An Irish Holiday Elite Event at Fado

Had a great time visiting with the other Unilocalers at the Fado event. Didnt get to try any of the snacks but I can say the 2 beers from Fado was very generous
. Thanks to Fado for hosting and Kathleen for putting on a great party to close out a great 2010 for Unilocal

This was definitely a fun casual xmas party! Thanks to Unilocal Atlanta and Fado~ I wish I could’ve had some liquor on Unilocal but oh well. The little candies were good, and I like the christmas hats!
Who got my bear plushie pen that came in a Victoria’s Secret bag?! xD

Well this party was pretty fun. I was glad to see so many familiar faces and names I do not recall. Also it was much less crowded than last year.
As I came in a bit later, I did not get to sample the foods. Judging from some other comments, there really was not anything veganish. Whatevs.
The two free beer vouchers idea played along well and the pub had a good bit on draft. However, I failed to realizze that drinking beer on an empty stomach is not a good idea.
As for the gift exchange, I got a dream catcher. Not sure what I’m gonna do with it. Replace the fuzzy dice in my crime solving van I guess. If you picked the 99X labeled gift, you’re welcome.

My first experience at the new Fado. I have to say what an upgrade from the grungy whole in the wall. For a moment I thought I was in Manhattan at a cool NY Pub.
THis place is authentic. Awesome artifacts and décor. I have to say I will be back!
It was a blast meeting the fellow Unilocalers who only know me as the chick who started the MAc and Cheese thread.
It is sooooo awesome being elite!

Another Unilocal Holiday Party come and gone — and it upped my holiday ante just the right amount!
Thank you, Unilocal friends, because as Charisse M and I discussed, the Grinch had been smacking us around a bit with his grinch-​y stick and we needed a dose of Unilocal-​spirit to set us right. Getting to Fado and finding some food and drink (and for me, antlers) certainly helped. I had not seen friends like Todd P or Tulie L or Lauren S in more than a minute, and got to chat with my dear Lisa B for a few. .. it was so good to see you all. I also got to meet or re-​meet for the first or second time a few new faces like Nancy B and a couple other cool peoples and David K and I got to do our usual debrief and catch up which always makes my heart happy and my night feel complete. Tom C and I reconnected over why we don’t really love Hudson Grille, and I smiled when I saw Ivan S, thinking about how his Christmas-​in-​Atlanta review had helped me get inspired for the night’s festivities. These all helped make the night fun for the Boy and me, who’s now become my regular plus-​one on the Unilocal circuit.
We only live a block away so it wasn’t SOO miserable to walk, but I will say that I did a CN happy dance bar none when I saw the AWESOME Unilocal gloves that were swag gifties — thank you Empress! My digits are still happy that they are at least partially covered now thanks to your generosity.
Love Christa at Fado always, loved her and the rest of the crew last night for their great service. Had a great time catching up (couldn’t quite catch Charlie and Angela but will next time) and look forward to a festive and eventful 2011 with new and old friends!

After missing some of the previous functions, I was excited about attending this event. It was great getting reacquainted with some Unilocalers and even better meeting new people as well.
I actually didn’t sample any food, but Fado appears to have a variety of beer selections.
Our area was a little snug, but it made it easier to socialize.
On a somewhat related note, Unilocalers sure do produce some heat! It was hot as hell up in there!
I didn’t grab a Unilocal lunchbox, but I should have grabbed a thermas from one. My 2 year old niece loves the Unilocal Bouncy-​Ball.
As always, hats off to Kathleen, and everyone involved, for creating such a good event.

My first Unilocal event! I could not have been more excited, even though I was stuck in the middle of finals and should have been studying.
I’ve never been to Fado before, so the bites offered were my first taste of this cool Irish Pub. The sliders and corned beef rolls were my the tastiest thing on the menu, but the brat-​in-​a-​blanket, chicken quesadillas and bruschetta didn’t fall that far behind. The staff was really helpful in dealing with all us hungry and thirsty holiday Unilocalers. I’m not a huge fan of beer (but slowly tyring to be), but after 1.5 hours and a LOT of malt balls, I was pretty proud to be able to finish my Stella before it got steaming hot. success.
Overall it was a cozy fun event for the holidays. I was excited to see all the Unilocal swag (the metal lunchboxes are way cool) and it was a great chance to meet people that are as excited about food as I am. I was pretty happy to have met some people by the end of the night and got some tips about more places that I need to checkout while in Atlanta — i’m still a newbie here, so I have lots more places to investigate.
I’m really excited about the January event, so i’m saving giving 5 stars for then ;) Until then, everybody! Have an amazing holiday.

Like Matt, this was my first Unilocal event as an intern and Elite, and I had a blast meeting all of you that I could at the check in table. It was great to finally put the faces to the profiles and reviews I have seen on here and get to interact in person.
Thanks Fado for the delicious appetizers and free pints of Guinness. S/​O to Kathleen, Michelle, and Mike for getting everything together and helping me out at my first event. And thanks everyone for the warm welcomes and conversations. I promise to stay for the after party next time!

