This article continues my series on things a Gen Con newbie would want to know about. In this installment, the focus shifts to food and dining at Gen Con. While the conference is focused on gaming, even gamers must eat, and while chips and pizza are known to be staples for gamers, they don’t suffice for four straight days. We need a little variety!
In this post, I’ll start by talking about eating at Gen Con in general and then transition into some of the options that are available. I’ll then wrap up by mentioning some of the things considered as part of the Gen Con experience related to food, drinks, and Gen Con. These are the items that get a lot of discussions at Gen Con or within the fan based social media groups.
Making Time to Eat and Drink at Gen Con
There is so much to do at Gen Con that it is easy to get caught in a schedule that keeps you going, or to simply lose track of time. At some point, however, you must eat and drink, especially if you are there for the entire convention! With the weather in Indiana usually very hot in late July and early August, it is highly recommended that you stay hydrated.
Gen Con newbie tip: Stay hydrated. It is easy to go without drinking as you get busy playing games, meandering the vendor hall, or trying to win that next item in the auction. Drinks at a conference can be expensive if you don’t have a water bottle or bring your own, but it is important to stay hydrated.
Eating is generally not as critical as staying hydrated, yet it is still important. Fortunately, during Gen Con there are always times when you can find food available for purchase.
Eating Options at Gen Con
Gen Con is located in downtown Indianapolis, so in addition to the conference snack bars, there will be hotel restaurants, numerous food trucks, and local dining options. Let’s take a quick look at each of these options.
The Gen Con Block Party
The Gen Con Block Party is often mentioned because it is a core part of Gen Con. The Block Party is an outdoor food-and-drink “festival”. It’s outdoors, so it is free to attend by both Gen Con attendees as well as locals. While it used to be located on Georgia Street, construction in the area has moved its primary location to South Street. This is the area between the Indiana Convention Center and Lucas Oil Stadium.
The Block Party area is packed with food trucks. There are also other food and drink vendors in the area. These vendors will offer a variety of items including desserts and drinks each day. The hours of operation are:
- Thursday, July 30: 9:00 AM – 8:00 PM
- Friday, July 31: 9:00 AM – 8:00 PM
- Saturday, August 1: 9:00 AM – 8:00 PM
- Sunday, August 2: 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM
Because this is considered a main area to get food, you can expect there to be lines. During normal mealtimes, the lines will be especially long. They also increase in length near the beginning of an hour as people come to the Block Party after games end.
There are featured vendors at the Block Party that you can count on being there every day, otherwise vendors can vary. For example, Hot Box Pizza will be there with their special Gen Con pizza slice and their sticks and cup. Sun King Brewery always has a special brew for Gen Con as well as many of their standard beers. Wild Bill’s Soda and Critical Hit Soda offer their special brands of drinks. Critical Hit Soda offers 100 unique flavors for those that like decisions.
Harry & Izzy’s offers the official Gen Con burger and Social Cantina provides the taco fix if needed. Then there are Helm Coffee Roasters and Daniel’s Winery for those that need a drink to give them a little pep for their next game. These are the official sponsors for 2026. There will be a plethora of other food vendors lining the street in food trucks as well with offerings ranging from cupcakes to BBQ to other specialty food items.
The Block Party generally has a few seating areas, however, many people either take their food to their next game, to a cooler place such as the hallways of the convention center, or they go into Lucas Oil Stadium to find a place to sit.
Food at Lucas Oil Stadium
Lucas Oil Stadium is open and being used by Gen Con. You can walk into the stadium directly from the Block Party area or you can access it via the underground tunnel from the convention center hallway. Either way, once in Lucas Oil Stadium, you can find places to sit (it is a stadium after all) as well as find food.
Lucas Oil Stadium has a couple of snack bars that will be open. These snack bars also offer food service for Gen Con attendees. The lines at these snack bars can also be long, but they are not always as long as some of the vendors.
Seating with Food
I mentioned that there is some seating at the Block Party. There is also seating within Lucas Oil Stadium. Some of the stadium seats are open for seating. There are also tables around the top of the stadium near the snack bar. These include tables with chairs as well as standing tables. These are all available to be used by Gen Con attendees.
