Aug/090
Live at 5 – Alive and Well at John Dam Plaza in Richland
People Watching the Band
When I first heard “Live at 5” I had no idea what that was. After hearing through the grapevine that it was a free concert at the park on Thursdays during the summer, I had to go to check it out. I wanted to see what the hype was all about. I was off to John Dam Plaza. As I drove up, the music from the band was pulsating and I noticed that there was a swarm of people and booths in the park. The level of excitement increased. It was hard to believe that just earlier in the day the park was fairly empty and now there were men, women and children of all ages gathered around mingling, sitting on their lawn chairs or blankets enjoying the weather and the entertainment. What?? A beer and wine garden? I had never attended an event like this before. I thought it was the coolest thing that a city could provide to the community. Even my daughter, being in her teenage years was excited to go and excited to be there. She even made a stop at the Henna booth to be a human canvas. We attended just about every week to get our fill of live music from local bands and to taste the delicious cuisine of the local restaurants participating in this event.
When we left I just kept wondering how this event came about? What are the details that it takes to coordinate this kind of event that draws the community together? Not only that, this was a great event for families to get out with their kids. It was exciting to be a part of it. So I got to thinking who do I ask about Live at 5. Who coordinates this event? Well, I was very fortunate to be able to speak to Pauline Dennis who works with New Northwest Broadcasters. She coordinates the event along with help from her fellow coworkers. Who is New Northwest Broadcasters? They are a privately held radio group in the Pacific Northwest with over 30 stations in 6 markets. Those markets are in Anchorage, Alaska, Astoria, Oregon, Fairbanks, Alaska, Klamath Falls, Oregon, Tri-Cities, Washington, & Yakima, Washington. The Tri-Cities stations are Eagle 106.5, Wolf 94.9, Power 99.1, Star FM 98.3, New Talk Radio 1340 AM, & ESPN Sports 960 AM.
Getting a Panited Head
Live at 5 started six years ago and was brought to life due to a similar concept in Spokane. The General Manager thought that it would be a great idea for the Tri-Cities. So Live at 5 was born and was to be a 6-week concert series during the summer. The first couple of years the average number of people that would attend was around 200. Now, it’s averaging about 2000 people. An added benefit this year was that the event was extended for three more weeks. It ran from May 28th to July 23rd. The planning for next year’s event is already in the works. Vendors were allowed to be sponsors at different price levels. This allowed for exposure for businesses to the community.
So what does it take to be a vendor at the Live at 5? There are levels of sponsorship and it goes by the night. You can contact Pauline Dennis at New Northwest Broadcasters to put your name down for a possible slot next year. There isn’t a charge for non-profit organizations to take a part in this event and get a booth. Operation-Thank You was there this year as well as the Knights of Columbus. A big sponsor for this event and has been Toyota of Tri-cities. I believe we have all heard the “Toyota Tri-Cities Live at 5.” Ice Harbor and Preston Wineries have been the sponsors for the beer and wine garden. The proceeds from the beer and wine garden go to the Knights of Columbus. The bands that play are all local northwest bands. This list of bands that played this year are as follows: Jim Basnight Band, The Keep, Sattelite, Blynd Spot, The Cronkites, Shop 4 Sure, Cary Fly Group, Ultra Glide & The Parones.
A litttle FREE music to lift the spirits!
It has been heard that the “Live at 5” shift is the most requested by the police officers. How funny? I bet they have fun as well. I have mentioned this event to my mom who lives in South Texas and she has already indicated that next summer’s vacation is Tri-Cities, WA around the time of the Live at 5. She says she loves free events. What can be better than sun, fresh air, good food and a free concert?
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/096
The Good, Bad and Ugly of the 2009 Tri-City Water Follies
The Good
The 2009 Water Follies were held at Columbia Park on July 24 through July 26th. Having been invited to the event, I decided to take my daughter and see what the hype was all about. Similar to the NASCAR races, hydroplanes run a marked course on the river. Speed and control of the hydroplanes is extremely essential in order to win the race. This event drew crowds of people from all over the Tri-Cities. From the young to the old, men and women, it was a fun-filled three days. Being under an extreme heat wave, it was nearly impossible to escape the heat, but that did not stop the crowds. The odor of food, sunscreen, sweat and beer filled the air. To cool off, it was a quick jump into the river. This was the first boat race my daughter and I had ever attended. When the first race started, our mouths dropped. We had no idea that we would be up close and personal with these boats. As they would make their rounds on the water course, a wall of water would surround the hydroplanes hiding them from sight as they hit the curve in the course. We stood there with our faces beaming from the private area of our party. These private areas were sectioned off by plastic fencing to the left and right and had a covered tent so that we could take a break from the sun’s rays.
