Tag Archives: Taste of the Town

T.G.I.T. Thursday Rundown

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Buenos Noches mis amigos! It is time for my weekly Don’t Blink tradition…the Thursday Rundown. Here we go with my latest five topics…

Same Shirt, Same Pose – A couple months back in a previous Thursday Rundown, I wrote about wearing the exact same shirt on the same date. I had worn the same black polo on July 6, 2017, that I had worn on July 6, 2016. However, that fashion faux pas was put to complete shame this past Sunday. I wore a multi-colored polo that, thanks to Timehop, I had worn exactly five years prior. Yes, I have clothes in my closet that date back five years that I still wear.

Taste of the Town – On Tuesday night, Sidney and I left Sloan in the loving care of my in-laws and the two of us went out on a date night that has become a tradition for us. For the fourth consecutive year, we attended Taste of the Town, an event where you can sample appetizers, entrees, and desserts from restaurants in the area. This year’s Taste of the Town was the best one yet! We enjoyed delicious food, saw lots of people we knew, and chatted with both of our priests. Ah yes, I forgot to mention, the event is put on by St. Andrew. The major fundraiser for the grade school, I am always so proud to be part of the St. Andrew Catholic community when we go to Taste of the Town just because it is such a well-done event that practically all of Myrtle Beach attends. This year was once again no exception.

Sidney and I at the 2017 Taste of the Town.

The Dethroning of a Jeopardy Champion – Last week, I boldly declared that I would continue to incorporate Jeopardy phenom Austin Rogers into my Thursday Rundowns until he was knocked off. Apparently my declaration was his kiss of death. Just an hour after I published last week’s Rundown, Austin lost to a contestant named Scarlett. I was jumping around the living room with joy as he came up short in Final Jeopardy. Although he grew on me a little bit, I fiercly cheered against him throughout his entire run. Austin, you are incredibly smart and a great Jeopardy player but I am glad I no longer have to see you at 7:30 p.m. each night.

T.G.I.F…what? – Another testament to my advancing age is that apparently college students have no idea what T.G.I.F. is/was. Our Homecoming theme this year plays off of the epic 2-hour block of programming that I looked forward to each Friday during my childhood. However, Monica, my student intern, and her friend, Ethan, had absolutely no idea what T.G.I.F. was other than an acronym for the end of the work week. Other students have admitted to not knowing about ABC’s late 1990s/early 2000s ratings bonanza as well. If T.G.I.F. has indeed completely swept by this generation, perhaps I should just get a walker and retire.

Although Ethan and Monica modeled the TGIF-inspired CCU Homecoming t-shirts, they had no idea what T.G.I.F. was.

Growing, Growing, Growing – Sloan turned 7 months on Tuesday! How did she celebrate? Well, before we dropped her off with Sidney’s parents, she got four shots (poor girl) at the pediatrician’s office. However, she took them like a champ, and was back to grabbing things and clapping her hands in no time. The comment we received the most this week has been she is getting so big! It is true, she is now almost 17 pounds and she seems to be growing right in front of us. She turns 31 weeks tomorrow.

Here is this week’s photo collage of Sloan.

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I hope everyone has a great autumn weekend. Sloan has a photo shoot on Saturday so hopefully I will be sharing some professional photos of our little girl soon. As always, thanks for your support and readership. Don’t Blink.

Taste of the Town

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Tonight I went to a food extravaganza. Billed as Myrtle Beach’s “largest culinary/social event of the season” I attended the 31st annual Taste of the Town event. Held at the Myrtle Beach Convention Center, over 50 area restaurants set up booths and brought some of their best dishes with them.

It was originally my girlfriend’s idea to attend Taste of the Town. Coincidentally, the parish I attend, St. Andrew Catholic Church, puts the whole event on. After mass this past Sunday I purchased a couple tickets on the church’s steps for Sidney and I. I mean how could I go wrong?: Girlfriend wanted to go + Church fundraiser + Lots of good food = NO-BRAINER.

Me holding the Taste of the Town tickets in the car.

Me holding the Taste of the Town tickets in the car.

Today after work I dashed over to the convention center and met Sidney. We walked inside the facility, went right to the ATM, purchased food/drink tickets, and then started to sample. My strategy at first was to walk around and scope everything out before hitting up the various booths. That lasted all of two minutes. The moment I heard someone say chicken macaroni and cheese I was passing over tickets. Yep, the first dish I enjoyed was mac and cheese from the Hard Rock Café. It was the start of many different entrees to come.

Here are some of the dishes we had. The upper left corner is the chicken macaroni and cheese. The top right hand corner is a fried green tomato. The bottom right hand corner is buffalo chicken dip and the bottom left hand corner is a burrito with rice.

Here are some of the dishes we had. The upper left corner is the chicken macaroni and cheese (The Hard Rock Café). The top right hand corner is a fried green tomato (Sea Captain’s House). The bottom right hand corner is buffalo chicken dip (Remedies) and the bottom left hand corner is a burrito with rice.

In a pure gluttonous rage I also had a burrito, buffalo chicken dip, deep fried mac and cheese, a Philippine dish called palabok, and a cheeseburger. Those are just the entrees. For dessert I had a peanut butter cupcake and molten chocolate cake. To wash it down I had an American wheat beer and a Mt. Dew. Talk about delicious/irresponsible eating!

Here is a montage of some more of the items we ate. The top left hand image is the deep fried macaroni and cheese. The top right photo are the cupcakes...I had a peanut butter cake while Sidney had red velvet. The bottom right hand photo is a cheeseburger (River City Grill), and the bottom left image is the

Here is a montage of some more of the items we ate. The top left hand image is the deep fried macaroni and cheese. The top right photo are the cupcakes (Coccadotts Cake Shop)…I had a peanut butter cake while Sidney had red velvet. The bottom right hand photo is a cheeseburger (River City Grill), and the bottom left image is the

It was a pretty cool event. I have been to many like-minded events in the past that took place in similar convention centers and outdoor public areas but there was one difference: Those events were always beer or wine fests. Instead of passing over tickets for liquids all day, I was handing them over for solids…nice little change if I do say so myself. It was also nice because the crowds weren’t too overwhelming and the lines weren’t too long, something that you usually run into at events like these.

Sidney and I ate ourselves silly.

Sidney and I ate ourselves silly.

Tonight I spent $40. The first $20 of tickets went super fast, especially since we each got a beer. However, we had our second $20 worth of tickets last us forever. We hit the wall at about the time we purchased our first entrée with the second round of tickets. We became so full and miserable that I literally gave my last four tickets away because we weren’t going to use them.

At the end of the night, I was giving my tickets away.

At the end of the night, I was giving my tickets away.

I enjoyed doing something a little different in my community that I have now been a part of for almost six months. It was nice to see/sample many of the restaurants I drive by to work each day. Next year if I go I will eat less and make sure to hit up at least one of the several BBQ restaurants that had a presence. Don’t Blink.