Apr/100
Sweet Sounds (A Very Musical Sweet Social)
Sweet Sounds (A Very Musical Sweet Social) is being held on May 21st, 2010 from 7:00 – 9:00 pm at South Hills Church (3700 W 27th Ave, Kennewick). This event features performances by the Highland Drive Band along with musical numbers by various Kennewick High School music groups. A sundae bar and various desserts will are also be served and there will be a silent auction. Proceeds for the event go toward the expenses for trips and performances for the KHS music students.
Tickets are $5 each or 5 for $20 and will be available at Ted Brown Music or from KHS music students. For more information, please call 947-3150.
Aug/091
Country Gentleman, Great Place for Dinner Plans!
Glass of Terra Blanca Syrah
by Craig Sutton
Wednesday was a special day in my life and I wanted a special location to have dinner with my wife. As you know, we have a large selection of restaurants, but not enough that are privately owned with a unique menu. Lots of chains. This is not want I wanted for this day.
Then I remembered! I posted a commercial for the Tri-City Regional Chamber a short time ago for there new Go Local Campaign, which featured Country Gentleman. While they had been open for breakfast and lunch, just a short time ago they created a dinner menu and I had heard some great things about it! I’m a fairly regular visitor on other shifts, as my office is not far away.
Steak Sauce - They went LOCAL!
Reservations weren’t required, which was good, this was a last minute decision with plans to visit the movie theater about an hour later. We arrived about 6:30, wasn’t a very big crowd at this point. I was also relieved that there was not a strong dress code enforced, in fact the gentleman who greeted us was wearing a rather colorful t-shirt under his jacket. Very friendly fellow.
We were taken to a table, candlelight and linen were available, no paper napkins here. Immediately rolls were served and a drink order was taken. I was delighted to find a favorite wine of mine, Terra Blanca Syrah, available here! Many of the local chains serve only inexpensive table wines. This was a treat indeed! My wife had a Mango Sunrise, a sweet concoction she enjoyed thoroughly.
Tenderloin
As we perused the menu, out came Steve Simmons, one of the establishments owners. He is a nice fellow and always takes some personal time to greet guests to answer questions or generate feedback. These are signs of a solid owner with his hands on the pulse of the business.
I asked Steve what he would recommend, mentioning the special day, and he suggested their Tenderloin (these pictures of food were our dinners). It sounded fantastic, so I took the bait. I had a side of scalloped potatoes and vegetables. My wife ordered the St. Louis Baby Ribs.
St. Louis Ribs
The meal was fantastic, the Tenderloin was juicy and practically fell off the bone (which Steve explained earlier had been left in to enhance the flavor) and the potatoes, as my wife put it, “obviously had the love of the chef” as they were in thin layers of Parmesan cheese and were the perfect match for this meal.
After dinner, we had a Cheesecake covered in Raspberry sauce, with a special note from the owners.
This was a great experience and they certainly will see me again! I hope they see you as well, we need to make sure these kind of places stay busy in this town. Oh yeah, almost forgot, they had us out with just enough time to get to the movie, what a treat indeed!
Jul/091
Mean Bean Espresso – Coffee with Attitiude in Kennewick
by Craig Sutton
Name- Mean Bean Espresso
Address- 5718 W Clearwater Ave, Kennewick, WA
Phone- 509-735-6803
Where did the name Mean Bean Espresso come from? Is your coffee angry?
No, it Means it’s ‘coffee with attitude‘! Like the descriptive, cool, sweet or bad. Mindy, our daughter, drew the logo and it is hard to draw an attitude. So Mean is portrayed as a little rascal, with a sling shot, straight shooting our “Coffee with Attitude” right at you.
With the wealth of espresso stands including your major chain competitors like Starbucks and McDonalds, what sets your company and its product apart? Why choose you?
First off McDonalds serves hamburgers, not espresso! There is an art to making espresso, the beans are roasted for certain tastes, then are finely ground and brewed by forcing hot water under pressure through the ground coffee. This makes a thicker consistency than drip or brewed coffee and crema, a reddish-brown foam that floats on the surface. Then we make espresso drinks with the shots. We use Longbottom organic coffee and teas! Our cups are recycled paper or PLA (corn starch based) plastic cups and straws. We strive to use the most organic and additive free ingredients we can find. Jason went to Barista School and he hopes to attend the Coffee fest in September. We try to be green conscience and responsible. It’s our God given duty. That in itself sets us apart from the competition… Social responsibility
How many locations do you own, and what made you choose this one?
We only own one now. We choose Kennewick because Jason lives there, great people, good location and lots of events going on in the area. Thoughts are in our heads of opening one in Eureka Montana, Kauai HI and Indiana.
