Folks, NASCAR is all for its traditions, be it ‘kissing the bricks’ at Indianapolis Motor Speedway or drinking the goblet of wine at Sonoma Raceway. NASCAR winner’s traditions are epic. But sadly, there is no such thing for NASCAR’s most iconic race, the Daytona 500. Maybe we can take some inspiration from golf. So, every year, they have the Masters Championship, and before it kicks off, the previous year’s winner has to pick the dinner menu. This year, it is being served in honor of Scottie Scheffler, who picked an array of American and Mexican dishes. And a funny situation arose.
So, Johnson hosts the ‘Never Settle Podcast’ with sports journalist Marty Smith, where the two shed light on various things. This time, Smith thought it would be fun to ask Johnson for his food options while hosting a dinner for past Daytona 500 winners. What is surprising is that the California native did not pick a single American dish. But still, what he picked has our mouths watering.
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Jimmie Johnson’s menu for his fellow NASCAR colleagues!
In the recent podcast episode, Smith read out what Scottie Scheffler, the defending Masters champion, has picked to be on the menu on April 8th. That’s when the 2025 Master’s tournament is set to kick off. He said, “Scottie Scheffler, of course, won the 2024 masters tournament. I want to read you his menu, Johnson. Cheese Burger sliders, Papa Schef’s meatball, and Ravioli bite with Pecorino Cheese. You familiar with this?” Well, this is just the appetizer. The first course would be Texas-style Chili. Followed by a main course, which people can choose between Texas ribeye steak or blackened redfish. And for dessert, Scheffler has kept a warm chocolate chip skillet cookie with vanilla bean ice cream. Mouth watering yet?
If not, Smith then asked Jimmie Johnson, “If you had this opportunity to serve Jimmie Johnson’s Daytona 500 champions dinner, what is Jimmie Johnson serving?” And it was almost a no-brainer for the 7-time Cup Series champion. He replied, “I think we’d start of with some Taquitos, like a lot of Guac sour cream, salsa. Build your own Fajitas, I think, would be a nice entrée portion. Churros with some Caramel sauce. Coronas are plentiful, with lime wedges on the top.” Pretty Mexican taste buds for the American Motorsports’ Superman!
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Well, Daniel Suarez is surely crashing this party, even though he’s never won the Daytona 500. All the options Johnson picked are Mexican. Even the beer brand Corona is Mexican. And, well, Churros is mostly Spanish. But he’s not kept any American food. If this is for the Daytona 500, it’s gonna be in Florida. How about some Key Lime Pie? Anyway, Johnson loves Mexican food, and it’s natural he picked this menu. He may be from California, but from El Cajon. And El Cajon has a large population of Mexican people. And probably, Johnson has grown up eating a lot of tacos.
That’s probably why he was inspired to also start a taco joint in Charlotte back in 2017. And folks, this is no ordinary taco restaurant; it’s inspired by the taste of Southern California, where Johnson grew up. And when the restaurant opportunity came by, Johnson jumped on it. “I’ve been preaching that the Mexican food out there (in Southern California) is so much better. When this opportunity came along, I’m like, ‘I can’t help with a lot of stuff, but I think I can help here.’” But coming back to Johnson’s dinner plans for Daytona 500 winners…Mexican food might be a hit among the garage.
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Favorite foods of past Daytona 500 winners
William Byron has won the Great American Race twice, and that too back-to-back (2024, 2025). So he deserves a little say in the menu. But it might not be necessary after all, as he’s all for Mexican food. In a previous interview, he was asked about his favorite food, and he had said, “No, but I like Mexican food a lot. I like sushi somewhat; I don’t like the crazy sushis. Tex-Mex or sushi.”
And Denny Hamlin is not missing this dinner, either. Not because he’s won the race thrice, but because he loves Mexican food. If you recall, Joe Gibbs Racing did a video on Denny Hamlin where they called him a “Mexican food connoisseur”. And the whole NASCAR community knows how much Hamlin loves his Tacos. In fact, a few years back, Michael Waltrip brought a taco for Hamlin at Texas Motor Speedway and accidentally dropped it on his windshield.
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Also, you can’t have a dinner party in Daytona and not call “the Pied Piper.” To Johnson’s good luck, even Dale Earnhardt Jr. is a big Mexican food fan. In an interview, he was asked what he likes to cook, and the first thing he said was tacos. “I do a lot of tacos, steak and chicken and salad (with) steak and chicken. I can cook French toast. I can cook anything.” Maybe to lure Junior more, Johnson would have to keep some classic oyster stew.
But, folks, jokes apart, what do you think of Jimmie Johnson’s menu? Would you like to suggest a few dishes? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below.