Lunch tasting at J&L Catering

I had the pleasure of accompanying Jiwon (Managing Director at ALLURE) and Vickie (Account Executive at ALLURE) to a wonderful lunch tasting at J&L Catering!

J&L Catering was previously owned by John & Lisa, thus the name J&L Catering. Ted Grady, an event planner on the J&L team, and Kevin Kelly, the executive chef, both decided to buy the company from John & Lisa and made it their own. With Ted's expertise as an event planner and Kevin's experience as an executive chef, their partnership of J&L Catering has made it what it is today. The most notable event that they recently catered for is the Lincoln Park Zoo Ball 2010.

What ALLURE had to say about J&L Catering:

"ALLURE loves J&L Catering! J&L reflect ALLURE beliefs in taking care of the customer as the number one goal. We believe passion and excellence go hand in hand when it comes to producing events and meetings, J&L understands that about ALLURE. The team and J&L make it easy for planners and customers to be creative allowing us to push the boundaries of catering and operations from being average to amazing! It's always exciting to sit down with the J&L team and learn the innovative things they are doing to accomodate the ever changing event world!"

We were greeted by our gracious host &

Senior Social Event Director of J&L Catering,

Scott Reichelsdorf.

Jiwon & Scott

Top : Scott Reichelsdorf, Kevin Kelly (Co-owner and Executive Chef), Kary Markey(Party Captain--pretty cool title--the person that actually runs all the catering aspects the night of an event)

Bottom: Vickie & Myself

The lovely dining area in the back where we got to taste the food!

Lovely setup of the food

Grilled chicken with black bean & corn salsa

Hanger steak platter

Chilled gazpacho soup

Mac & cheese bar!
Accompanied with bacon, crispy fried onions, grilled mushrooms, and hot sauce!
Love it!

Scones & biscuits

Upon learning that I don't eat meat, Scott asked the chef to prepare a vegetarian dish for me!
Thanks, Scott! It's a lentil cake accompanied with an olive tapenade and tomato jam!

Our talented sous chef, JR !

& now... the desserts ;)

Just chocolatey goodness

Need I say more? :)

The lunch tasting at J&L Catering was a wonderful learning experience for me because I saw firsthand how important the logistics of what's needed for any event/meeting is, and how important it is for ALLURE to maintain relationships with quality companies such as J&L Catering to facilitate the perfect event/meeting/wedding! At ALLURE we really "take care of the details" and our choice of vendors is no exception! We want, and will only work, with people that put care and detail into what they do!

Again, thank you J&L Catering for the lunch tasting and thank you Jiwon for the lovely experience! For more information on J&L Catering and their services, check out their website.

Q & A Session Part 2 with Jiwon McCartney

Jiwon McCartney is the Managing Director of

ALLURE Event and Meeting Productions.

Did you ever have odd requests when planning events/meetings/weddings?

No request is odd, just unique. Every event and meeting is different, so we take it all in stride. But the most exciting request we had was for a birthday celebration. The client wanted to have "the Chef" be present at their event to address her dinner guests and talk with the guest of honor. Unfortunately, the Chef himself was in NY at the same time of the event cooking for the James Beard Foundation. The client requested we get the Chef’s agenda and fly him in for the end of the dinner via their private helicopter to address the guest of honor.

In the end we could not coordinate the helicopter landing on the top of the building so we had the Chef via satellite!

The tablescape for the Birthday celebration at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta, GA.
(How GORGEOUS is that?! Wow :D)

What's your favorite type of event or meeting to manage and put together?

Well…we like to manage all types of events and meetings. The "favorite" part comes in when we "click" with our clients. This is when we sit down for a consultation and we have this unknown sync or connection to each other. I guess some of us call it the "warm and fuzzies". This is when the client and planner actually achieve "vested" interested in the vision and goal of the event or meeting. Now having said this connection can and will happen all different times of the planning stage. So no one should despair that love at first sight does not happen literally at first sight. Professionals should know that a lot depends on the individual or group’s trust barometer.

