Fireside Chat with Jeremy Stoppelman at 1776

While I loved having an opportunity to hear how the website and community I have become such a part of got its start and how the various decisions that were made along the way shaped the Unilocal site, it was extremely difficult to see the speakers. Because Jeremy and the moderator were seated and the stage they were on wasn’t high enough, it was hard to see them at all and I was only seated about halfway back. But I guess I should be happy that I got a seat because not everyone was fortunate to have a seat at this event.
The moderator did a good job of guiding the discussion with his questions, but I was surprised there was no question and answer period from the audience at the end, especially when they asked us to write questions down to be asked when we checked-​in downstairs.
The check-​in process wasn’t very smooth. I guess I’ve been spoiled by Unilocal events and Kimberly’s great organization skills! Waiting outside, they tried to form a line, but then it became very disorganized and the first woman was unable to check me in and I had to go to someone else because she only had a list on her phone that didn’t have all of the names for the event.
I really enjoyed the food NeatMeat brought. Although I’m not vegetarian, I thought the vegetarian option of the Mi So Joe that consisted of Tofu, Eggplant, & Button Mushrooms was very tasty. I also tried the turkey with cranberry sauce and the side dish of potatoes. The turkey was very moist and the cranberry sauce was tangy.
I also love when events don’t overlook my favorite part of any meal, dessert! Having an opportunity to finally try District Doughnut, I’m hooked. The flavors were delicious. I sampled the brown butter and mocha crunch flavors. They were very flavorful and fresh tasting. I was most impressed that the donuts themselves were packed with flavor and it wasn’t just the icing that had the flavor, but the whole donut.
Overall, a good evening and a great chance to see the great space at 1776 and learn more about Unilocal’s history. Quote of the night from Jeremy was when he said that Zagat was like a 1970’s Unilocal

This was the best Unilocal Event ever!
I mean you got to meet the CEO of Unilocal,Jeremy Stoppelman. How often does that happen? Never! Thank you so much Kimberly for organizing this event and getting the word out. It was real luck that I was able to attend this event. Word went out about the event the night before on Unilocal via Kimberly and soon there was a wait list of over 200 Unilocalers, not to mention the other companies that participated. My mom was flying in the day of the event so I signed her up as my guest and brought her with me. It was a great way to introduce her to the world of DC Unilocal.
The event was held at 1776 a small entrepreneurial start up. 1776 was actually hosting the event as a talk given by the Unilocal CEO as an example of a successful small start up business. There were the familiar Unilocal elites, but the majority of the crowd were local entrepreneurs and small business owners. It was a great mixer opportunity for Unilocalers and a chance to pay homage to our founder.
The food was delicious as always. Neat Meats had a delicious selection of sloppy joes available including a vegetarian option. There were baked beans and an open bar. The lines were really long and I was glad that my mom was with me to save seats near the front. Once I got our food and Yuenglings we were set.
As a side note, I was really excited to try the District Donuts. I was disappointed that they were extremely sweet, frosted, and not very fresh. I had the glazed blue berry and the chocolate mocha. I thought they were the same as donuts I could get at the grocery store or some other forgettable place. I will withhold my final opinion for when I visit their actual location and try them fresh. As a first impression though, quite disappointed.
I would have to say my favorite part of the event besides Jeremy’s talk was the Unilocal gifts. I got an awesome pair of fingerless gloves that say Unilocal Life on the fingers. The Unilocal sunglasses are so cool! Best gifts ever! The talk was hosted by the owner of 1776 he asked relevant questions and skillfully guided the conversation. To be honest though, Jeremy didn’t need any guidance. He was a great presenter and gave a great synopsis of Unilocal’s early beginnings and how they have grown to the world wide organization they are today.
I agree with some of my fellow Unilocalers that the way the event was described, I thought it would be a more intimate event. However, I enjoyed the large diverse group that came and met many interesting people. Nothing like great events like these to piqué my interest in all things Unilocal.DC Unilocal is the best!

