All Fired Up! Elite Event @ Original Juan Specialty Foods

This was a great idea for an event. I never would have realized this adorable store was inside this building that I’ve driven by a dozen times. I now have some new gift ideas.
The Original Juan staff was great. They were accommodating, friendly, & eager to share everything about their products. The set up was also nice, as we could wander from the store area, to a few different «buffet» style set-​ups (one with vegetarian dips, etc, & another with the BBQ). And then there were the sauces.
There were two bars, complete with strawberry mojitos, and I believe margaritas. I was too busy watching Reed win a gigantic bottle of 100% agave tequila to venture to the 2^nd bar.
This was a nice event. Unfortunately for me (& my dietary restrictions) I was unable to eat anything other than a few celery sticks. But I enjoyed observing everyone else trying the different Original Juan products. And I even stared at the cheesecake in a jar for at least 30 seconds, with that moment of dairy temptations.
I will definitely be back to OJ for some gift purchasing. This was a fun, relaxed event, spotlighting a local business that we now all have on our radar. Thanks Joi !

Great job Joi and OJ!
Great food, Zarda is one of my favorites, terrific drinks served up by terrific people, Will Sherbet anyone? And Unilocalo was a fun mixer-​game. I’m glad to be a part of the Elite, looking forward to the next one!

This was a really cool… um, I mean hot, event! I wouldn’t have ever known Original Juan existed (we actually drove past it the other night and had to turn around), but I’m glad we found it, even if it means we’re going to spend a fair amount of money there on yummy sauces, salsas, and the like.
You wouldn’t think OJ would be a good place for a party, but you’d be wrong! It was a great space to mix, mingle, and sample in, and we had a great time hanging out with old friends and meeting some new ones. The Unilocal Bingo was a fun icebreaker, and I shockingly found 3 people (myself included) in a small area who aren’t on Facebook! And here I thought there were only like 6 of us left in the entire US…
The BBQ from Zarda was tasty, as were the adult beverages. My husband loves the strawberry Russian mojito that the folks from Most Wanted were mixing up, and I enjoyed their pioneer whiskey, as well as a vodka and diet poured for me by the nice Clear10 Vodka bartenders. We also sampled and enjoyed quite a few sauces and products that OJ had out for everyone to taste. I particularly liked the Hot Nuts (which did indeed have a kick to them), as well as the peach salsa. My husband got super brave (as he’s not really a spicy food fan, unlike yours truly) and tried the 100% pain sauce, which he said «wasn’t bad».
We ended up buying some of the items OJ had for sale, and are looking forward to trying one of the sauces in a dish this week. I think there might be a lot of creative and spicy cooking going on in our kitchen from here on out!
Thanks to Joi for putting on such a unique and fun event — and to Original Juan for kicking things up a notch or two — both at the event and in our kitchen!

Another wonderful Unilocal!event. I am not one for super spicy food, so felt a little trepidation at attending an event entitled «All Fired Up!,» but Joi and the Original Juan’s staff made sure this an event that was accessible to all – with a variety of foods, drinks, and great people.
Yes, I tried a few items that were too hot for me – even with some great advice from other Unilocalers regarding heat levels – I had several 5-​alarm-​fire-​in-​my-​mouth moments; those who saw my face after the hot nuts and the hot sauce tasting incidences can confirm. On the other hand, I was introduced to several great products that will be added to my kitchen repertoire, and challenged me to be more daring when it comes to sampling hot items. Overall favorite discoveries all night were the bread and butter jalapenos – used to make the green cream cheese dip and totally delish, as well as the apple BBQ sauce – which tastes like fall. I really appreciated being able to sample so many of the products, and the snacks featuring the products. We bought several items and will be heading back to gather up quite a few more for holiday gifts.
I enjoyed the Zarda BBQ, as I had not been by either of their locations in years. I did enjoy the burnt ends a lot, but wish, as several others have noted, that they would not have been pre-​sauced, as I was excited to try the various sauces that they had available at the event.
As always, the beverages were flowing, and delicious. I enjoyed the Bloody Marys from Most Wanted (even though I never got to try the very cool sausage straws that I saw some utilizing) and the MW strawberry mojitos. The wonderful bartenders, and delicious vodka, at the Clear 10 bar were also a nice addition (I’m a girl who appreciates a good extra dirty vodka – and it also helped to kill the fiery burn of some of the tasting I was doing).
The Unilocal Bingo was a great way to meet some of the attendees that I had not met before, and a great way to start conversations with those that I had.
Thanks Joi!!!