The event was fantastic! The English bartender had a great dry –sense of humor and character about him.
Appetizers were tasty, and continental style, which means just because it was an Irish pub did not mean they only had potatoes and corn beef sliders:)
Everyone was jolly, could this be because of the wonderful draft being poured for the event? Ditto Angela about the Sweet water Seasonal Ale! It was Yummy!
Loved that I met alot of nice new folks, and also the wonderful familiar faces I have come to be friends with for years!
Thank you Kathleen and the awesome Unilocal Squad for putting together such a wonderful event! It’s always fun with great company, good food, and drinks!

This was my first Unilocal party and I had a great time!
I didn’t know that we were going to get free drink tickets, and when we did I didn’t know the glasses of beer were going to be so big! Awesome!
The appetizers were wonderful. My favorite was the slider and quesadillas. I normally dont eat my meat that rare, but it this case it was really fantastic. The pickle was a great addition. The quesadillas tasted like they used a crêpe for the tortilla which I really though was great. The chicken that was used was really tender, and it was a good quality of cheese.
This was also my first time drinking Guiness. I have always been intimidated by how dark it is, and that word «Stout». But I figured why not try it tonite in an Irish pub and for free? I love it! I thought I was going to be able to drink two but this stuff expanded in my stomach like oatmeal and I was buzzing after half the glass was gone, which for this gin/​vodka tonic lady is surprising. I was also full after one glass… so I didn’t get to scarf down a lot of food like I wanted to.
Everyone was nice and friendly (not like some of the bars I go to where people stick to their own herd of friends)
I didn’t have to fight my way to the bar, as soon as I came in a nice couple that was sitting at the bar moved away so I could order a beer because they saw me standing behind them waiting patiently to order. That might not seem like a big deal to most, but I thought it was nice.
I didn’t expect to get such a cool Unilocal lunchbox, AND it had a thermos in it! Its moments like this where I am reminded of how much of a big kid I still am because I got super excited about this…
I got to meet the Queen of Unilocal! (You can spot her immediately)
The photographer there took some really nice pictures!
I got to meet another Unilocal friend that I figured was definitely going to be there.
I like the atmosphere of Fado, this was my first time there, and I will definitely be going back to try some of the food. All the appetizers that they put out for the event were very good.
And lastly, I dropped a note in the bedazzled naughty or nice comment box… hopefully it gets posted!
Awesome event Unilocal!I look forward to another one soon!

I’m still kind of sad right now because I think the Twitter screen showed me I need new glasses. Sadface.
I didn’t stay too long because I did not want to miss out on too much hockey, as my definition of ~festive~ probably showed. I forgot who it was who asked me if I liked Rothlisburger (I am not searching anything relating to him to check the spelling, blah blah blah) because of my Pittsburgh hockey jersey and that amused me greatly and I hope you are glad to know still the answer is a resounding no.
Also, it would have been totally fine to have missed that game. Way to go, self.
I was glad to find out I did not have just the choice of two beers after all with the drink tickets because my taste buds were just not having it with Guinness. At least I tried! But back to Strongbow it was. The food was good too, I especially liked the mini burgers.
It was the first time I’d ever been to Fado despite probably talking about how I want to go there for a good 16 months. And now I want to go back very soon. It was so pretty in there, and it was a great spot for a Christmas party!
As usual it’s always lovely to get to see everyone, can’t wait for the next party!

What a great place for a Christmas party! The brick and dark wood gave a cozy, Dickensian feeling to the night’s festivities, and the whole event had a very chill, mellow, friendly vibe. Minus the creepy parking dude in the library lot next door, the setting was lovely.
I’m not much of a beer drinker, but who can complain about free drinks? The Stella I did have was fine, and complimented the food well. I thought that Fado actually did a pretty good job keeping a tray or two of food out at all times, and I was able to sample the sliders (excellent), the quesadilla (more chicken than cheese on a weird spongy tortilla thing), and the corned beef egg rolls (too weird for my tastes).
Loved the hashtag screen that was set up– great idea for future Unilocal events!

My reviews for these events all sound the same because I eat free food, drink free drinks, and socialize with my fellow Unilocalers. Never been to Fado before, so was interested in finally checking this place out. Rustic Irish pub nicely decorated for the holidays. We were tucked into one corner of the restaurant.
I don’t remember the name of our short-​haired server, but she was very friendly and awesome. Vanessa T. was right in her review — we *are* a bunch of animals. As soon as new trays of food came out, they were gobbled up in no time. I sampled their bruschetta, small hot dog treats, corned beef rolls, and Smithwick’s mini burgers.
Highlights of the night included meeting several new Unilocalers, including Ken T, the new intern, and Charlie M. (Angela M’s baby). I also liked how there was a display with Twitter up so we could tweet live at the event using the #yelpfado hashtag. As far as Unilocal swag goes, I missed out on the new fingerless gloves, but did score one of the cool Unilocal bouncy balls.
As always, thanks to Kathleen for organizing, Mike for the great photos, and to Mish and Ken. Happy holidays, all.

