Chicken and Waffles Thanksgiving Lunch at Crafted 852

Bespoke catering and crafted experiences with uniquely curated products – the perfect gift for foodies!

Here at Sassy Mama HQ, we couldn’t do what we do without the amazing team of contributors who help make Sassy Mama what it is. So in the spirit of Thanksgiving and being grateful, we were able to gather a group of these wonderful women out for a specially crafted dining experience by Crafted 852 held at Umami Concepts.

If you haven’t heard, Crafted 852 is all about scouring the culinary world to find the newest and most interesting products on the market to bring to your dining experience. Founder and Chef, Nolan Ledarney, is no stranger to all of us at Sassy Mama and kindly hosted our meet up.

Upon arrival, our contributors were greeted with a beautifully displayed table setting with the curated products (which we got to try later!), post-its from our Sassy Pregnancy launch, our activity cards, an ornament from our very own That Mama, Claire Yates of Lion Rock Press and the incredible aroma of deep fried chicken. There were also three hot waffle stations set up by the kitchen too which could mean one thing… chicken and waffles, a match made in food heaven. Yes, please!

As some of our contributors are gluten-free, Nolan had whipped up a batch of gluten-free batter for the waffles and told us that this would be a hands-on kind of lunch! Nothing gets people together more than some good ol’ DIY action. We rolled up our sleeves and got to work! All of us got to take turns making our own waffles, some more aesthetically pleasing than others (definitely no judgement here as it all goes down the same!) which made for some good laughs. Definitely feeling grateful for these contributors and many others who weren’t able to make it that day.

After all the waffles were made, we topped them off with three or four chicken wings (who’s counting?!), added some micro greens and was seated. Some of our contributors had never had this combo before and thought the idea of drizzling maple syrup all over lunch was a bit absurd. I wouldn’t blame them if it was my first time either, but after learning more about the Noble Handcrafted Tonic 1 Maple Syrup (and at the encouragement of those of us who love this combo!), we doused our meal with the amber grade sweet stuff. I’m happy to say, we made chicken and waffle converts that day! And to be perfectly honest, a lot of that had to do with the bourbon barrel matured maple syrup that was imported from Canada. Nolan also brought to the table Mike’s Hot Honey which had quite a bit of kick to it but was also delicious with the fried chicken and waffles.

We may not always meet up as a group but when we do, it’s so nice to get to know our contributors better and for them to meet one another as well! We were able to catch up and share what our holiday plans were and what we were thinking about getting our family and friends for Christmas. It seems as though every year it gets harder and harder to gift creatively and uniquely.

Read more: Christmas Gift Guides 2016

Often stuck on bespoke gifting ideas, we had the chance to learn more about Crafted 852’s Gift Boxes. Pick and choose from a generous variety of products for those foodies or amateur cooks in your life and have everything from hipster East Van Jam spreads to premium pastas, organic coconut oil and even the Cuisinart Waffle Maker! But what we loved most about was the stellar pre-made boxes like the Whisky in a Box for those whisky loving lads and lasses in your life and my personal fav, the specially curated Christmas in a Box (which includes Sote popcorn!).

Stuffed from lunch, lovely banter and many gift ideas for the holidays, it was time to say goodbye and head our separate ways. As we left, I could only feel a sense of deep gratitude and pride for the amazing team of women that make Sassy Mama what it is! Thank you again to Crafted 852 and Umami Concepts for hosting us!

Crafted 852, www.crafted852.com

Umami Concepts, 2/F, 35 Bonham Road, Sai Ying Pun, Hong Kong; 5161 5900