I was not prepared for the magnitude of the awesomeness that was last night’s Elite event.
It was my first Elite event, so I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. I was prepared for it to be really cool (I mean, how can it not be cool when a bunch of Unilocalers are all in the same place at the same time). This even was much larger, and a much bigger deal than I was expecting!
Places like Original Juan Specialty Foods make me wonder, how can I have lived in KC and NOT have known about this place!?! They work with companies like Oklahoma Joe’s BBQ and Zarda to develop the amazing sauces, bottle and sell them. If you’re not a fan of super spicy things, the Cheesecake in a jar was super amazing (and provided much needed relief for some of the 100% pain samplers!).
Thanks to Original Juan’s for hosting such a great event, and to Joi for everything she did to make it fabulous!

I have been going here for a few years now, because one can never have enough hot sauce or bbq sauce.
They had my favorites wasabi jalapeño hot sauce, and the jalapeño ones out to taste. Plus many others. They also had 100% Pain sauce to try which taste great but after about a minute the heat sneaks up on you and stays with you for about 15 minutes. It is good, but hot.
The 100% pain is no where near the heat of the D’bomb that is kept under lock and key. You have to ask to try it. It is 1.6 million scovels. Which I have tried in the past. Let’s just say HOT!!!
Lindsay at Original Juan’s, Amanda and Joi from Unilocal all did a great job setting up the event. I was so excited when they announced the event would be held at OJ’s.
Clear 10 Vodak. OMG so good. I must buy some of this. I also won a package with all the new Relishes. Can’t wait to try them all.
Thanks to all for putting the event on.

Right Place, right time, right?
Never in a million did I believe I’d get to try the «The Source.» As one of the hosts stated, they only bring it out on special occasions and this was indeed special.
What an appropo space to have our party! Hot Elite Unilocalers, Hot Food, Hot Sauce, you got it! I still want an actual «tour» of the facility but this glimpse into their operations was really unique.
Beyond that, rubbing elbows with local celebrities (you know who you are,) really made my night. The experience left me with questions like What’s the difference b/​w/​99% and 100% pain. This will take some additional testing. Who made the delicious cheese balls and where can I get those recipes? What is in that jar labeled «mystery item» that I bought? and now that I’ve had 7.1 millions scoville units coursing through my veins, can I be referred to as a Scovillain?
Joi, great party, loved the games and thanks for the watch! OJ employees and friends, great party :) Vendors, awesome job. Looking forward to the next Elite event.

I could not imagine what the Unilocal event was going to hold but I knew it would be great. Joi you never disappoint.
The OJ staff was absolutely wonderful. I came to the tasting of hottest of the hot near the end and only got to try «The Source» (7.1 million scoville units) along with a couple other ladies. Yes, it was hot but I think the hype of the burn was more than it was. Heat was gone in no time.
Most wanted was once again joining the events. One of my fav bbq joints (I am the duchess at the 87^th location), Zarda was in the building passing out my fav burnt ends and beans. I didn’t get to venture my way to clear vodka. I am usually not a drinker, so the already made drinks seemed easier.
The rooms and space were so nice. I liked zipping and zagging room to room seeing new and renewed faces. The UnilocalO was fun. I had to demo the «Elaine» dance a couple times. Thank you OJ for the wonderful winnings sauces from the raffle drawing. Just in time for use in my leaving town party next Saturday. Joi if you ever need another PA system, getting people’s attention over chatting and music is my specialty «_​_​_​_​_​_​come on down, you’re a winner!»
I am sure this will be one of my new stops for some flavorful goodies now. Thanks, Joi for organizing yet another, after 12 hr day at work, great event. Thanks goodness I am an insomniac.

