What an unexpectedly wonderful event!

I wasn’t sure what to expect from this one, but I am SO glad I was able to attend! I had only heard of maybe half of the businesses showcased at this event and I was just blown away by the other half after getting a little taste. Also, thank you Yelp for introducing me to Heirlooms Antique Mall – what an absolute gem. Who knew they had SO many vintage treasures inside! Since the event, I already went back and secured a BEAUTIFUL set of 1920s vintage bowls and a classic vinyl record. Seriously, I could spend all day there (and likely will in the near future).

I have also already tried to go back to Coco Loco (and sadly found out that they’re closed Friday – Sunday, so will have to try again another day) because if you didn’t get a chance to try their GF, Vegan banana chocolate chip muffin, you SERIOUSLY missed out. Quite possibly the best banana choc chip bread/dessert I’ve EVER tasted…and I make a mean banana bread.

Everything I tasted was simply delicious from the best baklava I’ve ever had thanks to Sara’s Market & Bakery to my newfound obsession with the Chin Chin and the Puff Puff that Nana’s African Market let me taste. I absolutely loved meeting the super sweet, fantastic business owners and there was not a bite from that evening that I am not already making plans to try again.

Thank you so much to the fantastic staff at Heirloom Antique Mall and of course to Matt and Yelp Denver for putting together such a great event. And a special thank you to Chance from OnHavanaStreet who I ALWAYS enjoy seeing. I’m so lucky to be a part of this exceptional Yelp city AND to live so close to Havana St.

It was an interesting, creative event to be able to walk through an antique shop and also have some interesting bites and beverages!

The mall has two floors and lots of consignment spaces for those who gather interesting finds to sell. There’s newer older stuff and straight up older stuff. I heard several Yelpers walked away with some purchases so that’s great for this business who kindly stayed open late and hosted us, thanks Hierlooms Antique Mall!

Also in attendance were:
– Piramides Mexican (samples of margs, chips, salsa, guac)
– Nile Ethiopian (sambusas)
– Solomon’s Grocery & Deli (mini-sized pierogis, chocolates)
– Coco Loco (sweet-flavored breads, juiced sample)
– Angry Chicken (chicken, sauces, fries)
– Sam’s No. 3 (green chili)
– Nana African Market (bags of snacks)
– M Mart (snacks purchased especially the spicy seaweed chips!)
– Sara’s Market & Bakery (baklava)

The best thing, I thought, was the unbelievably moist cake snacks at the front of the store from Coco Loco – how in the world was that bread SO dang moist and what it’s vegan?!?! Get the heck outta here. There was blueberry and banana chocolate, both were great but especially the blueberry! Their juice samples were also very tasty! I don’t have in Aurora too much but when I do, this is one of the places I’ll have to check out.

The Kimnori spicy bulbak flavor Korean crispy seaweed chips from M Mart are SO GOOD. OMG. I am already addicted to seaweed chips and this flavoring on them is out of this world. I will definitely need to check out M Mart (not the same as H Mart).

The green (oranged-colored) chili from Sam’s No. 3 was quite delish and definitely was spicy! 3 Brothers own/run each of the 3 Sam’s places, which I thought was pretty cool. Patrick was here repping #3 in Aurora and his other brothers are at the downtown Denver and Glendale restaurants.

From Nana African Market, I really liked the “chin chin” fried snacks inside of the bag. It was loose pieces of Captian Crunch-looking stuff and oh man when I tried them at home, I had to eat all that was in the bag. Tasty little addicting things! The bag said it was flour, sugar, water, salt, margarine, baking powder and I sure don’t know how those ingredients were made to taste like they were!

The baklava from Sara’s Market & Bakery was so different, very gooey and moist but also I tasted a type of nut butter inside of them, peanut or something else? I’m very curious what that was.

Chance from Havana Business Improvement District was very kind to go out and purchase wine and other beverages for us to sip along our way. She had  ton of energy and passion for what she does, it was wonderful.

