Our tour bus was buzzing with excitement as we spied the motocross track and the pristine sand dunes just waiting for a trail to be blazed. While everyone else raced towards “Wake Lake” and the cable park for some afternoon wake boarding, I set off to see the beach. My jaw dropped as I took in the bright turquoise pool, modern restaurant and stunning ocean view. As I watched the kite boards flying across the water and launching high into the air, I decided that this might be a once in a lifetime trip after all.

As the only girl among ten Type A, super competitive CEOs looking for an adventure, some people might feel intimidated. At Nitro City, it didn’t matter whether you rocked a bikini or board shorts…everyone could find a piece of the action to enjoy. From the self proclaimed experts to total beginners, we all pushed the limits and challenged ourselves to try new things.

Almost landing a killer backflip on a wake board, feeling the power of a kite catching air for the first time, charging down the beach on an ATV, stand up paddle surfing and playing volleyball; we learned a lot about each other along the way. It was fun to see people’s hidden talents emerge (who knew Beer Pong was such an art form?) We relished every moment as minutes stretched into hours of entertainment.

One of my personal favorite experiences? Finally getting the hang of my “balancing act.” Something I work so hard to do in real life seemed much easier with a tropical breeze and a chilled Panama beer in hand.

“Go Boldly” is one of the key values of our organization. At Nitro City, we shook off our preconceptions of what we were capable of and took a risk, knowing chances were good that we would fall right on our faces. The cool part? After a few wipeouts, we got into our groove and grew together as athletes, entrepreneurs and friends.

June 3- 12 will offer wide variety of three-course meals at an affordable fixed price

Coachella Valley, CA—Restaurant Week offers residents and visitors alike 10 days to relish in unique menu pairings customized by the valley’s most well- known chefs and top-rated dining hot spots. From the novice foodie to the seasoned food connoisseur, Palm Springs Restaurant Week caters to each and every visitor with over 80 restaurants to choose from.

“Restaurant Week is the pinnacle of dining excellence—when supreme service, provocative food and great price points come together,” said Juliana Copley, co-owner of Copley’s on Palm Canyon “ There is no better time than Restaurant Week for food enthusiasts to explore the culinary delights of the desert.”

Diners can preview an array of prix fix menus that include appetizers, entrees and desserts for each of the participating restaurants on www.palmspringsrestaurantweek.com. Here they will find dishes such as savory filet mignon drizzled with béarnaise sauce, piquant garlic panko breaded Chilean sea bass in lobster cream sauce, refreshing basil ice cream and sizzling fajitas, olé!

Out of town lodgers need not to travel far, as many of the participating hotels have featured restaurants on their premises! To maximize this 10-day experience, hotels and attractions will offer special discounted rates, encouraging not only out of town visitors, but locals to enjoy a “staycation” in the beautiful desert.

For a complete list of participating restaurants and menus, as well as special hotel packages and other offers, visit www.palmspringsrestaurantweek.com.

About Palm Springs Desert Resorts Restaurant Week

During this 10-day culinary event from June 3-12, restaurant-goers can enjoy incredible 3-course meals at top restaurants for only $24 or $36. It’s the perfect opportunity to try something new or visit old favorites across the valley in Palm Springs, Cathedral City, Rancho Mirage, Palm Desert, La Quinta and Indio.  For a complete list of the 100+ participating restaurants, hotels and desert attractions, visit www.palmspringsrestaurantweek.com

Getting hungry? Zenzi is giving away 6 dining vouchers good for dinner for two during Restaurant Week…These are available on a first come, first serve basis by emailing sarah@zenzi.com.

Challenge: Zenzi was tasked by the California Restaurant Association to direct all marketing, public relations and advertising efforts. Zenzi established several goals for the event: to elevate San Diego’s reputation as a dining destination among local San Diegans and visitors alike, expose restaurants to new patrons, boost sales during a traditionally slow time of year, engage local community to explore new restaurants and maximize attendance during the event.

Solution: Zenzi enlisted and increased participation from restaurants all over the city: 60 restaurants in 2005 and 105 in 2006 to 130 in 2007 and 150 in 2008 and breaking 200 in 2009. Zenzi partnered with San Diego Magazine and San Diego Convention and Visitors Bureau and was personally responsible for securing major sponsorships from Clear Channel, Carnival Cruises, American Express, Specialty Produce, Haagen-Dazs Ice Cream and others. In order to illustrate community and government support, we host annual conferences with Mayor Jerry Sanders and dozens of chefs who showcase their finest dishes.

Results: In addition to successfully enlisting the participation of over 150 restaurants, Zenzi drove traffic to restaurants during that week increase the bottom line for restaurants during that week from 20% to 50%. Zenzi also procured a number of sponsorships with local media, including SignOnSanDiego.com, DiningOut Magazine and the San Diego Union-Tribune, San Diego county’s most high-circulated print publication. The campaign garnered 601,223,845 million impressions in TV, radio and print. 250,000 diners were sold that week at fixed price 3-course meals.

ZENZI was hired by Hilton San Diego Mission Valley to promote and publicize the $20 million renovation of hotel facilities and grand opening of its brand new gourmet restaurant STISH.  Hilton wanted to raise its profile in the corporate and meeting/ events industries and become a known destination for business and conference travelers in San Diego.  ZENZI was tasked with developing messaging for a variety of target demographics including local and national media, business community and meeting/ event planners.

ZENZI built a proprietary list of potential sales targets encompassing the event industry, government agencies, corporations, sports teams, business organizations and associations, non-profits, real estate, financial professionals and various other influencers to invite to the event.

To kick off the $20 million renovation, ZENZI created a celebration that showcased all the most unique attributes of the hotel and give guests a taste of the endless ways they could use the venue for meetings and events.  ZENZI set up themed food and drink stations through out the hotel grounds (i.e., the presidential suite hosted an after-hours relaxed atmosphere with champagne and caviar, the lounge served signature martini and mini burgers, poolside cabanas encouraged guests to put their feet up as if they were on vacation, sip Mai Tais and enjoy Pupus).  To keep the party lively, music was staged according the themed station ranging from jazz soloists to a Cuban band.

To make the Hilton experience come alive for guests, ZENZI devised a “scavenger hunt” promotion where contestants toured different stations and collected stamps to be entered into a sweepstakes.  Entrants who completed the full tour of hotel facilities were eligible to win a vacation at any Hilton Hotel worldwide.

In addition to sales prospects, ZENZI arranged for numerous local and national media contacts to attend the celebration, mingle with guests and view the spectacular renovation firsthand.

Results:

The media relations campaign garnered over three million media impressions for the Hilton, including feature stories in meeting/events trades such as Adjourn Magazine, Corporate Meetings and Incentives, Lodging, Financial and Insurance Meetings, and Hospitality Magazine, and local media including signonsandiego.com, San Diego Union Tribune, 944 and many more.  STISH was named in the “Hot Stuff” section of San Diego Magazine, and recognized by the San Diego Union Tribune as “Spot of the Week.”   The value of the media exposure was estimated at over $200,000. Attendance exceeded expectations with over 500 guests and VIPs from numerous targeted industries. Several conferences and events were booked as a direct result of the kickoff celebration.

According to Mark Tennision, Hilton Sales Director, “ZENZI’s precise execution and forward-thinking campaign was vital to the success of our grand reopening. We immediately saw a return on the media coverage.  It directly resulted in new business opportunities.”