What type of experience do you require for your employees?
Our employees have to pass the Jason test. That means they have to make the espresso just the way they are told every time, they need to be consistent. They have to treat our customers with a friendly attentive, coffee attitude. They have to drink and love coffee. Be clean freaks to satisfy the owners, me. And a willingness to go to school to learn more about the profession of Baristi.
Do you offer any unique products our readers should be aware of?
Our Longbottom Fair Trade organic coffee, our teas are also organic, Monin syrups organic, sugar free and regular. We use products that are as additive free and natural as we can find. We do serve completely organic espresso drinks for a small price upgrade. We have great smoothies; we serve Italian sodas and iced coffees. I know all espresso stands serve these drinks but I believe our prices are better.
Jul/090
Bad Companys Brian Howe comes to Clover Island
On July 11th, the Clover Island Inn welcomes Bad Company’s Brian Howe to the Island for a one night performance guarantee to thrill with gates opening at 6:30. Local Band Color Blind will open the show starting at 7:30pm.
In 1984, the 2 existing members of Bad Company drummer Simon Kirke, and guitarist Mick Ralphs courted Brian to replace Paul Rodgers as the lead singer. Brian decided to accept the offer and continue the legend of Bad Company. This was not an easy task, but along with Kirke and Ralphs, Brian created, wrote, recorded and toured, headlining every major venue around the globe. Along with Bad Company’s highly acclaimed 1993 live CD “What You Hear Is What You Get – The Best of Bad Company – Live” Brian wrote and sold 19 million additional albums highlighted by such radio and video hits as “Holy Water’” “If You Needed Somebody,” “No Smoke Without A Fire,” and “How About That,” – not to mention a few of the group’s previous hits as recorded on the “live” CD. His sold-out performances in venues around the world are an event you must see and hear – because “What You Hear Is What You Get – The Best Of Bad Company – Live!”
Gates open @ 6:30 • Color Blind opens @ 7:30 Tickets Available at the Clover Island Inn. $22 in advance or $25 at the gate Room Packages Also Available – (509) 586-0541
Jul/090
Washington Cattlemens Association 2009 Annual Convention and Tradeshow
November 11 thru 14 2009
Pasco Red Lion,
Pasco, WA
www.washingtoncattlemen.org
contact – wacattle@kvalley.com
Jul/090
Time of Remembrance/1st Annual Golf Tournament Sunday, September 13, 2009
Canyon Lakes golf course presents the first annual fund-raising golf tournament to benefit “Time of Remembrance”. The $100 registration fee includes 18 holes of golf followed by dinner at the golf course and a prize ceremony. There are many sponsorship opportunities as well. Please stop by the Chamber to pick up a registration form.
Time of Remembrance is scheduled for September 26 -27, 2009. This event honors those who have died for their country and the families left behind.
Jul/090
Columbia Industries Golf Challenge & Celebration Gala Friday, August 14 & Saturday, August 15, 2009
The golf tournament at Canyon Lakes Golf course will feature special prizes and activities on each par 3. The gala celebration at the Lampson Hanger, will highlight both silent and live auctions, dinner provided by Bonefish Grill and dancing to The Highland Drive Band.
This two day event is a key fundraiser for Columbia Industries which is a non-profit organization that focuses on developing the work skills of people with disabilities. Building on their “unique abilities”, they provide vocational training that will lead to community employment.
Jul/090
Summer Concert Series at Flat Top Park begins this Friday, July 3, 2009
Bring a chair or a blanket and kick back on the lawn at Flat Top Park in West Richland. Enjoy an all American musical tribute performed by the Mid-Columbia Symphony. Concert begins at 7:00pm.
Jul/090
How to Drive in a Roundabout
Cari McGee thinks you should know more about how to drive in a Roundabout with all the new ones added here recently.
Jul/090
Palatebomb.com, Wine is for Everybody
Palatebomb.com is out to prove a point. Wine is for people of every (legal) age. And we want to let people in their 20s and 30s showcase that they too have knowledge and opinions about wines in the Northwest and beyond. Featuring writers Stephen Hartley (who has partial ownership in the new venture), An Bui and Wendy Cantu, we offer advice ranging from seasonal drinking tips, to pairings with food and even have education on how to understand wine terminology. This is a FUN site most of all!
We won’t give you all the details here. But we inviting the wine-loving public to attend the launch of the new Palatebomb.com website on Monday July 20th, 6:00pm – 9:00pm at Bookwalter winery in Richland. Just RSVP to Craig by email, craig@brightwebmarketing.com, or by calling 509-783-9558.
We hope you can join us! And the first glass of wine is on Palatebomb!