Polo is a great spectator sport, but at Greenwich Polo Club ”“ where the East Coast Open final will be held on Sunday, Sept. 11 ”“ it”™s not all about the horses. Because, as well as being sporty affairs, Sunday afternoons in season have become something of foodie events, too.
Yes, great food has a stellar handicap at Greenwich Polo, with an impressive lineup of colorful food trucks ”“ a trend at private parties and in commercial ventures and college certification programs ”“ offering everything from an amazing cappuccino or dirty chai latte at the Caffè Bon truck to quinoa bowls, devil dogs and pita wraps at the Greek/Mediterranean-style Gyro Uno truck. And while you may not find too many royals tucking into pizza ”“ polo is known as the sport of kings ”“ it”™s just fine for the rest of us, especially when it”™s as good as the Dough Girls”™ own-dough, wood-fired pizza. Mexican food obviously needs a look-in, too, and gets it at the Taco Guy ”“ tangy tacos on handmade corn tortillas. At the Latusion truck, “Home of the Lomo Fries,” the Peruvian-Latin fusion menu offers great fish and chips and hefty lomo (Spanish for tenderloin) burgers.
And there”™s always the fancy option ”“ preordered polo-themed food boxes from Marcia Selden Catering. (You can also buy posh polo nosh on the day at Selden”™s Polo Café under the Grandstand.)
Anyone for ice cream? That comes courtesy of Longford”™s, the beloved local brand known for its creamy, small-batch delights.
While all the trucks offer juices and sodas of their own, “real” drinks are dispensed at individual bars set up throughout the season, all of them operated by expert event mixologists The Cup Bearer. Special polo-themed cocktails include the Pony G&T (Tuck gin with Fever-Tree tonic, rosemary and lime) and the Chukker (Código 1530 tequila, Código mezcal, watermelon and agave nectar), with more bubbles, beers and wine than you could shake a mallet at.
There”™s still plenty of time to enjoy it all, because this year the East Coast Open is not the end of the season. It continues with the Greenwich Cup Sept. 18 and the American Cup Sept. 25. The gates open at 1 p.m. with matches at 3 p.m. Then at 2 p.m. Oct. 8, the club offers something different, a show-jumping competition, the precise yin to polo”™s thunderous yang.
For tickets and more, visit greenwichpoloclub.com. And catch my Table Talk column every week in the Westchester and Fairfield County Business Journals.