The Bad
The commentator’s voice was blasting through the speakers up above and because of the music blaring from the parties to the left of us, I could not hear anything. I was compelled to walk over and ask them if they would lower their music so that I could hear, but did not. It made me wonder who was in charge of these areas. It was disappointing that I could not hear the history or statistics of the planes in the air show. It was also commented by a person in my party that the commentator had been asking people to get out of the water, but no one was getting out of the water because they couldn’t hear what was being said. Also, outside the private area a fight broke out between two guys and no one stepped in to break it up. People crowded around to spectate. I commented out loud if anyone was going to stop the fight. No one responded. An older man walked up to the boys and yelled for them to cut it out. I was stunned that this fight was more of a crowd pleaser than a disturbance. The fight ended by one of the guys jumping off the other and running away. By that time, a guy in a blue shirt with “CROWD MANAGEMENT” written on the back walked up. I believe “CROWD MANAGEMENT” was needed a few minutes earlier. How convenient.
The Ugly
The obscene gestures and vocals that we witnessed on the last day of the Follies from a private area two spaces down did not classify the boat races in the family event file. I’m not a parent who hides things from or overprotects my daughter; however, what we witnessed was a little too explicit for a family event in the park. Remorse set in for all that got to witness what was happening in this particular private area. It was hard to miss the girls in bikinis being held upside down because their crowd wailed as the girl was flipped over. Then noticing the young man’s face between her legs making gestures as she was trying desperately to drink the beer from a keg upside down. It was also inevitable to miss the impromptu sex act by a young guy who was signaling for all to watch while little kids were only 15ft away watching from the river. These acts were conducted with no interruption by any security or crowd management staff, which made me question why. If these people had conducted themselves the same way on a regular day at the park, the police would have been notified. Makes you wonder huh?
Final Conclusion
The Water Follies are supposed to be a family weekend event. As a first timer, I had a great time watching the races and the air show. My daughter also expressed her enthusiasm to attend again next year. I’m glad that we had the opportunity to go. I talked with a few local residents during the week prior to the Follies and each person I spoke with indicated that in the years that they have lived in the Tri-Cities, they had never attended the Water Follies for a variety reasons. A common reason was the cost to attend. Seeing the North American B-25 Mitchell Bomber and the Pacific Prowler was a sight to we will never forget. The aerial demonstration was just awesome. However, that is not the only sight that I will never forget nor will my teenage daughter. How many other families with young children were witnesses to the lewd acts being demonstrated out in the open by these people? You might ask if I will attend this event next year despite my experience. Of course, because despite what we saw, overall watching the races was interesting and it was something fun for my daughter and me to do together.
Note: The opinions expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of “FinditinTricities.com” or its parent company. They are the views of the writer.
Jul/092
Free Fries Friday Advententure – A tale of taste testing
Fries Girl
Due to the Water Follies, Lamb Weston sponsored an one day event in the Tri-Cities called FreeFriesFryday on July 24th. I had decided that my mission was to attend as many restaurants I could throughout the day that were participating in this event and just ask for the free fries. I wanted to make some observations as to what kind of service I would receive and the overall total experience. Never having had this type of experience, I was eager to have my share of French fries and taste test the difference.
My first stop was Carl’s Jr. The restaurant was packed. I had to have my party find us a table while I stood in line. I approached the counter and the young guy asked, “What can I get for you?” I told him that I wanted some of the free fries. He politely asked me how many I wanted. The hustle and bustle of the restaurant was a little distracting. Despite the crowds, the young guy did not seem at all agitated or frustrated. The fries had the appearance of potato skins left on them. They were hot to the touch which indicated that these fries had just been cooked and had not been sitting under the heat lamp. My quick conclusion was that due to the overflow of customers the turnover for the fries was high. When I tasted the first fry I was impressed. The second one and third one confirmed that these were great fries. The amount of salt that was on each fry was ratio perfect down to the last fry. I still knew that I had a few more places to go and try their fries, so I packed up my stuff and headed out.
