Get Snugglie Elite Event at Icenhauers

I am so fashionably late in writing this review but better late than never!
Icenhauer’s is such a great bar (note: see my review of Icenhauer’s on Unilocal.Yes, I was the first to get to review this beautiful establishment, thank you, thank you) and hence this was a fantastic place to hold the end of the year party for an Elite event. (This is of course thanks to the genius of Kelly, as always).
Unfortunately for me I was still getting over a nasty cold so therefore I didn’t get to try the drinks from Moonshine but everybody in my group seemed to really love them and they ALL commented on how STRONG they were. Thank you Moonshine for knowing how to sponsor drinks of this caliber.
I would like to give a shout out to Amy D. for connecting with her once again and for introducing me to her husband. I cannot believe this beautiful girl is 35 years old and married because I seriously thought she was about 21 years tops – it must be her good taste in wine that keeps her looking young! Also, Krista K. I loved hanging out with you and congrats on your new Elite status! Yeah!
Pancakes, Snuggies, homemade cookies, whiskey, Icenhauer’s – this was the best way to bid adieu to 2010! Here’s to next year!

«Wow. You’re about to be on your ass,» said the friend as he sampled my drink. I thought it was a good sign seeing as I was looking to lose just enough self-​control to succumb to the pancakes and cookies.
All of my friends looked like a bunch of wizards; roaming around the yard in magician robes; I couldn’t tell Griffindor from Slytherin. Props must be given to people who are comfortable enough in their own skin that they can enjoy the comfort of a snuggie in public.
The drinks were good. So good, in fact, that for once I left early. I could taste strong, stiff, and old-​fashioned on those like licking sweat off the brow of John Wayne in a movie. I’ve had enough «Elite-​Event-​Epi-​Fails.» I had my cookies, I got my buzz, then made a point to cut out while I was still ahead!
**Update**
Per request of Keri, me licking John Wayne:

Good times with good friends – old and new – at what has become the annual Unilocal Christmas soirée.
Icenhauer’s proved to be a great venue for this event. Hats off to Moonshine and the bar staff; I must say enjoyed each of the three beverages I tried (Johnny Appleshine, Moonshine Old Fashioned, and Moonshine and Soda). A special shout-​out to the Batter Blaster folks for bringing out their sweet stuff (and thanks to their equally nice pancake griddle girl, too!).
Darla A. outdid herself with her fantastic Grasshoppers, and who could resist the divine Keri B.‘s Hairy Old Man Balls. For those of you whose confectionery delights I missed, feel no slight; know that I’m working on that airplane seat thing.
One last note: Thanks to all of those who complimented me in person and online for the Bacon Toll House cookies. Feel free to PM me for the crazy simple recipe.

I think I *may* still be drunk.
I think I *may* be in love with Rainey St. bars.
I know I love Unilocal elite parties.
Not sure what else there is to say. Thanks Kelly and Kevin for another awesome year of awesomeness!

Somewhere downtown in a kitchen near you baking away… it’s Mr. Smidgens!
ZOMG it’s 7pm and the last batch of «Tortured Gingerbread Men» is in the oven.
I hurry to put the faces on the little men who will be devoured within hours.
Quinn B. and I arrive on Rainey Street and find a spot near by. Luckily the no parking sign behind the spot I am pulling into has already been pushed back by many previous conquerors of this spot. To that I say thank you oh bender of signs.
We walk up and sign in with treats in hand. Kelly S. is my first taste tester of the Gingerbread men. She survives. Yes! You see folks I love to bake and cook but I rarely do, due to the lovely Quinn B.. She feeds my face.
Our journey continues inside after getting the verbal layout from Kelly S. .
Delivering the cookies to the cookie table was a feat in itself because once you got there you were trapped! Not only by wanting to taste all of the wonderful cookies but by the other Unilocalers who wanted to taste all of the wonderful cookies!!! Quick! I grab the last of Ardie S.‘s cookies after Amy D. tells me to do so. Delish! As I say «Excuse me. excuse me… excuse me… excuse me.». We make our way to the bar. The Moonshine Apple drink was thirst quenching. Thank you Moonshine.
Now it’s time for some Batter Blaster griddle cakes! Good stuff… Thanks Batter Blaster!
The fingerless knitted gloves with « Unilocal Life» one word on each glove were DA Bomb! They helped make for some interesting pictures later in the night. The Snuggie contest was hilarious because the guy who won took off his snuggie for the award ceremony.
We hung with Meagan L. and her brother Hunter most of the night with a few sidebars with Gabriel and Errol. Good to see you guys.
Thank you for another awesome event Kelly S!!!
Smooches from Mr. Smidgens!!! Happy Holidays everyone! See you next year!

