Asians & Friends Chicago

AFC’s Dining Club roars on with boar, ostrich and buffalo sliders this past Wednesday. Ten of us showed up at Hop Haus in Roger’s Park for their extensive array of gourmet burgers. It’s a great place, open, clean, very professional … and then check out the sports-themed, homoerotic art on the walls. Yowza! Next up, the Chicago Brauhaus, 4732 N. Lincoln, on Thurs. Oct. 20, 7 p.m. We’ll be entertained by Peter Hoffmann and Yodeling “Loni.” RSVP is early, Fri. Oct. 14. $20-$25 for entrees. (312) 409-1573.

Happiest of Labor Day weekends to all and best wishes on behalf of AFC’s Board of Directors. While some of you stayed in Chicago this past weekend and went to our regular Dim Sum on Sunday, others of us flew down to Houston for ifCON 2011. Featured events there included country line dancing, a visit to Houston’s Chinatown (with one of the biggest Vietnamese populations in the nation), a Buddhist temple and Nasa. Reuniting with friends and a pageant dinner with a dancing dog (sung to the tune of “You Can’t Eat Dog in Old Taiwan” and an Imelda Marcos sighting). Great job Houston! Thanks to all who made it a great event!

It’s been a busy few days for AFC, with our Dining Club outing at HB Bistro on Halsted (in Boy’s Town) last Thursday and our Anniversary Party at Steve and Ming’s up north just yesterday. The Bistro was fab and yesterday, the weather and Blue Angels (in Chicago’s Air and Water Show) at Hollywood Beach was just perfect. Happy 27th AFC!

Oh, and our next Dining Club will be Hop Hause, 7545 N. Clark in Roger’s Park on Wed. Sept. 14. RSVP by Mon. Sept. 12 at our hotline: (312) 409-1573. Ostrich and boar sliders! (And cheap too!)

From Bob D. at ifCON Houston 2011–There’s still time to join in on the fun!

The End is Near!
No, this is not a crazy warning from that nut case who predicted the end of the world, it’s a reminder that very very very soon, ifCon 2011 will begin in Houston, Texas. It’s still not too late to register, so if you are still considering joining the fun in Houston this Labor Day weekend, you can still log into our web site and register.

http://www.facebook.com/l/TAQBvcWX1AQDtMcAOwRLRKmaKlZP6Ck0euuLV5o8yFWvawg/www.ifCon2011.org

The registration fee covers the entire weekend and includes:
• Dinner and line dancing and bar transportation Friday night
• Pool party and dinner on Saturday night
• Trips to NASA and China Town Houston
• Dinner on Sunday night and
• Brunch on Monday
Please visit our web site. It has a ton of information and links about the hotel and the fabulous events we have planned, including our dinner menus.
Also, for those of you who only want to attend specific events and not the entire convention, we have ale-carte pricing! You can find it on our web site. If you intend to take advantage of this pricing structure, please send an e-mail to registration@ifcon2011.org and let our registration chairperson know which event you will be attending and how you intend to pay. The money should be sent to:
ifCon 2011
PO Box 7504
Houston, TX 77270-7504
Please note that the deadline for ale-carte pricing is also fast approaching. We will not be able to take money at the door, so it is very important that if you want to attend a specific event you need to pay in advance. The absolute final day we can receive notice or money for ale-carte events is Monday, August 29th.
This year is shaping up to be a fantastic event. For those of you coming into town on Thursday, one of our A and F members has graciously offered to host a pre conference pool party at his home. The festivities will begin at 7:00 pm and continue until around 11:00 pm. If you are planning on attending the pool party on Thursday, you should be assembled at the front of the hotel at 6:30. Some of our A and F members here in Houston, have graciously offered to help get you over to the party. For those of you coming in later, you can always take a taxi over to the house. It’s very close to the hotel.

Please make note of the address:
2214 De Milo Drive
Houston, Texas 77018
As a side note, this private pool area is “clothing optional”.
Transportation will be provided back to the hotel between 10:30 and 11. For those of you staying later, taxi service is readily available.
There are quite a few people still looking for roommates on our Face Book page. If you’re still looking for a roommate, I encourage you to check out our Face Book page and hook up.

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=104892852894338

Logistics
I wanted to take a moment and lay out the logistics for Friday, since it is our first official day of the conference. The registration office will be open from noon until 6:30 pm on Friday. If you came in on Thursday you can go to the registration desk to get your room, but you will not be able to register for the conference until Friday.
If you are arriving on Friday, you can go directly to the conference registration desk and check into the hotel as well as get your registration packet and t-shirt if you ordered one.
The registration desk will be clearly marked when you come into the front lobby of the hotel.
At 6:00 pm we will assemble in the hotel lobby for transportation to the first official opening event of the conference.
If you are going to arrive at the hotel after 6:30 on Friday night, and you plan on attending the first event, please notify Dick our registration chairman, so that he can make arrangements for you to get your registration packet and get you to the opening event location. Dick can be reached at:
registration@ifcon2011.org
And one last item…..I know that most, if not all of you will be sad to hear that this will be my last news letter before the big event. I have enjoyed writing to each of you every month, just as much as I am sure you all have enjoyed reading my Pulitzer winning prose. I am very excited to be the chairman of this years event and am really looking forward to meeting and hanging with each and every one of you.
Please have a safe trip to our wonderful city, and if there is anything that I or any of our committee members can do to help, please let us know.
Be one of The Few, The Proud and the Registered!

Members of AFC gathered with four others visiting from Atlanta to enjoy last weekend’s Market Days. The jaunt included corn dogs, a little rain and go-go boys!

Our next AFC Dining Club date and place are set: Thurs., August 18 at 7 p.m. HB Home Bistro at 3404 N. Halsted just north of Roscoe in Boys Town. Unfortunately, it is higher-priced with a fixed menu at $35 before tax and tip. It is also a BYOB establishment. However, the food is wonderful and the appetizer, salad, entree and desert dinner will be generous. Another caveat is that we need a firmer commitment from folks sooner than later, so Wed., August 10 will be the RSVP deadline. Please call (312) 409-1573 to reserve a space. They’re a small location, so they need to lock in a number sooner than later–with as few cancellations (none hopefully) as possible.