I had a great time — got to meet new people — Daniel B. (finally!), Travis M., Ken T., and Zlatko last-​initial-​forgotten-​oops, drank well (although I had to pay for them as alas, I do not drink beer), and ate well (peppermint candy!). I tried the corned beef rolls, quesadilla, and crostini and was happy with all.
This is what a holiday party is supposed to be about — good food and drinks and good people to talk and laugh with. It was good to see both the Unilocalers I hadn’t seen in a while (Ron G. and David K.) as well as the Unilocalers I just saw last week (Alexa G., Kathleen M., and Matt T.)! I’m so glad I got to be a part of it. Thanks to Kathleen and Fado for putting together a fabulous party!
(Please note: This party would have gotten five stars if I could have parked for free. But I parked on the street and got a ticket. Lesson learned. From now on, I will carry a roll of quarters in my purse! Ya’ll know how I am about parking!)

Yay for Charlie’s first elite event! Thanks to Kathleen, Michelle, Ken, and Fado for the fun and festive atmosphere and for the perfect excuse to get out of the house!
Speaking of Festive, cheers to my first taste of that delicious Sweetwater Seasonal post-​Charlie! The one tasty edible that I got was the Smithwicks slider, a pretty standard item, made yummy by the pickle that really complemented the juicy burger and rich cheese.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, y’all!

I’ll be honest and confess that I was reluctant about coming to Fado for this event. It’s not that I’ve had a bad experience (or am ungrateful for their hospitality and free Guinness). It’s just not my idea of a cute time. Never fear because Kathleen M. proved me wrong and, yet again, our Unilocal Empress picked the perfect location.
The downstairs bar helped set the tone for a relaxed and cozy get together. In the end, a cool glass of Stella, the fireplace, and lots of friendly faces was the recipe for my cute time. Quite a contrast to my usual dose of Ketel One, Katy Perry, and a side of female impersonation, but I digress…
I wholeheartedly concur with Kristin B., Emily G., and everyone else who already commented about the laid back atmosphere. It was nice to work the room without having to work my way through a loud crowd.
Cheers to another year of friendships and sharing thoughts!

Thanks to the nice Irish bartender for introducing me to my new favorite beer the Hoegaarden (haha, Belgian not Irish) — I’m not a huge beer drinker and asked for something light & sweet, and he delivered :) Best part of any party of course is the company. Loved catching up with old friends and meeting several new ones. And love the newest — and seasonal — Unilocal swag item: the rubber balls w/​the sparkly snow and Unilocal icon :) Thanks again to Kathleen, Michelle, Ken, and Fado’s for throwing a great holiday party for us!

Bunch of animals. I swear to god, if you don’t scarf down food in the first 15 minutes, you’re part of the weak herd that ain’t gonna make it. As one of the group suited to die, I can’t comment on the food.
Beer-​clasping ladies and gents in cozy quarters? Not a bad way to spend a frigid Tuesday night. Especially if you’re into antlers.
There was one incredibly salty bartender. I don’t know if it’s part of the brooding bartender thing or the you’re not Irish thing but it was *some.thing*.
As always, great to see newly hatched and longstanding elite Unilocalers and their friends. I even got to meet the youngest Unilocaler of all, two and a half week old Charlie!
Mike, the photographer, was kind enough to delete the photos where I looked like a tranny. Kathleen wore Christmas like only she can. People walked away with brightly wrapped packages.
Yee! [I now realize that my happy exclamation is also an acronym: Unilocal Elite Event. Dude.]

Nice turnout. Finally one where I wasn’t staggering to the door.
Thanks to everyone that wished my son a Happy Birthday, and we did have a nice dinner afterwards.
Gave one drink coupon away, and think I accidently dropped the other in the nice/​naughty box. So bummed that I couldn’t think of one naughty thing I’ve done all year. No wonder its been such a boring year. Bring on 2011!
Met two new Unilocalers… so quota met there.
Didnt drink or eat but heard someone say the hamburgers were good… and saw enuff people drinking on the beer to know it must have been.
MichelleK and I are the official Unilocal sign photo gurls. Thank MK!
Happy to be able to wish Kathleen, Alexia, and David a happy holiday.
Brought a gift… took a gift, but havent opened it yet. Will fill you in on it later!
Forgot to add… didnt have cash for the valet… so i knew I wouldnt be staying long, so I went with a parking meter, that didnt credit me for the eight dimes I put in along with the rest of the change from under the seat in my car, only to get outside had have a $ 25 parking ticket on my window!

5 Stars for the crazy diversity of the Unilocal community. Love it.
YA for Guinness, breakfast of champions. It’s not just a beer, it’s a meal!
Speaking of meals, I somehow expected traditional Irish fare, and didn’t end up tasting the quesadillas and bruscetta.
I did enjoy some great conversations and company.
Cheers~