Coolest Party in Town: Ice Ball Gala for Big Brothers Big Sisters
By Emily on Aug 28 Filed In Austin, Texas, Events 2 Comments
It was just another hot night in Austin last Saturday, but the coolest party in Austin was taking place at the Austin Music Hall– Helping Austin’s Ice Ball Gala benefiting Big Brothers Big Sisters. Big Brothers Big Sisters, the largest youth mentoring program, is a cause that is near and dear to the hearts of Sweet Leaf Tea and its employees because several of us are “Bigs.”
Clayton Christopher, our Founder/CEO who is a veteran “big” himself, was in charge of rounding up sponsorships and finding us a great venue. I am a novice “big” and was in charge of the finances/budgeting for the event. Ashley Montgomery, our art director and “Big”, showed her support by lending us her expertise with some of our marketing materials. Several other Sweet Leaf employees came to the event dressed to impressed, which is a rare occasion since we all just wear jeans and t-shirts around the office.
Sweet Leaf Tea was a bronze sponsor of the gala and also provided one of the auction items – a lifetime supply of Sweet Leaf Tea, which along with some other “local” products, sold for over $2000! The auction raised over $100,000, and Clayton even bid and won a swimming pool and a trip to Sante Fe. I’m sure we’re all invited, ya right.
The party had all the elements and some that might remind you of college: we had ice luges, an ice podium, a wine toss, an 80s band – the Space Rockers, and some incredible food vendors including Cru, Kona Grill, Moonshine, Z Tejas, Good Seed, Fion, and Hey Cupcake. (If Sweet Leaf had thrown the party, the wine toss would have been our branded beer pong table). Above all, everyone had a good time and left with a warm fuzzy feeling (not just from the alcohol) for Big Brothers Big Sisters.
I was lucky to have been able to work with such a great group of people within the Helping Austin organization and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Austin, and we will make next year’s Ice Ball Gala even cooler!!! Ice Ice Baby…
Rub a Dub-Dub, Thanks for the Grub!
By April on Aug 27 Filed In Austin, Texas, Food & Beverage 4 Comments
Working at a place on SOCO (South Congress) makes planning lunch-time outings pretty easy because there are so many awesome choices centrally located. Because of this, I thought I’d share my favorite places around our office to eat with all of you.
Top 10 Places to Eat Near (ish) Sweet Leaf Tea
1. Little Sub Trailer (note: cash only) Jeanie keeps this Mon.-Fri. biz jamming for lunch; where else in town can you get a sandwich and side salad (SUPER FRESH!) for under $7 Total!? Check their website out for the daily sammich special and the soup du jour. Jeanie is always happy to sample the soup to you while you wait for your food. Try it, you might just like it! They also serve delicious baked potatoes, homemade ice cream & fresh fruit; all out of a TINY trailer!
2. Home Slice Pizza (Note: Closed on Tuesday’s. Sells Sweet Leaf Tea.) This place might be my FAVORITE pizza place on the planet. I love the ambiance, the servers, the story behind the joint and the FOOD! All of the salads are incredible and the pizza is slap-your-momma good. My fave? Meatball, ricotta, artichoke heart and of course fresh basil, which they grow in their back yard. Low on dough? Visit them from lunch time to 6:30 or after 9:30 at night for slices. You seriously can’t beat it!
3. Cissi’s Market (Sometimes they have Sweet Leaf Tea in their cold case.) I won’t lie, the sandwiches and salads are pricey, but they are absolutely amazing. Anyplace that house-cures their own bacon is fine by me! My pick? Bacon & eggs, add cheddar cheese and tomatoes with a crunch beet salad on the side. Check out their menu to find out just what that is…hmmmm dreamy-tasting.
4. Threadgill’s It’s close to work, super affordable, always tasty and has a great atmosphere. Did I mention the fact that they have the best fried green tomatoes in town? What more can you ask for? Oh yea, live music some weekday nights and on the weekends.
