Elite Event @ Preservation Kitchen

right when i think that Unilocal couldn’t get any better, i get to be part of the crowd that got to go to this elite event. what an amazing event! if this event doesn’t convince all y’all how great Unilocal is, i don’t know what can. I got to meet the head chef and all the various wine makers. not to mention the beautiful ambiance of this restaurant. Who knew that there would be this jewel in the bustling city of bothell?
really… great great great job. and i can’t wait to go to the wineries and get myself those bottles of wine! (I was giddy from being able to talk to the winemakers about their grapes and where they’re from and how they choose them and why they are so passionate about their work. wow. so great!)
p. s. Chef Isaac said that his fav. dish is the duck.

There were so many new faces at this event, I couldn’t help my perma grin.
The apps were delicious and only left me wanting to try Preservation Kitchen on its own. After telling my coworkers about the event, one recommended breakfast here and said that they have a fabulous rendition of eggs benedict. It’s on my list to try in the near future.
The wines were exquisite and fun to taste. My favorite (other than Brian Carter Cellars, naturally), was the metal. With Carly L. –the Wine Princess-​there to assist and give background on any and all things wine, I didn’t miss out all night.
Unilocal, Katie and Michelle… this event was grand and very tasteful! Thanks for such a wonderful time AND for the new T’s!

Internal Monologue:
Hungry.Hungry.Hungry.Hungry.Hungry.Hungry.Hungry…
OOOH! Platter of food? What is it? I don’t care! GIMME! Mmmmm — duck confit bally things.
Wow! Everyone is so cute! Look at Valentina and her little skirt and hat! SO CUTE! Gah! She smells like a cookie! Cassie! Yay! SO CUTE!
Hungry. Hungry.Hungry.Hungry.Hungry.Hungry.Hungry.Hungry…
What’s on the tables??? Bruschetta! Olives! Almonds!
*makes plate and pours into face*
Bernie! Bernie’s face hurts from laughing too much. What a nice problem to have. She is SO CUTE!
Ian M! So funny! So cute! CURLY, CURLY PRETTY HAIR!!!
What’s that on that tray? OSTRICH? With huckleberry demi-​glacé? GIMME! *takes three and shoves into face*
Zach! Zach is drinking something that smells a lot like vinegar. No bueno. BUT CUTE! SUCH A BIG, CUTE, ASSHOLE, DOUCHE! YAY ZACH!
Hungry. Hungry.Hungry.Hungry.Hungry.Hungry.Hungry.Hungry…
And so on.
This is what happens when you go for a ten mile run and then hit an Elite event. Endorphin addled brain and a big appetite = lots of cute and shoving food in face. Couldn’t have been a more perfect way to end the weekend.
Big ups to Kate M’Lady and the extra love via the NA wine (thanks for trying — now we know… no…) and the Dry Sodas for little Miss I Drank My Limit by the Time I Was 30.

5 stars? Oh yeah, it was that good!
+1 for the location: It’s only a few miles from my pad! That never happens!
+1 for the venue: Preservation Kitchen what an amazing place. I’ll be back for dinner sometime soon. I’ve heard the duck is delightful. ;)
+1 for the Wine: I’m no oenophile or «Wine Connoisseur,» heck I don’t even really drink wine but I enjoyed most of the stuff I tried here. Also, the people serving the wine seemed very knowledgeable and happy to chat all about the wine. I learned a lot, but didn’t retain much, sorry it was a bit of wine info overload.
+1 for the Appetizers: Mmmm tasty stuff. There were roasted almonds, olives, duck confit croquettes, chocolate truffle cookies and so much more. I think I tried one or two of everything. I even tried Ostrich for the firs time, not bad at all.
+1 for my fellow Unilocalers: You guys rock, so friendly, funny and entertaining! It was nice seeing all the faces that are slowly becoming familiar and meeting some new ones too.
I have to give a shout out to Katie S. and Michelle B. You ladies threw another excellent event and one of my favorites so far!
I also have to give a special thanks to Stephanie and Sarah for letting me tag along in their Subaru. It was nice to enjoy all the wine I wanted and have a convenient, free ride home, thanks!

Why didn’t some of you bastards say hi to me? Huh? Huh?
Do yourself a favor and say hi to me next time. It would make your night that much better.
Crap!
Zipzap Zubidy Bop!

