Taste of the Town

Story: Scott Gregory

Our Taste of the Town this month found a small, but happy group of nineteen club members gathered on the spacious patio at Lucille’s Smokehouse Bar-B-Que.

The amazing spring weather made for a perfect evening of conversation, laughs, and biscuits n’ butter!

The members’ dinner choices ran the menu from freshly battered southern fried chicken strips, to the crispy Caesar salad, and many of the house favorites such as the fried chicken and gravy, smoked beef brisket, and baby back ribs, all of which included the full complement of side dishes and beverages.

The friendly wait staff worked hard to set up for our group, and they helped make our meal enjoyable with friendly and efficient service.

After dinner, the evening was just too beautiful to call it a night, so a small but dedicated team set out on a reconnaissance mission to Menchie’s Frozen Yogurt, where the mission was deemed successful.

Our Taste of the Town evenings are always a great social event, so plan to join us will you, May 16th at the Olive Garden. Sources report there is a Cold Stone Creamery nearby.

Story:  Scott Gregory
Photos: Scott Gregory

This month’s Taste of the Town was at another one of our local favorites, Mimi’s Café. Twenty-four of us converged on the place, which is kind of a charming little restaurant, and they were happy to host our club. After gathering in the bar and waiting in the foyer, they showed us to our meeting area, which was private from the rest of the dining areas.

The servers got us started with water, wine, and other beverages, and of course as a ravenous crowd, we dove into the warm bread and whipped butter.

One of the things great about Mimi’s is their interesting menu, and from that we had a variety of choices on the table. From the corn chowder- which I personally recommend, to the baguette sandwiches, fresh salads, and some of their famous comfort foods like the French Creole pasta or the pot roast, nobody went away hungry.

It was also great to get several of their over-sized muffins to take with us on the way out.

One of the things that helped make the night a success was the friendly staff. It’s always difficult to look after a large crew like ours, and it started out a little slow, but they found their stride, and as such we finished strong.

Overall it was a great evening, and we are already looking forward to next month’s Taste of the Town, which will be at Lucile’s BBQ on April 18th, so mark your calendars, and we’ll see you there!

Story: Scott Gregory
Photos: Mike Woodings

Hola! For February’s Taste-of-the-town it was chilly versus chili… That pretty well encompasses our Thursday night destination when we rallied together on a very cold evening to meet in the main dining room of Maria Bonita’s, where we were treated like family- albeit a large family of thirty-four.

The popularity of these TOT events never disappoints, and neither does Maria Bonita’s. Baskets of crunchy chips and tasty salsa got everyone started, as did the cold cervezas and salty margaritas. The food was hot, the guacamole was fresh, and the staff was friendly and attentive.
From the large portions of abondigas soup, to the enchiladas, chili rellenos, carnitas, crispy tacos, and the combination plates containing of all the above, it was magnifico!

Your writer missed this one but dispatched the lovely Virginia to take copious notes and to document the event with dozens of photos. But alas, notes were taken per directions, but camera/phone was forgotten at home. No problem here though with all of our modern members equipped with photo equipment!

Our Taste-of-the-Town events are always a lot of fun, so join us! Plan ahead with our upcoming events schedule here in the newsletter. Of course, plans do change occasionally, so always be sure to confirm the date and location by checking the events section of the webpage at scvcc.org.

Story: Mike Woodings
Photos: Judy Woodings

2019 is here and off to a good start. Our first gathering of the year was our monthly Taste of the Town social on January 17th. With two whole weeks since out last club meeting, you could tell the need to get together with fellow Corvette people was there.

Anthony, our always faithful Communications Guy, got the word out about the event from his new bunker over 400 miles away. Members were alert and answered the beckoning in great numbers. The destination was Saddle Ranch Chop House at the Valencia Mall, where Rock meets Western.

Most attendees were from the Rock side of the equation, while there were a couple Western people in the mix, complete with hats and even boots. It takes all kinds.

