COOPERSTOWN, NEW YORK – Last week kicked off the start of the 2023 Major League Baseball (MLB) season, and fans of baseball and rice will have plenty of new and exciting options for the season. Readers may recall USA Rice’s coverage of rice options in MLB ballparks for the 2018 and 2022 seasons, and rice scouts are happy to report rice’s presence on menus and in the concessions of stadiums throughout the country continues to grow to the delight of both hungry supporters and rice farmers!
The new season brings some changes to the game from a pitch clock to bigger bases and even the elimination of the defensive shift, but somethings are just meant to stay the same: warmer weather means rice farming and baseball (two of America’s greatest pastimes) and rice’s role continues to expand for MLB gamedays.
While many of the rice options featured previously continue to be offered, ballpark foodservice providers, Aramark, Legends, Sodexo Live!, and Delaware North, have all have rolled out a new roster of rice-centric menu offerings to help create an exciting and satisfying gameday experience.
“We can’t wait to be immersed once again in the sights, sounds, and tastes of baseball,” said Alison Birdwell, President and CEO of Aramark Sports + Entertainment. “Our teams have been working through the offseason to develop menu creations that will deliver the memorable gameday experiences that fans have come to expect.”
Providers continue to expand their focus on providing high quality and local food offerings as well as options for attendees with dietary restrictions or those following plant-based diets.
“We are incredibly proud of the hyperlocal food and beverage program we have built,” said Jamie Obletz, president of Delaware North Sportservice. “We look forward to continuing to do our part in creating a distinctive gameday experience that reflects the best of teams’ cities and their fans.
Twenty-nine of the thirty MLB teams offer a rice dish as a gameday entrée, from the Hawaiian Short Rib Bowl in San Diego or the Bronx Burrito in New York, to Parmesan Garlic Risotto Fritters in Milwaukee, and the Bryce Crispy Donut topped with homemade rice crispy pieces in Philadelphia.
Fans will come for the game, but stay for the food, and to paraphrase baseball great Yogi Berra, “Baseball is 90 percent mental, the other half is rice.”
For a full list of the 2023 rice offerings at Major League ballparks, click here.