The Joe Montana Bowl is Here – How to Wow Your Guests

This weekend is the weekend.  The culmination of 4 weeks of pre-season, 17 weeks of the regular season and 3 weeks of post-season games have led to this moment, the most perfect tweet from Joe Montana who played for both the Niners from 1979-1992 and the Chiefs in 1993-1994. 

You've been honing your remote management skills and identifying the perfect super-secret ingredient in your salsa all these weeks, but are you still feeling the pressure of hosting a viewing party? Heading to a party but don’t know what to bring for a snack? We’re here to help. 

There are four types of people who watch the actual game associated with the Snack Bowl. Three are traditional and then you have the rare-but-always-entertaining fourth:

Type 1 \\ Watches the game intently and aggressively shushes people. Rooting for the Niners and accepting the words of Troy Aikman and Joe Buck as gospel as long as it supports the previously mentioned Niners narrative they accept. Obnoxiously trying out facts they read on The Athletic this week in hopes they sound like the smartest person in the room. This type only speaks during the commercials. Which is problematic for Type 2.

Type 2 \\ Sportsball is cool, but I’m just here for the commercials. Can tell you their favorite Doritos commercial since the introduction of Ali Landry, and just how many Clydesdales pull the Budweiser wagon (It’s 8 by the way). They are already buzzing about their theories with Pepsi's "Paint it Black" with Missy Elliot and H.E.R. teasers, and what that means for the halftime show. 

Type 3 \\ The shrieks of “Shakira and J.Lo are my everything!” in response to your invite to come to your party still haunt your dreams.  This person is generally elbow-deep in guac at the snack table the entire day, sans those precious 30 minutes when the real action starts. You forgot they even showed up because they only came up for air to belt every lyric of the show. They had their Spotify playlist on repeat all week to ensure they had the timing down perfectly. Extra Type 3’s rock a little choreography.

Team 4 \\ If you’re lucky you’ll have the prop bet master who bet the over on Demi Lovato's National Anthem, that the Chiefs will win the toss and that the Niners will win the whole thing. This is the guy who brought his stopwatch from when he coached his 5-year old’s brief stint playing soccer in 2007 to confirm the Over 1:55. Oh, and they bring the grids and charts. For everything. Literally.

How do you keep all parties content, while keeping that effortless air of party simplicity? 

THE FULL PICTURE WITH 4K HDR \\

This year is the first year the Super Bowl will be broadcast in 4K. This is HUGE. Literally because in addition to stunning clarity you can actually see more of the picture with 4K. FOX has been working on this since late September to ensure every kink is worked out before this weekend.

What’s the difference to you?

The game is set to kick off in Miami at 6:30 EST with sunset at 6:05.  The entire game is going to be under the lights, where 4K HDR really amplifies the specular highlights off of the helmets. The field will look richer, the team colors and flesh tones more accurate, and you also get a lot more depth in the black as well. Typically shooting from specific camera angles into a helmet is tricky due to the shadows, with 4K HDR player reactions and expressions that will be clearer for those missed PI calls and endzone celebrations.

How do you set your system up to ensure you have the best viewing for you and your guests?

Maybe you have a 4K TV, but you bought the cheapest HDMI cable the store had to save money on the upgraded sound system. That’s like owning a new car and expecting to get the same performance out of it with bicycle tires. If you have the broadcast coming through your streaming service or cable box, but don’t have a 4K HDR HDMI cable that can push that level of content, you’re leaving performance on the table.  If you’ve gone to all of the effort to have a 4K experience, without a 4K HDMI Cable, your resolution is not going to be 4K. Lame.

Bought an 8K tv, but waiting for the content to catch up? With the right system setup, having an 8K television and the game in 4K is going to be something to marvel at. Our 8K UHD HDMI cables include a bandwidth of 48 Gbps and can carry resolutions up to 10K and 8K60, 4K120 frame rates.

Check out our 4K HDMI cables and 8K HDMI cables to maximize the performance of your investments. Austere III Series cables start at $49.99 or VII Series cables starting at $99.99

THE SNACK BREAKDOWN \\

And finally, if you are feeling a lack of creativity for what to bring or make for the big day, here is a list of a few of our team member’s favorite recipes for the biggest snacking day of the year. Based on who they are rooting for, there is definitely a theme. What New Year’s Resolution?

The Niner Faithful 

Deena \\  Antipasto Skewers from Valerie’s Kitchen

Gabby \\ Cucumber Hummus Cups from Sparkles of Yum

Jen \\ Chunky Avocado Salsa from the Life of Jolie

Pippa \\ Broiled Feta from Once Upon a Chef

Stan \\  Wedge Salad Dip from Lemon Tree Dwelling

The Mahomies

Mike \\  Bacon Wrapped Kielbasa Bites with Brown Sugar Glaze from What the Fork Food Blog

Halee \\ Pulled Pork Sliders from Anne Burrell and Food Network

Owen \\ Beer Cheese Dip from The Cookie Rookie

Alysse \\ Extra Crispy Baked Chicken Wings from Craving Tasty

Liz \\ Pimento Corn Muffins from Epicurious

Cheers to your Snack Bowl being More Than Expected, but if we’re being honest: it has to be better than last year’s pizza you didn’t take the cardboard out before putting in the oven situation.