Roped and cajoled into going by my gym gal pals, they promised it would be a fun event. Anti-social me contemplated the idea of just donating my money towards the price of the ticket but not actually going, but their cow-eyed pleas and incessant begging won me over...
While I was at this event, Bert and TC watched "Iron Man 3" at the mall. I met up with my friends while we table hopped. The food pavilion area of the Otay Ranch Towne Centre (it's not a "mall" per se) was closed off for this event. There were tables with business sponsors, offering free wine and beer, along with free appetizers, food, and desserts! I figured my $40 would be going to a good cause, the Chula Vista Kiwanis Club.
These were just a few of the tables offering red wine; they also had a variety of whites which we sampled. I am a lightweight so I made sure to tell them to only pour me a tiny bit each. I didn't want to get wasted or anything. Those days are long gone for me. Just kidding. I never got wasted in my life!
In the middle of the food pavilion (ha ha, you can still see Hot Dog on a Stick and the never busy Los Chilaquiles), there were tables for the Silent Auction, which had items ranging from concert tickets, gift packages, sports tickets, and even Tiffany jewelry. I didn't bid on anything. No tengo dinero dudes.
At the end of the pavilion was the stage were a live band was playing pretty good music (60's, 70's, and oldies).
This was one of the most popular vendor tables that evening, the Adan y Eva brand Tequila from Tijuana. They were offering samples of their tequilas, along with margaritas.
Check out this setup - the guy would dip the plastic cups into chamoy,then the chili/taijin/pico powder. It was excellent. In fact, we came by two more times later that evening!!!
The non-alcholic beverages set up near the Library, a small outpost from the Chula Vista Branch.
Since it was still pretty early, we thought we'd hit up the food tables before it got too crowded (and also before they ran out)...Below, fresh fruit and cream cheese and crab filled egg rolls with sweet chili dipping sauce.
There was also spring mix salad with sliced strawberries, almonds, and balsamic, along with a steam table tray with pastas.
Chicken satay was also offered...
There was penne pasta with marinara sauce and sausage, along with bow tie pasta with alfredo sauce and asparagus and red bell peppers (I really liked that one).
The next table had shredded chicken, as well as pulled pork and mini sandwich rolls. I opted not to get this because I wanted to pace myself.
There were also beef skewers and another type of salad (Chinese chicken)...
I only got a little bit of everything. Unfortunately that spring mix salad also had blue cheese in it (ugh!).
Throughout the evening, servers would approach the guest offering different types of appetizers, such as this fried ravioli filled with cheese and spinach (this was so good!).
There was one lone beer table, represented by the Coronado Brewing Company. They only had three types, two pale ales, and one red, the Mermaid (which Bert had recently at K-Pasta during our Mother's Day lunch). No darks here, bummer. I ended up trying the red.
OMG, here's that margarita again!
See the gate? Even some of the outside area was closed off for the event.
We saw these cute cupcakes in the back! Five flavors were available...
The company is Pastelitos, which is based in Chula Vista. They do not have a store front, but do online orders. As you can imagine, this was also a popular table and before the night was halfway through, they ran out!
I tried all but one of the flavors (skipping out on the cinnamon roll flavor).
This was the Tequila lime which had a bright flavor; I couldn't really taste the Tequila though.
Next up, the Vodka Berry. I guess when they're baked, the alcohol cooks out. I liked this one as well.
The remaining flavors were the Mint Chocolate and the Merlot Chocolate (nestled in my empty mini margarita cup). Of all the flavors, I liked the Vodka Berry the best. I liked these gals' cupcakes and how flavor had different cup cake liners. I also liked the mini sizes which was perfect for sampling the flavors (hell, I wasn't ashamed to try four!).
The little flourishes of frosting were also perfect. There are some cupcakes that have way too much frosting.
This was another appetizer that was going around that night, some sort of egg roll filled with chicken and mango salsa. So good! I had to pass on the mini tacos that were being offered, although they looked tempting. No, it was time to save some room for the drinks now...
Of all the different types of wines we had that night (Sauvignon blanc, Reisling, Chardonnay, etc), this was one of my favorites, if not MY favorite that night, the Tawny Porto.
Of course, it was a dessert wine, which I tend to gravitate towards. I must confess, I got another sample cup of this!
I should have bought a bottle actually, but didn't realize we could do that until my friend told me (a few days later).
My feet were killing me after a couple of hours. Bert and TC's movie was done (for the record and as a Marvel fan, Bert was not happy with the Mandarin "bait and switch") and so it was time to pick me up. I was able to sample what I wanted and had fun hanging out with the gym gals. It was nice seeing everyone dressed up instead of in sweats, shorts, and t-shirts.
Despite my dislike of social situations like this, I had a good time, mainly because my workout pals were there. If they weren't, I probably would have passed this up, although I did see a few of my educator friends here that evening.
More info on the CV Kiwanis:
chulavistakiwanis.com
The money went to a good cause (benefiting youth charities of Chula Vista), there was a great variety of food, drinks and good entertainment, although I didn't dance. You couldn't pay me to dance since I have no sense of rhythm at all. It was more fun people watching for me and getting curious looks as I was snapping my food and drink pix.
No comments:
Post a Comment