OK, let me get this straight, I get delicious sandwiches delivered to my door for extremely reasonable prices AND I’m contributing to a good cause? Where the hell do I sign up?!

Freshbox Catering dropped me a message the other day asking if I was interested in tasting a Freshbox sandwich for some feedback and to help spread the word. (This is my “they gave me free food” disclosure, but it’s totally unnecessary, because I will be PAYING them for food soon, I promise.) I never turn down sammiches, so of course I gave them the green light. Customer manager Kelly dropped off four boxed lunches a few hours ago. My belly is so happy.

Each box comes with a sandwich (I had shaved roast beef with roasted red peppers, provolone, red onions and horseradish aioli), an apple, a bag of chips, a pickle and a chocolate covered Oreo. OMFG these oreos. ::drool:: Anyway. It was an awesome lunch. The other 3 people I shared boxes with (you didn’t think I ate all 4, did you?) were pleased, too.

All that schtuff is only $9 a box? And they BRING IT TO YOU? Win. Win win win.

Here’s the greatest thing about Freshbox, though – aside from good food, they’re doing good deeds. Their employees come from Faith Mission Shelters, so they’re providing income and job experience to folks who would otherwise be stuck on the street. Cool, eh?

Their tag line says it all “Feed your appetite. Nourish your community.”

BONUS: Online ordering coming soon

Since 1991 Crimson Cup Coffee & Tea has roasted and packaged quality, great-tasting coffee in Columbus, Ohio and taught independent business owners how to be successful in specialty coffee.  In May Crimson Cup turns 19; to celebrate on May 11th they are throwing a HUGE bash at their coffeehouse on High Street in Clintonville.  As a “thank you” to Columbus for being such a supportive community, they will sell $1 lattes and mochas all day!  In addition to $1 drinks there will be giveaways, music, and much more.  Make sure you mark this special event on your calendar!

When: Tuesday, May 11, 2010 from 6AM-8PM

What: $1 lattes and mochas to celebrate Crimson Cup’s 19th Anniversary!

Where: Crimson Cup Coffeehouse 4541 N. High Street Columbus, Ohio 43214

To help keep you informed on the events surrounding the 2010 McDonald’s All American High School Basketball Games, we’re featuring a series of posts from guest blogger Sabrina Terry. Sabrina, an OSU student and McDonald’s crew member, has been granted behind the scenes access to each of the major events of McDonald’s All American Week.

POWERADE Jam Fest – March 29, 2010

Tonight was the POWERADE Jam Fest and I had the most amazing seats in the house! I sat right on the court at a media table, the absolute closest I could be to the action. Everyone is excited to see the players and they all put on a great show. We watched as they battled it out over the three-point shoot out. Maggie Lucas for the girl’s team dominated the entire competition with 22 points!

Next the players went through a timed obstacle course of weaving and shooting where the fastest player won. The best boy’s player completed the entire course perfectly in 25 seconds. They even had a crowd member win a chance to try and complete the course in under a minute to win a plasma TV and he did it!

To give the players a little break Cupid came out to do his famous song, “The Cupid Shuffle,” and it was a lot of fun to watch the players get out with him and dance to the music.

Finally the main event came: the dunk contest. It was pretty outrageous to see how talented and creative these players were, just like the pros! I saw everything from coming from behind the hoop around to drunk, to catching the ball from the side of the backboard and dunking. I could tell these players had definitely put some thought into this and had a really good time with each other. Ray McCallum really stood out with his performance and had one of the top scores of the night. The entire night was a ton of fun and really was a great intro to the main event on Wednesday at the All-American games.

Up next, I’ll have an opportunity to interview some of the players, so stay tuned.

Mark your calendars; Dine Originals Columbus Restaurant Week is Back! Restaurant week will be held March 8-14 and with 40 restaurants participating there is bound to something for even the pickiest of eaters. The price points are very affordable too! Each set menu will be priced at either $10.10, $20.10, or $30.10.  Even better, a portion of the proceeds for restaurant week will go to Local Matters, a non-profit focused on educating the community on the benefits of eating healthy, locally produced foods.

To view the menus for restaurant week and to find our more information visit www.dineoriginalscolumbus.com or follow them on twitter www.twitter.com/dineoriginals.

Who Would You Choose As Best Taste?

Participate in the TasteCasting 2009 Best Taste Poll and support your favorite establishments.

We all have our favorites! What are yours?

This is your chance to vote for your favorites.

Vote, Forward, and Have Your Friends and Family Vote Too!

Vote, forward to a friend, tell your facebook fans, twitter tweeps, myspace and Linkedin Connections to get involved. The polling will close on midnight, December 31, 2009 and winning establishments in each category will be notified on January 4th.

With Christmas almost here… you’re probably still looking for last minute gifts. Well a great idea is to shop local as many of my Columbus friends and Social Media lovers have been mentioning. While you’re shopping at these awesome local stores, you should take some time to learn about the SBB and ask these shops if they accept the SBB Community Card.