I think I’ve driven by Original Juan’s approximately one thousand times & never knew it was there. Love that I know about it now & will return for more exploration of their storefront!
OJ’s really rolled out the red carpet for the Unilocal faithful, with a nice selection on the tasting table (including the 100% Pain hot sauce. Yup, I tried it. Yup, it is actually both delicious & painful.) I wasn’t given a Unilocalo card or a raffle entry ticket, though; I don’t know if the check-​in desk was just disorganized or what. It would have been nice to share in the fun.
Props to Joi for organizing this event at a fun site a bit off the beaten track; it’s exactly the kind of place that I joined Unilocal to find.

Let’s see… the ONLY thing reMOTely negative about this event was perhaps the food. The BBQ beef and pork ends were fine to me… but already in sauce. ½ «boo» from me. And pork mixed with beef just blew it for more Jewish brothers and sisters. «Boo» from them.
So the positives FAR outnumber the remote negative. There was Joi, of course. So much space and an open environment. And Joi. Mingling was easy with all the cool peeps. And Joi. Food was everywhere. And Joi. Two bars. And Joi. Great raffle prizes. And Joi. A cool mixer game of scavenger/​bingo. And Joi. A friendly staff at Juan. And Joi. Hot sauces, and salsas, and relishes, and bbq sauces. And Joi. And a partridge in a freakin’ pear tree. lol
Yes… Joi was everywhere. She did an awesome job with this event. A totally different and unexpected place.
And, the tastings everywhere were so awesome. For the record, pain is NOT good. I don’t care what Juan’s marketing says. lol I did try 100% Pain. True to its name, I shit you not. And «Nacho» had a drop of some nuclear waste with capsaicin extract rated at 1,500,000 Skoville units. She merely blushed. I would have needed an ambulance. I settled with the mildly toxic Lousiana style sauce with a habenero and cayenne blend. It packed a punch you could recover from and had tons of flavor layers. Neat stuff. :)

I make some bad life choices. Attending this event wasn’t one of them, but tasting da bomb hot sauce was.
Lines intrigue me… so I assembled and waited. I was warned, but even with someone locking eyes with me and saying «Are you sure? It’s really hot.» I chose to proceed. Good thing Min was there to help me find cream cheese based products to cool the heat… temporarily.
Lines are sometimes good though. That’s how I got to try Cheesecake in a Jar and a Strawberry Mojito. Lovely.
I like that everything was spread out. Not too many people in one place and food just about every where you were standing. I enjoyed seeing old friends and making new friends. Thanks UnilocalO.
The Harvest Apple was my favorite BBQ sauce. Like a zippy apple butter. I continued to eat it on crackers.
The best part was we were all thanked individually by the hostess. Classy. I mean, I was shoving free booze into my purse at the time, so it was real classy compared to me.
Thanks everyone for a fun night.

First Unilocal Party = happy Unilocaler. This was an awesome evening. I had no idea what to expect coming to this place, since I had never heard of it before. I can’t believe how many times I have driven past this place, never knowing what magic stood behind the doors.
First, the hot sauces… oh man, the hot sauces. They were awesome. Of course, when the staff offered to bring out the big boy «Da Bomb» sauces (up to 1.5 million scovilles), I had to take part. It burned, it was painful, I almost passed out… but I am glad that I did. Never had anything that hot before! The BBQ sauces were good. The relishes were awesome. Of everything I tried, the «Habanero Garlic» was my favorite, and I’ll be enjoying some of that again in the future for sure.
The Zarda was really, really delicious. I’ve had Zarda many times, but this was the best. Of course, my girlfriend pointed out «hey idiot, they are catering to a bunch of food critics.» Oh yeah…
Thanks to Joi (nice to finally meet you, you’re awesome) and the O.J. staff for making my first Unilocal party an awesome one. Can’t wait for the next!

–I had a really good time. Believe it or not, I’m actually a bit shy when trying to interact with people in a crowd. ;-)
–They had a really good mixer game — «Yelp bingo «that really helped me to get out there and get to know a wider variety of people, which was nice.
» Nacho «played a memorable part in the hot-​sauce tasting segment; I quit after 1 «Da Bomb «sauce (which kept trying to burn a freaking groove into my tongue for like the next 15 minutes!), but she kept going all the way to the end — Teh Nuclear Holy Shiznit Hot sauce — with nary a flinch. You go, girl! She had really cool shoes, too — as did several other ladies that caught the eye that night. :D
–It was really nice to see some folks I had met before again (y’all know who you are ;-)) and chill out for a while.
–BTW, the 4-​pepper hot dog relish was AWESOME. I wish they were taking pre-​orders!

