Fans attend an Avett Brothers concert at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in July. The venue is now offering pop-up dining featuring area restaurateurs. (Getty Images)
With its foodservice provider Aramark, Morrison, Colo.’s Red Rocks Amphitheatre recently overhauled its offerings to include local fare.
It added Denver’s renowned Biker Jim’s hot dogs, made with wild game meat, to its offerings. Also, barbecue restaurant Rolling Smoke is serving up its brisket, pulled pork, mac and cheese, baked beans, cole slaw and potato salad.
The venue also has partnered on pop-ups with local restaurateurs. They include Frank Bonanno from Bonanno Concepts, who has 10 eateries in Denver.
“We did two seatings before last night’s show,” Brian Kitts, Red Rocks’ director of marketing and business development, said one day earlier this summer.
The pop-ups are at the amphitheater’s Ship Rock Grille. Details for pop-ups with other restaurateurs are being worked out.
Red Rocks is also adding fryers to the lower-level concessions stands, where chicken tenders will now be on the menu. Technical updates with more hardwired point-of-sale systems will help speed up the process for hungry and thirsty fans.
“On the concessions side, we made an effort to bring in locals,” Kitts said. “We’re trying to emphasize local corporate partners in the food and beverage category.”
This includes Stranahan’s, the official whiskey of Red Rocks, which is distilled locally, as well as newly named official craft brewer New Belgium, based in Fort Collins.
Editor's note:VenuesNow subscribers can read more here about Red Rocks Amphitheatre and other venues in the Southwest from the August issue.