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In the Mix Jason Genegabus |
Cheesecake
raises the barIT WAS an early Christmas of sorts for The Friends of the Cancer Research Center of Hawaii on Saturday night. The charity raised more than $30,000 during The Cheesecake Factory's "Very Grand Opening" at the Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center.
Restaurant founder David Overton was in town for the party, which featured live entertainment by Shari Lynn and Fascinatin' Rhythm and an opportunity for folks to try different items on the menu. They'll open for business tomorrow, with dinner being served from 5 to 11 p.m.
Don't sleep on the cheesecake here, either -- my sidekick that night called it "the best cheesecake I've ever had," and, to be honest, I'd have a hard time disagreeing with him. Watching all the classy women drinking up at the open bar convinced me I'm looking for a girl in all the wrong places, too.
But the best line of the night? One woman, while greeting someone at the front door, shunned the buffet line with the statement, "I'm just going to go for the bar." Now that's my kind of girl ...
AFTER THE Cheesecake Factory, it was off to see Wyclef Jean in concert at Pipeline Cafe, thanks to local radio traffic reporter Dave Hisaka. I wasn't going to waste my time trying to win tickets from Hot 93.9, so when Hisaka told me he had an extra one, I was in there like swimwear!
By my guess, about a thousand people were on hand to see Wyclef's high-energy performance, which had the former Fugees member playing both guitar and bass, and even freestyling for five minutes straight at one point. One of the local openers, Chief Ragga, got a lot of love early on and even jumped onstage with Wyclef to help with a rendition of Bob Marley's "Redemption Song."
And I've got to thank Island 98.5's John James for trying to play matchmaker that night, too. Good looking out, playa ...
MY FINAL stop of the evening was supposed to be The Loft, a bar I reviewed in the Star-Bulletin a day earlier. But the dollar drinks they offered were too good to be true -- a sign on the door when we showed up said the bar was closed, due to a change in management. Hopefully, they'll reopen this weekend.
Lucky for me, "Club 1" was going on just down the street, with G-Spot working the decks as a special guest of resident DJs Sub Zero and G-Dog. Just another Saturday night in paradise. Hope you had as much fun as I did ...
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In the Mix drops Tuesdays and Thursdays in the Star-Bulletin.
Contact Jason Genegabus at jason@starbulletin.com.