5. Enoteca This place is Italian food heaven. Great daily specials (call ahead to find out what the soup du jour is), small area in the front for Italian staples, a charcuterie case, and a case with some very sexy homemade desserts. Yes, Please! If you decide to roll in one night for dinner, try the lasagna. It cost about $20 and fed me for that dinner and 3 lunches afterward. Amazing!
6. Southside Flying Pizza This place does not get the props it deserves because of Home Slice being right up the road, but if you are dying for great pizza, and want to avoid the huge hipster crowds, hit this place up. Not only are they serving up a side of surly pizza-slinger with every pie, they are also hand-tossing your dough and lovingly putting some of the greatest toppings EVER on it. My personal fave is: feta, prosciutto, artichoke hearts and fresh basil. Ah-mazing I tell you. They have a nice array of salads and always have a homemade soup du jour on hand. Don’t let the blaring death-metal fool you, they know their stuff!
7. Somnios These folks are all about fresh, local food and keeping it affordable. I encourage you to read their entree menu for more info about their concept. I feel lucky to live in a town where going to a restaurant that serves locally grown/raised food is starting to be “normal”. I haven’t had one meal that didn’t rock my world.
8. Torchy’s Serves up great tacos (breakfast, lunch and dinner) with interesting toppings. These aren’t your every day tacos my friend. Fried avocado rocks my world, as does their queso, which I truly believe, deep, deep in my heart is the BEST queso on earth. Seriously. Don’t believe me? Check it out and come back and comment here!
9. Leaf There are plenty of chain salad places and this place ain’t one of them. The salads are tossed with a side of sass by the crew that runs the place which always makes my lunch hour a happy experience. They have a black board with items that were bought locally, and a huge menu board of all kinds of tasty salads with you in mind. Want to really rock it and build your own? DO IT! The ingredients are mind-blowingly awesome and I don’t think you’ll be disappointed by their selection.
10. Lulu B’s (Note: cash only.) I can’t get enough of this place and even have a friend in Dallas that wants me to bring her one of their fine Vietnamese sammiches (banh mi) anytime I come to visit her. My staple meal here: Chinese bbq pork sammich, spring rolls with avocado (why more places don’t use avo in their rolls, I just don’t know) and a Mexican coke. Absolute bliss and perfection I tell you! Their hours are strange so please take the time out and look at their Myspace page for more details. Don’t blame me if you hear your stomach start to rumble, you start salivating and the next thing you know, you are driving across town for one of these delectable sandwiches. Remember, I warned you!
Live or visit here often and have your own favorites? Please comment! We’d love to add to our list!
Lulu B's Beautiful Sandwich..insert mouth-watering NOW
It Feels Like the First Time..
By Guest on Aug 26 Filed In ACL, Austin, Texas, Live Music 4 Comments
-Guest post by Tracy Marino (Uber fan of our Brand)
Sometimes memories are sparked by environment. Whether that’s fed by sight, smell or sound. We all have these memories but it’s rare for me to have one associated with a specific brand. And yet I do for Sweet Leaf Tea.
It was one of the first years of the Austin City Limits Music Festival…2002 or 2003…and I was lucky enough to have a pass for the VIP Grove. I learned quickly that the Austin heat and running around Zilker Park sure can build up a thirst. So there I was, walking up to the beverage bar and, always a sucker for good branding, looked with interest at the Sweet Leaf Tea bottles. Playful and authentic, my eye was drawn in. I said to the person at the bar that I had never seen that brand before and she told me how great the different flavors were, either by themselves or with a little alcohol to spice things up.
So while I wove in and out of the enthusiastic throngs and heard the sound of music both loud and softly wafting into the Grove, I tried every Sweet Leaf Tea flavor they had. All were great. But I was especially bowled over by the Mint and Honey Green Tea…so much so that even when I drink it now, I feel a bit transported.
I also introduced a family member to Sweet Leaf. In 2004, my brother Rick came to visit from Florida and so I know the exact moment when he tried it for the first time, also at the ACL Festival. Trying something new is as fun as getting someone you know to try something you dig, yes? And for my brother and I, who both love music, tying a brand to such an immersive experience really makes an impact.
