Now on to me FINALLY sharing the awesomeness of Grapes & Ale with you! It's been a crazy couple of weeks around here and I've been dying to get this posted. Why does this event rock?
- It benefits Our Lady of the Wayside - a fabulous local charity that helps people with developmental disabilities. They do great stuff and help a ton of people.
- The location is great! Progressive Field is the perfect mix of being outside while still having the shelter from sun or rain that the concourse offers if needed. It's super fun to be able to leisurely walk around the stadium without worrying about missing part of the game. We like to visit Heritage Park while we are there too.
- Grapes and Ale. Need I say more? We love being able to sample a little of everything but it's nice to be able to accommodate people who either can't or don't drink one or the other at one event. The selections are generous and diverse. From tasty reds from Duckhorn to local brews ReHive Ale and Buckeye Brewing to Bud Light's Lime-a-Rita and Straw-ber-Rita there truly was something for everyone.
- BBQ! Everyone loves a good BBQ and this event always features a wide assortment of local favorites. This year the featured restaurants were Famous Dave’s, Hot Sauce Williams, Corleone’s, Mavis Winkles, Y.O.L.O. Battery Park Wine Bar, The 100th Bomb Group and The Wayside Grille.
- Fun people! It's always a great time because everyone is so friendly at this event. We love running into old friends and making new ones.
Thankfully we grabbed the last bites of Famous Dave delicious corn bread and sausage - it was the best of the night so I'm not surprised it was the first to go. Mavis Winkles showed that they can do more than Irish favorites when they served up some tasty ribs. The chicken kebob from Corleone's was really delicious too and got bonus points for ease of eating. The mini hot dogs were a huge hit - especially with all the different toppings that were available. Overall, the food disappeared pretty fast this year. Last year I totally missed out on the desserts so this year I was on a mission. Desserts were wiped out early in the evening so my plan to eat dessert first was a good one. Becker's was back but NO DONUTS! Their nutty squares more than made up for that though - they were excellent.
But the BEST part about this event? They raised over $75,000! Way to go Wayside!
The next event is an Amateur Golf Outing on Aug. 12th. Click here for details. In September you can join the Labor of Love Run 4 The Wayside. And every Wednesday you can Wash Your Ride for the Wayside.
*Disclosure: I was given two tickets to attend the event and two to giveaway to a reader. As always, the thoughts expressed are my own.*