VenuesNow (02/21/23) King, Ariel

Oak View Group (OVG) aims to enhance its venues with unique food items through a partnership with Shaquille O'Neal, Trisha Yearwood and Giada De Laurentiis. The three celebrities will lead OVG Hospitality's newly announced Hospitality Advisory Council, offering cuisines tailored to each city's tastes. "What people love in Austin, Texas, might be different from what somebody else in Vegas likes," Yearwood said. "The challenge for us is going to be to figure out what works where. And the only way to do that is to have a lot of arsenal." The initial menu launch highlights O'Neal's Big Chicken Sandwiches, already sold at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle, UBS Arena in New York and CFG Arena in Baltimore. De Laurentiis' offering includes pizza, which will be available at Acrisure Arena in Palm Springs, Calif., and UBS Arena. Yearwood's mac & cheese is available at Austin's Moody Center, while more customized items are in development. "Trisha, Shaq and Giada are successful restauranteurs, globally revered personalities, and unabashedly authentic in their approach to memorable cuisine," said OVG CEO Tim Leiweke. "They know great food and we're excited to infuse a dose of creativity, fun and personality — that 'wow factor' — into the food and beverage we serve at our venues across the globe." OVG Hospitality President Ken Gaber said the focus of the venture is to present different food experiences, "to look at different ways to project and propel the awareness of food with three great people to partner with. We're gonna call it the family table meetings, because great things happen at the family table. We're gonna grow the company based on that."

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