The only struggle was finding a spot to eat and drink but also walk around and shop. You really don’t have enough arms to do all those at once. But, most of us just found a counter somewhere while also keeping tidy and respectful of the business!

It was nice chatting with those owners who could be there in person or whoever their reps were. Love learning about all those who venture to start their own businesses!

Cool event!

Sometimes a simple math problem does the trick….

One hell of a unique venue filled with items old and new!
(Seriously so cool – and ended up buying a few things!)

+  Delicious eats from the local restaurants in the neighborhood and the pour
your own wine bar!
(I’m now obsessed with spicy seaweed, samosas and African sweet treats! Ps.
Burbon barrel aged Cabernet is bomb.com)

+  Outstanding staff members who allowed us to maneuver the space with ease,
hold items at the register to continue shopping and lit up the space with their
smiles – made the entire experience that more fun! 🙂
=  ———————————————————————————-
A super fun way to spend an afternoon!

Thank you to my girl Chance for all you do, to Scott for opening his doors to us and of course, to Matt for continuing to slay the elite game and bringing all these unique vendors into one place!

I can’t wait to venture back on my own!

What a fun event. Getting to explore the Heirlooms antique mall, learn about fellow businesses in the complex and eat and drink was fantastic. I met another Jese (first I met with one S) and many other Yelpers in a great setting to schmooze and not feel rushed. The variety of businesses and restaurants I got to learn about was fantastic and the vendors/employees of Heirloom were helpful and friendly.

Food wise I liked it all. Stamp the spinach sambusa from Nile Ethiopian restaurant with the red pepper sauce. Loved the wings from Angry Chicken and even tried an infused jalapeño with the soy based sauce. The pelmeni were fantastic as were the pierogis from Solomons. The salsa, taquitos, chips and guacamole were spot on from Piramides Mexican restaurant. The vegan breads/cake from Cocos yes please. Thank you to the other shops I did not list.

A great way to spend a Wednesday afternoon/evening. Thank you CM Matt C & YES! 22 for this event.

How much fun can a person have in one evening? Shopping, snacking, mingling, meeting new people and being introduced to a great variety of small businesses is up there on the top of the list!  The Heirloom Antique Mall is a place where I could spend an entire day browsing – they have something for everyone and everything you never knew you couldn’t live without. And the owner, Scott, was a pleasure to meet. Even through the shut down and a fire, he has managed to stay positive and he’s a great people person.
I really enjoyed chatting with Chance – the Executive Director of Havana Business Improvement District.  She really knows her stuff when it comes to the businesses and future plans for the area.  I know these businesses will benefit from her knowledge and expertise as well as her “can do” attitude.
All of the restaurants and stores had friendly, welcoming emissaries representing them and I enjoyed all the snacks and tastes.  The variety was perfect for the evening.
It was great to see the actual faces behind these small businesses and be reminded that there are real, nice, human owners who could use our support.
Thank you to our amazing CM – Matt, Chance, Scott and all the participating businesses who came together for a very special evening – your efforts are appreciated!

A TRIP BACK IN TIME to another ERA!! Oddities and eclectic items, antiques and collectibles, jewelry, dishes, house decorations and furniture galore! The local nearby restaurants pitched tables with their wares and samples of their cultural food. It was an incredibly fun event!! Great idea Matt C. THANKS BUD!!

Baklava, taquitos and guacamole with margaritas, Korean fried chicken, Ethiopian samosas, Sam’s No. 3 green chili, European deli samples and more items were provided by the local merchants. The owner of the Antiques Mall, Scott, was a welcoming and friendly man who made you feel really comfortable to peruse the assortment of items in the entire building. TWO LEVELS OF STUFF!!

I actually got quite full from all the samples, and had such an enjoyable time. I even purchased a few things! I saw my fellow Yelpers there as well which made it really a blast!! Rika, Sonja, Jesse B., Jesse S., Chance, and many others. Rika got deer antlers! Very different and really fun.

Heaven tonite was at Heirlooms Antique Mall #SupportingSmallBusiness!

