Athletic Club Oakland sports bar teams up with Ballers to sell concessions at Raimondi Park
Fans headed to Raimondi Park this summer to watch the Oakland Ballers play will find ballpark favorites on the menu provided by the team's concessions partner, the Athletic Club Oakland.
For Miles Palliser, every day at his Oakland based bar is fueled by his passion for sports. His establishment, Athletic Club Oakland, is a haven for sports lovers in the East Bay, and baseball is no exception.
"We love this location, right in the center of Oakland, bringing together all sorts of different people, from different backgrounds, supporting different sports and different teams. And we feel that is similar for what the Oakland Ballers are about to do for the community as well," he told CBS News Bay Area.
Palliser said he's honored that he and his team have been chosen to provide the main concessions at the legendary Raimondi Park for Oakland Ballers games.
After all, Palliser moved all the way to Oakland years ago, purely for the love of the sport.
"I grew up in England as a huge baseball fan, and I couldn't get baseball anywhere, so moving to the States in my 20s, that was one of the many wonder things about living here is being able to be a baseball fan and going to games," he shared.
And now he and his team will be serving the memorable food and drinks at the games, featuring a variety of local breweries.
"We've got a lot of great food and great local beers and other products that we're going to bring to the fans," he added.
And what's a baseball game without those flavorful garlic fries? Chef Myk Espinoza has been keeping extra busy preparing all the necessary elements for a stadium experience.
"It's been crazy, going from serving 300 people a day, now we're trying to plan on trying to serve 4,000 people a day, I think it's going to be quite the challenge. Really fun, really excited for Oakland to get a baseball team and hopefully have a team that actually cares about them," Espinoza told CBS News Bay Area.
The Athletic Club Oakland is preparing for the Ballers experience, which includes gourmet hot dogs and hamburgers. Through the food, they too are showing they care about this new opportunity for the city.
"I think that what the Oakland Ballers are gonna do, bringing baseball, keeping baseball, in Oakland, is gonna mean a lot to the community. Obviously in Oakland, but in the East Bay and the Bay Area in general," Palliser said.
A new chapter of baseball history that both Palliser and Espinoza are anxiously cooking up.
