TEMPE, AZ — Mullett Arena, the new hockey, gymnastics, wrestling and event arena on Arizona State University’s Tempe campus, is opening this week and will have some recognizable restaurant brands operating inside.
The Oak View Group, which ASU partnered with to manage the arena, announced Tuesday that Cold Beers & Cheeseburgers, Venezia’s New York Style Pizzeria and Shaq’s Big Chicken be part of Mullett Arena’s food and beverage lineup.
OVG Hospitality will oversee all food and beverage management and onsite catering at Mullett Arena and OVG’s sponsorship division, Global Partnerships, brokered the deals with many of the concession providers.
Cold Beers & Cheeseburgers and Venezia’s are two local brands with a history of sponsoring and partnering with sports teams and venues, particularly ASU Athletics. Shaq’s Big Chicken is a chicken sandwich restaurant started in 2018 in Las Vegas by Hall of Fame basketball player Shaquille O’Neal.
The arena will also welcome the in-house branded concept Sparky’s Hot Spot, which will serve unique items such as a Sonoran chicken cheesesteak and steak supreme nachos with carne asada. There will also be a grab-and-go-style market that offers pre-made foods including orange chicken and fried rice, wraps and salads.
Read more of this story from the Business Journal.
MORE ABOUT ‘BIG CHICKEN’
According to Steve Christensen, one of the Arizona franchise owners, the average patty size is five ounces. The restaurant also has a cookie with a circumference of an NBA basketball!
“The one thing that we really like to let everyone know [is the]… naked truth. The chicken is premium chicken, it's preservative-free, humanely raised with no cages, hormones, or antibiotics ever,” said Steve Christensen to ABC15.
According to Christensen, he and Reid Richards are the franchisees for the state and have agreed to open at least 12 Big Chicken locations in Arizona over the next couple of years.
Click here to read more on the expansion of Shaq’s ‘Big Chicken’ restaurant in Arizona.