I have to go with Mike D. on this one. I am very excited I was one of the people chosen to attend this unique opportunity with the CEO of Unilocal.I felt he offered direct insight on how Unilocal started and what it has grown into today.
I’ve been to 1776 several times and I always feel they put on a pretty solid event. The space is excellent for these types of things. Always great food and drinks too!
Now what discouraged me about this event was how impersonal it was. Fireside chats usually offer the opportunity for direct Q & A’s with the audience and a chance to mingle with the guest (s) of the chat itself. I felt it was unfortunate that Jeremy Stoppelman walked out with his 5 person entourage afterwards not leaving anything to chance.
From one perspective I totally get it. He is there to do what he needs to do then get out so you won’t be bombarded with 1,000,000 of questions. Then again, isn’t that what these types of events are for? To speaking to the public and offering up advice to us common folk? He indeed did do that during the speaking. I recognized that. I just wish he would have taken the time to talk to the audience afterwards. It would have been more personal and less stuffy on his part.
To each their own. Easily 5 stars if it would have been more of a personal touch after the chat itself.

3.5 stars– Venue was very neat, 1776 sounds like they’re doing some really cool things. Open bar and food were a nice addition to the event– a little bummed about the fireside chat. 99% of the discussion could be found on Wikipedia and I wish there was some additional interaction with the crowd such as a mic with questions and answers.
he has always lacked a sense of excitement and upbeat personality on their quarterly earning calls, but in this intimate of an event space it would have been nice for him to socialize with the crowd before and after– I’m sure many of the engineers and entrepreneurs had something they’d like to ask.
I was very happy to go, but hope that future events he is able to let his guard down, grab a beer, and mingle in the crowd ;)

This was arguably the best event of the year. How many times do you have the opportunity to hear the CEO do the «non-​Wall Street» speak and discuss about his entrepreneurial journey to becoming CEO of the best review site in the world? His stories were full of surprises and laughs. Unilocalers, can you believe that Jeremy once thought that no one would voluntarily write up quality reviews? Did you know he had a lot of resistance from investors when he wanted to grow Unilocal in NYC b/​c investors thought NYC consumers wouldn’t write and share reviews like the SF crowd? The entire chat was full of these types of stories. While you hear bits and pieces scattered throughout magazine articles, it was very interesting in having heard all of these details and challenges he faced in chronological order. Not only was it interesting, but it was extremely informative on the challenges an entrepreneur should be thinking about as he/​she wants to grow his/​her company.
I am extremely thankful to Kimberly, Tara, and Mike for setting up this event and inviting the Unilocal elite crowd. Approximately 200 – 300 people were on this waiting list and about 3 – 4 people ahead of me in line and who weren’t on the guest list were turned back. The Unilocal elites who don’t know how hard it was to get into this event should be aware of this and be grateful that we got in.
For those who don’t know, this was held at 1776, a startup incubator/​accelerator. For those who have no idea what I’m talking about, an incubator/​accelerator helps startup companies grow. Over the past year, 1776 has gained significant traction and has established itself as the premier incubator/​accelerator in DC. The fact that 1776 is able to invite high profile people like Jeremy shows how far 1776 has gotten in the past year.
As always, Unilocal sets up great food and drink options. We had a nice mix of sloppy joe’s, side dishes, donuts, and drinks. This is going to be one of those Unilocal events that I’ll remember for the rest of my life. Thank you Kimberly, Tara, and Mike!

