Notes to 2010 Crawl organizer(s) from Laura Ferguson, 2009 organizer:
The way the Crawl worked this year is that CNIA gave me a check for $500 and I used it to buy what CNIA covers, keeping receipts and a record of expenditures. CNIA buys the keg that travels on the back of someone's truck, along with the bar, from house to house. It also pays for 3 turkeys that we ask volunteers to roast, a Christmas tree for the community center, cost of printing invitations, and the cost of tickets and name tags.
Since there are many residents who are not on the CNIA Yahoo group, invitations are delivered to all Cabbagetown homes. The invitation should include the Crawl itinerary, along with names and addresses of host houses.
If neighborhood residents contribute or volunteer for the Crawl, their admission is $10. If they do not contribute, admission is $20. Residents may bring up to 2 guests. All guests pay $20. (There is always some confusion about whether it's $20 "per person" or "per household" so you may want to ask CNIA to clarify that early on. From my understanding it's "per person.")
You'll want to have volunteers at the first 3 stops to collect at the door. In 2009, the "tickets" were wearable -- sparkly barettes and headbands for the women and neon bracelets for the guys -- so that once a person paid, they could just show their "ticket" at the subsequent stops and walk right in. It made it easier to keep track of who had paid and who had not. After the Main Course, you stop collecting. I had asked people to bring exact change or a check made out to CNIA. This helped things go more smoothly at the door, avoiding delays.
We noticed in 2009 that it would be great if there were bottles of water. That's something you may want to add. Also, we found that we needed fewer bottles of spirits and more red wine. In 2009 we ran out of red wine before we got to the Main Course. While we had a lot of casseroles, if I were to do it again, I would split it evenly between casseroles and "vegetable side dishes." At the dessert house, there are very few people who drink tea, so a small box of tea bags would be more than enough.
The neighborhood establishments you can count on to contribute wine and spirits are Agave (owner Jack Sobel) and Milltown. I approached both Carroll Street Cafe and 97 Estoria about contributing, but they declined. Village Pizza is still finding its footing so I did not ask for a contribution.
If Milltown offers to host the after-party, providing "complimentary Irish coffee," please let Crawlers know that that means one per person.
And lastly, being an organizer is a lot of fun, so have.
(You can erase these notes to make way for the 2010 web page... and later leave your notes for the 2011 organizer.)
This Year's Christmas Crawl is Saturday, December 12th
Please join us on this roving feast as we go from house to house for courses of delicious homemade dishes, wine and spirits, and the easy company of your friends and neighbors in Cabbagetown. Three otherwise sane and respectable families have agreed to have us over, en masse, for this festive dinner party, and we can only be thankful they all had a lapse in judgement at about the same time.
As has become custom, we'll be singing Christmas carols at the dessert house. And we need you to bring instruments. This means anything that makes noise: jingle bells, maracas, tamborines, spoons, drums, guitars (if they have strings, even better). We'll need everyone to contribute if we're to make the kind of beautiful music that will disrupt the otherwise peaceful slumbers of everyone from Reynoldstown to the Old Fourth Ward, and prove once and for all that sugar plums don't just dance, they boogie down.
Here's the breakdown:
COCKTAILS & APPETIZERS, 6-7pm: Tova & Peter, 201 Tye Street
SOUP & SALAD, 7-8pm: Nathan & Amanda, 193 Tye Street
MAIN COURSE, 8-9:30pm: Community Center
COFFEE & DESSERT, 9:30-11PM: Reverend Dave and Ann-Marie's, 186 Estoria Street
AFTER-PARTY, 11PM-1AM: Milltown Arms (complimentary Irish coffee)
Volunteers, we need you! (COMPLETE!)
1) Zoe Chamberlain and Craig Fani will handling dues collection ($20 without a contribution; $10 if you volunteered or made a dish) for the first 30 minutes of each of the first 3 stops. Laura Ferguson takes the second 30 minutes.
2) Looks like we're going to have a beer truck instead of a beer trolley. David Thayer says we can use his.
3) Thanks to Dan & Alicia for overseeing the community center, decorating for the Crawl and cleaning up the day after
4) Thanks to Damon Hege for volunteering to be Santa.
