Yesterday evening, patrons and foodies gathered at The King & Prince Beach & Golf Resort on St. Simons Island for the 15th Annual “A Taste of Glynn” fundraising and culinary event to support Glynn Community Crisis Center— which provides care for victims of domestic violence. This was my first time attending the event, and I felt that overall, it was a lovely affair. The food was delicious, the scenery was everything you’d expect on a beautiful St. Simons Day, and the positivity in the air was contagious. As a first-timer I wasn’t sure what to expect, and besides a general description of what the fundraiser is for and who is participating, there wasn’t much on the website to help a girl out, so I will try to expound below:
TICKETS: There are 3 options: 1. Purchase at the event ($50/ ticket), 2. Purchase through the website ($40/ ticket) and pick up at Will Call, 3. Purchase AND pick up at local businesses mentioned on the website ($40/ ticket). We bought tickets a couple of days before the event via option 2, but if you would like to be treated like a human by volunteer staff, I would recommend option 3 so you show up for the shuttle with tickets in hand.
PARKING: Free parking and shuttle service to & from Massengale Park.
WHAT IT IS: A 2-part charity event. First Part: local restaurants serve a tasting of their chosen culinary creation in a pop-up setting. Second Part: A silent auction containing donations from local businesses.
WHAT TO EXPECT: Filling your belly with yummy dishes from local chefs while you listen to music and walk around talking to a myriad of interesting people. Also, anticipate that you will have to find creative ways to eat the food since table space is incredibly limited for an event of 1,000+ attendees. A row of high-top tables along the fence outside would have been a welcome addition.
WHAT IS INCLUDED: A tasting from each restaurant. Beverages (alcoholic and non-alcoholic) ARE NOT included– I’m not entirely sure why this is so. A drink ticket would make a really nice addition and I would have been willing to pay more for a ticket if drinks were complimentary. There were cash bars set-up, but they were ridiculously overpriced, which I wouldn’t have minded if I knew where the money was going. If it’s for the charity, okay, no problem, but that wasn’t made clear. Beyond that- it wasn’t mentioned on the website so we didn’t bring any cash and therefore had no means of wetting our whistles. I feel this was the biggest hiccup in the whole operation.
WHAT TO WEAR: A few people attended in cocktail attire, but for the most part it was much more casual than expected. If you attend in 2016 (which you definitely should) put your feet first- literally, because there is a lot of standing and walking around from table to table. I wore dark skinny jeans, a lightweight python-print sweater, and incredibly uncomfortable (but really pretty) stacked heels.
Despite the occasional rude volunteer, the food in my hair from having no table to stand at, and the complete lack of buzz because I had no money for the cash-bar, it was a nice event. We were all there to raise money for a great organization and we got to sample some great food and have interesting conversations with other locals 😉
My Three Favorite Plates:
- Echo: Echo’s booth looked great and the guys running it were extremely fun and personable. Their pairing of an apple and radish salad bite with a mini lobster cake was absolutely delicious!
- Del Sur: I loved these guys! There booth was in prime position (scenery wise) and the chef was extremely knowledgeable. Their pairing of braised beef on creamy polenta with white truffle oil and a Beef and Pork sausage with chimichurri on a crostini was definitely the “prettiest” plate and it tasted even better than it looked!
- The Half Shell: This booth was definitely a surprise… I wasn’t expecting much from the small “salsa” looking bite in the cup with a single chip, but what turned out to be a Georgia shrimp ceviche with a crisp wonton chip was perfectly balanced in its acidity with spicy, sweet, and salty profiles. Nobody pay any attention to me drinking all of the ceviche that didn’t make it onto the wonton!
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