how long does one of these events usually last? Im interested in attending one even though it would be a long drive from So Cal.

Ah-ha according to their website, The Beach Chalet can accomodate large groups of up to 75 people. Hey, it would great to have some live music at the meet; they have pretty decent live jazz on Tues nights.

Maybe we can work with the city to cordon off some of the parking lot for our cars. My neighbor is an SF cop; lemme see what he says....

Check out the sunset (caveat emptor: no fog). Afterwards, we can get a bon fire going on the beach!! Anyone have a guitar??

--Andrew

how long does one of these events usually last? Im interested in attending one even though it would be a long drive from So Cal.

Usually, they're just an afternoon. If the empeg guys are able to come out from England, there will be some competitions with prizes (Rio swag etc.) and a Q&A session. Actually, that stuff will probably happen with or without the empeg guys come to think of it.

But there's plenty of great stuff to see and do in the Bay area, so no reason to avoid the long drive. Come up for a weekend and do the tourist thing.

If it happens on May 25th, you can come hang out at BayCon with me.

how long does one of these events usually last? Im interested in attending one even though it would be a long drive from So Cal.

Isn't the long drive half the fun with an Empeg in your car? I thought that was the point!

Sweeet. Let us know what your cop friend says. Maybe the Chalet would be willing to block some spots off as well. That place would be perfect the more i think of it. Good idea!

Is the Beach Chalet by that cool antique arcade?? That place rocks!!!

Calvin

Musee Mechanique!!! Yes, it's just up the road half a mile. I LOVE that place. The guy who maintains their machines is super nice... Larry's his name. He's helping me rebuild a photo booth (a loooong term project of mine).

This idea gets better and better!

Ooo ooo! Don't forget the Camera Obscura with the nifty holographic bowl on the inside. :-D

I used to live right by the beach there.

Calvin

Yeah, me too. I used to live on 46th and Cabrillo. We're still in SF, just up a little more past the fog, up on 16th Ave.

Anyway, I've got an appt tomorrow with the special events person at the Beach Chalet. I'll post more details tomorrow....
--Andrew

Awesome! Thanks for taking this on man. I wish i could, but by the time i get home at night from Marin it's too late to do anything. Let me know if there's anything i can do in the long run to help out.

OK, I talked to the events people at both the Beach Chalet in SF and The Tied House in Mountain View. The Beach Chalet would be a little tighter on time of day (lunch time only) because we (as a group) would be occupying their restaurant table space, whereas the Tied House's back room would be available at any time of day: lunch, dinner, evening. I've listed the pros/cons for each. Here is some preliminary info. I picked a date and assumed Saturday May 25th for the meet.

Beach Chalet (BC)
The BC is located right on Ocean Beach in San Francisco, which cool because we could continue apres activities after lunch on the beach during the afternoon, sunset, and bon fire in the evening and into the night (provided the weather cooperates). The building itself is a SF historical landmark. There is an in-house brewery and the food is pretty good. Possible live music.

Since it is Memorial Day weekend, the BC is restricted to about 45 people (rather than 75 as usual) for lunch. They would be willing extend the hours if we chose menu#3. Total includes free brewery tours + tax + gratuity /head. All beverages are extra.
Menu#1: 11-1:30pm (soup/salad/entree) $22.40/head
Menu#2: 11-1:30pm (soup/salad/entree/dessert) $27.50/head
Menu#3: 10-2pm (app platters/soup/salad/entree/dessert) $34/head
The BC would entertain the idea of a band, but has to be fairly low key like an ambient jazz band they typically have on Tues nights. This is tentative and needs to get approved. Estimate would be about $500.
Pros: Great location, beach, especially on a sunny day w/ a pretty decent chance in May. Tons of parking along the beach, but need to arrive way before noon to occupy as a group before the weekend crowds.
Cons: As a group we're limited to lunch time, but bar is always open for random refills. Chance of fog, but may burn off by the afternoon. Limited to a group of 45 people for the group meal. Fairly pricy.

The Tied House (TH)
The Tied House is located near downtown Mountain View midway between SJ and SF. Like the BC it has comparable decent food with an in-house brewery. I calculated the costs based on the banquet information they have on their web site. I assumed the following: average entree ($16) +soup/salad+tax+gratuity+unlimited sodas= $20/head. The TH suggests approx 5 app platters (ave $40 ea) per 25 guests, so that's about $8/head extra, assuming total of 50 people.
Menu: (app platter/soda/soup/salad/entree) $28/head
Bottomless beer pint option: $5.50/head (lunch), $10/head (dinner).
Pros: We have the "beer garden" room available to a large group and flexible times for either lunch or dinner. Easy to get to on Caltrain, midway between SJ & SF.
Cons: Limited apres activities, far from the city.

For the bold and adventurous I'm also mentioning Chrissy Field as a third option, which is part of the Golden Gate National Parks Association . The possibilities run the gamut from large scale BBQ facilities near Fort Point to the more formal dining facilities at the Presidio Golden Gate Club . We've done the BBQ thing for our kids' birthday parties a couple of times, and they have had a blast. There's great scenery, plenty of parking, nice beach, space for kite flying, frisbee, bicycling, and whatever ball. The only glitch is someone has to volunteer to do the BBQ and bring the beer, and the possibility of fog (as Tony mentioned). I doubt there will be any rain in May. Maybe we can get Armadillo Willy's to cater the BBQ. Looks like about $15-$25/head. I dunno, what do you guys think?

