Oct 5, 2022 - Food and Drink

Spectrum Center debuts new menu ahead of Charlotte Hornets’ season

Ashley Mahoney

A lot has changed for the Charlotte Hornets on and off the court — from a new head coach to a brand new menu.

What’s happening: Spectrum Center rolled out a new menu for the 2022-23 Charlotte Hornets season, along with a new executive chef, Mark Kocovic.

Why it matters: Food is part of the experience at a ballgame, and COVID-19 limited that. Food needed to be prepackaged out of safety concerns, which limits a chef’s ability to play with the menu.

Now it’s time to play in the kitchen.

What to expect: While there will still be prepackaged items, expect more shareables, like loaded tater tots and stuffed tater tots.

The menu runs the gamut, from rotating flatbreads to loaded mac & cheese with house-smoked pulled pork to street tacos.

Zoom out: Kocovic hails from the Bronx. He was the chef de cuisine at Citi Field — home of the New York Mets — and he and his wife decided it was time to get out of New York. They’ve been in Charlotte for two and a half months, and they have a 16-month-old daughter.

What’s next: The Hornets host the Pacers on Wednesday, Oct. 5 at 7pm. It’s their first preseason game at home since Steve Clifford was brought back as head coach. Clifford was the last coach to take the team to the playoffs in 2015-16.