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Frank Couch Hoover Sun
Taste of Hoover
Remy Helu from Vecchia serves up meatballs and bread pudding. The 4th Annual Taste of Hoover at Aldridge Gardens Thursday October 22, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch Hoover Sun
Cecilia Aguilar and Juan Carlos Paredes dance as the night wears on . The 4th Annual Taste of Hoover at Aldridge Gardens Thursday October 22, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch Hoover Sun
The 4th Annual Taste of Hoover at Aldridge Gardens Thursday October 22, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch Hoover Sun
John Allen and Jason Wiserman talk about the new menu at California Pizza Kitchen. The 4th Annual Taste of Hoover at Aldridge Gardens Thursday October 22, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch Hoover Sun
Raquel Lily entertains the crowd with some live music. The 4th Annual Taste of Hoover at Aldridge Gardens Thursday October 22, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch Hoover Sun
Linda Bembry and Cindy Edmunds enjoy a conversation on a bench. The 4th Annual Taste of Hoover at Aldridge Gardens Thursday October 22, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch Hoover Sun
The 4th Annual Taste of Hoover at Aldridge Gardens Thursday October 22, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch Hoover Sun
A.J. Slusser and Jay Roberson serving up red beans and rice with sausage from Capers on Park Avenue. The 4th Annual Taste of Hoover at Aldridge Gardens Thursday October 22, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch Hoover Sun
The 4th Annual Taste of Hoover at Aldridge Gardens Thursday October 22, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch Hoover Sun
Joseph Mitchels demonstrates some cooking techniques at a Jefferson State Junior College booth. The 4th Annual Taste of Hoover at Aldridge Gardens Thursday October 22, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch Hoover Sun
The 4th Annual Taste of Hoover at Aldridge Gardens Thursday October 22, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
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Frank Couch Hoover Sun
The 4th Annual Taste of Hoover at Aldridge Gardens Thursday October 22, 2015. Photo by Frank Couch.
About 430 people came out to Aldridge Gardens tonight for the fourth annual Taste of Hoover event.
Twenty-five Hoover restaurants and at least six catering companies offered samples of their food for people to taste, Aldridge Gardens CEO Tynette Lynch said. In addition, the Jefferson State Culinary and Hospitality Institute gave cooking demonstrations.
International Wines and Back Forty Beer provided wine and beer tastings, and Coca-Cola and Royal Cup Coffee served soft drinks, water and coffee. Musical entertainment was provided by Racquel Lily.
This year’s turnout was about double the number of people from last year, Lynch said.
“I think it went great. We couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful night,” she said. “What I enjoy is that everybody stays instead of just coming in and leaving.”
The atmosphere is very much like a lawn party.
Peter Northcutt, an Inverness resident, said he thought the event organizers did a great job. He’s a vegetarian and is pretty selective about his food, but he still found plenty to eat, he said.
The Whole Scoop ice cream parlor had some excellent pumpkin ice cream, and RX Catering had some delicious pumpkin dip, Northcutt said. He’s an avid cook and enjoyed watching the Jefferson State Culinary and Hospitality Institute make pot stickers, an Asian dish with pork, cabbage and onions, he said.
He also picked up a lot of cards from the catering companies, he said.
Participating restaurants ranged from Shula’s Steak House at the Hyatt Regency Birmingham – The Wynfrey Hotel to the Relish Café inside Hoover Tactical Firearms.
Other vendors included:
- Ashley Mac's Café & Catering
- Bare Naked Noodles
- Buffalo Wild Wings
- California Pizza Kitchen
- Capers on Park Avenue
- Costco
- Dale’s Southern Grill
- Edgar's Bakery
- Five Star Event Catering
- Fried Green Tomatoes
- Jim ‘n’ ‘Nick’s Bar-B-Q
- Joe’s Crab Shack
- Jubilee Joe’s
- Newk’s Eatery
- Pastry Art Bake Shoppe
- Pie Five Pizza Co.
- Ragtime Café
- RX Catering
- Savoie Catering
- Spoon and Ladle
- Taqueria Mexico
- Taziki’s Mediterranean Café
- The Boot
- The Cajun Cleaver
- The Happy Catering Co.
- The Whole Scoop
- Urban Pops
- Vecchia Pizzeria & Mercato
Tickets for the Taste of Hoover were $25 for gardens members and $35 for non-members, with proceeds going to Aldridge Gardens. The event was a sell-out and probably raised about $10,000 for Aldridge, Lynch said.
About half the tickets this year were sold to the Eternal Word Television Network, which gave them to people from all over the country who came to the EWTN annual conference at the Hyatt Regency.
Lynch said she was excited for people from all over the country to get to experience both Aldridge Gardens and the many fine restaurants in Hoover.
The Hoover Sun was a partner in the event.
