As soon as the U.S. Open’s final putt is sunk, Susan Lacz starts thinking about the next year’s tournament.

Lacz is CEO of Ridgewells Catering in Maryland, the United States Golf Association’s longtime catering partner for the event. She’s one of the people in charge of making sure hungry U.S. Open fans have plenty of options.

And how, indeed, do you feed the more than 200,000 fans estimated to attend the Open?

It takes a combination of factors. Ridgewells handles higher-end food options at sponsorship tents and VIP areas, while Philadelphia-based Aramark supplies food for gallery ticket holders and the Open’s Trophy Club.

Both have taken on local businesses as vendor partners.

The vast majority of fans in attendance will be gallery ticket-holders, who will have access to on-course concession stands operated by Aramark and vendor partners such as Caliente Pizza & Draft House and National Grind coffee of Ellwood City.

Caliente will operate a stand between Holes 11 and 12, where they will serve Sicilian-style pizza along with Pennsylvania Dutch-style ice cream, a recipe that came from Caliente owner Nick Bogacz’s grandmother.

“We worked the Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix, and where we were set up was actually a golf course, so it’s very similar in terms of on-site cooking,” Bogacz said. “When I was pitching us, I leaned in to our experience with the Grand Prix.”

Pittsburgh-based Mancini’s Bakery also is partnering with Aramark, and those walking the course are likely to find its bread wrapped around a shaved kielbasa sandwich, chicken sandwich, cheesesteak or barbecued pork sandwich near the No. 16 fairway.

Gallery ticket holders also can find pepperoni rolls near the No. 1 fairway and No. 6 green, and veggie wraps, turkey sandwiches and Caesar salad at Aramark’s “Market Grab & Go” locations on the grounds, along with a host of concessions at the “Fan Central” area between Holes 2 and 3.

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