What a journey this blog has been so far! Three years later, it is definitely beyond anything I could have ever even imagined. I am so grateful each day for all the awesome invites I receive to restaurants and events, the friends/connections I have made and the fact that I have a way to continually express and improve my creative outlet through writing and photography. #winning

While this post isn’t going to be about travel or even vegetarian food per se, it is a story that captures the essence of the fun adventure my life has taken on through the blog. The sometimes random, yet amazing things that can happen in a day in the life of The Vegetarian Tourist. Read on…

A pretty average summer day it was supposed to be. Starting off my morning at Flywheel with a challenging, heart-pumping indoor cycling class, then followed by a full day at work (or as I like to call it, “the day job”). My only plan for the evening was to attend the 20th anniversary party of the well-known bar, Twisted Spoke, for a media happy hour.

Flywheel Indoor Cycling Classes Photo Credit: Flywheel

I knew my friend Mina (aka ChicagoFoodGirl) was also supposed to attend the happy hour at Twisted Spoke, so I texted her that day to confirm she was coming. During our text conversation, she asked me if I was going to the Gloria Estefan event later that evening. I replied saying, no, I wasn’t invited and I had no clue what she was talking about! I knew she would fill me in on the specifics when we saw each other later that day.

Mina Of ChicagoFoodGirl

Because of the lovely traffic that makes Chicago highways a parking lot during rush hour, Mina missed the entire happy hour. Bummer. By the time she arrived, we both just decided to move on from Twisted Spoke and go grab dinner in the area. As we started searching for nearby options, we stumbled upon Coalfire Pizza. Since neither of us had been to Coalfire Pizza before, and it happened to be around the corner from Twisted Spoke, it was an easy, quick decision. Based on the awesome reviews and beautiful photos we had seen from our other foodie friends, we were very excited to try it out.

Over our mouth-watering pizza (paper-thin crust, mozzarella, whipped ricotta, oregano, garlic olive oil, pepper, chopped garlic and basil) Mina told me more details about the event with Gloria Estefan. Sponsored by the rum company Botran, the event was a private dinner at Table 52 at 10pm and Gloria Estefan and her husband Emilio Estefan were going to be there. “Why so late?” I asked. Mina said it was because Gloria and Emilio (like how we are on a first name basis with them now?) were coming straight from their new Broadway show opening in Chicago called ‘On Your Feet.’ It made sense to me then, otherwise I was thinking who eats dinner that late?!

Coalfire Pizza Chicago

Mina said I should just come along with her to the dinner and be her plus one (even though she had only RSVP’d for herself). We figured it was worth a shot and I had nothing to lose (except maybe my pride of being turned away at the door). Since we had a little time to kill before the late event, we hit up one of my favorite restaurants in Chicago, Tanta for some of my absolute favorite drinks, the el chingon (jalapeño tanteo tequila, fidencio mezcal, lime, rocoto ice, cilantro). We enjoyed a beautiful evening on the rooftop, caught up on life, discussed some of the fun perks of being foodie writers in Chicago, and then head out to Table 52.

Tanta El Chingon Drink

When we arrived at Table 52 around 9:50pm, I was feeling pretty confident I was going to get denied and have to go home. But since I was with Mina, it was literally no big deal and they welcomed me right in to the event. All I could think in that moment was, “OMG, I’m totally crashing Gloria Estefan’s private dinner party.” Both Mina and I giggled with excitement, figured out a table to park ourselves at and anxiously awaited the arrival of Gloria and Emilio.

The room slowly began to fill with other guests until Gloria and her entourage finally arrived around 10:30pm. Mina and I were literally sitting in disbelief as we pretty much just stared and watched her greet other guests. It really was a small, private event of only about 40 guests, so we were able to see (aka stalk) Gloria the entire time. And, my initial thought upon seeing her was that she looked amazing, had impeccable, flawless skin and from afar, seemed so jovial and welcoming. It turns out, when we went up to meet her in person, all my observations were confirmed. She was so sweet and kind and was not irritated in the least to have pictures taken with her. I love when celebrities are humble like that.

Hanging With Gloria Estefan

Throughout the rest of the evening, I just couldn’t get over my unbelievable luck and good fortune for the day. Who knew when I woke up that morning that I would be dining at a private event with a celebrity? Surely not me! When I finally got home that night around 12:30am, I was sure I would immediately fall asleep from my long, eventful day. But, on the contrary, I was in bed, staring at the ceiling, wide awake with a huge smile on my face. Partly from the pure elation of the day’s events and partly from just being so incredibly grateful for these opportunities.

While this magical day was clearly an anomaly (since I’m not dining with celebrities everyday…not yet at least!), absolutely none of this would have been possible without starting my blog. Getting invited to the Twisted Spoke event, becoming great friends with Mina and being open to possibilities outside my imagination. Like I said, I never really knew where the blog would take me and I’m excited and curious to see where the journey continues.

Thank you to all of you for continued support, readership and encouragement. Much more fun to come, that much I can promise you!