Well there is no shine in the moon today. I was feeling just fine this morning and then whoops, it hit. Regardless I had an amazing time at my first Elite party. Lots of food, fun and god damned Moonshine. I thought the drink said moonpie.
Anyway, Got see some really good Elite friends and wear a snuggy. I had lights on mine but somehow broke the cord halfway through the party. Kelly stated that I didn’t have them on and my darling Darla stated under breath that I was lit. Ha!
I finally got to meet Keri B. and planted a big one on Sabrina S. I am pretty sure by the pictures it was unwanted. I didn’t see Errol, nor did he see me. I think I was pretty hard to miss Buddy. I also complimented Gabe for being one of the best looking guys in Austin. Don’t be afraid man. I won’t try to give you one like I did Sabrina.
There were lots of small groups of discussion and hanging. It was the perfect venue for this event. I did win the Shake Weight which I was very surprised because there was a lot of stiff competition. Megan your snuggy was fierce!
I can remember when you use to think how lucky Kelly was to have her job now I am pretty sure that Unilocal is lucky to have her.
Another amazing time with some great folks.

Well, let’s go with the obvious: Elite Events are a lot like enormous platters of handmade cookies crafted by Unilocalers themselves — they’re not stamped from some cookie-​cutter assembly line, and they all have unique and surprising moments.

I thought this particular event was less about «in-​your-​face with booze and schmooze,» and more about casual conversation within small groups. Unfortunately, I have all the social graces of an outcast hyena, since I really couldn’t care less about weather and the Dallas Cowboys. What intrigues me is what you write and how you write it, and whether it’s hot or cold inside Texas Stadium is totally irrelevant to me — I’m trying to find out more about you.
So there were two separate things that made this event a five-​star affair: First, I met Amy C. and Krist K., whose reviews I’ve followed since they started on Unilocal,and I enjoy morphing the real person with their prose. I finally met Mr. Smidge — er, Jack C. — and the lovely Quinn B., who are delightful people. Alex C. is more clever than he shows. I got to meet Whitney F. briefly, who doesn’t appear to be mean at all. I also spent a lot of time with Leah R. and Joel W. at this event, because the three of us are cool.
I never take Marc S. and Gabe H. for granted, but I probably do, because they’re a pleasure to see and I count on seeing them. My only regret at these functions is catching glimpses of Unilocalers like Lauren G. and Jessica S., but just not feeling the moment to go barge in on them, which is a disadvantage of being shy. Incidentally, if I was a drinker, I’d probably start hanging out at Icenhauer’s.
The second thing that made this event great was what happened afterward: I had dinner with Ardie S. at G’Raj Mahal (Ardie appears to be some sort of beacon for street people), followed by some magical quality time at Bar 96 with the lovely Keri B. — have I mentioned before that Keri B. rules? Finally, I ran into someone I knew from a previous life at The Elephant Room, and spent over two hours with live jazz, coffee, and conversation — it just doesn’t get much better than that for me. And to think the evening started with some Snuggies.
All in all, another great Elite event. Thanks, Kelly, you always rock. And Unilocal rules.