+1 star for the lovely venue
+1 star for the friendly and helpful purveyors of fabulous wine
+1 star for meeting new Unilocalers and hugs from the established ones
+1 star for our awesome ambassadors knocking it out of the park again
+1 star for actually «tasting» the wine, not «drinking» it and having not even a shred of a hangover.
Faves? Guardian Angel, BCC Tuttarosso, and EFESTE Sauvignon Blanc.
Next step — buy a wine rack.
P. S. +TWELVITY-​FIVE STARS for those damn cookies.

Have I told you lately how much I love you???
Not only is Preservation an amazing place to have a romantic, and delicious meal, but it’s a bomb-​ass place to have an Elite event!!!
All of the wine reps were super nice and informative. I enjoyed the few bites of food I was able to try.
Everyone was great company, and I enjoyed making new friends. All in all, my favorite event so far!

I think I ate 25 delicious duck confit croquettes.
I think I ate 30 delectable ostrich appetizers.
I think I ate 23 heavenly lamb appetizers.
Sadly, I only had one scrumptious tartate covered chip, and only one luscious chocolate cookie (aaaaaaahhhhhhh!). Even though I ate like the end of the world was waiting for us outside Preservation Kitchen, there were dozens of trays of deliciousness waltzing around everyone, pleasing, pleasing, pleasing!
(Btw, for those wondering about the «plethora» of adjectives, I tend to abuse the thesaurus when I’m wine-​chipper).
The ambiance was great. M’lady Katie and Michelle are oh-​la-​la fabulous hosts! Adrienne did a wonderful job keeping the big crowds pleased. Preservation Kitchen is definitely worth the drive from Seattle.
I loved seeing the usual suspects and getting to know great, new people (Xav, Mel R, Jessica, Chris, Heidi and more). What a fantastic event.
Oh, and I have a new crush. Guardian Cellars. Great wine and very funny owner/​janitor/​marketing-​dude/​guardian/​president man.
¡5 ESTRELLAS!

Carpooling. If you think about it, carpooling suggests many things: trust, tolerance, responsibility, camaraderie.
I had no less than 6 candidates for carpooling, three of which popped up within hours of this event, two of which I hadn’t met yet in person, and two who wound up carpooling on their own because they were considerate and didn’t want to make me and my other rides late.
There’s a lot to be said about that really simple concept, when you think about it. Two people who have never met me before were willing to trust me with their lives. For why? Well, because we’re all Unilocal Elites, of course!
Not only did we have the option of using the carpool lane if we so desired, I also got to show up with a POSSE! Hell yeah! And this event had free valet parking! And my posse coughed up a couple bucks to tip the valet and didn’t tease me when I discovered I wasn’t carrying any cash! Hell yeah!
Preservation Kitchen needed to be carpooled to, as it’s way out in «North Bumblefuck,» as I lovingly refer to Bothell, and anything else north of the U District. As far as I’m concerned we might as well have been up in Canada. Hoser!
However… it’s worth carpooling to. I am looking forward to an occasion to wind up there for dinner! But that will be a review for another day. Tonight we had a most excellent Unilocal Elite Event, tasting wine, nibbling on amazing appetizers, and mingling with Unilocalers old and new. You know what? These events rock, not just because the venues are always amazing, not just because the food and drink are always spectacular, and not just because Unilocal keeps handing out awesome goods like t-​shirts, buttons, chapstick, grocery bags, or my favorite, Unilocal nail files!
No, dear friends, though all of the above are absolutely spectacular and deserve 6 stars for the work, care, planning and effort our community managers put into them, really what makes me excited to attend is seeing the awesome people I’ve met, and meeting the awesome people I’ll be seeing.
Because once you’ve sampled the joy and fun of an amazing Unilocal event like tonight’s at the Preservation Kitchen Elite, you’ll be itching for another. In the meantime, give that ‘Events’ button up there a click, and come out and hang out some more!
Thanks for the good times folks! See ya soon!

