CINCINNATI – While Opening Day in Cincinnati isn’t until April 12, the regular-season excitement got started Tuesday with the debut of several new food and beverage offerings available in Great American Ball Park.
What You Need To Know
- The Cincinnati Reds are debuting about a dozen new food and beverage items for the 2022 season at Great American Ball Park
- Executive chef Gary Davis tried to take familiar favorites and reinvent them in a fun way
- Some of the items include Montgomery Inn pulled pork in a waffle cone, nachos reimagined as a burrito bowl and French fries for dessert
- The goal is to make the stadium an exciting place for baseball fans and foodies alike, Davis said
The Cincinnati Reds worked with its food service provider, Delaware North, to create a “fun mix of new items” that feature “creative twists on fan-favorites” like hot dogs, burgers and nachos, according to Andy Worden, general manager of Delaware North’s presence at the stadium.
Led by veteran executive chef Gary Davis, the culinary team created a menu that plays to regional flavors and food staples, such as Montgomery Inn’s pulled pork and the Frisch’s Big Boy burger.
While the food will taste similar to those local classics, the cooks at Great American Ball Park will present them in much different ways.
For instance, they’ll serve Montgomery Inn pulled pork inside a waffle cone alongside white cheddar mac and cheese, coleslaw and the restaurant’s famous BBQ sauce. For a limited time in April, fans can get the taste of the iconic tartar sauce-topped Frisch’s burger but in slider form.
They’ve also taken the traditional nachos format and converted it into a burrito bowl. It’s the same grilled chicken, queso, lettuce, sour cream and Pico de Gällö people expect, but they swapped out the chips for cilantro-lime rice. The dish can also be vegetarian.
“When you go to your ballpark chef, one thing you’re trying to do is you’re trying to recreate the memories people have from when they’re a kid,” Davis said. “Everybody’s going to come to a game and have a hot dog or popcorn, but we want to take those items to the next level and really elevate that experience. We want our food to help them create fresh memories.”
Davis, who’s entering his fifth season working with the Reds, had a few major goals with this year’s menu. For starters, he wanted to stay on trend and make sure there was a “cool factor.” In recent years more people have been asking for vegetarian options, he said, so they decided two add two veggie dogs this year:
Lookout Dog: Field Roast vegetarian hot dog topped with white bean buffalo dip,, shredded cheddar cheese, pickled jalapenos and hot sauce.
The Dragon Dog: Field Roast vegetarian hot dog topped with kimchi, garlic soy sauce and sesame aioli
The Dragon Dog is Davis’ favorite new item. Davis is also keen on some of the dessert treats this year, especially the “Rookie Cookie” FryBox, which is a mixture of crushed cookies, chocolate sauce, caramel sauce and marshmallows served on a bed of French fries.
David called the FryBox one of the stadium's more "controversial offerings." But he said items like that are trendy right now and people seem to like it.
"We've had people ask, 'Why did you do that?' But if you look at every MLB park, they all have one of these types of items on their menu," he said. "People seem to really like it."
While there’s an emphasis on “new” this year, there’s still room for tried-and-true classics style, Davis said. He feels two of the most popular items will be the handcrafted 1869 Burger (all-beef patty, with BBQ sauce and onion straws) and the new “Red Hot” chicken sandwich featuring beloved lot hot sauce, Frank’s RedHot.
Don’t worry, baseball purists; the more traditional brats, metts and wursts are still available as well.
“Right now, everybody’s having supply chain issues,” Davis said. “I really wanted to make sure we selected items we knew would be both popular and readily available. We wanted to feature items we could showcase all season long without having to pivot from or change them.”
While he’s happy to add many new items, Davis knows the continuation of the stadium’s food and beverage partnerships from several local brands remain critical. That includes local chains such as LaRosa’s Family Pizzeria, Wings & Rings and Al’s Delicious Popcorn will continue to be mainstays at GABP.
Covington, Ky.-based Frosthaus will serve a variety of frozen alcoholic drinks and frosty blends, including Kentucky Lemonade (sweet and tart lemonade and Kentucky bourbon) and Redlegs Rum Runner (a mixture of tropical fruit and rum).