The headcount totaled twenty-five for this go around, up significantly (up 312%) from our previous TOT at the same location. Restaurant management were all eager and happy to take great care of our group with the increase in attendance, recalling when our numbers were down due to a large turnout for the Prescott Vette Sette car show last September, appreciative that the entire SCVCC didn’t depart from the community. By the way, none of our brave attendees got close to the bull. Could it be all of our bull riders now live in Arizona?

Our club has almost an entirely new Activities team, all eager to keep things rolling with many great activities for our members and guests in the new year.

Keep up to date for all of our upcoming events, outings and get-togethers by frequently taking a look at the Events Section of our club website. The Newsletter and Three Months at a Glance events listings are not always the final word for event dates and times since changes do occur from time to time. Listings in our webpage at scvcc.org are the final word so always check there before making plans.

I just checked the site and noted at this very moment our next TOT is at Maria Bonita Mexican Restaurant on February 21 @ 6:00 pm. I plan on being there for a taco or fajita, but I will be anxious to get an email update from Anthony and will be checking our events site to make sure I go the correct place. Hope to see you then, if not sooner.

Story: Judy Woodings
Photos: Mike Woodings

If you are one of the many Corvette family members here in Santa Clarita, you know this article has nothing to do with the weather…it does though have everything to do about the gathering of our fabulous friends and their Corvettes at Chili’s in Canyon Country.

As always, it’s exciting to get together and hear about the happenings in our club and each other’s lives. It’s our way of staying in touch and hey, at our age, much can happen in just a few days!

The food at Chili’s is always good and the portions are more than we should eat in one sitting. Then there might be dessert too. There are plenty of comfort food offerings to choose from.

Our attendance was down some this month with only fifteen in number, but the enthusiasm was still alive. We had two visitors in our midst, Bob and Donna Dunham who found us on the web and wanted to check us out. They commented that with such a great website, we must be a good club as well.

Taste-of-the-Town seems so easy for most of us – we are hungry, we show up, we eat and then we leave happy – in most cases. But for our Activities people it is: consider what restaurant, can it hold our numbers, make contact for our desired night, coordinate attendance numbers for staffing. You get the idea.

Let’s not forget to thank our Activities Committee members for the great job they do!

So until next time, in November our next TOT will take us to Yamato’s in Stevenson Ranch. Put that one on your calendar for a great time of visiting and dining out.

Story: Mike Woodings
Photos: The Web

Hot August Nights are not enough to keep our club away when it’s Taste-of-the-Town evening here in the Santa Clarita Valley. It’s too hot to heat up the house with cooking and too hot even to fire up the grill outside.

We have been living off salads for too many days straight, so when the email arrives from our Activities Committee by way of our Communications Guy saying we are going to Mama’s Table for some “home cooking” for TOT, I say “let’s go”! Apparently that was the response most had as well with another great turn-out of hungry Corvette people.

As I arrived, there were plenty of Vettes filling the lot and apparently lots who opted to drive the ferrous vehicle as well since out club people filled the restaurant even before the 6 PM start time.

Mama’s Kitchen is located at 23340 Cinema Drive, where Freshworks was previously. The owners ran a successful restaurant in Washington for 9 years and decided to sell and start new in SoCal. They are kind and enthusiastic and happy to serve. This is literally a mom and pop operation where they even make their own pies. His wife bakes the pies and helps with the cooking. I’m sure most of us will be going back to Mama’s Table again, maybe in a few weeks, maybe in a few months, but we’ll definitely be back.

The restaurant has a large menu with plenty of choices for every taste. It’s open for breakfast, lunch and dinner with breakfast being extremely popular with the homemade jams that are available. It has been compared to the Black Bear Diner with a local atmosphere and with plenty of room for a large group.

September will take us to for our next TOT at Saddle Ranch Chop House, so if you’re not heading to Prescott, dust off your cowboy attire and mark your calendar for a great time of visiting and bull riding at another fine event put together by our Activities Committee.

Story: Mike Woodings
Photos: Janene McDonald

Summer is here, and with it, those HOT days that we experience this time of year. HOT days are toasty in the middle of the day but generally our mornings and evenings are gorgeous. July 19th was one of those typical days weather-wise and it was the third Thursday of the month, so you know what that means…no cooking at our house tonight! It’s time to join Corvette friends for an evening of socializing amd exploring another menu for something delicious that won’t blow the calorie and carb counts off the chart.

