It is hard to believe, but another year has passed and we are once again blind sided by Zoobilee. I say “blind sided” because of the way I usually feel the next day. You see after all the party over-indulgence, my vision is slightly blurred, not exactly blind, but I swear at some point someone took a two-by-four to the side of my head.



Zoobilee is the only black tie charity event I can drag the husband to. He never wears a tux, but he always dreams up something creative to wear. While I didn’t splurge on a new dress, I did have a fabulous bee hive up-do and my makeup was impeccable. Many thanks to Aura and Jonathon at Azarra Salon, I felt like the belle of the ball.



Enough about me, let’s get down to the nitty gritty of the evening: the food and drink. I have to say this year’s Zoobilee has changed a bit and lacked much of the pomp of years before. Last year while you waited in line to enter, volunteers passed out glasses of sparkling wine. This year after we were into the event, one had to pay $20 and enter a raffle to enjoy a glass.



There appeared to be an overabundance of beer and wine booths. While the beer was well represented, the wines were really weak. I won’t mention any “wineries” by name and I use that term loosely, but come on. I’m not a wine snob, I swear, and I understand it can be pricey to give away booze. But let’s try to be a little creative, folks. There are plenty of great cheap wines out there that don’t have a cartoon animal on the label.



A few beverage booths did stand out in this crowd, and the first nod goes to Asado. The wines at their booth were stellar. One label was Oyster Bay Sauvignon Blanc and honestly, the rest were a blur. However, I do recall being quite impressed with their offerings. Kudos, Asado, your chicken on a stick was mighty tasty too.



The second nod goes to Doyle’s Public House. The Jameson and Ginger Ale they were serving would put a pile of hair on any girl’s chest. They also served Mojitos but I was sprung on the whiskey and fizz, much to the husband’s shock since he’s been trying to get me to like whiskey for years. Go figure.



Food impressions were a little more difficult to find. One booth that stood out from the pack was Emerald Queen Casino with their tasty shrimp cocktail and a strange kabob of cheese chunks resting in a pool of … more cheese. Topped off with a Maraschino cherry, you’ve got a meal.



My next fun find was the lobster sampling from Maxwell’s. Now they did it up right! You received two nice chunks of lobster simply cooked in butter and a few herbs, accompanied by a nicely toasted baguette slice. Shenanigans had tasty crab cakes topped with a dollop of roasted red pepper aioli, while Pacific Grill had a fancy version of a Sloppy Joe that was also good, but somehow seemed rather pedestrian for their caliber.



Alas, my day after Zoobilee was spent doing a lot of nothing. The husband proved how much he truly loves me by spending a good chunk of time gingerly combing out the rat’s nest of backcombing in my hair (he will deny it if you ask him). He then went for a food run and grabbed me a big ol’ gnarly warm sandwich from Quizno’s. Food is the best cure.



While this year’s Zoobilee wasn’t as interesting as years before, I’m sure we will attend again next year. It’s kind of like giving birth or running Sound-to-Narrows. You forget about the pain while doing it and bask in the reward it provides later.  Wait a minute, that’s the opposite of Zoobilee. Never mind …



Eat out, Tacoma. We need your love.



Sandee Glib has worked in the restaurant and hospitality industry for more than 12 years as a server, bartender, cook and owner. Her opinions are expressly her own and she is always right.