Festival Recap: Basking in My Very Minor Celebloggy Status

It's hard to describe the emotions I felt when FoodBuzz and Sabra contacted me to let me know that I won their recipe contest as well as a trip to the 2011 FoodBuzz Festival, but I'll do my best:

Excitement + Anxiety + Pride + Accomplishment + Elation

...or something along those lines.

I still found it rather hard to believe that I had won the trip, even as I packed my bags (leaving plenty of room for swag, of course) and flew with the Sous Chef to beautiful San Francisco.  I think it finally hit me when I saw this waiting for me at the San Francisco airport baggage claim:

My very own driver!  Holding a sign with my very own name on it!  It felt a little surreal, but in a really good way.

As I was busy envisioning my future life as a famous writer, which included daydreaming about drivers, first class accomodations, and occasional autograph-signings, the driver took our bags and deftly guided us from the terminal to our car.  Yes, our car (and please ignore the yoga pants and oversized t-shirt; when traveling for six hours in a cramped plane, this minor celebloggy opts for comfort over class):

The look on my face reads: Hmm...I could get used to this!

I jokingly reminded the driver that this was supposed to be a very long, scenic drive to the hotel, but he wasn't having any of it - he was all business.  I made a mental note: When I finally achieve famous writer status, I shall make sure to hire a driver with a sense of humor.  An all-too-short trip later, and we arrived at the Grand Hyatt.

The timing couldn't have been more perfect - by the time we checked in, changed, and got our bearings, registration for the 2011 FoodBuzz Festival had officially kicked off.  We raced downstairs to get our name tags and swag bags - I've heard a lot about the swag bags at these foodie events - and then raced back upstairs to check out the merchandise.  We were definitely not disappointed:

And yes, I intentionally omitted a shot of the contents of this package.  Partially because I was too tired to set up a decent swag shot, and partially because I plan on stuffing some of the yummy contents into various family members' stockings this Christmas, and don't want to spoil the surprise.

After that, we had nearly four hours left before we had to get ready for the kick-off cocktail party (where they'd be serving my winning appetizer, Jalapeño Hummus Mini-Pizzas with Corn, Tomato, and Lime Cream).  We spent the majority of that time sightseeing through our little slice of San Francisco - look for pics in a post coming later this week!

Before we knew it, it was time to go to the cocktail party.  We boarded a chartered bus that was bursting with bloggy goodness and headed to the party location.  Once inside, I honed right in on the Sabra Hummus display - they weren't there.  A moment of panic, then I remembered that they would be passed hors d'oeuvres.  And then I saw the tray - and beside the appetizers, on the tray... :

My very own name, once again!

At this point, I feel the need to admit something - as excited as I was about being a featured blogger, and as happy as it made me to see people eating something I had created, I was nervous.  Despite my bubbly personality, when I'm shoved into a room with a bunch of strangers, I get really shy.  I'm not the type of person to gloat about my accomplishments, and even though I was proud to see where my hard work had gotten me, I was still nervous about it.  I even turned my name badge over so that people wouldn't see my name right away - I was perfectly happy to roam about incognito and see people enjoying my recipe.

About to take the first bite of my winning appetizer

The Sous Chef and I managed to find a quiet corner in the room and landed at a table with another couple of bloggers.  Tiffany and Morgan of Strudel and Streusel turned out to be really cool chicks - funny, outgoing, and sincere.  Their blog concept is great - two friends living in different cities who stay connected through a love of baking and blogging (but they don't just bake - check out this yummy-looking recipe for a Kale and Bacon Omelette!).

I think the universe wanted us to become Bloggy Besties, because even though there were hundreds of people at this festival, the four of us kept bumping into each other all weekend!

Friday turned out to be a whirlwind day of traveling, exploring, and friend-making - and it was just the beginning!

Go here to read Part 2 of my FoodBuzz Festival recap!

Eat well.