Take one part fabulous hosts (Scott, Chance, Matt), add in wonderful vendors (the folks from Piramides, Angry Chicken, M Mart, Nana’s Market, Sam’s, Nile Ethiopian, Solomon’s and Sara’s Bakery), mix in a dash of delicious food and drinks and top it off with the wunderkids of the Yelp Elite Squad, and you get an uber amazing Experience On Havana Street.

I loved everything about the event.   Catching up with old friends and making new acquaintances mixed in with educational conversation (I may have learned a thing or two or three ) and chatting up with local business owners.  I’m such a fan of the changes happening on Havana (Kudos to you Chance)! Always big on supporting great shopping (Heirlooms has such a vast selection of vinyl) and welcoming family owned eateries.

Big shout out to you Matt and many thanks to all the owners at tonites event.  The evening was a smashing success!!

What a great night!  Great food from all of the locals business on Havana including Sam’s #3, Cocoloco, Angry Chicken, Piramides Mexican and others!
Fun things to look at!  Thanks to the Heirloom Antique Mall your staff was amazing and thanks to all those that worked so hard to put this event together!

The Heirloom Antique Mall was the host location to celebrate Aurora small businesses in the surrounding area. There were so many offerings with each one bringing their unique flare.
Piramides Mexican Restaurant had chips and salsa with homemade guacamole and margaritas. Very tasty and fresh and their booth had the most colorful decorations.
Nile Ethiopian restaurant brought spinach and lentil filled samosas. Fried little pockets of delicious goodness.
Solomons Grocery and Deli brought perogies filled with meats, cheeses and traditional potato. Each one was a tasty little treat. They also gave out European chocolate bars. Yummy.
Angry Chicken probably had the most popular dish of wings and fries made in a Korean style with different sauces of bbq, sweet and spicy, and a honey flavor that was amazing paired with a Korean alcohol.
Sams No. 3 brought a savory chili that had the right amount of heat to kick up your taste buds.
Nanas African Market had homemade African donuts and other treats that were sweet and crunchy.
Saras Market and Bakery had a sweet treat of homemade baklava. Its crispy and flavorful texture brought me back again and again.
M Mart had candies and other prepackaged treats such as little chocolate cakes and spicy seaweed.
Coco Loco brought my personal favorite of vegan banana bread and blueberry muffins. I was amazed at how good these homemade treats were, I actually had to hold myself back from eating the whole tray. Thanks to all the vendors for bringing such wonderful food samples and for Heirloom for hosting and Yelp for bringing it all together!

Thank you Yelp for organizing another great event! This review of mine is a bit belated but it’s better than never writing so here it goes.

I’ve known this shopping center for quite some time now (prior to the event, I had dined at the Ethiopian and Mexican restaurants that both provided food for the event.) However, I had never noticed this antique mall so with that in mind, it sure was a nice discovery!

This mall is a good size. The store is divided into smaller sections where each section has its individual owner. I’ve been to an antique store like that before so understanding the concept of it wasn’t difficult for me.

Both first floor and downstairs have food vendors stationed at each corner. Although this wasn’t a sit-down event, sampling those foods from the vendors filled me and my dear friend, Jojo, another Yelp Elite, up so quickly (even thogh we were walking around.) After we had conquered all of them, we were so full, ridiculously!!

Let’s not forget; all the antique stores carry very unique and amazing collections of stuff from different eras. Since I grew up in a different country, Jojo (whenever she saw some items that she remembers from her younger self as a little girl) pointed it out to me and explained what it was so it was kind of an educational opportunity for me as well.

And I was so elated that several of the stores had what I had always wanted to buy: animal antler wall decor!! One antler decor was so intriguing and that a guy named Nile (?) even called the owner of the store (so it wasn’t his store) and negotiated the price for me. And I got $30 discount on it so the final price was $99! For the size and the looks of it, $99 was a steal deal!

I went home with full tummy and the beautiful antler in a box. I couldn’t ask for more; I was a happy camper for sure!