Sweet Leaf Tea is delicious, no doubt. But even sweeter to me is the fact that drinking it is forever linked to fun and music…two elements that the brand embraces and personifies!
Vanapalooza (ie Van’s first Lolla)
By Van on Aug 24 Filed In Activities, Chicago, Clayton Christopher, Events, Live Music, Lollapalooza Add a Comment
So, its been a bit since Lolla has come and gone. The dust has settled and the smoke has cleared. All the Chicagoans (Chicag-anites?) have gone about their normal, daily lives. It seems like yesterday we were slingin’ all that sweet, Sweet Leaf Tea at our sweet consumers, and trading for super deliciousness in the form of lobster corn dogs, blue cheese foam chicken wings, and and all the burgers and dogs our arteries could take!
It truly is amazing to see a park within one of the greatest cities in America transform into a self sustaining city in a matter of days! Though I didn’t have much time to catch the music in action, the tunes filled the air at one of the greatest spectacles I’ve seen in my life. Rise Against was the only set I saw all the way through, and other than being clobbered in the mosh pit it was truly phenomenal. Pure, unadulterated talent with a definitive style and distinctive lyrics.
This event was also my first time actually meeting “The Man“. He was a bit taller than I’d expected. Though our encounters were brief, Clayton Christopher is surely man-crush worthy.
I really can’t believe Lolla has come and gone so quickly. Two weeks have passed and as much fun as it was, I’ve been working non-stop to get NorCal a head start on some of the other markets. Sweet Leaf’s organic goodness will surely win over the hearts of the millions up here!
The next time you are looking for an “Honest” beverage.. check the label. If Granny’s not on there, you know it’s not the real thing. After all, if you can’t trust Granny, who can you trust?!? Take my word for it, she’s the real thing. Homemade goodness in a bottle. As good as it gets, if not better.
What a better way to experience this legendary festival than through the eyes of The Granny, right?! All hail our overlord!
Austin Cycling. It’s not just for Kid-o’s anymore.
By Danny on Aug 21 Filed In Activities, Austin, Texas, Uncategorized 2 Comments
If you have ever been to Austin, you have seen the number of people that bike around town. Some do it for fun, while some do it for utility. With such a large amount of people that ride bikes in this town, comes a bike culture that can be unsurpassed. I have been riding my bike recreationally and functionally around Austin for about 4 years now, and I have come up with a 5 of my favorite bike-y things about Austin.
5 – Bike Lanes!
This may be a small concern with some, and they are often over looked, but the city of Austin has quite a few areas that have lanes to keep bikers safe.
4 – Passion
There are many reasons that people ride bikes in Austin, but they all include Passion. Whether it be to stay “green”, the sport, or for a good cause. Sweet Leaf sponsors and participates in many different cycling endeavors through the year. From the Livestrong Challenge to the MS 150 many people ride to support social issues in the Austin.
3 – Availability of bikes
If you don’t have a bike, don’t fret. There are many places to look for that special bike that fits your needs and wants. If you are looking for a new bike there are over 40 bike shops scattered across the Austin area. But if you are looking for an alternative route, my pick is craigslist. New, Used, Vintage, whatever you are looking for you can find it. (Usually at a price that will blow your mind.) I just recently bought a fixed gear for super cheap from Craigslist and it runs like a Champ! Check it out Below!!
2 – Excess of Biking Venues
Whether you ride: Mountain – Green Belt,
BMX – 9th Street,
Distance - 360 highway,
or just like to ride around – Town Lake hike and Bike Trail, Austin has the area that suites your needs.
1 – ATXBS.com
ATXBS (Austin Texas Bike Stuff*) is a blog-ish website has anything and everything you need to know about what’s happening in the Austin cycling scene. From bike polo to bike capture the flag to social rides, it has it all. If you haven’t heard of it, check it out at atxbs.com. Join me and some of the other Sweet Leaf Tea’mates riding at the social rides on Thursdays & if you think you can hang, check out the Heavy Metal Fitness Ride on Monday nights!