Every aspect of this event was a five star experience through and through. Wondeful wines, poured by amicable representatives? Indeed. Delicious food? Wowee, you bet. The bruschetta was transcendent, perfectly seasoned and oiled. And what choice olives. Oh, how I love olives. I managed to get one of the elusive cookies, and it was deliciously decadent, but still practical, like a good cookie ought to be. The venue? Spectacular. What a beautiful place Preservation Kitchen is. It takes a certain, pointed effort to make it to Bothell for any reason, but after getting a glimpse and taste of Preservation Kitchen, it may just be enough of a reason on its own.
And oh yeah, how about a packed house full of smiling, convivial, swanky individuals? Superb! It was a swiss army knife of various kinds of unadulterated goodness tonight. A stellar job by all involved.

Okay, this was awesome — especially for my first Elite event EVER.
I live in Seattle, so getting all the way out to Bothell doesn’t happen very often, but I’m glad I made the trek. I loved the wines, especially Des Voigne (and the girl pouring the Des Voigne was awesome!) and the food was fantastic as well. Although I’m somewhat of a picky eater (translation: not usually into things like lamb, duck, or ostrich) I fell in love with the duck confit croquettes and even enjoyed the taste I had of the ostrich appetizer — and those olives, of course, were to die for. My boyfriend is probably STILL fantasizing about the ostrich.
My boyfriend was SO jealous of my elite status and begged me to make sure I STAY elite in ’09 so I can go to more fancy parties. We’re definitely planning to check out Preservation Kitchen on a regular night as well — I saw yam gnocchi on the menu and I’m already excited for it.
In the interest of full disclosure, I must admit that I am shy and awkward and didn’t quite come of my shell to meet as many people as I’d have liked. If you see me at the next event, say hi. I promise I’m fun. :)

Had I not thrown out half of each wine I tasted, I probably would not be writing this review right now and would’ve ended up dead driving home without a DD last night. I must give props to Katie and Michelle for finding such a great venue outside of the Seattle area and also NOT being on a random weekday night making it that much easier to attend.
I was also lucky enough to find street parking even though I arrived like 20 minutes after the event started. The place was pretty loud and packed, but I could easily see Preservation Kitchen being an excellent place for a romantic dinner on a normal night. I really like the upstairs private dining rooms, and looking at the menu. I think Preservation Kitchen is definitely on my «to try» list. The offerings sounded delicious, the prices seemed almost too cheap for such an establishment, oh and the appetizers such as the Bruschetta, Ostrich, and of course the Chocolate Truffle Cookies were awesome. Too bad my bag of Costco Truffles didn’t get quite the same raving. My girlfriend needed to study so she bailed last minute, and boy did she miss out.
Being only the third elite event I’ve attended in almost two years, it’s always great to meet other Unilocalers. Wines that stood out for me: Guardian: Gun Metal, Efeste: Syrah and Brian Carter Cellars: Tuttorosso.
Oh and the Unilocal shirts this time around were awesome, nice print, super soft (and by American Apparel?!?), and of course free. Free parking, free shirt, free food, and of course free wine. How can you give this event anything less than five stars?
~G

Best Elite event I’ve attended to date! SO much fun!
Some amazingly delicious wine (my glass was never empty!), tasty snacks (those chocolate truffle cookies were to DIE for), and lots of chatting with super super awesome people. Plus, some fantastic new Unilocal swag! Unfortunately I can’t wear my awesome new shirt at work… so instead I’m using my Unilocalstick like a fiend.
The space was quite beautiful and I’d love to come back for dinner sometime — the menu looked fantastic!
I only wish it had been longer! Since I’m so shy and don’t know a lot of other Unilocalers that well, it took me well over an hour to get up the courage to talk to anyone other than my +1. LAME.

I’m really glad this was the event where I popped my Unilocal elite event cherry (that was really awkward sentence to write). Fantastic selection of wine, especially the wines from Guardian and Brian Carter. Nice to meet all the cool Unilocalers (are there any other kind?), and to have three different rooms to chill out in. There were even seats in some of the rooms (which never happens to me at these big events). I was really impressed with how «put together» the whole event was — kudos to Katie S and Unilocal.
I concur with what everyone’s saying about Preservation Kitchen. I never would have known about this place if not for the Unilocal event, but it’s definitely on my list of places to return to — despite being «all the way out» in Bothell (which, I was surprised to learn, is not in Canada).
Plus, instead of people thinking I look like the guy who plays Lex Luthor on Smallville, I apparently look like Tom Colicchio from Top Chef. Upgrade! Except he’s like 100 lbs more than me, but still, I can’t cook and he’s rich, so ugrade!).
Could have used a little more food (all that wine going to my head, even with tossing ¹⁄₃ of each glass to keep tasting), but the little noshes that were being passed around were very delicious — especially the lamb and ostrich crostini thingies (technical term — trust me, I’m Tom Colicchio’s stunt double). Even an option to buy some food would have been OK :-)
Honestly, the event was marred only by the fact that the valet’s managed to run our car battery down, so we couldn’t make a stylish getaway. Quick call to AAA and all was fixed, so I won’t hope that against Unilocal

