simoneink: Chugga-Chugga-Choo! Choo!

Early Friday morning, I’ll be caught a plane to NYC to celebrate my big brother’s 50th birthday – but after my experience on the Patron Tequila Epicurean Express this week, I’d really rather be taking the train. Specifically, that train! Patron’s beautifully restored vintage car far outshines any first-class cabin in which I’ve ever had the pleasure to fly.

The two-day event here in Washington’s Union Station was for the St. Bernard Project, Liz McCarthy and Zack Rosenberg’s powerhouse of a Louisiana charity that is now focusing on helping the fishermen, shrimpers and oystermen whose livelihoods are threatened by the oil spill. They developed this organization in 2006 to help the St Bernard residents displaced from Hurricane Katrina. Teaming up with Patron Tequila, the goal for the Epicurean Express [with additional stops in Chicago, Philadelphia, New Orleans and Los Angeles] was to raise $75,000 to rebuild the houses of three fishermen, and to provide 375 additional hours of mental health services to fishermen and their families.

Thanks to a generous band of top Washington chefs, mixologists, and a few New Orleans colleagues who turned out scores of hors d’oeuvres and a five course dinner [featuring seafood from the Gulf of Mexico] we more than met our portion of the goal. We also made some good friends in the process, and our efforts didn’t go unnoticed: the event got coverage in over a dozen media outlets [and counting…] including The New York Times, The Washington Post, BBC News, Bon Appétit’s Epicurious, and Food & Wine. Here’s hoping that translates into even more support for the St. Bernard Project. And the next time the Patron Tequila Epicurean Express comes to town, I’ll certainly be on board… in more ways that one!