Woke or witty? NJ restaurant doing a Super Bowl Taylor Swift menu

New Jersey’s small business climate leaves much to be desired. It’s tough running your own place here. When that place is a restaurant, even tougher.

So kudos to anyone who figures out a way to stand out from the crowd.

Before we tell who the genius is who picked up the ball and ran with it (see what I did there?) by tying Super Bowl and Taylor Swift into their bottom line, indulge me for one moment. This Taylor Swift backlash.

For those of you who keep complaining that Taylor Swift is single-handedly ruining football, you might want in on this newsflash. Ms. Swift doesn’t control the television cameras. She’s not asking for camera time. And trust me, she doesn’t need it. She’s one of the most successful performers of our time and just broke the one billion dollar mark for the first time in concert tour history.

She doesn’t need the NFL. Apparently, the NFL thinks it needs her.

So while everyone is either loving seeing glimpses of her rooting for her new love interest Travis Kelce or biting their fingernails to bloody nubs over how a woman could be this powerful, one New Jersey restaurant is doing something for Super Bowl that Taylor Swift the businesswoman would appreciate.

Cardinal Provisions, a restaurant known for brunch in Asbury Park, is offering a Super Bowl menu: Taylor’s version.

Yes, with such specials as Anti-Hero Eggrolls with the description: Excuse us as we are slowly lurching toward your favorite city, KANSAS CITY BURNT END + AMERICAN CHEESE EGG ROLLS served (again) with ketchup and seemingly ranch.

Or there’s Bad Blood(y Mary): fried shrimp with a big reputation.
Served with Bloody Mary cocktail sauce, olives and celery.

Who could go wrong ordering Tim McGraw nachos? A timeless, country classic.
Our award-winning chili, tortilla chips, sour cream, shredded cheddar, and pickled jalapeños.

Yes, if you hate Taylor Swift so much without knowing her work, these are all plays on her song titles.

Whether it’s Cruel Sliders (chicken tender sliders) or Mildest Dreams (wings) get your orders in early if you’re interested. Cardinal Provisions says it’s taking orders now but cutting them off days before the big game.

Cardinal co-owner Laura Brahn told nj.com,

The Super Bowl snack sector is pretty inundated and tends to go toward, for lack of a better term, the meat bros. But this year, Swifties have entered the chat. And we Swifties are a fiercely dedicated fanbase who all get the same jokes and references. So it really breathed new life into game day snacks for us.

Good for you, Laura. You’ll remember this all too well.

Opinions expressed in the post above are those of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Jeff Deminski only.

You can now listen to Deminski & Doyle — On Demand! Hear New Jersey’s favorite afternoon radio show any day of the week. Download the Deminski & Doyle show wherever you get podcasts, on our free app, or listen right now.

Click here to contact an editor about feedback or a correction for this story.