Taste-of-the-Town for July had us gathering at the Cheesecake Factory in the Valencia Mall for our monthly social. The location dictates the focus on the meeting is more food and cameraderie, not Corvettes since we all park where we can find a spot and most choose to drive the metal car instead of the fiberglass one to keep the Vette for nice!

It was another great turn-out with 40 in attendance. We are all on equal footing at the Cheesecake factory where everyone gathers and we are all seated together. Even when I arrive on-time, I don’t feel like I’m late!

Cheesecake Factory started out way over the hill in the 310 area in 1978 as a small salad-and-sandwich restaurant in Beverly Hills that sold 10 varieties of cheesecakes on a one-page menu. Next came a second restaurant in Marina del Rey and a third, larger location in Redondo Beach. It took quite a while for the 192 restaurant chain to make it to Awesometown, but we are glad it is here. You know right from the start that you aren’t at In-N-Out when they hand you a three pound menu with over 250 items listed. The choices are many but there is something for everybody!

August will take us to Mama’s Kitchen for our next TOT, so mark your calendar for a great time of visiting and bring your Corvette too for another fine event put together by our Activities Committee.

Story: Mike Woodings
Photos: Mike Woodings

We have all eaten pizza and we have been to Toppers, but we keep coming to these monthly socials every third Thursday of the month.  Pizza can be a very balanced meal choice and Toppers is a terrific place to eat, so what is the attraction of our Taste-of-the-Town events?

I would say that when you add the special people attending, coupled with the terrific Corvettes we all drive, you have a combination that can’t be beat and are guaranteed a good and tasty time out…plus no dishes to wash.

Toppers is a locally owned and operated pizza restaurant company based in Ventura County with 9 locations all offering selections that are fresh, healthy and great tasting! They advertise a place that is friendly and comfortable place, which we can all agree it is. Thanks to the Topper’s staff for their great service to our 37 attendees.

Can I say more about Taste-of-the-Town? Why, yes I can. Besides the already mentioned positives, TOT is a gathering where we sometimes witness surprises. There have been plenty of times when old friends have dropped in for a visit and even times when one of us rolled in with a new Corvette. Our Jun 21st social was indeed one of those times, but maybe a step-up from those other times.

At this Taste-of-the-Town, we drove into the lot and immediately took notice of a Sebring Orange Corvette among the several other Vettes present. Dang, you say! That’s a ZR1! Who did it? Who just bought what is surely the fastest Corvette in the club? The answer…Ron Nolan. Dude, what a car!

We will be seeing lots more of Ron, and Donna, at upcoming events as they save their C1 and C2 for those special local events.
Until then, we will meet again at another fine event put together by our Activities Committee and maybe witness another TOT surprise.

Story: Mike Woodings
Photos: Mike Woodings

May is always a good month to eat and Italian is always a good choice, so when the two found themselves together, Olive Garden was the place. Located in the popular Promenade Town Center, parking can prove to be a challenge at times and only about half of our attendees dared drive their Corvettes to the social. One of our own did however find a terrific end-spot located right where he could keep his eye on his Vette all through dinner.

The restaurant invites us to Indulge our tastes from their Mediterranean menu with dishes under 600 calories, but personally I opted for the spaghetti and meatballs with sun-dried tomatoes!

With 36 hungry people arriving all at once, the scene was initially described by at least one of the staff as chaos, but once the bread sticks came and initial beverages were served our crazy group settled down and we went on to have a delightful evening as a well fed body of still crazy Corvette people.

Thanks to the wonderful staff at Olive Garden for handling our group with all of our varied needs and desires. Your restaurant is one of our favorites and surely on we will return to, even between events with your offering of unlimited pasta and salad. Hard to keep it at 600 calories though!

Next up on our calendar will be another “Italian” night out at Topper’s Pizza in Canyon Country. The salad bar alone is worth the drive, but when you can design your own pizza, that is a winning combination. We will be there, hope to see YOU on for the next TOT on June 21st at 6 PM.

Until then, we will meet again at another fine event put together by our Activities Committee.