Gen Con newbie (and not newbie) tip: There are a lot of tables at Gen Con for gaming. Please don’t use the tables around the top area of Lucas Oil Stadium for gaming. I’m referring to the tables near the concession stands and inside the doors from where the Block Party is. Please leave these seats and tables for those that would like to sit down and eat. Check on the floor of the arena for possible gaming table to use.
Gen Con newbie (and not newbie) tip: In consideration of others, when you are done eating at the tables in Lucas Oil Stadium or the Block party area, please don’t linger if all of the tables are being used. There are generally others waiting to be able to sit and enjoy their food.
In addition to the tables mentioned and the stadium seating, you’ll find that many Gen Con attendees will simply find any open place to sit and eat. During mealtimes, you will often find the hallway leading to the Block Party lined with people eating. It’s cooler inside than outside this time of year in Indiana.
The Convention Center Food Venders
In addition to the Block Party and the concession stands at Lucas Oil Stadium, you’ll find that there are a couple of concession stands within the Indiana Convention Center (ICC) that also offer a variety of food items for purchase. I’ve marked where some of the food vendors are located on the image below. A couple have tables near them, others simply offer walkup service.
Similar to the Block Party, you’ll find a variety of food options that include items like pizza , burgers, and specialty items. Unlike the Block Party, your options at these vendors should stay the same each day. As a bonus, you don’t have to go outside in the heat and humidity.
There might be additional food vendors located in hallways. For example, there is usually a vendor near the Gen Con Store that sells grab and go type items.
Gen Con tip: If you are playing a game, please be considerate of others within your gaming area. At gaming sessions, you should confirm with the game master and other players that eating is okay. Some people have allergy issues. Additionally, some food smells and sounds can bother other people. For example, the crunching chips can be grating on people with hyper-sensitive hearing (which is more people than most realize).
The Hotels
The hotels also are a great place to find a number of restaurants, coffee shops, and small convenient stores where food and drinks can be purchased. A couple of restaurants offer breakfast and/or dinner buffets as well. Each Hotel will have their own offerings.
Almost all hotels have coffee stands. The Marriott, which is where events such as the auction, consignment store, and Writers Symposium are located also has a small vendor stand on the second floor hallway that will sell coffee, fresh fruit, and other items at various times.
The Downtown Restaurants
You also have the option to leave the convention center and hotels to visit any of the many restaurants in downtown Indianapolis. Within walking distance you will find everything from fast food restaurants such as Arby’s to high-end steak restaurants such as Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse. Unfortunately, the downtown indoor mall closed and took with it the food court. Regardless, there are a number of options.
Simple Tip: Stating the obvious, most smart phones have a map app that will let you see all restaurants within walking distance.
Some of the closest options include Steak ‘n Shake which will aways be packed during Gen Con, but it is only a block away from the ICC. The following is a quick list I generated with the help of AI and then a few tweaks to add ones it missed. There are some restaurants missing from this and the distance to many might be off. This list, however, gives you an idea of what is in the area. The distances are rough and are from any of the four corners of the ICC:
- Arby’s — ~3 blocks
- Bluebeard — ~8 block
- Brew Link Brewing Downtown — ~9 blocks
- Brothers Bar & Grill — ~6 blocks
- Cafe Patachou — ~3 blocks
- Calvin Fletcher’s Coffee Company — ~8 blocks
- Chatham Tap (Mass Ave) — ~8 block
- Chick-fil-A — ~6 blocks
- Chicken Salad Chick — ~7 blocks
- Chipotle — ~4 blocks
- Coat Check Coffee — ~8 blocks
- Conner’s Kitchen + Bar — ~2 blocks
- Dean’s Steak & Seafood — ~3 blocks
- Dick’s Last Resort — ~1 blocks
- The District Tap — ~4 blocks
- Domino’s Pizza — ~9 blocks
- The Dugout Bar — ~8 block
- Dunkin — ~7 blocks
- Empire Street Bar & Grill — ~7 blocks
- Fogo de Chão — ~5 blocks
- Five Guys — ~6 blocks
- Giorgio’s Pizza — ~4 blocks
- Greek Islands Restaurant — ~8 block
- Greek’s Pizzeria — ~7 blocks
- Hard Rock Cafe — ~4 blocks
- Harry & Izzy’s — ~3 blocks
- High Velocity — ~4 blocks
- Howl at the Moon — ~5 blocks
- Iozzo’s Garden of Italy — ~7 blocks
- Jack’s Donuts — ~5 blocks (local shout out!)
