Irish Hospitality {event} - The Recap

Figs and Flights’ second event, Irish Hospitality, was a blast! In short it was welcoming, relaxed, and fun.

Let's relive the night together.

Welcome to the second Figs and Flights {event}, Irish Hospitality at Shawn O'Donnell's

Instructions include: enjoy, drink, stay social!

Our group of 12 gathered around a table at Shawn O'Donnell's in Fremont to enjoy Irish Hospitality in food, drinks, and great company.

​Because this event had a smaller turnout than the first I focused more on the small and welcoming details. Careful seating and personalized name cards were in order, as well as an improved event card (read: less wordy!). 

Another difference from the previous event was that this time, your first drink was included with your ticket purchase.

Making sure things are set just right, before Bryce comes around and moves them again!

Fine tuning the remarks at the very last minute. That's how I roll.

Lucky little rainbows lead you to your seat.

They've arrived!

Right at 6:00 pm everyone started rolling in and enjoying the fun! ​

I kicked off the night with some remarks, welcoming and thanking everyone for coming, telling my tales of Ireland, and warning y'all NOT to drive there! I briefed everyone on how the night would play out, what we'd eat, and my favorite drinks: Jameson Irish Whiskey with ginger ale and lime + Guinness with black currant. I spoke about Figs and Flights, the upcoming Packed Lunch Project giveaway, the series of Barcelona blog posts that are on the way, and dreams for future {events}.

Molly O'Donnell, one of the owners of Shawn O'Donnell's, delighted us with her stories of Irish Hospitality, strangers sharing recipes in Ireland, and why corned beef and cabbage is popular here in the US, but not in Ireland. 

Cliff Steinhauer, with 58 Stars Travel, explained the upcoming trip to Ireland with the O'Donnell family and answered our questions about how a travel advisor (forget the old term travel agent) can help even tech savvy millennials save time on trip planning.

It's me, surrounded by supportive friends, old and new, talking about my favorite things: food and travel.

Molly O'Donnell had us all laughing with her stories of cooking and Ireland!

Now for the food! We were all welcomed. upon arrival, with homemade Irish soda bread and honey butter. 

While we'd originally planned for a buffet, we switched to a plated dinner to better serve our group size. Each person could decide between the two salads and seven entrees, below. 

Salad:
Celtic Caesar or house salad

Entrees:
Corned beef & cabbage
Guinness beef stew
Irish stranger's shepherd's pie
Chicken pot pie
Irish whiskey mac and cheese with corned beef or smoked salmon

We all topped off the excellent meal with Irish bread pudding with buttered rum sauce and ice cream!

All of the food was delicious and the amount we were given more than generous. I took some of my dinner and soda bread home and enjoyed it all again the next day! 

Soda bread and honey butter

The Celtic Caesar salad

Irish Whiskey mac and cheese with smoked salmon, my favorite!

I can confidently say that we all had a wonderful time! The 12 Figs and Flights guests, Molly, Cliff, plus our amazing bartender/server Johnny, were all cracking jokes, sharing stories, and laughing together. 

Prizes were given away, including a Shawn O'Donnell's gift card, a mini flag of Ireland, and many obnoxious green light up rings! 

This event was another great one, despite being totally different from the first. I have so many ideas for what to do next (Hawaii, Nashville, Portugal! Saturday events and some with kids!) and cannot thank you all enough for your support. Thanks for reading this recap, thanks for coming to the event, thanks for asking how it went.

Taking this passion for food + travel from written words on the web to ones I speak aloud in real life, in the middle of an event I've created, is a dream come true, yet terrifying and exciting all at the same time. 

contact

Shawn O'Donnell's has three locations in Seattle: Pioneer Square, Fremont, and Everett. Their food is homemade and delicious. They're they only place I've found Guinness with black currant since my visit to Ireland!

58 Stars Travel is based in Kenmore and can help you travel the world. Ask for Cliff to help with your next adventure and be sure to mention Figs and Flights!

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