Can we talk about the concession operation again...

[Newhouser]

Serious Q- Why doesnt SU have concessions vendors walking up and down the aisles, at least with some basics like hot dogs, soda, water, popcorn...I get why they wouldnt go the beer route, but doing this could go a long way toward alleviating some of the traffic in the hallways...is it all about how steep the 3rd tier stairs are?

in some sections IMHO the handicap railings introduced a few seasons ago make it almost impossible

 

[Scooch]

Well, I didn’t notice any at Upton Park. I did find one at the Emirates, a small one to serve one side of the stadium.

Of course, you have to factor in the British connection to pubs, several of which are in close proximity to almost all stadia. These places are filled to the rafters before and after the games. But you will not find people stuffing themselves at their seats in the US.

I bet people attending sporting events in North Korea don't eat during the match either. Who cares? What does EPL have to do with a conversation about how to optimize the Dome concession experience? Any excuse to rant about the people on your lawn these days.

 

[cuse10]

I assume SU has volunteers staff the concession stands because

1) the labor is free
2) it helps provide community groups with needed funds (I think most of the groups are booster clubs for high school athletics)

From personal experiences, I have found the volunteers who staff the SU concession booths to be fine. Friendly. They aim to please. No, they are not seasoned pros and it might take an extra 3 seconds to get your change. No big deal.

While I never buy beer, I think the people who staff the beer booths are not volunteers. They look young. I think they are work study students. But I could be wrong on that. If there are problems with staffing, I bet it is with the work study kids, who don't have much 'skin in the game' regarding the quality of their service.

Anyway, I am happy to wait a few seconds more than normal to support these worthy groups. I admire the people willing to give their time to support their organizations. I have done it before. It isn't easy.

I think people targeting the volunteers have it wrong. They aren't the problem.

The problem is with the people making the decisions. They are the ones who decide what to sell, how to price it, how much to buy, where to place it, etc. They are the ones who decide not to open some booths because they think they will not be busy, how many cash registers are needed, whether condiment stations are needed, etc.

I think most major athletic venues farm out concessions to a professional food services group like Delaware North. We are unusual in that we do not. SU food services tries to do this. I think they do a decent job at it but the mission is a lot different than making food for the SU dorm food courts. They aren't good at it and probably never will be. Providing and selling vast amounts of food efficiently and effectively in an arena setting is a tough task for anyone, even the pros.

Further, I think SU food services is resistant to allowing local restaurants/store to sell their products at the Dome. They don't want competition. This flies in the face of the practices of most arenas, where local food/specialties are consistently available.

To me, we need a professional food services company that knows how to get good food out, hot and fresh, in quantities that make sense, is willing to listen to what their customers want, is willing to allow local restaurants/stores sell their products, and hopefully, is also willing to allow the volunteer groups to continue to provide staffing.

Pretty sure there are companies out there that can do this.

I think the first thing that needs to be done is poll the fan base and see how happy they are with the job SU food services does. Do the fans want change? I think this has happened. I know I have been asked my thoughts on Dome concessions. When the survey shows overwhelming support for change, either SU food services has to make massive changes or they need to step down and let the pros step in and take over.

The time to do it is now. To be fair to SU food services, providing food in the venue as it stands now is really tough. They need more deep fryers, more grills, more cooking equipment and with the air supported roof, they are not able to get it in place. With the new roof coming, new menus can be designed. New food choices can be added. So much more is possible. I would like competent people figuring out what new equipment is needed, what the new menus should be, what restaurants and foods we should be adding, etc. SU food services is completely unqualified to do this. Let's bring in people who do this for a living, people with practical knowledge, people who care about their customers.

The situation today, IMHO, is completely unacceptable. Now is the time to start fixing it. Let's get going.

Great post. Submit this to Pete Sala. Seriously, this is the best and well thought out post in this thread.

Re: Work study. Yes, they do have work study students working behind the concession stands. It pays a lot more than other positions on campus or did when I was at SU. I knew a few students who did for that reason alone.

 

[NineOneSeven]

Great post. Submit this to Pete Sala. Seriously, this is the best and well thought out post in this thread.

Re: Work study. Yes, they do have work study students working behind the concession stands. It pays a lot more than other positions on campus or did when I was at SU. I knew a few students who did for that reason alone.

It's sutomcat... that's expected!

 

[Doc5120]

I bet people attending sporting events in North Korea don't eat during the match either. Who cares? What does EPL have to do with a conversation about how to optimize the Dome concession experience? Any excuse to rant about the people on your lawn these days.

There's no point in even presenting a counterpoint. You'll just get scolded or talked down to.

 

[Townie72]

I bet people attending sporting events in North Korea don't eat during the match either. Who cares? What does EPL have to do with a conversation about how to optimize the Dome concession experience? Any excuse to rant about the people on your lawn these days.

