The Ottawa Titans will be adding new local concession partners this season as the team continues its outreach to the business community, including identifying a “quality partner” for the naming rights on the stadium.
General manager Martin Boyce told OBJ on Monday that adding concession vendors and expanding point-of-sale systems are designed to improve the fan experience.
“Our facility is over 30 years old and there’s lots of work that needs to go into it every year. Food and beverage is so important to the fan experience. Some people come for the baseball, some come for the family-friendly fun and some come just for the food,” he said, adding that transitioning to a cashless environment will make the game-day experience more efficient.
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Starting this season, Rockland-based Junior & The Kid Wood Fire Barbecue, Ottawa-based chicken restaurant Roost Express and Toronto-based Craig’s Cookies, which opened its first Ottawa location in the ByWard Market last summer, will join the roster of concession partners at Ottawa Stadium. They join other local brands such as Beyond the Pale Brewing Company, Stray Dog Brewing Company, Vimy Brewing Company and ice cream shop Lois ‘N’ Frima.
“The traditional perception of food at a sporting event is hot dogs and pizza,” Boyce said. “But, ideally, we want people to come to the ballpark partially because of the food.”
Choosing to partner with local businesses is important to the team’s brand, he added.
“Everything is about community. We’re a professional sports team but, at the end of the day, we’re a community-based organization that brings people together on 51 dates every summer. If there’s a way to get the community involved, we want to find a way to do it. So, instead of operating our own fried chicken (spot) by buying a couple more fryers, let’s go find someone who’s already doing that and has a following with their own customers.”
Both Junior & The Kid and Roost Express had already served Titans fans from food trucks, so choosing them as permanent concession partners felt like “a natural fit,” Boyce told OBJ.
Beyond the concessions, Boyce has high hopes for this season after the Toronto Blue Jays made it to the World Series last fall after a 32-year drought, re-igniting interest in the sport.
“We’re very optimistic about the 2026 season. We’ve seen tremendous growth over our short tenure here as an organization and every season (we’re seeing) double-digit growth in attendance.”
The team is hoping to start the season by selling out its home opener on May 8, which would be the best-attended baseball game in the city since the Ottawa Lynx sold out the stadium in September 2002.
“This ballpark had a 10-year stretch where it was going more and more dormant and we’ve made it part of our mission to make it livelier, more exciting. By trying to sell it out for the first time in so many years, we’re bringing some life back into this great community asset that can be so powerful for Ottawa,” Boyce said.
The team is ahead of projections for ticket sales for the season, with more local businesses taking interest in ticket packages – a metric that gives Boyce hope.
“The trajectory for a professional sports team is to have a very good first season and that kind of be your peak. There’s a novelty to it, but then there’s a little dip and you plateau onward. Baseball has had a rocky past and we’ve overcome that to now see ourselves following this rare trajectory that keeps increasing year-over-year.”
The team will host “business day” on June 10, offering local businesses the chance to network and enjoy an afternoon at the ballpark.
“It’s a very easy way to treat your staff in the summer. We’re really excited because it’s the first time we’re doing this. It gives us a way to connect with the business community and get more people who otherwise might not be coming to the ballpark, to the ballpark.”
While conversations are ongoing, Boyce said the Titans still haven’t found “a quality partner” for the stadium’s naming rights. “We’re confident the partner is out there and that we’ve got a great asset here at the ballpark and as a team.”
