A struggling hometown ballclub and Lobstah Poutine will be greeting Red Sox fans as Fenway Park opens for the season.
While it has been a dreadful start for the 1-5 Red Sox, Fenway’s top chef says one of the newest concession items is already hitting it out of the park: French fries topped with lobster meat, clam chowder, bacon and scallions.
The menu item, resembling the popular Canadian French fry-gravy dish, sits in a souvenir, New England fisherman’s boat-shaped container and has its name, Lobstah Poutine, inscribed on the side.
But make sure you have your money ready to spend on the poutine, costing just under $40 a pop.
“This is our over-the-top item,” Fenway Park Executive Chef Ron Abell told reporters on a dreary Thursday, “and it has gotten rave reviews so far from … testers. We’ll be serving it in a beautiful boat.”
The 2026 season will mark Abell’s 21st since the chef debuted at Fenway in 2006. The concessions list keeps growing in the number of items and creativity, he said.
Visitors to America’s Most Beloved Ballpark this season will also have the opportunity to munch on a spicy grilled cheese featuring mango salsa and sourdough bread; a BBQ steak or turkey tip sub with mayonnaise and American cheese, which Abell said is a “take on” North Shore roast beef; and Guiness beef stew – beef stewed for hours with onions, carrots served with pub pastry.
“Great item in April when the weather is like this,” Abell said of the beef stew. “Thank goodness this isn’t Opening Day.”
The Red Sox are set to host the Padres for the first home game this season on Friday at 2:10 p.m. Temperatures are forecast to rebound after a cold, wet Thursday, hovering around in the 50s under cloudy skies.
Other new amenities include watermelon slushies at the Angry Orchard Deck, a concession and social area on the second level of Fenway, and a slew of sweet dessert options from Nutella empanadas to caramelized banana bread pudding.
Sarah McKenna, the franchise’s chief experience officer, said she’s excited for “cake in a can,” another new dessert offering that will be available at grab-and-go kiosks throughout the ballpark.
McKenna called grab-and-go a “wonderful addition” that Fenway has offered since the 2018 season.
“Particularly with the pace of play, and everything speeding up, with the pitch clock,” McKenna said, “it’s even more important now than ever that people can get what they need to get and get back to their seats to enjoy the game.”
The Boston Red Sox are at the bottom of the AL East as they play their home opener on Friday against the San Diego Padres. (Mark Stockwell/Boston Herald)