"I guess the days of M&M bowls are gone," said one guest at Wednesday night's World of Chocolate, a fund-raiser for the AIDS Foundation of Chicago that took place at the Hilton Chicago. The event featured some 32 buffet tables offering on-theme creations from local restaurants, caterers, and confectioners, and guests snacked on everything from basic chocolate chip cookies to the dish that inspired the guest's comment: Blue 13's almond cake with a foie gras and chocolate ganache center.
Chris Matthews, director of fund-raising events at the AIDS Foundation, noted that each of the participating vendors donated product, staff, and setup. In exchange, he said, the companies gained exposure to an audience of roughly 1,300 guests. Along with signage on each of the buffet tables, sponsors' names appeared in event programs and in a special presentation that flickered across an oversize projection screen at one end of the ballroom.
Sponsors also benefited from the "media blitz" the event tends to attract, Matthews said. This year, additional—and national—buzz came from featured drag performer Larry "Hot Chocolate" Edwards, a Las Vegas-based Tina Turner impersonator who appeared on local news shows to promote the event and inspired fans from Los Angeles to fly in and attend.
At the end of the evening, Hot Chocolate overtook a stage in the center of the ballroom that was occupied by a jazz quartet for most of the evening. "We cleared the space so that she could work all sides of the room," Matthews said, adding that her performance of "Proud Mary" inspired such a positive reaction from the crowd that he wished he had set up a donation photo booth for guests to pose with her.
