT&T Perch, allowing fantasy football fans to keep track of multiple games at once
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On the 300-level the floors are marked with football field graphics that sync with the actually Mercedes-Benz Stadium field. Fans can also check out poster-walls and stats of their favorite players. What we don't know is if the stadium will put up Alabama and FSU posters and stats for the Chic-fil-a Kickoff.
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Fans can also get nice Atlanta skyline views on the 300 concourse.
Vasha Hunt | vhunt@al.com
Want to know more about the new stadium?
Here are some fun trivia tidbits provided by the Mercedes-Benz Stadium hosts. First up is low priced foods, unlimited refills and more...
Vasha Hunt | vhunt@al.com
The technology in the stadium includes amazing wifi capacity...
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Some cool first-ever stats about Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Vasha Hunt | vhunt@al.com
The stadium was built to keep economic and energy impact low - and the color panels will protect your car from the sun if you are on top of the silver lot parking deck!
Vasha Hunt | vhunt@al.com
Comparing the old and the new - The Mercedes-Benz Stadium stacks up nicely against the soon to be demolished Georgia Dome. When the Dome goes, the space will be converted to a green space, some parking and some fan activity areas.
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