Chicago White Sox Food Preview 2024
I had the opportunity to try some of the newest offerings at Guaranteed Rate Field!
The Chicago White Sox invited the South Side Sox crew to Guaranteed Rate Field’s newly-redesigned Vizzy View Bar for a sampling of the team’s newest in stadium food offerings and a preview of some of the promotional giveaways coming up this season.
I talked with Bret Donaldson, executive chef for Delaware North about a few of the newest offerings — in particular the Impossible Hot Dogs, which are 100% plant based.
“Impossible came to us with their first attempt at plant-based hot dogs two years ago, and they tasted like a salt lick and the texture was wrong,” Donaldson said. “Then they came back before last season and the taste and texture were right, but the size was off.”
It turns out that the third time was the charm, as when I tried it, the taste and mouth feel was right. It tasted surprisingly beefy compared to what I expected, and vegans will enjoy them as a good alternative to a regular hot dog.
Now, let’s talk about real beef: The Southside Smashburger was a hit amongst the crowd. A burger made with an in-house grind that’s 80% chuck, 15% short rib and 5% brisket, it’s grounded more coarse so that the mouth feel is more steak like than a burger.
Now, before we get to the true star of the show, let’s detour into some merch talk.
There were a lot of promo giveaway items in the room, but the one that got me most excited was the Chicago American Giants jersey that will be given out at the August 14 game versus the New York Yankees.
The jersey honors the Negro League team that played in Comiskey Park between 1941 and 1950.
There were also other interesting items, including Frank Thomas and Michael Kopech bobbleheads, a White Sox cardigan, and hats.
But the real star of the show was obvious the moment I walked into the room:
The campfire milkshake was a hit with everyone. It’s your classic vanilla shake, s’mores style. Now as someone that has loved s’mores since I was little, I had pretty high expectations. Well, for once the White Sox exceeded them! I have no idea how, but I need to get into the club seats at least once this season to get another one of these.
The White Sox hashtag for this upcoming season is #BetterAtTheBallpark, and there was even a themed setup inviting us to come into the park this season.
Now, hopefully the White Sox on-field product can impress even slightly as well as the food did.