Party on a Budget with Wine and Cheese

Throwing a Wine and Cheese Party for Cheap

Remember all those keggers from college? Everyone chipped in a $20 and suddenly the apartment was filled with alcohol. Tell everyone else to bring a 6-pack, and the next you know, you’re watching a video of yourself the next morning without a shirt double-fisting Coronas in your mouth.

Ew. You’re a grown up now. You have to pay for your own health insurance, so why not party like an adult? Trouble is, partying like an adult gets pricey real fast. What about an affordable yet sophisticated wine and cheese party? The beauty of wine and cheese is that everyone can contribute without breaking the bank and still have enough booze and food to go around. Quit “wining” and get a move on this budget-friendly departure from the typical summer barbecue!

Start by sending out free invitations through eVite or Facebook to all of your friends. Make sure to include that they should bring a bottle of wine. If your friends can’t appreciate fermented grape juice, ask them to bring a 6-pack of their favorite import. For your non-drinking buddies, ask them to bring a bottle of Martinelli’s apple cider.

Wine bottles are usually good for about 4 glasses worth, which means if you invite 12 people, you need at least 6 bottles for everyone to have two full glasses of wine. When your friends inevitably call to ask what kind of wine to bring

Secret Menu Madness

The new marketing fad for restaurants appears to be something along the lines of hush-hush marketing. The less everyone else knows about it, the more V.I.P you feel I suppose…even though the whole point of these “secret menus” is to create a viral campaign that people want to talk about. This blog entry being Exhibit A.

I believe In-n-Out was the one of the first to spread word of a secret menu. Here’s what I know (let me know if I’ve left anything out):

Animal Style Burger: Mustard-cooked beef patty, extra pickles, extra secret sauce and grilled onions.
Animal Style Fries: Fries with the secret sauce, onions and cheese on top.
Grilled Cheese: No patty!
Flying Dutchman: 2 beef patties, 2 slices of cheese.
Protein Style: Burger wrapped in lettuce instead of buns.

None of these items are written anywhere on the menu however, if you ask for them, they’ll know exactly what you are talking about at any In-n-Out location…amazing.

Another place that has toyed with this secret menu idea is our favorite smoothie chain, Jamba Juice. Here are the known items on their underground menu:

Strawberry Shortcake
White Gummy Bear
PB+J
Pink Starburst
Red Starburst
Fruity Pebbles
Push-up Pops
Skittles

So that you have the in on these secret menus, go give’em a whirl and report back with any other secret items I have failed to mention ;-).

Function Drinks - Urban Detox

Hear ye hear ye all you fellow GenerationLimbo’s - I came to a sad realization the other morning when I woke up with a headache after only drinking a beer and a half and was still fast asleep by 11:30pm the night before. I realized that I am just not as young as I used to be. And by young, I mean in college. No more. Welcome to the real world kids. I’m sure many, if not all, of you have also had this dreary wake-up call since you’ve graduated college.

Well, don’t fret. I have a solution that will allow you to go out on weeknights, be able to party for a whole weekend straight, and not be the “old and hungover” grouch the next morning. All you have to do is get yourself some Urban Detox. Correct, just chug anywhere from 1/2 a bottle to a full bottle (depending on how your night went..) right before you pass out–I mean go to sleep–at night, and you will rise and shine feeling refreshed the next morning. This really puts a whole new meaning to ‘the morning after.

I can personally attest to this, however if you are the type to prefer a scientific explanation, then get all your facts here. All I know, is that this stuff is legit. AND it is truly delicious too!

Be sure to check out the other Function Drinks products as well. This is good stuff guys.

Spanx to the World!

Sooo I was just watching Chelsea Lately’s talk show yesterday evening (hilarious, by the way…) and she was interviewing Jackie Warner, who as you all probably know, is the star of Bravo’s reality show, Work Out. So of course, being the blunt lady she is, Chelsea asks Jackie to stand up and show her abs on national television. Which, is no big deal, since we’ve all already seen them on her show.

What does come as quite the surprise however is that Chelsea, after Jackie complains that her once 12-pack is now merely an 8-pack, gets up and asks the audience if they want to see her abs… at which point she stands up and lifts up her shirt. Of course no one even notices her abs however, because everyone’s attention goes directly towards her beige pair of nylon Spanx, spanning up to her belly button. This was one of the most awesome TV moments I’ve seen in awhile. Literally.. hilarious. This just goes to show that obviously it is nice to have an 8-pack–not that I’d know–but for the rest of us normals, it is also nice to have a little under-the-table help as well. If you are unfamiliar with Spanx, allow me to familiarize you now…

Designer Jean Sale eVite

Remember those great jean sales in college? No one even cared if they were real or not, they were a great deal!! Well I guess not all college habits have to die young… if you live in LA, check this out!  

