REVIEW: Detroit Meets New York at Art Van Furniture ...And it was FREE!
DETROIT MEETS THE BIG APPLE - ALL THAT WAS MISSING WAS CARRIE AND MR. BIG
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 23
On Thursday afternoon, I was reading my Art Van sales email (everyone should sign-up for it) when I came across an announcement for an Art Van event billed as "Detroit Meets New York". Since I recently returned from the BlogHer conference in New York, the event immediately caught my eye.
The announcement said that on Saturday, October 23rd, Art Van Furniture was turning their headquarters in Warren into the "city that never sleeps" complete with replicas of the Statue of Liberty and the Empire State Building. So being the inquisitive person that I am, I wanted to find out why Art Van was putting on such a cool event.
I found out from a press release that the transformation of the Art Van Furniture headquarters into the heart of New York City was for a special fundraiser to benefit the Henry Ford Neuroscience Institute and the Hermelin Brain Tumor Center. All the money raised during the Thursday night charity gala will provide research and treatment opportunities for neurological diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy and brain tumors.
Since most of us don't have the money to attend the Thursday night fundraiser, Art Van still gave all it's customers a totally FREE taste of the Big Apple with an all day New York City event on Saturday and my son and I played hooky from his cub scout meeting and decided to go and check it out.
We were greeted at the entrance by a New York City doorman who was decked out in the traditional long black overcoat and top hat. He even gave us a bow and a hat tip to welcome us in. The store was setup into neighborhoods, each representing a different section of New York City.
This sushi all disappeared right after I photographed it..
We started walking and came first upon SoHo, that sophisticated trendy section of New York. The SoHo station contained a full sushi bar, dance floor, DJ, and break dancers under a nighttime New York backdrop. (Aren't you mad you didn't go?) Hungry customers were emptying the sushi bar as the break dancers were spinning on their heads and my son and other kids were grooving on the dance floor to the DJ's tunes.
We next walked to the Statue of Liberty which was surrounded by a candy bar. My son's eyes were enormous as he realized that every kind of candy imaginable was there for the taking!!!
Next, we walked to Chinatown which was illuminated overhead by red paper lanterns that gave a soothing nighttime ambiance to the area complete with cherry blossoms.
We then strolled into Central Park (complete with green grass carpet) where we tried traditional New York coney dogs, soft pretzels, and ice cream cones. There was also a roasted peanut bar with sample bags for customers to take home.
The Empire State Building bar...
To wash down our New York lunch, we walked over to the Empire State building which was surrounded by a bar with all kinds of soft drinks and bottled waters. My son was in heaven since I allowed him to have two Sprites which the bartender poured with a flourish.
Times Square was next (in the electronics department) which contained some wonderful New York thin crust pizza - this was my favorite station in the bunch.
We then walked to the 24/7 Diner which was dessert heaven. This whole section resembled a bridal shower party with starch white cloth covered tables containing wonderful mouth watering desserts each being assembled by a chef in full white attire. Even the Art Van sales staff were sneaking in getting some of these decedent, sinful creations. I was all over the lemon cheesecake as I stood there enjoying every bite listening to our own private saxophonist.
My kid kicking it in SoHo
Art Van totally put on a wonderful customer event that was more than just a "taste" of New York - it was the Big Apple right here in Detroit! All that was missing was Carrie and Mr. Big. I was shocked that they did not make an appearance :)
REVIEW: Detroit Meets New York at Art Van Furniture ...And it was FREE!
DETROIT MEETS THE BIG APPLE - ALL THAT WAS MISSING WAS CARRIE AND MR. BIG
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 23
On Thursday afternoon, I was reading my Art Van sales email (everyone should sign-up for it) when I came across an announcement for an Art Van event billed as "Detroit Meets New York". Since I recently returned from the BlogHer conference in New York, the event immediately caught my eye.
The announcement said that on Saturday, October 23rd, Art Van Furniture was turning their headquarters in Warren into the "city that never sleeps" complete with replicas of the Statue of Liberty and the Empire State Building. So being the inquisitive person that I am, I wanted to find out why Art Van was putting on such a cool event.
I found out from a press release that the transformation of the Art Van Furniture headquarters into the heart of New York City was for a special fundraiser to benefit the Henry Ford Neuroscience Institute and the Hermelin Brain Tumor Center. All the money raised during the Thursday night charity gala will provide research and treatment opportunities for neurological diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy and brain tumors.
Since most of us don't have the money to attend the Thursday night fundraiser, Art Van still gave all it's customers a totally FREE taste of the Big Apple with an all day New York City event on Saturday and my son and I played hooky from his cub scout meeting and decided to go and check it out.
We were greeted at the entrance by a New York City doorman who was decked out in the traditional long black overcoat and top hat. He even gave us a bow and a hat tip to welcome us in. The store was setup into neighborhoods, each representing a different section of New York City.
This sushi all disappeared right after I photographed it..
We started walking and came first upon SoHo, that sophisticated trendy section of New York. The SoHo station contained a full sushi bar, dance floor, DJ, and break dancers under a nighttime New York backdrop. (Aren't you mad you didn't go?) Hungry customers were emptying the sushi bar as the break dancers were spinning on their heads and my son and other kids were grooving on the dance floor to the DJ's tunes.
We next walked to the Statue of Liberty which was surrounded by a candy bar. My son's eyes were enormous as he realized that every kind of candy imaginable was there for the taking!!!
Next, we walked to Chinatown which was illuminated overhead by red paper lanterns that gave a soothing nighttime ambiance to the area complete with cherry blossoms.
We then strolled into Central Park (complete with green grass carpet) where we tried traditional New York coney dogs, soft pretzels, and ice cream cones. There was also a roasted peanut bar with sample bags for customers to take home.
The Empire State Building bar...
To wash down our New York lunch, we walked over to the Empire State building which was surrounded by a bar with all kinds of soft drinks and bottled waters. My son was in heaven since I allowed him to have two Sprites which the bartender poured with a flourish.
Times Square was next (in the electronics department) which contained some wonderful New York thin crust pizza - this was my favorite station in the bunch.
We then walked to the 24/7 Diner which was dessert heaven. This whole section resembled a bridal shower party with starch white cloth covered tables containing wonderful mouth watering desserts each being assembled by a chef in full white attire. Even the Art Van sales staff were sneaking in getting some of these decedent, sinful creations. I was all over the lemon cheesecake as I stood there enjoying every bite listening to our own private saxophonist.
My kid kicking it in SoHo
Art Van totally put on a wonderful customer event that was more than just a "taste" of New York - it was the Big Apple right here in Detroit! All that was missing was Carrie and Mr. Big. I was shocked that they did not make an appearance :)
