Posted: Saturday, September 3, 2016 12:00 am
By Aimee Breaux
[email protected]
Booze may be off limits in Kyle Field's general seating areas, but Texas Comptroller records show fans in premium locations on gameday shell out plenty of money for alcoholic beverages.
During prime football season, beer, wine and mixed drinks sales at Kyle Field surpass those made by most bars in Bryan-College Station in an entire year, according to records.
In 2015, only six businesses made more revenue off these types of beverages in 12 months than was made in Kyle Field during September, October and November.
On top of this,
the majority of fans on gameday aren't in alcohol-friendly areas. SEC rules dictate that no alcohol be sold in general seating areas at athletic venues. This means the football fans responsible for the ranking are in what the SEC calls "premium spaces." Athletic director Jason Cook said these areas include certain suites, field boxes and the Lettermen's Club.
Outside of Texas A&M's campus, The Backyard on Northgate tops the list of businesses that make the most revenue off of what the Texas Comptroller's office calls mixed drinks -- beer, wine, ale and distilled spirits -- with more than $1.7 million in sales in 2015. Rebel Draft House and Hurricane Harry's follow with $1.4 million and $1.3 million, respectively.
Levy Restaurants, the company that sells alcohol at Kyle Field, racked up
just under $1 million in mixed beverages sales during the 2015 football season. In the remaining nine months, the company only added about $100,000 to the total.
To put Kyle Field sales in perspective, most restaurant and bar owners across Bryan-College Station dream of these kind of annual sales. Only 16 locations reported more than $400,000 in mixed drink sales in all of 2015.