--Andrew

wow, that's a lot of information. I'm pretty much open to anything, but I suggest The Tied House because it's cheaper and in between SF and SJ. If anyone has a problem let's hear it and set something in stone so we can all start making plans to be in the area...

later,
ajay

Tied House might be better for most people because it's cheaper and driving in MV is less of a hassle than driving in SF.

It's also nearer to Sonic Blue. Any chance for a visit to SB? If they're willing, I imagine many of us would enjoy meeting some of their team, hearing about the current music products, and Q/A'ing on the market and future directions for home/car entertainment.

The problem with that idea is that is or has been involved with the car player are based either in Cambridge or Portland.

Rob

Is there plenty of parking near the Tied house so that we can convene? Can we play music and compete without causing the authorities to show up? I think the Beach place is a little better because there are plenty of parking spots facing the sand that won't bother anyone.

Calvin

Ditto, i went to the Chalet yesterday for lunch... and man would that place be perfect. We would need to corner off some parking spots though, cause if it's a nice day that place is packed. There's a nice lot across the street, that's pretty huge... it goes the length of the beach a good ways.. but getting a bunch of spots together would be key.

Yeah, I drove by the Chalet around 11am both on Sat & Sun. There was still plenty of parking at the beach lot on both days. I still haven't had a chance to hook up with my cop neighbor to find out about reserving parking. I think I'll call the National Park Service tomorrow about reserving some parking as I believe the beach technically falls under their jurisdiction.

The events person at the Tied House got a crease in her undies when I mentioned that we would be getting together out in the parking lot after lunch. I tried to tone it down a bit, but she warned me about "cutting into their revenue" by staying too long. Oh please, shoot me now....

Overall, the Tied House would be simpler, we meet, eat, crank some beers, meet, and everything is taken care of. I just think the Beach Chalet would be a blast, especially on a sunny day like this weekend.

--Andrew

Today I talked to a person in SF City Parks and Recreation about the possibility of reserving some parking for our event near the Beach Chalet. They evaluate each situation on a case by case basis and asked that we submit a letter with our request. The lots tend to fill up by noon, and her gut feeling is that we would have no problem if we showed by by 10-11 am. I tend to agree; if everyone arrives by 11ish, we would have ample parking.

--Andrew

I much prefer the idea of a dedicated space, a private business' parking lot that we can more or less guarantee will be ours. We wouldn't want latecomers to arrive to find no parking.

The Woodside meet worked really well for this, it was the perfect location. Surely we can find something like it?

The beach lots are really quite open Tony.

Calvin

I live in SF and work in RWC. Either place is good. Beach chalet is going to be crowded or the weather will be foggy (or both). Generally the Beach chalet is PACKED no matter what.
An alternate to the parking lot at the beach is to cruise into GGpark, it's right behind the Chalet and there are areas that can be reserved....Chrissy field is totally redone and VERY cool but there may be space issues and the cafe is rather small.

God...I better get my Empeg installed before the meet, wait...I need a tuner (stupid single DIN M3)...FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, SOMEONE MAKE A TUNER FOR THE EMPEG ;0)

I'm not sure what you mean by "packed". If you read my earlier posting, the plan would be to rent out most of the restaurant space at the Beach Chalet for our use. From my experience, the Ocean Beach area only gets packed in the afternoon. But you're right, the soccer field parking behind the Beach Chalet is yet another alternative.

The only glitch I could forsee is accomodating those who arrive later in the afternoon.
--Andrew

Hey Calvin, I was going to recommend one of the places on your list called the Moss Beach Distillery , located between HMB and SF on Rt 1. What a kick-ass place! I was there a couple of years ago. Its off the beat and track, less crowds, good parking, maybe more suited for the Empeg users meet. I just talked to them on the phone and they have a separate dining room separate from their restaurant. Their events person is off today, but the hostess said they probably could accomodate out group. (There's a 360 pano virtual view on their web page; I counted at least 50 seats). What a great view, heaps of beer, good food, parking. C'mon guys, what else do we need?? Any interest?? Lemme know and we can start pursuing one of these places....

--Andrew

Nice place, but it looks a little small for our purposes, based on those 360 views. If the Woodside meet were held in that place, we wouldn't have fit.

I'd be interested. Can you inquire as to the size of the dining room area (seating size) to appease Tony's worries?

Calvin

How many people should we plan for?
--Andrew

A LOT. There were what... like 50 at the last meet? I'd guess at least three times that now with the huge influx of users. Or would that be overestimating....

I can't figure out how to get the Riocar.org poll back, but I would guess (wild guess) we should plan for more than 50. And remember that most people will come in their own car, so if you have 75 attendees, then you need room in the parking area for 75 cars.

OK, so I'll plan on 75-100. That pretty much eliminates a few places like the Beach Chalet and Moss Beach Distillery. I have a couple other places in mind...
--Andrew

Loren,
If we're talking about 150 people, I think eliminates restaurants, which limits us to a large hall somewhere with catering as an option for food. I don't know of any restaurants that can accomodate a group of 150 people especially on a busy Memorial Day weekend.
--Andrew