cinco de mayo party tips

Easy Tips for Hosting a Fiesta Happy Hour at Home Ft. @MoesTriangle @nothingbundt

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Easy Tips For Hosting a Fiesta Happy Hour At Home Ft. Moe’s Southwest Grill & Nothing Bundt Cakes

Let me tell you something about me…Cinco De Mayo is one of my favorite holidays. For me, it’s all about being with friends and celebrating the food, the drinks and the colorful culture of Mexico. This year, I took the opportunity to host a few Raleigh based blogger friends to a Cinco De Mayo Happy Hour in my home and wanted to share some of my easy tips for hosting your next FIESTA 🎊

THE INVITE

#SobeSavvyCelebrates INVITE

Canva is my go to for creating an invite to send to friends. It is easy to use and they have so many great templates to chose from. I sent my invite graphic via text but also made a Facebook event page to invite my guests, track RSVPs and send any updates.

SIPS

Happy Hour Margaritas & Tequila Shots | Photo Credit: SobeSavvy.com

Every Fiesta should have Margaritas & Tequila Shots at the top of their must sips list! My husband made a pitcher of Classic Margaritas using this easy shortcut: Simply Limeade + Tequila (we used Patron) . Have some simple syrup, salt and limes to customize to your guests liking. Want to make it spicy? Just add this Organic Jalepeno Limeade from Trader Joe’s!

Making Margaritas is as easy as 1-2-3 with these simple ingredients |Photo Credit: SobeSavvy.com

For refreshing non-alcoholic options, we served Jarritos (the all natural fruit flavored sodas from Mexico) and I made a pitcher of fruit infused water with strawberries, lemon and mint!

Non alcoholic Fiesta SIPS | Photo Credit: SobeSavvy.com

EATS by Moe’s Southwest Grill

Pick up a Nacho Kit from Moe’s Southwest Grill for your next FIESTA! | Photo Credit: SobeSavvy.com

Since I was hosting this FIESTA at home, I decided to make a simple menu consisting of semi-homemade food and ordered dessert. (I’ll share more of the sweet details about that next.) On the menu: Homemade Guacamole, Blue Corn Tortilla Chips, Mexican Fruit Cups (save time by getting the fresh cut of fruit spears from Aldi’s), Crunchy Beef Tacos, Shrimp Fajitas (use the fire roasted peppers found in the frozen food section at Trader Joe’s), Mexican Rice and Mexican Corn ( also from Trader Joe’s). I set it out on a long buffet table for guests to serve themselves.

For a fun customizable option, I also set up a Build Your Own Nacho Bar using a meal kit from Moe’s Southwest Grill! The Nacho Kit is a meal kit that comes in a box and feeds 4-6 people typically. It has everything you and your guests need to make the perfect plate of nachos. The kit includes: chips, your choice of 2 proteins, TWO bowls of queso, beans, pico de gallo, sour cream, jalapeños and salsa. Everything was so good and it definitely made things easy for me having it all ready to serve!

Build Your Own Nachos with a Nacho Kit from Moe’s! Location: 6679 Falls of Neuse Rd at Falls Village Raleigh, NC 27616

👀Watch it all come together here ⤵️:

SWEETS

Dessert Anyone? These Bundtinis from Nothing Bundt Cakes are so yummy!

Nothing Bundt Cakes offers an array of bundt cakes, which is why I had to have them for my guests for dessert. Their 🆕 Fiesta Bundtinis were festive, fun and delicious! You can choose different toppers to fit the occasion but these were perfect. I got an assorted dozen of vanilla, chocolate, white chocolate raspberry and red velvet. Nothing Bundt Cakes never disappoints in quality, flavor and presentation.

Nothing Bundt Cakes ‘Fiesta’ Bundtinis -6643 Falls of Neuse Rd- 27615 Raleigh NC -919 838-7270

Fiesta Fun

Hostess Leslie @SobeSavvy having some Fiesta photo fun w/Anna @annakhaddock

We had a nice warm day, which allowed for most of the Happy Hour to happen outdoors on our patio. However, upon arrival guests were greeted with a Welcome Drink/Margarita and asked to take a pic in our Fiesta photo area!

Say Fiesta🎊

Afterwards, guests were escorted out on the patio area where I found much of the decor at my local thrift store! After we ate, we played a Cactus Ring toss game ( which also doubled as a cooler for drinks..found at Target for $5.00), and my husband was a game show host for a trivia game based on facts about Mexico.

Congrats to Rada, _@sortakindafamous, for winning the trivia game!

Finally it was time for some pinata fun! I bought the pinata at Hobby Lobby for just $9.99 and filled it up with candies, confetti, as well as minature plastic bottles of liquor!

THANK YOU Gifts by Leslie

When it was time to for my Happy Hour to end, I was able to give hugs (yay for the Covid-19 vaccination), a coupon for a free bundles from Nothing Bundt Cakes, have some parting shots(with tequila of course) and gift everyone a party favor courtesy of Gifts By Leslie (my small business). Everyone got a mini bottle of Taijin Clasico Seasoning (found at Burlington Coat Factory).

Tajín Clássic Seasoning is a unique chili lime seasoning blend made with mild chili peppers, lime and sea salt. It’s the perfect ingredient to elevate the flavor of fruits, veggies, drinks and more.

