Crunch unveil Slapshot Tailgate Zone at War Memorial

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — The Syracuse Crunch, Onondaga County, and ASM Global on Friday unveiled the Slapshot Tailgate Zone in the basement level of the Onondaga County War Memorial.

It’s one of three new food locations available in the arena. The others include a Peppino’s concession stand with Italian food and Bull & Bear Roadhouse’s loaded nacho cart.

Located on the basement level, the Slapshot Tailgate Zone will open two hours prior to all Crunch hockey games and feature expanded food options, including well-known dishes from visiting teams’ cities, a beer truck, and an ice cream bar along with seating.

The War Memorial is an “awesome” place to watch hockey, but with fans moving around in them, the concourses can “get very tight,” Jim Sarosy, COO of the Syracuse Crunch, said in speaking with local reporters.

“We’re always looking at ways to move people in and out and through those concession lines a little quicker … by utilizing two of the end spots for [the] Peppino’s location, spots that have a little less traffic and then taking advantage of this huge space in the basement and putting together an area where folks can come before the games. That was the genesis of all this… how to best use it and this was the end result after a couple of months of planning,” said Sarosy.

SAVOR, ASM Global’s food and beverage division, is operating the Slapshot Tailgate Zone, per an Oncenter news release.

ASM Global, which has its North American office in Los Angeles, California, manages the Oncenter and nearby War Memorial Arena.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com