The Angels’ 48-year-old ballpark has a fresh look this season tied to food upgrades implemented by their new concessionaire. Legends Hospitality has invested several million dollars to improve general concessions and premium dining at Angel Stadium of Anaheim. Renovations include the Halo Club, a new all-inclusive space that used to hold the team’s writing press. Legends takes over an account held by Aramark for the past several years. For Legends, it is a big one considering it is the first MLB deal the company has signed outside of Yankee Stadium, home base for a firm co-owned by the Yankees. The Halo Club, one of several upgrades spearheaded by Legends in conjunction with the Angels, sits directly above the Diamond Club. It spans 4,680 square feet and has three tiers of outdoor seats tied to an all-inclusive season ticket. There are 83 total seats, extending to barstools in the last row. The Angels are selling 10-game ticket packages priced at $125-225 a game per person, depending on location. Food and soft drinks are included in the ticket price. Alcohol is a separate fee. The interior space, designed by RipBang Studios, can best be described as industrial chic with its brick walls and imperfections in the stained concrete floor, said Legends President Dan Smith. The seats themselves provide the best view of the park, Legends On-Site GM David Lippman said. To prepare for the retrofit, the Angels last season relocated the writing press to a space down the right-field line after removing two suites in that area, he said. The Diamond Club, serving 1,300 seats, has been remodeled for the first time since Disney Sports owned the team before selling it to Arte Moreno in '03. Legends, in tandem with RipBang, repainted the space and installed new lighting that considerably brightens the space, Lippman said. In addition, Legends updated the furniture and replaced the old 30-inch televisions with 60-inch flatscreens.
CHANGES TO GENERAL CONCESSIONS: For general concessions, Legends converted a half-dozen old food stands into new concepts and introduced some new items to the mix this season, including short rib grilled cheese sandwiches, Carne asada waffle fries and a new Broken Bat beer stand in the upper deck. A smoker featured in the old Clyde Wright BBQ stand in right field has been moved to Gate 1 at field level, one of the park’s busiest entry points, Lippman said. Legends has branded its barbecue as Smoke Ring BBQ, offering ribs, chicken, beef brisket and sausage links. This season, the vendor also introduces Open Table, a popular mobile application consumers use to make dinner reservations at restaurants. Angels season-ticket holders can download the application on their smartphones to make reservations for the Diamond Club behind home plate, as well as the Knothole Club, a separate eatery on the club level by the right-field foul pole. The Knothole Club is open to all ticket holders after the first pitch, Lippman said.