What: The Warehouse Sale’s Premium Denim Sale — Save Up to 80%

When: Deceber 15th from 10am-4pm

Where: Los Angeles Convention Center (Los Angeles, CA)Worth It? Definitely.  There will be a good selection of high-end designer jeans (for both guys and girls) at up to 80% off. In addition to jeans, there will also be a collection of cute hoodies sweats, shirts, and more!

No need to RSVP, just get there as early as possible so you get the best pick of everything. See you there!Get more info here…

Christmas Champagne Cocktails and Festive Flutes

In the mood for a cocktail party/hour/night alone…check out these festive (and easy breezy) Champagne cocktails brought to you by Whole Foods Market:

Champagne Framboise
You’ll Need: Champagne or sparkling wine. Raspberry liquer or framboise. Rasberries.
What to Do: Fill the glass with champagne or sparkling wine, pour in a couple of teaspoons of raspberry liqueur or framboise, and float some raspberries in the glass for decoration.

Kir Royale
You’ll Need: Champagne or sparkling wine. Cassis. Strawberries.
What to Do: Fill the glass with champagne or sparkling wine, pour in a couple of teaspoons of cassis, and float some strawberries on top.

Bellini
You’ll Need: Champagne or sparkling wine. Peach nectar. Peach slices.
What to Do: Fill the glass about two-thirds full with champagne or sparkling wine. Top with peach nectar and garnish with a peach slice.

Champagne l’Orange
You’ll Need: Champagne or sparkling wine. Lillet rouge. Orange slices.
What to Do: Fill the glass two-thirds full with champagne or sparkling wine. Top with Lillet rouge and garnish with an orange slice.

Easy Mimosas
You’ll Need: Champagne. Orange Juice. Orange slices.
What to Do: Fill the glass two-thirds full with champagne. Top with orange juice and garnish with a orange slice. Or try our Whole Foods Market 365 Italian Tangerine Soda with a splash of champagne.

And if you need some affordable festive glassware to go with this cocktailjubilee, check out ZGallery’s Rio Flute collection, 4 flutes for less than $30. Now all you need is the perfect champagne, which can be found at Whole Foods Market for less than $10.

Champagne Spin-Off: Look for the Orange Label

With the holiday season and new year approaching, there will be a lot of cork popping. We can all agree that it is nice to splurge on a nice bottle for those special occasions (when you’re with the family and not buying), but for all those other occasions, you just want for some affordable bubbly that gets the job done.

Well, you’re in luck. I have recommendations for both… and both have distinguishing orange labels that will help you pick them out wherever you are.

For all you fancy-shmancies, go for the Veuve Clicquot. This is–in my opinion–one of the best out there. They have a few different selections, depending on what the occasion/what your price range is, starting at $40.

If you want the almost-as-good spin-off to the Veuve, go for the Presto Prosecco Brut. This is the best affordable sparkler around and is only $8!

You can always count on finding both the Veuve and the Presto Prosecco at Whole Foods Market–just look for the orange labels!

The Truth About Pinkberry

I’ll be the first to admit, that when Pinkberry made its first appearance in Westwood, Los Angeles, I was all about it. Never fully obsessed, but I definitely waited in line and paid $7 once or twice for this new phenomenon. Why? I’m not quite sure. I guess I heard somewhere that it was good for you. Plus the taste kinda grew on me (the sourness goes away after awhile).

After awhile however, I started to hear the rumors that were circulating around about the Pinkberry controversy. Was it really frozen yogurt? What was in that white powder that it’s made with? Does it even pass the California Department of Food and Agriculture’s definition of frozen yogurt?

So here’s the truth: Pinkberry ranted and raved about how good their yogurt was and constantly marketed its health benefits. Well, this is a blatant case of false advertising. As it turns out, Pinkberry was sued for making false claims of being frozen yogurt, when in fact it is merely powdered milk, chemicals, flavoring agents and sugar.

So apparently all you need to do these days to be successful is sprinkle in a ‘low cal, low carb’ every now and then and people will be lined up around the block.

If you really want a delicious low-cal desert, head to Baskin Robbins and check out their lighter options. I recommend either the Rainbow Sherbert (only 160 calories per serving) or the sugar-free Cafe Mocha Yogurt (only 90 calories per serving). Sometimes old-school is just that much more delicious.