My husband and I somehow found ourselves riding the elevator up to the top floor with Jeremy (along with the host? and 2 of his securities/​escorts). Actually my husband wasn’t really sure of what event I dragged him to and I’d only seen Jeremy’s picture once before — midway through the elevator ride, I whispered to my husband, «I think that’s him». Wanting to keep our composure, we stayed quiet for the rest of the elevator lift *insert awkward elevator music*. And our brief encounter with Jeremy ended there *phew — didn’t make a fool out of ourselves* — now onto the actual event.
We were surprised that this event was opened to the public and over 200+ guests registered. Thankfully check in was painless and straightforward. Just like most Unilocal events, we were immediately welcomed by tables of Unilocal swags by the entrance. Food: Neatmeat and District Doughnuts treated us to their most popular items — Sloppy Joes (loved the tofu and mushroom sloppy) and Blueberry doughnut (moist and heavenly). Space: 1776 would had been a great space to host small meetings/​gatherings. 200+ people = limited seating and people standing over each other. People: Not sure there were much networking going on? but it was good to see some of the Unilocalers I met in other recent Elite events!
The actual «fireside chat» — it was meh. I don’t think I really learned much more about Unilocal and its history (most of it can be read on other articles or even wikipedia). Jeremy came off as cocky at times and I began tuning out. I thought he would be more interactive with the audience but there weren’t even a Q&A session at the end of the talk. Maybe I expected too much from this event or Jeremy as a person? Overall — it was an unique opportunity but I just wasn’t impressed. Nevertheless, Thank you Kimberly for planning and hosting. Unilocal — u still my fav. Jeremy– nice elevator ride.

This event was a very unique opportunity, and I am very grateful that I could take part in the event. With a waitlist of 200 people, I feel especially lucky!!!
I have to admit despite my many years of Unilocaling, I actually did not know that much about the inner workings of Unilocal and the history. I had so many questions in my mind like:
Where did the Elite squad come from?
Why does everyone blame the cute little Vizla when the site is down?
Who were the first adopters of Unilocal?
How did it expand from city to city across the globe?
Now I feel like I am ready for a round of Unilocal Jeopardy/​Trivia. Jeremy Stoppelman’s story of the founding of Unilocal was captured the quiet attention of the audience of entrepreneurs and Unilocalers. He gave the impression that he was very down to earth and funny, the whole Q&A session was highly informative and entertaining.
As for food, the sloppy joes from Neat Meat were great, I had them without the buns, so basically it was a plate of meat and cheese for me. District Doughnuts had plentiful Dulce de Leche, Mocha and Blueberry donuts to try.
1776 was a great host and had an awesome space for the event. Thank you Kimberley for planning and the opportunity to be there. I highly encourage our Unilocal CEO to come back and visit often.
Only thing that would have made this event more awesome would be an actual fireplace for the fireside conversation. And S’mores would be a nice added touch too.

Wow, what a precious opportunity for fellow Unilocalers! I never imagined that I would meet the Founder and CEO of Unilocal.But I did today. Thank you Unilocal,thank you Kimberly!
And the food was very good. It had all I needed. Veggies, beans, meat, and some carb! It was a perfect meal for me. Thanks to NeatMeat DC. It was great seeing some of the wonderful Unilocal Elite friends of mine too!

You know… I go to every event mostly because of the food or the venue (I love Unilocalers but let’s be real here). This time– I strictly showed up to hear Jeremy.
I mean like for real – I had been on the plane all day returning from San Diego, and I KNEW I would be tired, but regardless I signed up, got lucky, and came straight from the airport (made it just in time for him to start speaking). I was so psyched I sat right down and didn’t even bother with food or drink.
And I was sorely disappointed.
I think allot of other Unilocalers expressed this already, but for a review– and interaction-​based company, I think Jeremy could’ve done better and made it… Interactive… There are sooo many Unilocalers like myself who love Unilocal and love the idea of it… And I felt like the king of Unilocal kind of brushed us off???
Ok, it was cool he showed up and told his story, but like others said, it wasn’t really anything you couldn’t find on Wikipedia.
1776 was cool and it seemed pretty organized though! Couldn’t speak to the food or drink, but I really didn’t show up for that.
As a fellow engineer, fellow University of Illinois alumna, and avid super-​fan of Unilocal,I was not impressed by the event – or with our guest of honor.