- Jimmy John’s — ~7 blocks
- Kilroy’s Bar N’ Grill — ~4 blocks
- Maxine’s Chicken & Waffles — ~8 block
- McDonald’s — ~6 blocks
- Metazoa Brewing Company — ~9 blocks SE
- Nada — ~2 blocks
- Nicky Blaine’s— ~4 block
- Noodles and Company — ~4 blocks
- O’Reilly’s Irish Bar — ~5 block
- Panera Bread — ~6 blocks
- Papa John’s — ~7 blocks
- Pearl Street Pizzeria — ~5 blocks
- Penn Station East Coast Subs — ~9 blocks
- P.F. Chang’s — ~1 blocks
- Potbelly — ~6 blocks
- Qdoba — ~4 blocks
- Ruth’s Chris Steak House — ~3 blocks
- Shapiro’s Delicatessen — ~2 blocks (local shout out!)
- Social Cantina — ~3 blocks
- Spoke & Steele — ~3 blocks
- St. Elmo Steak House — ~3 blocks
- Starbucks — ~3-7 blocks (multiple)
- Steak ’n Shake — ~2 blocks
- Subway — ~5 blocks
- Sun King Brewery — ~7 blocks E
- Taco Bell — ~7 blocks
- Tavern on South — ~3 block
- Ten Hands Social Bar & Eatery — ~4 blocks
- The Capital Grille — ~3 blocks
- The Garage Food Hall — ~10 blocks NE
- The Hangar — ~10 blocks S
- The Eagle’s Nest — ~3 blocks
- The Old Spaghetti Factory — ~5 blocks
- The Slippery Noodle — ~3 blocks
- The Tap — ~5 block
- Tom’s Watch Bar — ~3 blocks
- Union 50 — ~8 block
- White Castle — ~1 block
- Wild Beaver Saloon — ~5 block
- Yard House — ~2 blocks
There are also a number of “Brewery” style restaurants around 10 blocks or more away.
Packing Your Own
The other option for eating at Gen Con is to pack your own food. Many people do this as it allows them to have their food with them while gaming. For those staying downtown, the likely closest grocery store will be Needler’s Fresh Market at 320 N. New Jersey Street, which should be about seven blocks northeast of the convention center. This is a full grocery store with produce, meat, deli, bakery, etc.
There are also options such as CVS Pharmacy, Circle K, Speedway. A Whole Foods Market is a little farther out at 320 E. Market Street.
Discussions on Drinks
As mentioned, staying hydrated is critically important at Gen Con. You will find that if you have a water bottle, most of the hotels and some areas of the convention center will have places you can fill a water bottle. This is the easiest and cheapest way to stay hydrated.
Gen Con newbie tip: Liquid flavor drops come in a small plastic bottle that will fit in a pocket. That combined with water can give you a simple flavored drink at a very low cost.
For those not interested in carrying a water bottle or flavored water, there are a variety of other options as well including buying drinks at all the places already mentioned in this article.
When it comes to pop and refills, however, there are two main options that tend to be mentioned and discussed at Gen Con: Wild Bill’s and the Convention Center cup.
Non-local attendee tip: Yes, I said “pop” because this is Indiana. I could also have said “coke” in a generic sense to mean the same thing. While I grew up using mainly the word “soda”, it is less used here. All roads — or in this case words — lead to the same drinks!
For those looking for unlimited refills, Wild Bill’s sells a cup you can refill. This cup, however, can only be refilled at their stand in the Block Party. You can visit their stand there for specific details. The cups tend to be costly but are generally nice cups. They generally have a Gen Con branded cup you can purchase as well.
The convention center also offers a cup. Their Gen Con branded cup is announced to be $25 initially (filled). You can then get refills the rest of the conference for a price of $2. My understanding is that these cups can also be purchased and refilled at Lucas Oil Stadium food concession stands as well. This means you can fill them in multiple places unlike Wild Bill’s.
The convention center is also selling last year’s Gen Con branded cups for $8 filled, but they cannot be used for discounted refills.