The Feast!
RED PRINT indicates items needed; GREEN means we're all set for that request.
Just email Laura with what you'd like to bring: LFerguson@PalladiumMortgage.com
COCKTAIL HOUSE (COMPLETE!) Tova & Peter, 201 Tye Street
DROP OFF FROM 4-6PM
10 trays of munchies/appetizers, each enough for 20 people:
1. one appetizer, Lisa Hanson
2. one appetizer, Lisa Hanson
3. pumpkin seed falafel with cashew tzatziki sauce, Duwan
4. Momofuku's Steamed Pork Belly buns, Edward Lindahl
5. Cheesy Biscuits, Celine
6. one appetizer, Scott Goode
7. one appetizer, Claudia Ramos
8. one appetizer, John & Katherine
9. one appetizer, John & Katherine
10. Karin & Andrew Lowell
200 cocktain napkins -- Nathan Bolster
200 cups -- Community Center
200 small plates -- Matt & Carola
200 forks - Nathan Bolster
200 knives- Nathan Bolster
1 gallon OJ -- Leah & Damon
1 bottle cranberry juice cocktail - Jack @ Agave
2 2 liter bottles club soda - Lisa Myers
2 2 liter bottles ginger ale - Lisa Myers
2 2 liter bottles tonic water- Lisa Myers
1 large bottle of red wine - Ryan Novak
1 large bottle of red wine - Debbie Weeks
2 750ml bottles of red wine - Milltown Arms
1 large bottle of white wine - Maria Locke
2 750ml bottles of white wine - Milltown Arms
1 large cooler full of ice - Tova & Peter
2 large crates to transport alcohol- Damon, Community Center
2 liters of Coke - Lisa Myers
2 liters of Diet Coke - Lisa Myers
3 750 ml bottles vodka - Jack @ Agave
Big bottle of rum -- Lewis on Savannah
2 liters of gin - Jack @ Agave
2 750 ml bottles whiskey (need 1 more)
- 1 bottle of whiskey -- Jiri Vala
- 1 bottle of whiskey - David Knox
2 750 ml bottles bourbon - Jack @ Agave
5 limes (cut up for drinks) - Jack @ Agave
SOUP AND SALAD HOUSE (COMPLETE!) Nathan & Amanda, 193 Tye Street
DROP OFF FROM 4-6PM
5 large vats of soup
- one vat soup, Nathan & Amanda
- Tova & Peter's festive Matzo Ball soup
- French Onion Soup, Damon & Leah
- Corn Chowder, Judy Staples
- Poblano Chicken Chowder, Ashley McCartney
7 Large salads with fixings (each should feed 15-20 people)
- one large salad, Lisa Myers
- one salad, Maria Locke
- Spinach salad, Cheri & Jason
- Asian slaw salad, Debbie Weeks
- one large salad, Mikel
- Arugula & Parmesan salad with lemon & olive oil, Kiki & Cole
- one salad, Jonathan & Diana
5 baguettes or other type of bread - Jonathan & Diana
5 Italian loaves - Kasia & Danny
200 knives - Nathan Bolster
200 forks - Nathan Bolster
200 spoons - Skylar Waldrop & Josh Minter
200 cups - Community Center
200 napkins - Nathan Bolster
200 medium plates - Matt & Carola
200 bowls - Matt & Carola
2 liter bottle of Coke - community center
2 liter bottle of Diet Coke - community center
2-2 liter bottle of ginger ale - Jonathan & Diana
2-2 liter bottle of club soda - Leah & Damon
2-2 liter bottle of tonic - Leah & Damon
2 750ml bottles of red wine - Milltown Arms
2 750ml bottles of white wine - Milltown Arms
1 large bottle white wine - Jack @ Agave
1 large bottle red wine - Debbie Weeks
750 ml bottle gin - Jack @ Agave
750 ml bottle vodka - Jack @ Agave
750 ml bottle whiskey - Tony Hardin
3 to 4 cut up limes - Jack @ Agave
1 cooler full of ice - Nathan & Amanda
MAIN COURSE (COMPLETE!) Cabbagetown Community Center, 177 Estoria Street
DROP OFF 5:30-6PM, STERNO OR CHAFING DISHES ARE ENCOURAGED!