"Love at first sight clients"

Maggie and Ed was at the Madonna Della Strada - Loyola University North Shore Campus

Sara and Ned was at St. Simons’ Island

Our weekly Q & A Part 3 with Jiwon will be up next Wednesday!
Again, if you have any questions for Jiwon, let me know! :)

xo,

Zoe

Our new business card!

Just a quick post to present our new business card:

The front:

The back:

I love the simplicity and the signature ALLURE color scheme. (Look at our blog, we like to match ;)! ) I got my OWN personalized business cards, too! Thank you Jiwon !


So what do you guys think of our new business card?

One of our favorite charity needs you to get involved and have some fun! ToolBank Atlanta is hosting Atlanta's funkiest fundraiser on August 31, 2010 at STATS Atlanta. Advanced Tickets are only $20 and you are not only paying to be a part of a great party but the proceeds are going to support ToolBank Atlanta ! Your ticket provides for 2 drink, Food by Doc Chey's and Gracious Gatherings, Live Music by the John Zedd Band with a chance to bid on some amazing Silent Auction items! And yes all this fun knowing you are powering thousands of service projects right in your community!

BTW - Bring a new pair of work gloves to donate and receive 2 free tickets for entry in the Toolapalooza Raffle! YES there are raffle prizes too!!

For more information visit http://www.atlanta.toolbank.org/ and get your tickets today!

ALLURE IS A PROUD SUPPORTER OF TOOLBANK ATLANTA SINCE 2009!

Date: August 31, 2010

Time: 7pm-10pm

Where: The Adidas Room @ STATS Atlanta

300 Marietta Street NW Atlanta, GA 30313

Q & A Session Part 1 with Jiwon McCartney

Jiwon McCartney is the Managing Director of

ALLURE Event and Meeting Productions.

...yes, she's the boss lady ;)

Read along to find out some interesting facts about ALLURE!

How did you come up with the name for your company?

We wanted a name that was not specific. A name that sounded nice and described something. “ALLURE” as many words, has a variation of definitions, but the one that stood out was “To attract with something desirable; entice”. We pondered on this definition and translated to what we felt events and meetings needed at the time ALLURE opened its doors. As passionate team of event & meeting producers and planners, this is what we wanted to do “attract” & “entice” clients with a “desirable” production and plan of their vision. Hence ALLURE stuck and we have been ALLURE since 2007!

What's the most interesting event/meeting/wedding that you put together?

Weddings: Danielle and Angel’s Wedding at Dean Gardens Private Estate – Atlanta, GA

This 250 guest wedding was elaborate, challenging and beautiful! The Bride was native of GA and a southern belle. The Groom was from Argentina and they met while he was going to school in NY. The venue was 3 football fields in length and the wedding was entirely outside! It was a beautiful 5pm ceremony and the sun was out just enough to be eye level. ALLURE brought in parasol umbrellas for all guests to shade themselves pre processional and the pictures were gorgeous! It was a dreamy southern wedding ceremony! We had a 6 piece band and they added Sevillana dancers imported from Argentina for guest entertainment. Custom upscale grill menu and unique seating arrangements that kept with the landscape of the venue made guests feel comfortable I their setting. To end the evening, Mardi Gras paraphernalia were handed out to send the Bride and Groom off to their new wedded Bliss! And to think this was just “some” of the wedding’s details! A Party to remember indeed!

I'll be posting a weekly Q+A, your questions are also welcome!

xo,

Zoe

Welcome to ALLURE's blogspot !

It's my pleasure to present to you ALLURE's presence on blogspot! I'd also like to introduce myself, Zoe, an ALLURE marketing assistant/social media intern that will be doing most of the blogging ;)

Stay tuned for posts that cover details on events/meetings/weddings!



xo,

Zoe