May 17 2009

geek grillery success

Awesome BBQ yesterday! We had something like thirty people out on our tiny little patio. It was baking hot at first, but was much more comfortable once the temperature dropped a bit. My mother was over for the weekend and took charge of the kitchen and the stuff to grill was flavored Southeast Asian by her. Whole spicy ginger pomfrey, coconut calamari, a shrimp & veggie platter, some pre-fab chicken & beef from Trader Joe’s, and lots of really good stuff brought by our guests, like cajun trout, portabella mushroom burgers, and a strawberry trifle to die for.

It turned out to be a really great mix of people, but I was so busy running between the kitchen, the grill and the baby that I didn’t get to chat with everyone as much as I’d have liked. There were some guests that I barely got their names down by the time they left, but the spouse-unit got in more socializing and everyone seemed to go home stuffed and happy, so overall, the afternoon was a hit.

Can’t wait to do the next one!


May 14 2009

geeks & grilling

I’m excited about our upcoming “geek BBQ” this weekend. The idea was to invite all our geeky friends over for a typical BBQ. What’s fun is that lots of them might know one or two others, but are unlikely to know everyone. (Even I don’t know everyone coming!) the other fun bit is that we’ve kept the guest list secret, so our guests won’t know what cool and interesting geeks are showing up until they get here.

Of course, it’s open to families, too, so there should be plenty if non-geeky conversation going on.

I thought about hopping down to San Pedro for some fresh crab to throw on the grill, but my mother talked me into whole grilled fish instead.

We’ll also have garlic potatoes, zucchini, eggplant, corn and yams. I’m not sure about dessert yet, and our guests are bringing even more food! I should get to BevMo today to pick up some beer & wine.