A Special Event Every Year in California

My beautiful and amazing wife is a cosmetic chemist. She can formulate and create virtually anything you put on your body - shampoos, conditioners, scrubs, body butters, masks, perfume, makeup, you name it.

Once a year we get invited to a special dinner-dance event hosted by the Society of Cosmetic Chemists which she belongs to. It's a completed catered where you feel spoiled and special. Waiters walking around with small hors d'oeuvres, a cocktail hour, amazing views, a 3 course meal, and activities like dancing, gambling and a raffle after dinner (you should see some of these prizes!). And of course lots of drinking. There are around 800-1000 industry professionals and their loved ones at this event. Sometimes it is at Disneyland, but a majority of the time it is at the Hyatt in Huntington Beach, CA. Everything is free and hosted.

This year the theme was the 80's. Everything was in neon colors, and we were all given access to a table full of slinkies, plastic glasses, glowsticks, and anything and everything that reminds you of the 80s. Surrounding the diner hall were retro arcade machines with Galaga and PacMan. This is an event I look forward to every year.

The drive there takes about an hour. On the way we stopped for In-n-out to get our grub on before we started drinking.

Some people like to hear about food. Let me tell you - for serving 1000 guests, they nail it every time. The food description this year was as follows:

Nibble on Mini Crab Cakes, Sesame crusted Ahi, Brie & Pear, Tomato and Mozzarella, Braised sliders, Chicken potstickers, Shrimp Tempura. Start the meal with a grilled Asparagus salad with burrata, prosciutto, olive oil-lemon zest and garlic croutons. Enjoy a main entree selection of:

Cabernet-braised short ribs with veal bone reduction, paired with herb buttered prawns, spinach risotto, and broccoli with carrots
Thyme-roasted bone in chicken with roasted garlic cream sauce, paired with blackened salmon with citrus salsa, spinach risotto, and broccoli with carrots
Vegan Moroccan Cous Cous with Eggplant, Carrots, Peas and Charred Tomato Sauce

Finish with a dessert course of Six Degree Chocolate Hazelnut Giandujia.

I had the surf and turf.

We sipped champagne during the cocktail hour and enjoyed the California coast. Here are some more photos from the event.

Bubbly!

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