The Small Business Beanstalk (SBB) is a Columbus based organization that helps local businesses connect to one another so that they can utilize each other’s services and help each other grow. For example, say a local restaurant needs new menus printed. The SBB would connect the restaurant to a printing business in the area. With all these businesses connected together, it would help boost the Columbus economy, as well as cultivate a tight knit community of businesses working together to help one another succeed. It’s a pretty genius idea since Columbus is already a great community of people and businesses, that like to see each other thrive. When I learned about the group, I believed in their vision so much that I joined as a member and decided to help them with their social media efforts, though I’m not getting paid to do so. In the interest of full disclosure, however, in return for the work I do for them, they are helping me with their connections to find a more work.

One of the other great benefits of SBB membership is the Community Card. Card carrying members can visit the participating local businesses and receive discounts and specials. The best part is that the card is totally 100% free! You can sign up on the SBB website and have the card mailed to you or you can pick one up at one of these local stores:

MilkBar (Short North)
TigerTree (Short North)
LadyBird (Short North)
What the Rock (Short North)
Shine Me Up (Downtown)

Check out the website for a full list of stores and restaurants currently accepting the card and their deals. The SBB is currently expanding all over Columbus including Dublin, Worthington, and Clintonville, etc. so be sure to ask every local store you shop at if they accept the card.

You can also follow The SBB on Twitter (@thesbb) and become a fan on Facebook to keep up to date with the newest stores and restaurants accepting the card. Or if you’re a business interested in participating in the program you can contact Starr @ thesbb.com.

Happy shopping and happy holidays!

Tuesday, December 1st is World Aids Day and Columbus AIDS Task Force wants you to show support by picking up your fork and chowing down to help fight HIV!

A Reason To Dine is a city-wide, fund raising event for the Columbus AIDS Task Force, as well as a way to create change here in Central Ohio, by encouraging people to learn about HIV and its affects our community.

Many Columbus area restaurants are participating in a Reason To Dine by donating a portion of their proceeds and distributing information on HIV.

Established in 1984, Columbus AIDS Task Force (CATF) is a full-service, community-based, non-profit AIDS Service Organization providing comprehensive care services, educational programs and an HIV testing program. CATF’s mission is to fight the spread of HIV; reduce its transmission, stigma and the resulting discrimination through education and awareness; and provide quality services to individuals and families affected by HIV/AIDS.

Columbus Aids Task Force provides rapid HIV testing at the CATF Office:

Open Testing Hours

Tuesday: 3:30p.m.-7:30p.m. | Wednesday: 11a.m.-2p.m.

Testing Hours by Appointment:

Thursday: 2p.m.-6p.m.  (By appointment: call 614-340-6729)

The Columbus AIDS Task Force has also partnered with Columbus Public Health to offer free STI/STD testing. December testing dates are:

Tuesday, December 1st 3:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. | Wednesday, December 2nd 11 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. Tuesday, December 8th 3:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. | Wednesday, December 9th 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. | Wednesday, December 16th 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

Starting Wednesday, November 11th Dirty Frank’s Hot Dog Palace will feature a new menu.  The menu has been expanded to offer additional, unique dishes; including the octodog (mac and chesse topped with a hot dog).  In addition to new offerings, customers can now order their dogs “ripped” or “charred”(fried or grilled).  A trip to Dirty Frank’s is definitely on my schedule this week!

Get a sneak peek of the new doggie delights here:

http://www.dirtyfrankshotdogs.com/

Local Matters is putting together the first ever Local Foods Week October 3rd-9th. Seven days of events at local establishments to support the Local Foods cause – making local, healthy, sustainably grown food equally accessible to everyone in our community. A full schedule of the events with detail can be found at www.local-matters.org/local-foods-week, but here’s what’s in store:

Saturday, October 3
1000 Friends of Local Matters Promotion at Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream
North Market Harvest Festival
Ohio Market Day – The Hills Market

Sunday, October 4
Pancake Breakfast at the Hills Market
Family Afternoon in a School Garden
Taste of Grandview, by Third and Hollywood
Dirty Franks Celebrates Local Matters

Monday, October 5
Elevator Brewery tour
Family Style from the Farm, by Alana’s
Betty’s Celebrates Local Matters

Tuesday, October 6
From Cow to Cone: kitchen tour of Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream
Columbus Brewery Company Tour and Tasting
Local dinner from local farmers at The Worthington Inn
Surly Girl Saloon Celebrates Local Matters

Wednesday, October 7
Robin Davis cooking class with Chef Michael Jones, Executive Director of Local Matters
Tip Top Celebrates Local Matters

Thursday, October 8
The Hills Market Local Foods Fall Family Fun Spaghetti Dinner
House Wine Local Tasting

Friday, October 9
Whole Foods Market Fridays at Five, Special Local Harvest Tasting & Fall Crush

Throughout the entire week you can stop by any of these places and purchase a $1 Local Matters’ Sprout to show your commitment to local foods. Crimson Cup Coffee Shop; Cup O’ Joe; The Greener Grocer; The Hills Market and Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream.

During the entire month of October, National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Columbus is encouraged to “Think Pink”.

Visit a participating Columbus Dunkin’ Donuts during October and purchase any dozen donuts that includes a special ‘pink’ variety, and Dunkin’ Donuts will make a $1 donation to the Stefanie Spielman Fund for Breast Cancer Research at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute.

As an added bonus, when you buy the dozen donuts with a pink donut Dunkin Donuts will treat you to a free medium coffee on your next visit.

Looks like I’ll be visiting Dunkin’ Donuts a few times this month! Great donuts, delicious coffee and an incredible cause!

Participating locations include: