In this mailing:
Org List
Second mid-cycle mailing
On taking a bath
Yardhouse
Celebration
Yardhouse and volunteer workload
Celebration venues
Administrivia
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Org List:
This is the DLV 2016 Organizational Mailing List (dlvorg_at_geekbabe.com)
Replies to this message will be forwarded to the DLVORG list and not
the DLV-Announce or DLV-Discuss list.
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Second mid-cycle mailing:
This a quick and brief (-er than most of them, anyway) single-topic
mailing covering the final major gathering for DLV 2016, with an
emphasis on one particular venue.
The gang appears to be jumping on the Yardhouse bandwagon, but no real
decisions have been made and we're still holding for more info on a few
other venues.
Vera is reporting that she will contact HofbrauHaus early next week.
There have been no raised objections to having the "final" major
gathering on Thursday, so let's consider this a done deal. Thanks to
all who commented on this.
We'll pencil in the Limo Tour for Friday, but we'll discuss that on the
main list and most likely move the nuts and bolts of that activity to
the dlvlimo list.
Please read over the following items and share your thoughts with the
gang! :)
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On taking a bath:
Annie writes:
I don't mean to throw a wet blanket on things here but I want all to be
well aware of the expectations and the risks of what we may be about to
pull the trigger upon.
I want to be sure that we learn from the lessons learned (the hard way!)
last year and we do all we can to prevent a second year of a "negative
revenue" closing gathering!
Let's rewind the tape to last year and review the major bullet points of
the goings-on relating to our final gathering.
We had the final gathering all ready to go at Margaritaville until some
new management bozo refused to honor the agreed-upon arrangement that
those who did not wish to purchase the buffet dinner could attend to
drink and socialize. This was a deal-breaker and they held firm so we
cancelled the plans at Margaritaville and quickly convened a "task
force" to deal with the issue.
Our best option was to "slide" an already-planned HH and dinner at Trevi
from Thursday to Friday and to expand it to make it the feature set of
activities for our final evening.
Originally, Trevi gave the Coordinator a $1200 "nut" to crack (for
Thursday), but for some reason this was increased to $4000 when the
affair was moved to Friday and expanded.
Some grade-school math, figuring 80 total bodies present, 70% of whom
would be ordering dinner, showed that the risk of failing to make the
"nut" was minimal. This number agreed with the estimated turnout count
from the sign-up reports, estimating the number of meals sold.
Now fast-forward to that Friday evening. The actual turnout was
significantly lower than expected! Instead of 80 through the door total,
we had about 60 and my guess was that the number of meals sold was
45-ish or so. IIRC the shortage was in the $700 and change range.
The obvious lower turnout also resulted in a level of crowd mingling and
enthusiasm that was far less than expected. Several in the group took
off earlier than expected as well. There were also reports of some
check-dividing issues and an unexpected additional charge on some of
the checks.
I and three others had agreed in advance to "underwrite" the risk and to
share in the "bath" if there was indeed a soaking, and all contributed
willingly. This was mitigated somewhat by JoAnn's impromptu negotiation.
The bottom line is that five volunteers took personal three-figure baths
that evening, and it appears that we have lost an otherwise long-time
very active volunteer in the process.
Let's not forget this lesson learned the hard way! Let's be sure that we
plan a final major gathering that will appeal to our audience and yes,
to their whims, and let's be sure that we have more than necessary
safety margins built in to our (spelled $$$$$) commitments!
Thus endeth the sermon! :)
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Yardhouse:
Cami writes:
Hello all.
I had a lengthy conversation today with the girl from Yard House.
They seem pretty easy to work with. We have a bunch of options but let
me just go through the important points.
Thursday night is available the place easily can handle our crowd
although it's kind of in a u-shape with the beer barrels being in a room
between once side and the other. seating is in booths that can handle 4,
6 or 8 people.
they will do separate checks including drinks. That's rather huge.
People can select off off a preset menu, which includes a few options in
all categories.
If we went with the $25 price point without tax and tip, and we add tax
and tip at 26.1% the total comes to $31.53. We need to have a minimum of
$35 per person, without tax and tip, so the question becomes do we add
one drink at about $10 with tax and tip, to the 31.53 bringing it up to
almost $42. Or, can we assume that everyone will drink at least $10
worth to at least get up to $35? if we don't, it will have to come out
of someone's pocket and since my credit card would be held that would be
on me.
That needs further discussion. if we start the Cocktail at 5:30 it is
still happy hour so prices would be cheaper. This option keeps us in a
single track event that is right near the hotel. I like the idea of
calling it a 20 year anniversary celebration. We need to flush out some
of the issues regarding this as soon as possible.
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Annie responds:
Thanks for the report, Cami.
A few questions and points to consider here ...
The $35 minimum? Is this based upon the number of individuals present
(how will they be counted and by whom?) or the number of checks written
or what?
Are the dining menu selections at a fixed price, or do they vary?
For example, someone who just wants an appetizer will not want to pay
for a fixed-price full meal and may leave early and go elsewhere to get
that appetizer (and take his/her bar business along).
We need to be sure that the desires, and yes, the whims, of our people
are taken into consideration when planning this.
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Celebration:
Sara (no "h") writes:
2-cents on the Celebration Dinner (I like the name, BTW)...
1) I'm all-in for Thursday at the Yardhouse as being the most appealing
option from my POV. I'm glad to see it is tracking well.
2) Regarding P.F. Chang's for the one of the larger gatherings, while
I'm pleased that they are held in such esteem to even be mentioned as an
option, I don't believe 100+ would be possible in their semi-private
balcony area. Let's keep it in the usual Wednesday evening slot as a
solid mid-week dining option to accommodate up to half of our group if
necessary. And as we have done in past years, PFC's is on the schedule a
bit earlier as a lead-in to a later event such as EHM (not to mention it
puts us there for an hour of their very reasonable happy hour, great for
anyone who is a bit price-conscious).
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Annie responds:
Thanks, Sara. :)
> 2-cents on the Celebration Dinner (I like the name, BTW)...
/me puts on an old KnTG record and cranks it! :) :) :) :)
Anyway ...
I actually wasn't thinking of PF Chang for this year, as we have several
viable venues in the running. I was thinking more along the line of
years in the future, as an option for one of our major gatherings. The
availability of separate checks, the willingness to accommodate bar only
patrons, and no nut to crack (that I'm aware of, anyway) make it the
perfect set of circumstances for such an affair.
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Yardhouse and volunteer workload:
Dionne writes:
I like the Yardhouse per Cami's suggestion on Thursday night as our
20th. celebration.
The RIO can wait until next year.
My minor concern is the workload on Thursday for Cami with the wig
workshop then HH, dinner and etc. @ Yardhouse on the same day. I offer
to help with this, if desired.
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Annie responds:
Thanks for checking on the Rio for us. I don't think it's out of the
running, but as of this time there are a few other options which do
appear to be quite promising.
. . . . .
Everyone, myself included, needs to be aware of their personal capacity
limits and everyone needs to self-regulate before limits are reached.
It's very easy to OD on coordinating activities and we want to be sure
that nobody burns out! It's happened several times, where we've had a
downward spiral of enthusiasm leading to overcommitment leading to
frustration leading to burn-out leading to drop-out. We don't want to
see that happen!
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Celebration venues:
Aleta writes:
> Unless there are meaningful objections raised over the next special
> list cycle, we'll consider Thursday to be our evening of choice
I have no objections to Thursday.
> The big issue of the Rio is a location where our people can socialize
> with little formality. This needs to be addressed and answered to our
> satisfaction if Rio is to remain in the running. (Hint!) :)
True, Rio would be good if you want to make it a buffet night and follow
the whims of the line, that's about it.
> Assuming the preference for Thursday stands, Yardhouse is a very strong
> contender. See below.
I still strongly favor Thursday for a big meal, and there will always be
plenty of options for Friday.
> Again, assuming Thursday stands, BB may be an option and the big
> Gazebo Room may be available on Thursday.
I would do Bahama Breeze again. I don't see anything wrong with visiting
the same venue again, especially when they take care of us.
> {Hofbrauhaus} has been mentioned previously and if they can offer us
Ive been to the Hofbrauhaus before, they have good food. But the music
can be quite loud. The acoustics in the front room are very hard and
loud and make talking difficult. I haven't eaten in Hofbrauhaus in a few
years, though I used to live across the street. I would eat there again.
> Again, mentioned before and if they're willing to play ball, it may be
> one of our stronger options. ("Yeah, what's it to ya?") :) Again, see
> below.
I would favor the Brooklyn Bowl, I've stopped in but their dining area
didn't look very big. I does sound like a good place for a bar social
but it didn't look like there were many seats. Bowling anyone?
> My hunch is, however (and I hope I am wrong!), that they will try to
> push one or more of the usual "one size fits all" group dining
> solutions.
I am not totally against a group menu, it depends what's on it. The
check issue is more on my mind, we need to find out how they handle
that.
> Chayo has a nice upstairs patio with a bar that overlooks the promenade,
> but could get crowded with much more than 80 people and this could be a
> dining option along with dining down stairs too.
I'm not in favor of Chayo, I found out one of their bar staff was very
disrespectful to a good friend of mine. If this place is chosen it could
be a very painful issue for my friend making it a potential deal breaker
not just for her but for me. We need to make sure that we are welcome.
> Is Yardhouse an option for socailizing after other dining options?
I hope so, when I went to the one at Town Square a few years back we got
to stay pretty late, we just stayed at our tables, that's the best I can
remember.
> The big advantage of the Brooklyn Bowl, as with Chayo and the Yardhouse,
> is that it's within easy walking distance of the Flamingo, and also the
> Paris, assuming you like to walk. :) Very few transportation issues,
> coming or going.
I am in favor of the centralized location, I don't live nearby, but it's
very close to the monorail, the bus stop and a taxi/Uber/Lyft area under
the observation wheel.
> Brooklyn Bowl (or Yardhouse) could most definitely work as a final
> gathering place following multiple dining options, one of which could
> indeed be Brooklyn Bowl itself.
Bowling is fine, keep in mind they charge by lane time, not by the game.
> Beverly writes: Here's an idea... instead of calling our final get
> together "farewell dinner" or something along that line, why don't we
> just call it a celebration dinner. We are celebrating the 20 years of
> DLV.
Agreed.
> Downtown has always been a mysterious happening place that I have always
> enjoyed, but I know almost nothing about. I'll be happy with what the
> local experts decide.
Downtown is very unique and yes mysterious. It's definitely not like the
downtowns in other cities. We don't really have a central business
district. Downtown is populated with a lot of smaller venues with an
emerging dining scene. There are a number of very good small independent
restaurants in the East Fremont, Container Park area. Unfortunately
traveling between center strip and downtown can be time consuming on
crowded city buses, and a ride can be a bit costly.
> Personally I would like to get together with a small group and do a
> final night high end ($35 +or - $2 or $3 lol) dinner together before
> flying home. This may sound a bit sectarian and isolating but if we do
> Thursday as a big Do then Friday will not hold much interest for me
> unless it is something special and out of the ordinary so I would likely
> do something like his on Friday. I would likely only go to Bahama Breeze
> for the second time in a week on Friday if I was completely lost for
> something to do. and I won't be!
I don't think holding a high end meal is sectarian or isolating. There
is lots of room for people to do different things, here's our chance to
make Friday night happen.
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Annie responds:
It's very cool that people have developed strong friendships and like
to celebrate those friendships by getting together on their own.
What I mainly object to is when someone plans something exclusive which
is scheduled directly against one of our major gatherings and encourages
others to skip said major gathering. There are several other evenings on
which to do those "just a few of us" things.
> I would likely only go to Bahama Breeze for the second time in a
> week on Friday if I was completely lost for something to do
I do not like the idea of re-using major activity venues unless we have
no other choice! Although Bahama Breeze has worked out very well for us
since 2010, there are some who do not particularly care for the food or
the venue as a whole. Those people will indeed show up because, well,
it's one of our major gatherings and many who they want to see will be
there. That will probably hold ONCE per season! Twice is pushing it!
I'm sure there are many others for whom the "been there, done that"
factor certainly applies.
Our challenge for Friday, and for Saturday, is to plan a strong set of
activities for both days which will attract the vast majority of our
still-in-town contingent!
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Administrivia:
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Received on Fri Jan 22 2016 - 22:24:16 CST
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.2.0 : Wed May 11 2016 - 05:54:23 CDT