The food and beverage contract for the Orange County Convention Center could be worth more than $50 million in annual sales.
The food and beverage contract for the Orange County Convention Center could be worth more than $50 million in annual sales. That could mean $550 million in sales over the potential 11-year life of the job. “That's a lot of food,” said Orange County Commissioner Pete Clarke, who will help decide who gets the contract. The fight for the job is between two vendors who will provide food to conventioneers at the annual golf show, lawn and garden exhibitions and Star Wars conventions. Centerplate, based in Connecticut, is one competitor. It holds the convention center contract in Las Vegas, Orange County’s arch-rival when it comes to attracting conventions. The other competitor is a recently-formed venture between Levy restaurants and several partners, including Jack Nicklaus Golden Bear Grills. It's a food fight with big stakes! And sometimes more money means more problems.