The Gen Con Food Experiences
When it comes to food and eating at Gen Con, there are a number of topics that come up regularly or that experienced Gen Con attendees say you should experience. While there are many other places and food items people will mention, the following are the ‘experiences’ or topics that come up the most regarding food and dining. These are all mentioned previously:
- The Block Party was mentioned earlier. Checking out the Block Party and seeing the food trucks is a part of the Gen Con experienced. There are almost always lines. Timing is more about how long the line will be.
- Island Noodles is often one of the first things mentioned when you ask about food and eating at Gen Con. The line seems to be one of the longest, but it also moves quickly. Even if you don’t get Island Noodles, it gets talked about so much it seems like you should at least stand in the line for a few mintues just to say you did!
- Hot Box Pizza: The Gen Con Slice – Each year Hot box Pizza asks for Gen Con fans to suggest ideas for a special Gen Con specific pizza. They then pick one of the suggestions and make it available. This has become a part of Gen Con. This year’s pizza slice is Dragon’s Luau which has a spicy red sauce, spicy pepperoni, bacon, pineapple, mozzarella, and a drizzle of Mike’s Hot Honey. They also do sticks in a cup. The plastic cup also tends to be unique to Gen Con as well. Many people make trying the annual slice a part of their Gen Con experience.
- Sun King Brewery’s annual Gen Con beer: Similar to the Hot Box slice, each year Sun King presents a Gen Con specific drink. This annual drink is now something many attendees wait for with anticipation. This year’s brew is Rage Quit, which is an ale with Cherry and Lemon-Lime Flavor (4.5% ABV). How many of us haven’t wanted to rage quit a D&D adventure after rolling a one multiple times in a row….
- Wild Bill’s offers root beer and other drinks is part of the Block Party. It is regularly mentioned because they offer a cup you can buy — a cup that is refillable. They also tend to have a Gen Con specific cup.
- The Indiana Convention Center Cup is also a part of many discussions. As mentioned, the cup is $25 and then has $2 refills the rest of the conference. With Gen Con branding the cup serves as a souvenir as well. They are also selling last year’s cups for $8 filled, but they cannot be used for refills.
Indiana Food Experiences
You have lots of options for food and drink. I’ve left a lot out of this post, yet it is one of the longest in this series. Before concluding, I want to call out that there are places beyond the Gen Con experiences I mentioned worth experiencing if you have the time or money. Some are national chains like Ruth’s Chris for a great steak. Others are simply fast-food restaurants like White Castle for that Midwest experience many people can never forget (I like White Castle, but it doesn’t sit well for many people). There are also a local favorites like Shapiro’s Delicatessen that is a few blocks away where you can get a really good Rueben and other food. Some consider it a little pricey. Jack’s Donuts is also more local and good for a breakfast treat.
In Conclusion…
Gen Con is focused on gaming. Most attendees grab food between games and often grabbing food that can be taken to a game. Even so, between the Block Party, the convention center and hotels, as well as the local food establishments, there is a huge variety of options. How far you are willing to travel or how long you are willing to stand in line are generally the biggest factors for most in deciding what to eat. Remember to stay hydrated. Remember to eat. And, if you are in the food areas, please be considerate and remember to give up your table if people are waiting and you are not eating.
For more on the Block Party, you can check out the Gen Con Block Party Page.
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UPDATE: 2026 Food Trucks
- The Naughty Lobstah
- The Forking Pierogi
- Mrs Fe’s Soulfood and Catering
- Smokey Blue
- It’s Those Egg Rolls
- Hometown Mini Donuts
- Golden Spatula
- Bay Area Bistro
- Mr. Dough
- Big City Grill and Lemonade
- Tacos with Attitude
- Arepas
- The Yellow Rose Texas BBQ
- Amy’s Soul/Comfort Food
- Inversiones La Gochita
- 3 Girls and a Deli
- Dee-Lucious Catering,
- Pure-trition
- Bearded Burger
- Las Tortugas
- Alley Cat Street Food and Catering
- Lumpia Queen
- Ice Cream Donuts
- The Garnacha Spot
- El Venezolano Food Truck
- Que Tacos Taco Truck
- Scott Diggity Dogs
- The Grub House
- Cupzilla
- J’s Lobster & Fish Market
Disclaimer: All prices and items are listed to the best of my knowledge at the time of this writing. Such information is subject to change. Similarly, it never hurts to verify a restaurant is open before going. Many downtown restaurants open for extended hours during Gen Con.