Game day vendors debut new concessions, promise shorter wait times

LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) - While the Red Raiders are days away from kicking off the 2022 campaign against Murray State, Red Raider fans can access new delicacies- and not have to wait as long.

“We’ve beefed up our staffing this year, too. We’ve added more locations,” said Zaid Zia, general manager of OVG hospitality.

Zia says fans can also visit “Market Place,” which is set up like a convenience store. People can grab their snacks and drinks, and scan on their way out.

“So, that’s going to help move the lines a little faster,” he said.

Don Price, who serves as the executive chef for OVG says the game day experience is much different than that of a traditional restaurant.

“The fans aren’t here for the food or the beer, they’re here to watch the game,” he says. “So, you have to make something good. You have to make something ready to go. And something that they can grab and get back to their seats so they can watch the game.”

While the Red Raider faithful can still purchase the fan-friendly $3 items, they can spend more for the specialty items- which were debuted at Jones AT&T Stadium Tuesday.

“Some of the new things that we’re rolling out: we’re going to have a Philly cheesesteak; we’re doing gourmet hotdogs. We’re also going to do Taco Rolls which are kind of like a fried burrito and an egg roll. We have buffalo chicken rolls, as well or we have cheese quesadilla and a chicken quesadilla.  A couple of the new ones we’re really excited about are the parfaits,” Chef Price says. “So, we have a BBQ parfait which is going to be brisket, mashed potatoes, mac & cheese, and then the other one is a smores parfait.”

Just like Red Raiders head coach Joey McGuire has been preparing for the season since last winter, OVG has been doing the same.

“At the end of last season, we start to think about what we’re going to do, how we can make things better.  (We) revamp, get some feedback from the fans as well, and we put stuff out there so they’re going to have something new when they come to the games.”

Kickoff for Saturday’s contest is set for 7 p.m. CST.

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