HI,

FYI - the OP did ask in advance if he could post his gift certificate. It was agreed as long as once it was sold, the thread would be pulled. This is not Craigslist, though we have made this accomodation for the occasional item interesting to this community.

The OP has been quite open with us from the get go. I'm sure we have all given up something precious when we needed the money. Too bad Mom and Dad didn't just give him cash instead of locked in a gift certificate. It was all well intended I'm sure.

Regards,

I believe the latest bid was three fiddy. I will give you four hundo. Think of the number of Kuma's burgers that is (ok, it's 40).

Chi Esq I sent you a PM

jasemer wrote:Chi Esq I sent you a PM

Hey, $400's the price I suggested you just set it at and be done with it in my post of yesterday afternoon. Guess my finger is on the pulse of the secondary deconstructed fine dining market.

I probably should have made clear that Alinea allows the gift certificate to be used for tip. Thats the reason for the odd amount.

I will simply add that a friend of my parents knew of my interest in food and gave me IIRC a $350-400 gift certificate to Charlie Trotters for my college graduation. I also had nobody to go with and waited one year to use it.

11 years later m wife and I still talk about that experience frequently.

I know you said you already made up your mind, but let me chime in and suggest holding onto the certificate.

How about this: We get 401 lth-ers to donate a dollar a piece (the last bid was $400, yes?) to get jasemer to keep the gift certificate. Who can coordinate this? If there's an easy way to pass this virtual hat, I'm in for a buck.

GREAT IDEA

I'm in.

I didn't want to comment on this thread because I was afraid of coming off snarky or annoying - but that's a great idea. I'll throw in a couple dollars for that.

ChristyP wrote:How about this: We get 401 lth-ers to donate a dollar a piece (the last bid was $400, yes?) to get jasemer to keep the gift certificate. Who can coordinate this? If there's an easy way to pass this virtual hat, I'm in for a buck.

I'm in. I will even double down, so that you can have that experience. As much as I wish I had put a bid in for $400, so I afford to treat a cash strapped foodie friend to the experience.

I apologize for jumping on this thread, cause I sense a bit of discomfort from the seller from the Board's advice. However, my 1 cent for what it's worth, is that given it's a foodie board, as irritating as it may be, the advice given is only because we really think the experience is worth it. Surely your parents thought so in presenting you with this gift.

jasemer - I have been dying to go despite the cost, but have not found an equally appreciative friend or family that is willing to spend that much money, and surprisingly the time.

I'll keep checking back on the donation count. If we're at critical mass in the morning, I'll figure out a way to make this happen.

May the jasemer Alinea telethon commence . . .

While I consider myself a foodie I do not have a burning desire to go to Alinea. That being said, I would happily donate $20.00 to the cause to help J enjoy a great meal with a friend of their choosing.....just let me know how to send the cash

I like the idea. I'm in for $1.

I'm in the middle of a family emergency. Otherwise, I'd help coordinate. I'll put in $100.

I'd like to contribute $10, please.

Not to throw water on this...but has anyone actually met jasemer or knows exactly what his/her situation is?

If I put my condo on the market, will people pay me to keep it? A fantastic new business model is emerging here.

Kennyz wrote:If I put my condo on the market, will people pay me to keep it? A fantastic new business model is emerging here.

Totally. Endless possibilities here.

With all due respect to the OP, I think that there are probably some really needy people in the world who need our charity, and have bigger issues to deal with than what to do with an Alinea gift certificate. I'm sure the OP would agree.

I sense a serious lack of interest in the holder of this gc to actually use it. Maybe the board can come up with a sizable amount, say $500, and use the gc for TWO people that will truly enjoy the meal of lifetime. I've been to many places, but nothing compared to Alinea. No, I haven't been to French Laundry or El Bulli, but I have worked with and ate among many great chefs. My experience at Alinea went above and beyond my expectations. I feel like no meal should ever be wasted there. A 'group buy' seems genius, but I feel that the dinner should be set out there for the deserving pair. The current count is around $150 already. Seeing this happen would be pretty awesome. Also, I'm sure I can get Chef Achatz involved in this special occasion in some way when it reaches it's climax. Just like the 'pizza boy' story, this can take flight. All great movies started with a story. All great stories started somewhere. Let's see where this thing goes...

Haven't posted in a while, but this thread is inspiring. I'd donate a few dollars as well...

Jayz wrote:A 'group buy' seems genius, but I feel that the dinner should be set out there for the deserving pair.

I agree -- if this group wants to raise funds for a "scholarship" to Alinea, there are, I'm certain, many active LTHers who aren't in a position to buy their own meal there who'd be thrilled at a chance to eat one.

My suggestion to jasemer, meanwhile is to figure out the lowest amount you want to accept and put the gift certificate up on Ebay. Very likely you'll come much closer to your $600 than you will here.

Instead of raising money to support an absolutely frivolous and unnecessary round of needlessly extravagant gastrotainment, what if we collected the $600 and purchased a refrigerator, stove or some other food-related necessity for a family in need (in case you hadn't noticed, there are a lot of them out there these days), Somebody upthread mentioned that 40 Kuma burgers could be bought with $400. How many bowls of oatmeal could be bought? I know it could pay for 7 credit hours of study at the Chicago City College's Culinary school.

