Featured Fit: Taste of the Nation's HotList!

By Cool J in Minneapolis

I've done a few posts about different Taste of the Nation events that my husband and I have attended in the past year or two (check out THIS POST, THIS POST, and THIS POST), and last night was another great event put on by this charity. It was the Taste of the Nation- HotList!

What's the HotList? Only one of the most fun events in Minneapolis!

"The top chefs and mixologists in the Twin Cities are banning together to host an evening of fabulous food, drinks, music and prizes – all in the name of fighting childhood hunger." 

source

This awesome event was held at the beautiful Guthrie Theater along the Mississippi River.

Tickets were $75/piece, but that $75 got you tons of small plates from some of the best local restaurants. Name a restaurant, and it was probably there! La Belle Vie, Barbette, Be'Wiched, Bradstreet Crafthouse, Brasa, Bryant Lake Bowl, Butcher & the Boar, Chino Latino, Cosmos, Forepaugh's, Gather, the Gray House, Icehouse, the Lynn on Bryant, Marin, Masu Sushi & Robata, Petite Sweets, Salty Tart, Sea Change, the Strip Club, and Sun Street Breads...so many amazing chefs cooking up so many delectable bites.

La Belle Vie's unique course

Each attendee received a "voting" card to vote on their favorite restaurant. Personally, I voted for Bradstreet Crafthouse, who was serving up a small french toast bite topped with pork belly, peanut butter, and syrup. Sounds funky, but it was so yummy! The winner of the night (with the most votes) was Salty Tart with banana creme dessert.

In addition to all the great food, there was a wide assortment of signature cocktails, a "wine ring toss" (I won a huge bottle!) and a silent auction.

In fact, I went a little crazy on the silent auction, winning ALL THREE items on which I bid. I went home with a Blush Beauty Room goodie bag (lots of Bare Minerals makeup inside), a gift basket and $100 gift card to Ollu Dog Salon, and my favorite item...drumroll please...

A $300 gift card to A la Mode Wardrobe Consultants! 

I cannot wait to schedule my wardrobe consultation, though I'm not 100% sure what it will entail. I hope to find out soon. But a friend of mine won a similar one at last year's Hotlist. She said the consultant came to her house to review her closet, had her pick out her favorite outfits and explain why they were her favorites, and then took her shopping, pulling outfits from lots of stores that she feels will flatter and enhance her personal style. She could choose what she wanted to buy. What a fabulous idea! And all for a good cause, right?

So, yes, the event was such a blast! I wore a Shoshanna dress that  I had actually purchased for my friend's wedding in Mexico last year...remember this picture?

This time I paired the dress with a pair of Nine West polka dot heels and silver J.Crew necklace.

There were so many cute outfits at this event, on friends and on strangers. I was especially happy to see that some of them were even items from my Fashion Swap in April.

Susie's dress used to be mine!

And Julia's dress (on the far right) was also from the swap. I loved the gold on her!

The men looked pretty darn handsome too, didn't they?

I had such a fun evening, eating all the scrumptious food and catching up with friends. It was a beautiful night (except the mosquitoes out on the infinity bridge).

...Stay tuned for my Wardrobe Consultation in a few weeks!