Wow, so many new faces and too little time! I wish that I got a chance to meet more people! Hopefully they will be at the next event! This event definitely rocked the house and the wines were absolutely superb! Oh, those chocolate cookies… **DROOL**
The lineup of local wineries was totally mind-​blowing: Brian Carter Cellars, EFESTE, Page Cellars, Guardian Cellars, Des Voigne Cellars, DeLille Cellars and O Wines. I didn’t get to sample all of them despite being the DD (designated drinker), but of those I sampled were quite delicious!
This event provided a welcome change of pace and get out of the friendly confines of Seattle! I will definitely have to come back and have dinner here.
Thanks Katie & Michelle!!!
Photos:
H H OOOOO TTTTTT SSSSS TTTTTT U U FFFFFF FFFFFF
H H O O T S T U U F F
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This event was fantastic! I enjoyed all the wine I tasted, and the winery folks were really friendly and great at dialing back their explanations for an ignorant enophile. I didn’t taste any of the Preservation Kitchen appies as all that swung my way was meaty. I missed the chocolate truffle cookies, damn!
The space was really nice, and I’m excited to visit the restaurant. It’s a lovely building and I bet this would make a romantic dinner spot.
This was only my second elite event, so it was great to meet so many more Unilocalers in person. Plenty of wine, conversation, and to top it off a swanky new tee from the gorgeous Michelle, Katie, and Helen!

Seriously? I mean a wine tasting event at a beautiful venue?
Yes, oh yes, please. :)
The wines being poured tonight were fantastic. I am a little partial to one that rhymes with Shmian Carter… being that I work there. But Tuttarosso is seriously my favorite wine evah and I am so glad my boss lady brought it. *Now all of you need to come to Brian Carter for a tasting! Anyways, I also fell in love with Guardian Cellars… I mean Gun Metal wine? YES YES YES. And Chalk Line? YES YES! I hadn’t had the chance to try his wine before tonight and I loved it. The snacks were so good and the duck croquettes I could have eaten in bulk. Thanks to Adrienne, Michelle and Katie for some serious awesomeness. You wowed this wine princess’s ass. :)

I think I’m finally outgrowing my Unilocal Awkward Stage; I actually recognized many people here tonight! Of course it was nice to have my +1’s there as my security blanket, and they were totally stoked (not to mention jealous of my Elite Status) when we left. Maybe they’ll actually pony up and start their OWN accounts now.
Anyway, there were so many good wines to sample, and I appreciated the way the workers from the different wineries never wanted you to have an empty glass. No stingy pours from these people! One guy even offered to let my cousin just take a pour straight into her mouth because she’d lost her glass. That, my friends, is good salesmanship.
Appetizers were very tasty too. I can honestly say I’d never had ostrich before tonight, but it’s a bird I hope to savor again soon. There were also some fried tasty niblets whose ingredients I never caught but were face-​stuffing-​worthy nonetheless.
After perusing the menu, I’m looking forward to trying out this restaurant on a regular night. Sooner rather than later, too, because I think left my new swag t-​shirt sitting there, and I want to claim what’s rightfully mine!

Every wine distinctive and lush, every appetizer savory, and every person remarkable.
Does this ever get old?
No.
But it does keep getting better!

An Elite event in MY town? 500 stars
Wine tasting some fabulous wines? 500 stars
New Unilocal schwag? 500 stars
Seeing known faces, starting to recognize faces and SO many new faces? 50 000 000 000 stars
Super yummy appetizers? 500 stars
Honestly, Unilocal,you REALLY outdid yourself for all of us this time.
The wines were amazing, having them poured and described for you by the owners of the winery? Fabulous!
I’m not a big red wine fan… I have a very particular palate when it comes to red and some of those wines were just AMAZING!
It was so much fun!