Let's leave the charity for, well, something charitable. I say let the OP sell it to the highest bidder, over a reserve amount. Selling it on E-Bay might be a problem, because I just wouldn't think to look there for an Alinea gift certificate (maybe on Craig's list?). Personally, I would use the thing, otherwise I would never be able to justify the cost of experiencing the restaurant from either a budgetary or moral viewpoint. As a wedding gift, I do appreciate the giver's intention, and would honor it if at all possible, but then again, maybe the OP needs that stove or refrigerator.

I really like the idea of the LTH Alinea Scholarship Fund - I am in for a few dollars.

The first year Alinea opened was during a time in my life when my only expenses were a cell phone and a couple hundred dollars toward a hovel of an apartment in tri taylor. While I was making some money at the time I squandered it all with nothing to show for it save a few trips and my memories of full tour at Alinea. I do not remember the last name of my dining companion but I marvel at how that evening seems divorced from time and everything else that was occurring in my life at the moment - like a dream.

Now that I have a family and barely a notion of what "dicretionary" income is I regret a lot what I happened in those lost years, but I have never for a second regretted my first trip to Alinea.

I agree with Jayz and LAZ that the OP is not he ideal recipient. I also agree that there are many worthwhile and more pressing needs out there and I will double my Alinea contribution to a "better" cause but I would love to see someone have the chance to go to Alinea. I hope upon hope that this happens and that we get a complete run down of the event when it does.

As much as I love the Cinderella story of helping jasemer experience Alinea, as his generous parents intended (and who among us wouldn't trade a lifetime of well-intentioned sweaters for a gift as extraordinary as this one?), I hear people's cautionary notes.

First step: It would be great to hear from jasemer as to whether he's even open to this concept. For all we know, he's sold the gc already . . . or he may have other reasons for not wanting to go to Alinea. For what it's worth, I just want to say I cast no aspersions on jasemer, and I hope we can get away from suggesting how deserving he may be. He offered his gc to a group with obvious and breathless appreciation for this kind of golden ticket, and at discount no less! I salute jasemer for generosity and smarts.

If jasemer isn't interested in dinner at Alinea, there may still be a way to make this happen for someone else (and thanks for the PM with a suggestion of how to do this quite easily). Does anyone know the legality of an online raffle? We could set up a way to buy $1 tickets, as many as you want, then everyone gets entered into a drawing and someone wins the big prize. We'd have to figure out an impartial way to hold the drawing, but perhaps it's a possibility.

This second option lacks the literary panache of the first, so I sort of hope we hear from jasemer that he's on board. But let's not throw out the baby with the bathwater. I'll continue to watch the board for developments.

If somebody had an uneeded gift certificate they wanted to offer for free to a deserving recipient, I am sure nobody would object. I just think that in this day and age especially, an "Alinea" scholarship is a completely frivolous use of this community's power. I would really love to see LTH do some charitable projects, I just don't think this is it. It smacks too much of foodie elitism (there is another board for that). Personally, I'd rather see a percentage of the Xmas party proceeds given to a food bank. Or how about making the GNR award ceremony into a benefit banquet? Hell, I rather see 600 McDoubles given away.

I suppose a raffle is a good possibilty, if it benefited something meaningful. I think it would have to be done in conjunction with an already established non-profit not to be considered simple gambling. Maybe it is time for LTH to <<<shudder>>> incorporate.

ChristyP wrote:As much as I love the Cinderella story of helping jasemer experience Alinea, as his generous parents intended (and who among us wouldn't trade a lifetime of well-intentioned sweaters for a gift as extraordinary as this one?), I hear people's cautionary notes.

First step: It would be great to hear from jasemer as to whether he's even open to this concept. For all we know, he's sold the gc already . . . or he may have other reasons for not wanting to go to Alinea. For what it's worth, I just want to say I cast no aspersions on jasemer, and I hope we can get away from suggesting how deserving he may be. He offered his gc to a group with obvious and breathless appreciation for this kind of golden ticket, and at discount no less! I salute jasemer for generosity and smarts.

If jasemer isn't interested in dinner at Alinea, there may still be a way to make this happen for someone else (and thanks for the PM with a suggestion of how to do this quite easily). Does anyone know the legality of an online raffle? We could set up a way to buy $1 tickets, as many as you want, then everyone gets entered into a drawing and someone wins the big prize. We'd have to figure out an impartial way to hold the drawing, but perhaps it's a possibility.

This second option lacks the literary panache of the first, so I sort of hope we hear from jasemer that he's on board. But let's not throw out the baby with the bathwater. I'll continue to watch the board for developments.

Why do you want to send someone to Alinea?

p.s. If we decide to go forward with this raffle concept, regardless of the ultimate recipient, I commit to matching the first $100 with a contribution to Inspiration Corporation, my favorite food-related charity in the city. I'd encourage others to think along these lines, if circumstances allow.

I love the idea of an Alinea raffle, as it's one of the only ways I could think of possibly getting there.

I hearby pledge $10 to the first Moderator who shuts this thread down.