Taste of the Nation 2013

Taste of the Nation is our all time favorite charity event. No offense to galas, but they get so overdone. Yes, they are all for a great cause, they all have good food and good auction prizes and good speakers. But it's the same old thing. Taste of the Nation is what we based our wedding off of! We wanted tons of different small plates, and Taste was the inspiration.

Share our Strength is a national organization whose mission is to end childhood hunger, and Taste of the Nation is an event they have in several cities in America, where the top restaurants in the city are invited to participate. They each come with a sample off of their menu (or somethings not on their menu, special for the event). $100 for one ticket goes 100% to the charity, and gives you entry to taste unlimited amounts of 30+ chef's dishes, and pairings of drinks. It's SO MUCH FUN. Even being prego and not drinking.

Chef Carlos Guia (bottom right) from the Country Club at the Wynn is the chair of the committee, and Chef Rick Moonen (in the front in the black) has participated 3 out of 4 of the last years.


Not all the chefs made it to the pictures since this was 15 minutes before the event started, and they were probably prepping their stations!

Speaking of stations, here are some of them:




Not a station but the ice sculpture we get by one of the bars each year:


Some of the auction items:


And more stations:










See that jar with the orange ribbon at each station? I am proud to say that was my idea 2 years ago, and it's brought in over $10,000 each year in tips! We realized that even though the event was all you can eat and drink for the ticket price, that people would still tip for the service, especially at the bars! Well, I thought, what better than a friendly competition! We have the restaurants and the bars compete for the most tips, and they win a prize from us! I don't know the total tip earnings yet this year but last year it was around $14,000!!!

Press wall: thanks sponsors!


My mommy and some of her best friends - thanks for supporting the event guys!!




And some of my good girlfriends:


Thanks so much for supporting us this year. Jaren frantically searched for a babysitter, so thanks Lynsey for stepping up last minute! I am so so grateful. My friend Jill, on the left in this pic, won tickets! My amazing husband and his business partner agreed to raffle off tickets to their vanpool customers! Each winner got two tickets, and Alex (Jill's husband) was one of 2 winners from his squadron. I am SO glad they agreed to this because I think that all their members really enjoyed the even that they would not have known about or been able to attend, and it helped Share Our Strength raise a lot more money!!!

Jaren enjoyed the drinks :-) (And still maintained her weight watchers goal, you go girl!)




Why are you so tall, blonde, and fabulous? Kind of jealous here.



Babie's first Taste of the Nation! Next one won't be for 21 years! Lol.

Taste of the Nation (including a recipe for an amazing bourbon drink)

Cravings: hair extensions, peach tea bourbon drinks, unlimited gourmet food, helping to end childhood hunger in America!

Taste of the Nation is an event I got involved in 2 years ago (this was my 3rd event). It's an event through Share Our Strength - http://strength.org/.

Fact: Did you know that one in six households in Nevada struggle with hunger?

One of the beneficiaries of Taste of the Nation is Three Square. It is the main food bank in Las Vegas and Charlie and I are actually getting married there! Please consider making a donation. Only one dollar buys three people a meal because they buy their food in such bulk! Donate To Three Square Now!

I had a groupon for airbrush make up that I decided to use that morning. However, when I arrived, they had a scheduling issue and couldn't do it, so they said they would reschedule me and throw in a hair appointment as well. I saw that they had clip in extensions which I've been meaning to get because I want them for the wedding. I LOVED IT! I am so excited that it blended so well with my hair and really looked natural and healthy.

This is a picture I took when I got home, although the light wasn't that great.

Last year I had the idea that if we put a tip jar at each table, and a few at each bar, that people would give money, even though all the food is free once you pay for admission. We ended up making TONS of money in tips. I put a tag with Share Our Strength's logo that said "Tips for Kids" as well. (Thanks mommy for helping!) Two of our liquor sponsors donated several pitchers that we used as tip jars.


We distributed them to all the bars and chefs, but it ended up being so windy that we had to go and collect all the "tip jars" from outside. After these were set out I just helped with random last minute things (don't even remember, just lots of things) and waited for 6 p.m. to roll around!

The event brought in hundreds of people and had some awesome food from some of the best chefs. There was a drink that was amazing. I had the bartender write it down:

-Peach Tea Vodka
-Bourbon (they used Jim Bean)
-Mint
-Peach bitters
-Lemon Juice
-Agave Nectar (I'm sure stevia/sweetner/simple syrup etc could be subtituted).


I literally had like 4 of these!!

Here are me, Mom, and Eden getting it.
























Here is some of the food:

A "s'more" lollipop. I had two of these


Oysters in the half shell, yes please!






This was pâté with a pickled cherry. I am not a fan of cherries unless they are fresh, but I love anything pickled. Result - LOVE!


Chef Carlos' lobster from Country Club at Wynn. Arguably my favorite dish that night:




They had a white chocolate macadamia bread. Arguably my mom's favorite dish that night! Yes, out of all the gourmet goodies, this won her heart. I mean tummy.


Here is the planning committee at the press wall - the right side isn't being seen, so we can't see Chef Carlos and a few others.

There was an amazing silent auction put on by Lindsay Delgais and her mom Heidi Watt. They outdo themselves each year. Here is a picture of me checking out one of the items, and showing off my hair at the same time! Unfortunately, I was outbid on the Tastefully Simple basket I wanted. (If you don't know about Tastefully Simple, go order their "garlic garlic" NOW). 

Did you order the "garlic garlic" yet?

Here are some pics of me and family/friends at the event. Thank you SO much for the dozens of friends who bought tickets to support this amazing cause. SO MANY KIDS will be having full bellies thanks to you!

I had to show off Eden's sleeve!

Me, Katy, Lauren, Eden, and Rose.

My daddy came!

One of my favorites of me and Charlie:

Look at my hair!!!!!!!! Tee hee.

And another:

I love his new jacket!

The event was really windy outside but that was the only real downfall, and we still had SO MUCH FUN! I can't wait to find out how much money we raised.

Keep up with me for some recaps of the next day with Eden and her mommy on a double date w/me and my mommy, and some great recipes (to be posted soon).