CHICAGO — New name. New season. New food.
Spectators going to games at Guaranteed Rate Field, the name of the Chicago White Sox stadium as of the fall, will have a wide new array of food and drink available when their 2017 season kicks off Monday against the Detroit Tigers.
On the beer front, beer from four Midwest breweries now will be available at locations throughout the ballpark, though not in the stands: Goose Island Beer Co., Pabst Brewing, Bell's Brewery and Founders Brewing Co.
Those beers as well as 75 others will be sold at the park's new Craft Kave, a large bar located behind the opponents' bullpen replacing the old Bullpen Bar.
Easily accessible from the Gate 2 ramp, the new bar features cooler after cooler of brews made throughout the Midwest.
The bar also has a number of burgers not available elsewhere in the park including the Southside Burger, a double patty topped with Italian beef, provolone cheese and giardiniera. (In other words, it's a burger and an Italian beef sandwich in one.)
Other burgers include The "King 14" Burger (double patty, Italian sausage, sweet peppers and mozzarella cheese) and the "Veeck As In Wreck" Burger (double patty, American cheese and stacked onion rings).
There's new food throughout the park as well:
• The Wok Off (Section 157): Egg lo mein with vegetables and optional grilled chicken cooked in a wok. the dish was "inspired by our neighbors in Chinatown" said Rebecca Spalding, Sportservice operations manager at Guaranteed Rate Field.
• The Heater (All Johnsonville stands): Jalapeno cheddar pork sausage topped with spicy slaw and Sriracha mayonnaise.
• Southside Mini Donuts (Sections 110, 115 and 531): Bite-size doughnuts with cinnamon and sugar.
• Triple Play BBQ Sandwich (Sections 122 and 527): Vienna Beef smoked brisket, barbecue pulled pork and a jalapeno cheddar sausage served on a Kaiser roll.
The newly rechristened Guaranteed Rate Club behind home plate on the 200 level, as well as other club areas around the park, also have some new foods, including the Tacos Locos, which come in steak, chicken or tilapia and a chicken margherita sandwich.
Most decadent though is the $34 16-inch brisket mac-and-cheese grilled cheese sandwich.
"Oh my good. It's so good," said Chef Sonia Respeto, who oversees Levy Restaurants' food at the park. She suggests tackling it with four people.
Also new is a cocktail named the "Bourbon GuaranTea."
