The unofficial online home for fans of the UAB Blazers. Part of Collegiate Sports Nation (CSN).

Ok, guys, it's that time of year again. The Gumbo Gala is this Saturday, April 20, at Sloss Furnaces, from 11 am till 2 pm. It's $10 in advance, $15 at the door. Kids 12 and under are free.

This is the annual fundraiser for Episcopal Place, an assisted living facility in the Southside. There will be something on the order of fifty teams, both amateur and professional (representing local restaurants including Crazy Cajun, Jubilee Joe's, The Garage Cafe, and big UAB supporter Ted's) serving up cups of gumbo. The ticket price includes all you can eat.

You'll see everything from very traditional gumbos like seafood, chicken and andouille sausage, shrimp, crawfish and the like, as well as things like rattlesnake and alligator tail gumbos. Pack a cooler of drinks and a folding chair, some sunscreen, and bring the family down. It's a lot of fun. Basically you get your styrofoam cup, look around till you see or smell something you like, put a little rice in the bottom of the cup, and let them ladle in the cajun seafood goodness. Eat it up and find another table, rinse, repeat. There will be a band playing bluegrass/blues/zydeco music.

It's a helluva good time, even if you *do* have to go home and take a nap afterward. More info at http://www.gumbogala.com

Make a morning of it, go to practice at Legion Field at 9:30, then slide down to Sloss afterward and pig out. I'll see you down there - or if not, I'll eat your share!

All you can eat gumbo for $15. What a deal! May have to road trip from Huntsville to enjoy!

Well, I know *I* always get my money's worth. I think you can still get advance tickets for $10 on the website.

(04-17-2013 01:53 PM)UAB Band Dad Wrote:  Ok, guys, it's that time of year again. The Gumbo Gala is this Saturday, April 20, at Sloss Furnaces, from 11 am till 2 pm. It's $10 in advance, $15 at the door. Kids 12 and under are free.

This is the annual fundraiser for Episcopal Place, an assisted living facility in the Southside. There will be something on the order of fifty teams, both amateur and professional (representing local restaurants including Crazy Cajun, Jubilee Joe's, The Garage Cafe, and big UAB supporter Ted's) serving up cups of gumbo. The ticket price includes all you can eat.

You'll see everything from very traditional gumbos like seafood, chicken and andouille sausage, shrimp, crawfish and the like, as well as things like rattlesnake and alligator tail gumbos. Pack a cooler of drinks and a folding chair, some sunscreen, and bring the family down. It's a lot of fun. Basically you get your styrofoam cup, look around till you see or smell something you like, put a little rice in the bottom of the cup, and let them ladle in the cajun seafood goodness. Eat it up and find another table, rinse, repeat. There will be a band playing bluegrass/blues/zydeco music.

It's a helluva good time, even if you *do* have to go home and take a nap afterward. More info at http://www.gumbogala.com

Make a morning of it, go to practice at Legion Field at 9:30, then slide down to Sloss afterward and pig out. I'll see you down there - or if not, I'll eat your share!

Will they be selling beer or can we bring our own?

I think all they sell is soft drinks. I've brought a cooler of beer for years and no one's ever said anything, but I didn't go last year, which was the first at Sloss. Probably be fine.

Or put it this way, I'm bringing beer in a cooler, myself.

(04-17-2013 03:58 PM)UAB Band Dad Wrote:  I think all they sell is soft drinks. I've brought a cooler of beer for years and no one's ever said anything, but I didn't go last year, which was the first at Sloss. Probably be fine.

Or put it this way, I'm bring beer in a cooler, myself.

I have heard they will be selling soft drinks and beer, but still plan to bring a few ales in my cooler. Always was allowed at the park.

Is "take-out" available?

It's not really set up that way - it's sorta like an all you can eat buffet, showing up with a take home carton isn't really kosher. You wander from booth to booth getting a standard 8 oz cup at each, as many as you want. I guess you could e-mail the website and ask, but I kinda doubt it flies.

Kinda wanted to take some home to the family - perhaps a gallon.

You might be able to work something out with one of the booths to buy it. I'd talk to the restaurant teams, Jubilee Joe's or Crazy Cajun maybe. The thing is that serving good gumbo to a lot of people is how they get votes toward winning the contest, so it will depend on the turnout and how big the pot is. Maybe wait and see what you can negotiate as it gets close to closing time?

A really fun fundraiser would be to have members of the assisted living facility participate in a gumbo eating contest. Let people place sponsor a nd place wagers, all for charity of course.

Octogenarians gobbling down gumbo as fast as they can. I'd pay to see that.

I would love to attend this.

Ask each chef in what kind of pan he or she made the roux. If any of them answer with anything other than a cast-iron pot, walk away, because their roux, and gumbo, will suck.

It went very well. The site at Sloss works better than the old park did. GN, mostly you bop up to the tent and get a cup, whip out your trusty spoon, (you keep those, because sometimes they run short and there's no point throwing them away) and dig in. If it's not very good, you eat the shrimp, crawfish, or crab out of it, dunk it, and get another one elsewhere. I had several mediocre cups, including one with three (!) blue crab claws in it. There was a very tasty duck gumbo which won its division, but I found kinda oily. I also dialed in on a couple of booths and was a repeater there because of the quality.

Good eats, good music, good weather... it was fun.

Enjoyed practice too, hehe. Y'all ought to hit it next year, it is a nice event, cheap and fun, for a good cause.