|
There
was a very large crowd in attendance |
Another crowd shot, with the fountain in the background |
|
Matt
Denny's Alehouse served up some tasty pulled pork |
Donna
Rey of Casa del Rey |
|
McGrath's Seafood had crab cakes and peel and eat shrimp |
Front
Runners and Sirona's from Santa Anita Park |
|
Core
Media photographer Terry Miller gets the tables turned on him |
The
Red Hat Ya-Yas were in attendance |
|
The
Derby |
Wood
Ranch BBQ had a wheel to win prizes |
|
Wood
Ranch BBQ didn't forget the food, though |
Din Tai Fung Dumpling
House dished up some great dumplings |
|
Valerie's Crepes had delicious strawberry crepes |
Smoothies from Roebeks |
|
The
Shepherd's Pie from Brit's Restaurant and Pub was quite good |
Cheap
Sax sax player |
|
|
A Look At San
Gabriel Valley Restaurants by SanGabrielValleyMenus.com
Arcadia Red Cross Benefits
from Taste of Arcadia
By Bill Coburn
The Arcadia chapter of
American Red Cross had a very good night on Tuesday, receiving a donation of
$1,000 from the Arcadia Chamber of Commerce and $500 from the Arcadia Lions
Club. The Chamber of Commerce donation will increase as final numbers come in
from the event that raised the money, the 2007 Taste of Arcadia.
Each year, the Chamber of
Commerce selects a non-profit organization to be the beneficiary of the Taste
event, and this year it selected the Arcadia Red Cross. The Taste of Arcadia
has been around for 32 years, but this year, Chamber members and event co-chairs
Bob Kenz (owner of Robeks Juices) and Jerry Pavelec (owner of EZNet Business
Solutions) elevated the event to a new level, said Chamber Exec. Director Beth
Costanza. An estimated 1,100 people turned out to enjoy food and beverages
provided by more than 30 vendors, including local restaurants, as well as
wineries and breweries. Live entertainment was provided by the band “Cheap
Sax.”
“I see this event as
growing, and I see that it is a positive community event for our local
restaurants. It was our biggest and best, and we love being able to make a
donation to a deserving non-profit, which this year is the Arcadia Red Cross,”
said Costanza. “The Chamber did a magnificent job in pulling together all the
restaurants. We’re very pleased with the donations from both the Chamber and
the Lion’s Club, as they will be used in our community programs, including Meals
on Wheels, disaster preparedness and CPR training. Many of our programs are
done with no charge, so donations like these are very important to us,” said Bob
Dayo of the Arcadia Red Cross.
I tried many items from many
vendors, but my favorites on this evening were the crab cakes and peel and eat
shrimp from McGrath’s Fish House, the shepherd’s pie dished up by Brit’s
Restaurant and Pub, the dumplings from Din Tai Fung Dumpling House, and the
prime rib sandwich from Holiday Inn. Matt Denny’s also served up some tasty
pulled pork, and Dave and Buster’s ribs, which the young lady serving me told me
she guaranteed were excellent, were in fact, excellent. As to desserts, the
blueberry cheesecake from the Derby was excellent, as were the raspberry sorbet
with raspberry sauce, from Scoops; and the strawberry crepes from Valerie’s
Crepes. One of the most visited booths of the evening was Wood Ranch BBQ, which
had a “Gift Wheel” for people to spin, where they could win free appetizers,
desserts, t-shirts and more. This booth was also one of my favorites, because I
was lucky enough to win a $10 gift certificate!
The Arboretum was a lovely
setting for this event, and the Chamber did a good job of making everything
happen, including arranging for a shuttle bus to transport people from the Race
Track’s Gate 7 when the Arboretum’s parking had gone to overflow. Kudo’s to the
Arcadia Chamber, and to all the restaurants that did such a great job. And to
Cheap Sax, who had the dance floor full to overflowing as the evening wore on.
Bill
Coburn is owner of SanGabrielValleyMenus.com, a restaurant website featuring
dozens of restaurants’ menus, as well as downloadable coupons. He has nearly
20 years experience in the restaurant business, and has been eating for much
longer than that. |