In Section 134, fans can purchase alcohol and fruit-infused ice cubes made in Cincinnati by BLOX. Sample menu offerings include Iceberg Seltzer (one strawberry BLOX with black-cherry seltzer) and Prosecco Slush (two strawberry BLOX with prosecco).
“Our local food sponsors drop a lot of our food here and they do a great job,” Davis said. “We think we bring a little of that cool factor with some of our offerings and they do a great job providing some local favorites.”
Below is the complete list of new food and menu offerings. The complete list is available at www.reds.com/food.
New food items
Reds “Red Hot” Chicken Sandwich: Fried chicken breast topped with honey hot sauce, pickle chips and horseradish coleslaw on a brioche bun. Available at FryBox at Section 109 and Scouts Club.
Bar-B “Cone”: Montgomery Inn pulled pork, white cheddar mac & cheese, coleslaw and Montgomery Inn Barbecue sauce—served in a waffle cone. Available at Montgomery Inn Smokehouse near Section 138.
“Bunt” Cake Sundae: Bundt cake topped with vanilla ice cream, strawberry sauce, whipped cream and sprinkles. Available at Rosie’s Ice Cream Stands near Sections 115, 132 and 522, and Scouts Club.
Frisch’s Big Boy Sliders: Available for a limited time only, April 22-24. Sold at Frisch’s at Section 118.
Lookout Dog: Field Roast vegetarian hot dog topped with white bean buffalo dip, shredded cheddar cheese, pickled jalapenos and hot sauce. Available at Porkopolis near Section 116 and Scouts Club.
The Dragon Dog: Field Roast vegetarian hot dog topped with kimchi, garlic soy sauce and sesame aioli. Available at Scouts Club.
“Rookie Cookie” FryBox: Crushed Oreos and chocolate chip cookies, chocolate sauce, caramel sauce and marshmallows—served on French fries. Sold at FryBox locations at Sections 139 and 534.
Hand-Crafted 1869 Burger: All-beef burger topped with American cheese, barbecue sauce, crispy onions and pickles on a brioche bun. Available at Scouts Club.
Scouts Burrito Bowl: Cilantro-lime rice topped with grilled chicken, queso, lettuce, sour cream and Pico de Gällö. Available at Scouts Club.
Beverages and bar sponsors
Boone County Bourbon and Heidelberg (Bud Supreme and Goose Island Beer Hug IPA)
- Dozens of other beers, wines and other alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages are available throughout the stadium.
BLOX (Section 134) — Alcohol and fruit-infused ice cubes made in Cincinnati.
Black Cherry Limeade Seltzer: Two lime BLOX with black-cherry seltzer.
Iceberg Seltzer: One strawberry BLOX with black-cherry seltzer.
Prosecco Slush: Two strawberry BLOX with prosecco.
Frosthaus (Section 114) — Frozen drink bar in Covington, Ky.
Kentucky Lemonade: Sweet and tart lemonade paired with Kentucky bourbon.
Redlegs Rum Runner: Strawberry, banana, passion fruit and lime, paired with Bacardi Rum.
Orange Dreamsicle: Orange and vanilla flavoring paired with Tito’s vodka.
Food sponsors
Wings & Rings (Machine Room and Patio)
- Cauliflower Wings: Hand-breaded cauliflower, fried and drizzled in a parmesan-garlic sauce and served with a side of celery sticks and blue cheese dip.
- Pretzel Bites: Served with queso, Pico de Gällö and jalapenos
Al’s Delicious Popcorn – small batch, handcrafted popcorn made in Ohio
Flavors include Buffalo Ranch, Jellybean and Big Red Mix
LaRosa’s Pizza “Strikeouts for Slices”
When Reds pitchers combine for 11 strikeouts in a game during 9 or more innings (win or lose), every ticket holder at Great American Ball Park wins a free small one-topping pizza from LaRosa’s. New this season, fans can enter their Reds ticket code at www.larosas.com/reds within seven days of the game and they’ll receive an electronic coupon for their free pizza.