Who else could make a party in a sauce factory sizzling but Unilocal Elite’s Joi and the staff at Original Juan’s? I’ll admit, when I pulled up to the Juan factory, I suspected that I had either showed up at the wrong location or had been punked. Who would have imagined that this factory is so red hot? The staff at OJ’s really rolled out the red carpet for us, and the BBQ and drink staff provided great service that made it nearly comical that we were enjoying fine vodka and cheese and crackers in a warehouse! As a vegetarian, I figured I would just stick to the popcorn served as a catalyst for rub spices … Until I saw the back room full of absolutely delicious spicy cheese dips, raspberry wraps, and even fresh veggies. Never thought I would leave a BBQ sauce store so full and satisfied!
Thanks again to Joi and those who helped facilitate this fun… I am told that my face is still a bit red from the food at this very saucy event…

Cheeehooo!!! How can I NOT give this HOT HOT HOT place 5 stars? f’reals, this place is 100% pain hot.
I’m we were provided with some ice hold delish mojitos and amazing bbq (non spicy) cause my taste buds are unfortunately not the biggest fans of spicy hotness. My tummy is full and happy. Even got some awesome alcohol souvenirs from Most Wanted. Good stuff for more fun times :)
This place is in the middle of no where, but it must be cause it’s awesomeness obliterated everything else within a 5 mile radius. Good job, Joi! And good job Original Juan. Thanks for a very awesome event… my first one in KC!

It’s always good to make virtual « Unilocal friends» into real events by reaching out and saying hello, and Joi’s « UnilocalO» ( Unilocal Bingo) game was really great for this. At first, I was confused — I couldn’t find even 4 squares on the board that fit me, much less were all in a row — and then Joi pointed out that these were boxes that I had to ask people to sign off on… the toughest box being «I don’t care for bbq» which was particularly funny given that we were being served some delicious Zarda bbq.
I was blown away by the sheer size of the warehouse and the enormous number of sauces produced here — I’m positive I saw a sriracha bottle — but I was literally blown away by the hot sauces and salsa. I quit while I was ahead and didn’t try their «100% pain» sauce which I’m pretty sure would have killed me because, writing this review 6 hours later, my stomach is still feeling the burn from two of the sauces I tried in particular.
Hot is not for everyone, and while I love spicy food, sauces tried in isolation (without lassi, milk, or other cooling devices nearby) is pretty ****ing brutal.
I was stopping by on my way to a concert so I was overdressed and dined and dashed, but despite my rudeness the Unilocal team was, as always, super friendly and attentive.
Thanks for the booze, bbq, and bingo. :-)

Cheesecake in a jar! Good stuff!
This event was in a warehouse and they had A LOT of BBQ, Salsa, and Hot sauces. I would have never guessed that a Unilocal event could be held here but then again, why not? It’s probably because I didn’t know this place existed.
The food was good and same with the two non-​alcoholic drinks I had. I’m on medication so I can’t drink any alcoholic drinks. There were burnt ends and beans with a bread roll. Those were good and same with the snacks in the other room.
There were a bunch of Unilocalers trying out that «Da Bomb» hot sauce. I bet it was super hot but I didn’t want to try it. I’ve tried the Mad Dog 357 hot sauce before and I don’t want to relive that. lol I can only imagine the «Da Bomb» hot sauce would be just as hot. I tried Cheesecake in a jar and Cheesecake in a jar Chocolate. It tasted just like cheesecake! I think the Unilocalers who tried the «Da Bomb» hot sauce should have the Cheesecake in a jar to neutralize the spiciness in their mouths. lol
Thanks to Joi B. for setting up this event and everybody at Original Juan Specialty Foods. Awesome!
Here’s a link to my Flickr for the original-​sized pictures.