The Atlanta Braves' home opener is just a couple weeks away, and fans heading to the game should come hungry. Today, Delaware North Sportservice, which manages food and beverage service at SunTrust Park, unveiled a locally focused lineup of food options at the new stadium.
The ballpark's concessions will be grounded in providing regionally inspired dishes using local ingredients and companies. A ”Taste of Braves Country" program will showcases southern cooking from six states considered to be ”Braves Country": Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, Mississippi and Alabama. Time-tested dishes and flavors from around the south will be found on concessions menus across the ballpark.
The Taste of Braves Country program includes dishes from throughout the Southeast, highlighted by:
• Georgia: Fox Bros. BBQ; Hugh Acheson 1st & 3rd Hot Dog and Sausage Shack, Chick-fil-A; Waffle House.
• South Carolina: Pimento Cheese Patty Melt, served with caramelized onions and smoked paprika on rye.
• North Carolina: Smoked whole hog BBQ sandwich, served on white bread with chopped southern slaw and vinegar BBQ sauce.
• Tennessee: Nashville Hot Chicken, served with bread & butter pickles.
• Mississippi: Blackened Catfish Po' Boy Taco, served with slaw and Comeback Sauce.
• Alabama: Fried Tomahawk Pork Chop, served on an extra-large potato roll with collard green slaw and white BBQ sauce.
Highlights of Georgia restaurants include Fox Bros. BBQ (with a stand in the stadium as well as at the new Terrapin Taproom), Hugh Acheson's 1st & 3rd Hot Dog and Sausage Shack, Gu's Dumpling cart, multiple Chick-fil-A concessions and a Waffle House concession stand. Other Atlanta staples include H&F Burger, King of Pops, Mayfield Creamery Ice Cream and a Tomahawk Ice Cream Bar from local producer High Road Craft Creamery.
Other themed concessions include Taco Factory, serving street tacos and bowls. The Slice will offer Italian fare, including the massive Burgerizza that sees 24 ounces of ground beef, 1/4-pound of hickory smoked bacon and six slices of aged cheddar sandwiched between two 8-inch pepperoni pizzas. The Burgerizza ($26) is enough to feed four people.
Among snacks, families can check out the Sandlot Snacks, a nut-free location selling a variety of kid-friendly eats, including giant pretzels in the shape of the Atlanta Braves ”A" script. At Potato Cutter, fans can order house-cut French fries with unique seasonings. Centerfield Market will offer grab-and-go meals, snacks and alcoholic and nonalcoholic beverages. Here, fans will also find gluten-free hot dogs and popsicles from local King of Pops. Throughout the stadium, look for carts selling Tomahawk Ice Cream Bars that feature local High Road Craft Creamery ice cream shaped like a tomahawk and dipped to order in chocolate sauce, then rolled in crushed peanuts.
As part of its commitment to support the local food community, Sportservice is launching a ”Farm to Fan" initiative to bring fresh, homegrown ingredients to the ballpark from Atlanta-area farms and other local producers. Through a partnership with Atlanta-based produce wholesaler Turnip Truck, it will draw from a network of more than 40 Atlanta-area farms, urban and college gardens, and other local producers to incorporate their produce into a variety of concessions dishes. The produce and fresh ingredients will vary throughout the season based on market availability and each game will feature a different farm or local company. The Farm to Fan logo at concession stands throughout the ballpark will indicate the featured produce item of the game.