Talking Up Houston Eggfest

We had the nicest visit today with Rick, Chris and Troy of Ace Hardware here at the Chicken Ranch.  Some of you met Troy and Chris in Athens last week.  Rick is their boss and owner of the Ace Hardware Stores.

They are thinking about having an Eggfest in our area and wanted to try to understand some of the factors that go into making an Eggfest happen.  They are already in touch with Chris Randall at Paragon Distributing and he's all for having one.

What most impressed us is they asked what they could do to please us Cooks.  They suggested aprons, patches (like Athens), and banners for our tents but I told them most of us have our own special aprons or shirts, and to save their money. But they were receptive to other ideas.

These guys are used to doing things in a big way and want to do it right.  They are very insistent that any profits go to Texas Children’s Hospital.  We're for that.  It's a great place that can certainly use the money.  They asked if we would mind if a money jar could be put on each table for contributions designated for the Hospital.  Taking it one step further, the Cook Team with the most contributions in the money jar would win a prize.  They were thinking of a Mini Max or a Yeti cooler.  For that kind of prize we can sure talk a lot longer and louder to the Tasters.

We gave them a few ideas but would like to toss it out to you all for your input.  We're all so used to working with small budgets and our own money, it's nice to hear [i]"Let's do something nice for the Cooks."[/i]  Both the Athens Eggfest and Texas Eggfest have been doing a good job of it and we really appreciate it. 

After all these years, things are really looking up for us Cooks.  Surely it's because we're knowledgeable about the Egg, experienced in cooking on it, enthusiastic about it and absolutely willing to share all of that with everyone who is willing to attend an Eggfest.

So far we have suggested:

2 tables with leg extenders (prep and serve)
Tent
Platesetters available,  if needed
Utensil wash area with soap and hot water
Trash container close to each cook team
Serving products:  plates, napkins, small serving cups, forks, knives, spoons, paper towels, aluminum foil
A grocery gift card to help buy provisions
Water and ice

They are already in tune with the idea of providing us with a catered Meet and Greet and After-Party.  In fact they asked if after we would like to have a band at the After-Party.   In other words, would you still have the energy to party and dance after the Eggfest and After-Party?  I know some of you can, and will, band or not, and probably all night.

We also know you all have some ideas of what you would like to see done, so let us know what we could add to the list. 

Like I said, this is still in the “thinking” stage but it sure sounds like fun.  I also told them to try to do it in the Fall of the year because Spring is already booked pretty tight, and we don’t do HOT in Houston 

Before you ask, yes, they definitely got the full Chicken Ranch story and treatment.  They also got the Coop Tour, met the 'Girls' and taste-tested some practice treats we may be serving at the Texas Eggfest.  And yes, they each got a [i]"I've Been To The Coop"[/i] token.

Spring Chicken and Spring Hen
Spring Texas USA