I drove down the street to Arby’s. I made the decision to go through the drive-thru instead of getting down. I drove up to the speaker and asked for three orders of the free fries. The cashier asked if there were three people in my car. A little shocked by this question, I stated yes. It seemed to me that Arby’s was more concerned on the idea that I could possibly be asking for more than my share . He asked if there was anything else that I wanted to order. I didn’t. When I drove forward, I was immediately handed a bag with fries. It was immediately noticed that the fries we received were curly fries. It was obvious to me that the goal was to get the non-paying customers out of line. From past experience at Arby’s, I’ve been asked if I would like curly fries, however, in this instance I was not. I popped a few of the curly fries in my mouth and quickly realized that these fries had been sitting for alittle while. So what kind of conclusion could I draw from this? That possibly I was made to believe that we were “special customers” in order to not have to make fresh French fries. I chowed down a few fries, but could not eat anymore.
After work, I decided to take my daughter and we hit the streets again continuing my mission for the day. We decided to stop at Ivars and Dairy Queen asking only for the fries. I received limited friendly service. When I say “limited friendly service” I mean to say that there wasn’t a smile nor a frown. They lacked their facial expressions, yet courteous when providing me the free fries I requested. Dairy Queen even put my fries in a bag. Ivar’s cashier tended to me, but secured a moment of non conversation by keeping himself in the back until the fries were ready. Out of those two, Ivar’s fries were better because they were just made, however, the shape, texture and taste of the fry was no match for the fries tasted from Carl’s Jr. After a couple of fries from each, we tossed them and went on. Already feeling full from fries and exhausted from the day, we decided to make Zips, in Richland, our last stop. The cashier was very friendly and was smiling when we walked in. She greeted us politely. I asked for the free fries and she asked me if there was anything else that I would like to order. We decided that we needed a beverage to wash down these fries and all the other fries that we consumed for the day. They seemed very busy through the drive-thru, so that was a positive note that possibly the fries were fresh due to the high turnover. We received our fries in a bag and decided to sit down. Out of all the fries we tried today, these were the only fries that were crinkle-cut. They actually were fresh and tasted pretty good. There were thicker tasting than all the other fries. They did have a dash of salt, but again nothing like the fries from Carl’s Jr.
If I had to rate which fries were the best free fries, I would say Carl’s Jr.
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
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!
Jul/090
Local News from Our Readers!
Local Cupcake Vendor gets high rating for the product by a visitor!
Below is an excerpt from from An Bui’s blog post titled Cupcake Comparison: Sprinkles, Kara’s, Boulder Baked and Cupcakes
While in I was in TriCities for business, Craig Sutton of networkTask and BrightWeb Marketing picked up cupcakes from Cupcakes Bakery and Deli. OMG. Yes, I just ‘OMG’ed. Why? Because these cupcakes were AMAZING – they weren’t too rich or too sweet. The texture wasn’t too crumbly either. They became even more amazing when Craig let on they were only $2.00/pop, or $20/dozen. While the presentation left much to be desired (the plastic boxes reminded me of meh cupcakes from any grocery store), the cupcake itself is a secret too good not to share.
Cupcake Comparison: Price
Sprinkles: 3.25 each or $36/dozen
Kara’s: 3.25 each or $36/dozen
Boulder Baked: 2.50 each or $27.50/dozen
Cupcakes: 2.00 each or $20/dozen
Cupcake Comparison: Location
Sprinkles: Beverly Hills, Dallas, Newport Beach, Phoenix – Scottsdale, SF – Palo Alto, Houston
Kara’s: San Francisco, Palo Alto, San Jose, Napa
Boulder Baked: Boulder
Cupcakes: Kennewick, WA
Cupcake Comparison: Packaging/Experience
Sprinkles: Line out the door but well worth the wait. Wooden knives and forks for those who share or are concerned with manners.
Kara’s: Upscale and posh, with pretty cardboard boxes.
Boulder Baked: Highly utilitarian for-here plates.
Cupcakes: Plastic Boxes – Plain and not the most environmentally friendly packaging that detracts from the cupcake experience.