Let's see if I have this right.

The food is bad and so is the service. Lines are too long too

The solution seems obvious. Do what the rest of the world does. Just trying to be helpful.

 

[Consigliere]

Serious Q- Why doesnt SU have concessions vendors walking up and down the aisles, at least with some basics like hot dogs, soda, water, popcorn...I get why they wouldnt go the beer route, but doing this could go a long way toward alleviating some of the traffic in the hallways...is it all about how steep the 3rd tier stairs are?

One of the reasons is the number of seats between aisles - 40+ in some sections. It's one thing to pass a beer and cash back and forth over 8 seats. It's another thing entirely disrupting 20. This is a big reason why we won't see in seat ordering until seating is revised either.

 

[Consigliere]

The ACC sponsors a fan feedback survey every year which essentially ranks each of the member schools on a number of aspects of the overall football game day experience. We have ranked dead last in ffod/drink every year since joining the league. As sutomcat noted our concessions are managed by University food services and it is clearly no more than a sideline to the leadership of that group. IMHO they have used the limitations of the facility (ventilation, electricity, space constraints) to rationalize substandard performance for years. With the Dome Renovation project underway there was no choice but to announce upgrades but even then the upgrades were pushed to the 2022 phase of the project at the earliest.

Honestly I commend members of John Wildhack's team who would not accept that and pushed for the upgrades we saw at the Clemson game. I've heard some great comments on the grab and go stands and while the themed outlets are limited to the first level for now, it shows at the least an effort to address the shortcomings. I think there are some implementable ideas being looked at for alleviating some of the issues with service time and crowding and would not be surprised to see some changes toward a more orderly queue management system by the basketball season if not sooner.

 

[FreakTalksAboutSU]

The ACC sponsors a fan feedback survey every year which essentially ranks each of the member schools on a number of aspects of the overall football game day experience. We have ranked dead last in ffod/drink every year since joining the league. As sutomcat noted our concessions are managed by University food services and it is clearly no more than a sideline to the leadership of that group. IMHO they have used the limitations of the facility (ventilation, electricity, space constraints) to rationalize substandard performance for years. With the Dome Renovation project underway there was no choice but to announce upgrades but even then the upgrades were pushed to the 2022 phase of the project at the earliest.

Honestly I commend members of John Wildhack's team who would not accept that and pushed for the upgrades we saw at the Clemson game. I've heard some great comments on the grab and go stands and while the themed outlets are limited to the first level for now, it shows at the least an effort to address the shortcomings. I think there are some implementable ideas being looked at for alleviating some of the issues with service time and crowding and would not be surprised to see some changes toward a more orderly queue management system by the basketball season if not sooner.

At the end of the day, for me, the quality of food is adequate for a sporting event. I'm not one of these people that needs or wants sushi or flatbreads or cocktails at a sporting event. I expect sporting events to be about soggy hot dogs and cheap beer. The lines, however, are a major problem for me. It takes way too long to get that stuff. I may be of a minority opinion tho...

 

[orangesox44]

The slowness of the concession stands is a big complaint on our board, too. The caterer is Aramark, but each stand is staffed by some local organization as a fundraiser. That's not going to change, so you're going to need to change. If you're going to the stand, you need to adjust your timing. Showing up at the start of halftime when everyone else shows up isn't going to get you back to your seat very fast.

That’s y I love the automatic timeouts in basketball... easy to grab two beer a piece at the under 8 and under 4 TV timeouts and I’m set for the rest of the game... unless there’s OT... but I usually save a snuck in fireball shot for that... snacks are easy to grab once I get the beer munchies halfway through the 2nd half

 

[tbonezone]

One of the reasons is the number of seats between aisles - 40+ in some sections. It's one thing to pass a beer and cash back and forth over 8 seats. It's another thing entirely disrupting 20. This is a big reason why we won't see in seat ordering until seating is revised either.

it's one thing to get splashed front row at a SEAWORLD show. it's a whole nuther experience getting beer sloshed on you by drunks navigating slim to zero aisle clearance whilst juggling 3 domefoamers.

 

[OrangeDW]

That’s y I love the automatic timeouts in basketball... easy to grab two beer a piece at the under 8 and under 4 TV timeouts and I’m set for the rest of the game... unless there’s OT... but I usually save a snuck in fireball shot for that... snacks are easy to grab once I get the beer munchies halfway through the 2nd half

So between all that and having to pee from all that beer, you’re coming in and out of that aisle a solid 8 times a game?

 

[SU2NASA]

If we really want the Dome to be the most intimidating stadium in football, there’s one obvious solution:

Dollar beers

Between rampant bags and a rowdy, drunken fanbase, someone needs to make me AD.