15 casseroles (each should feed 15 or more people):
- one vegetarian casserole, Mac & Cheese, Lisa Hanson
- one vegetarian casserole, Cheri & Jason
- one vegetarian casserole, Mac & Cheese, Kasia & Danny
- Vegetable casserole, Maria Locke
- Sweet Potato Spoon Bread - Mary Huysman
- Vegetable casserole, Tricia Underwood
- Vegetable casserole, Debbie Weeks
- Sweet Potato Casserole, Sherry Bouvais
- one vegetable casserole, Brandon Sutton
- one vegetable dish, Celine
- Anna Gilmore & Brad Baker, Mashed potatoes
- one casserole, Dan & Alicia
- vegetable casserole
- one casserole, Dana & James
- Turkey casserole, John Cook
1 large Turkey -- Margaret Cain
1 large Turkey -- Ryan Novak
3 gourmet marinated chickens -- Damon and Leah
2 large hams
- Lisa Hanson, one pork loin
- 1 large Honey-Baked Ham, CNIA
2 other large meat/protein dishes
- Duck Confit with fresh sauerkraut over hot buttered noodles - Martine
- Roast Beef, Debbie Weeks
1 large dish stuffing/dressing - Damon & Leah
2 -2 liter bottles of Coke - Cheri & Jason
2 -2 liter bottles of Diet Coke - Cheri & Jason
2-2 liter bottle of ginger ale - Cheri & Jason
2-2 liter bottle of club soda - Susan McCracken
2-2 liter bottle of tonic - Susan McCracken
200 knives - Nathan Bolster
200 forks - Nathan Bolster
200 cups - (need 100 more)
- 100 cups -- Community Center
- 100 cups -- Anna Gilmore & Brad Baker
200 napkins - Nathan Bolster
200 dinner plates - Melody & Joe
2 large bottles of white wine - Milltown Arms
2 large bottles of red wine - Milltown Arms
1 liter gin - Jack @ Agave
1.5 liter whiskey - Melody & Joe
1.75 liter vodka - Lee Westmaas
3 to 4 cut up limes - Susan McCracken
1 medium cooler, 2 bags of ice - Ann-Marie & Dave
DESSERT HOUSE (COMPLETE!) Reverend Dave & Ann-Marie's, 186 Estoria Street
DROP OFF AFTER 3PM SATURDAY
12 types of dessert:
- one Strawberry Cake, Cheri & Jason
- vegan Pumpkin Pie, Duwan
- vegan Key Lime Pie, Duwan
- Rum Balls, Debbie Weeks
- one dessert, Ann-Marie & David
- one dessert, Ann-Marie & David
- Bourbon-Orange Pecan Pie, Mary Huysman
- 24 chocolate & peanut butter cupcakes, Sasha Von Hanna
- Cherry Tart, Jared Serwer
- Wine- and Sugar-Soaked Berries, Kiki & Cole
- Bread Pudding with Brandy Sauce, Bertha Wise Jr.
- Sweet-Potato Pie, Bertha Wise Jr.
200 napkins -- Nathan Bolster
200 cups - (not styrofoam - these are still for cocktails!) -.Nasreen & Gordon
200 small plates - Nasreen & Gordon
200 spoons - community center
200 forks - Nathan Bolster
2 coffee urns
- one coffee urn - Mary Huysman
- one coffee urn - Eric & Perla
Loaner coffee maker for the night - Zoe Chamberlain
100 coffee cups (styrofoam is fine here!) - Nasreen & Gordon
1 1lb bag of ground coffee (caf.) - Jack @ Agave
1 1lb bag of ground coffee (decaf.) - Jack @ Agave
2 quarts half and half - Eric & Perla
1 box tea bags - Greg Stevens
Assorted packets of sweeteners- Nasreen & Gordon
2 bottles of Kalhua - Angie & Steve
2 bottles of Bailey's Irish Cream - Greg Stevens
1 bottle of dessert liqueur - Michael & Anna
3 bottles red wine - Jack @ Agave
2 bottles white wine - Jack @ Agave
1 medium cooler full of ice - Ann-Marie & David