RECAP

I had so much Fiesta fun hosting a Cinco De Mayo Happy Hour 🎊 for a few blogger friends. It was so good to see everyone in good spirits and in good health as we all try to manage our lives in the midst of Covid-19. I did my best at making guests feel comfortable, safe and at ease. I hope you find this post helpful and feel free to use along these easy tips for your next FIESTA! 🎊

👀Watch full #SobeSavvyCelebrates video recap here⤵️

CONNECT WITH ME @SobeSavvy
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Leslie H. Founder of SobeSavvy.com

Hey #Raleigh, Want Tasty #Tacos and #MexicanFood at your #CincoDeMayo party? Check out @Cantina18 ‘s New Catering Menu!

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Raise your hand if you are in countdown mode for one of my favorite foodie holidays, Cinco De Mayo! Bring on the tacos, guacomole, nachos, margaritas because it is almost time to Fiesta! Needless to say I was very excited to receive an invite for SobeSavvy.com to join other media guests for an early Cinco de Mayo celebration at Cantina 18 in Cameron Village.

Described as a “festive setup featuring Mexican fusion dishes made with local meats & fish, plus craft margaritas“, this restaurant is one that I enjoy coming to with my family when we want fresh, flavorful Mexican food. Just listen to what my daughter, #outandboutAva had to say about their guacomole during a previous visit.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BfUC-Q9hUWQ/

Last night’s exclusive event showcased the launch of Cantina 18‘s new catering menu and I am so excited to share the information with you! Take a look at the amazing eats you can have at your next Mexican themed party or any gathering:

Enjoy the convenience of letting someone else prepare delicious food for you to serve to your family and friends! No matter if you have vegetarians or meat lovers at the party, there will be something for everyone to enjoy!

My favorite bites from last night were the goat cheese guacomole, the house made salsas, the shrimp quesadilla and chicken tinga. Pretty much anything coming out of Chef Jason Smith’s kitchen is going to be AMAZING! Check out my video recap of last night’s event:

SobeSavvy Tip: Follow along on social media and read more about the dining experiences @Cantina18 on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

*Have you ever been to Cantina 18? 🌮 DO YOU PLAN TO CELEBRATE Cinco De Mayo?🎉 Let me know in the comments below!

Cantina 18

Cameron Village

433 Daniels St

Raleigh, NC 27605

Celebrate #CincodeMayo with these Drink Recipes from #TequilaCorralejo @corralejo_mx

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​Disclaimer: SobeSavvy.com received samples for editorial review, however the opinions are 100% my own. 

Photo Credit: SobeSavvy.com

Today may be Taco Tuesday, but in T minus 3 days the mother of all Mexican
Holidays is upon us…Cinco De Mayo! My favorite way to celebrate is by hosting
my own festive party at home. It’s simple, you just need: 

  • Mexican Food (set up a taco bar with a variety of
    tortillas, toppings and healthy proteins like chicken, shrimp, fish)  
  • Casual ,Colorful Decor (Colorful paper lanterns, fresh flowers, mexican
    blankets all create a laid-back and fun vibe)
  • Music (we stream our favorite party inspired playlist thru Spotify)
  •  Drinks (have a self serve bar with cold beer, and non-alcohoic
    options like juice and water but also WOW your guest with a featured
    cocktail or two)

This year, I plan to serve tequila cocktails featuring
Tequila Corralejo®, using their Blanco and Reposado expressions. If you never heard of this award-winning line of premium tequila, marketed by Infinium Spirits, it’s because it is one of the best-kept secrets in the tequila-industry. So I am so excited to share about this brand and offer you some drink recipes to make at your own Cinco De Mayo Party!

Corralejo, which is already a top 10 Tequila in America was established in 1775 in the Mexican State of Guanajuato by Don Pedro Sanchez de Tagle. They use the ultra traditional methods of fermentation and double distillation with clay ovens used to cook the agave plant {which resembles a weird pineapple!} They use huge copper pot stills for the distillation.

Their Blanco is bottled directly from these copper stills. I love love the shape of the bottle. Slender and elegant. It fits Corralejo’s brand messaging: “Those With Pride Stand Tall”. All of Corralejo’s bottles are produced at a glass factory also owned by Moreno, a few miles away from the distillery. In fact, the brand is one of a handful of tequila companies granted the right to produce tequila outside of Jalisco.

Hubby played bartender and I played customer {perfect right ?} He always says when trying a new tequila you should always stick to a simple classic the first time to truly taste it. He made a classic top shelf Margarita: Corralejo Blanco, Cointreau, fresh lime juice and if you like simple syrup. Shake and pour in a highball glass. This allowed their blanco to truly shine.

Next up was what he called a cucumber margarita.Follow above recipe but substitute Cointreau with Grand Marnier and add cucumbers to top it off. The cucumber infuse a fresh taste throughout the cocktail {and also look super cute in the drink}.Rim with sugar or salt.

Their Reposado is aged 4 mos in 3 different types of oak barrels and is best enjoyed neat or on the rocks. This allows you to taste it’s complexity in it’s full glory. This splendid reposado was a double Gold Medal in 2007 San Francisco World Spirits Competition

For more information on this spectacular Tequila, please visit http://tequilacorralejo.mx/