I ventured to Icenhauer’s last night for my THIRD holiday party of the day. Exhausted from all the partying, I walked in to what looked like a monk convention, only the robes were fuzzy Snuggies and and the monks were drinking moonshine… Just imagine what that could do to your church picnic!!!
Notable mentions of the night — Ardie S’s Bacon Tollhouse cookies — only to prove Paula Deen’s everything is better with a slab of bacon and butter slathered. While not slathered, bacon is a surprising compliment to Tollhouse. Kerri B’s Santa’s Hairy Balls were delicious, once I got the visual out of my head. Yolanda G was festive in red, complete with a Santa hat, and who can forget David M’s ever illuminating Bea Aurthur Snuggie, complete with tacky silver garland and Christmas lights. The lights broke somewhere into the evening, but the moonshine kept him lit to the finish to win the Snuggie contest.
Icenhauer’s is a great venue with lots of nooks and corners to hang out in, and I LOVED the patio complete with fire pit.
The staff was friendly, the Batter Blaster pancakes yummy, and The Original Moonshine — while all were enjoying, I did not dare, as it leads to «the original amnesia» for me personally. They do sell Prosecco by the bottle, so I purchased one, shared a bit with David M. and refilled throughout the evening. There were loads of cookies to ahem, scarf, I mean exchange, and all were in a festive mood.
I ran into Gabe H., Errol M., Mark S., Kerri B., Lauren G., Sabrina S., Catherine T., Amber D. Jessica S., Lori K., and Ardie S. to name a few. David M. proved to be delightful and entertaining (Hi Gabe H.!). I also got to meet Krist K… a fellow reviewer and contributor to talk threads that I admire.
Marshall J. paid me one of the best compliments in his review — and his wife had e-​mailed me before I returned home asking for the Grasshopper Bar recipe. For anyone else who needs it — send me a PM.
Kelly S. is the goddess of entertainment, as she always seems to know how to throw a successful party… Unilocal-​style!

Despite being slightly hungover this morning and staring down the deconstruction of my hideously ugly «Christmas Tree» snuggie that never made it out of my house last nite (I went for hot, instead of funny), I have very fond memories of this event.
Firstly, I think you all know how I feel about Icenhauers, and while I hate to share him with you whorish bitches, I’m glad you all know who I’m talking about now when I say, «My Luva, Icee».
Next, getting to try some Unilocaler cookies was awesome. The grasshopper brownies from Darla had a great toffee crunch and the poppyseed shortbread from Krist «Toilet Ninja» K was tasty and thankfully not too sweet. But, Ardie, you smarty!, who knew you could crumble bacon on Tollhouse for a panty dropping winner!
The batter blaster shocked me with its deliciousness as I am not much of a cay-​cake eater. So simple even I could cook those little beauties on a hungover morning like this (should smuggled a can out in my bra).
The best part of the event was my hubby didn’t come… MEANING, I had an opportunity to actually «work the room» and meet some new peeps, namely Alex C, Krist K, Sabrina S, Paul S and his lovely Asian entourage, and the oh so flirty David M. I really should ditch my hubby more often!
Thanks to Kelly «Wonderkind» S for another great event and to My Luva Icee as well!
ps. Unilocal Life gloves — best. swag. ever.

I’m confused. Moonshine used to be illegal. And now they’re serving it. And it’s legal. And the restaurant called Moonshine is a few blocks away.
The people of Unilocal I expect to be nice, so no surprise there; the Icenhauers staff were unusually helpful and friendly, too. They hooked my wife up with a «Moonshine» drink (these days it’s a brand-​name whiskey) that she actually liked, and that’s not easy to do for an avowed clear-​liquor gal like her.
I wish I had showed up hungrier: Batter Blaster doled out pancakes from a can that rival the ones I destroy the kitchen to make. AND there was a cookie exchange that featured some fierce competition. All I had room in my belly for were one of Ardie’s bacon cookies and one of Darla’s grasshopper brownies. The bacon cookie was a mind-​bending gustatory adventure, but Darla’s brownie makes me want to call my granny and dress her down for those so-​called baked goods she had the nerve to serve our family all these years.