Dinner with Friends…Ray’s in the City, Atlanta
I still haven’t recovered from the whirlwind trip to Atlanta for the BlogHer Food Conference, have you? I can’t fathom that it’s been almost 3 weeks ago. Three WEEKS. Where is the time going? I swear I just got my swag bags unloaded and my photos UPloaded! Geesh! (And now I sound like my parents, wondering where time goes and saying that time flies. Not cool.)
Although I spent the biggest part of my time pre-conference setting up the RockHer event, I also spent a little time arranging an intimate dinner for some of my blogger friends at Ray’s In The City. Thanks to the amazing help of Anne Owens in the Sales Department and the Executive Chef, Chef Ugo, I had very little actual planning to have to do…they took care of it all! So nice!
Our group of 18 was treated to a 4 course specially prepared dinner, and man were we ever in for a treat! We were also so blessed to have Marina and Owen from Cameron Hughes Wine on site to provide us with the most amazing CH Wines! (Gotta say, despite not being a drinker, I adored the Riesling. Adored! It was incredible! FYI, you can order the Riesling yourself…it’s included in their Summer Sampler Package. You get 3 great bottles of wine, with free shipping, all for $52. Trust me, that’s a steal!)
Our Menu:
Amuse Bouche – Country Fried Oyster, with Pepper Bacon Lardon, & Creole Mustard Aioli
Salad – Green Salad with Creamy Pierre Robert & Buttermilk Cracker
Entrees – Salmon Steak with Tender Broccoli Rabe, Toasted Farro & Pancetta Butter
or – Hangar Steak with Garlic Whipped Potatoes & Seasonal Vegetables
Dessert – Strawberry Caramel Custard with Crisp Praline Tuille
As you can see – wow…we were well taken care of!
We ate our fantastic dinner in the private Wine Reserve Room, surrounded by gorgeous wines, and beautiful furnishings. And the staff? Well, the staff was top notch and never left us wanting for a single thing, I can’t say enough great things about this meal or venue! I know that if I am ever back in Atlanta (for business OR pleasure) I’ll be sure to dine here. It was wonderful!
On a side note: I’ve seen lots of great posts popping up around the net from bloggers telling how they thought the trip to Atlanta was. But also… Lots of negative. LOTS of negative. I’ve even seen negative posts from bloggers that DIDN’T go to the conference. I could weigh in here, subject you to my opinions on those negative posts, but, I’m not in high school anymore. Yes, there were a few negative things about the conference, but those were: the heat in the conference rooms, the overcrowding in popular panels, and perhaps a little hiccup or two because the venue was new to BlogHer and all the kinks weren’t yet worked out. As for the “cliques”, the stuck ups, the mean girls? Really? Really? I got OUT of the weekend exactly what I put IN to the weekend. Everyone should have.
It was a conference, folks, not the Senior Prom.
