...Casa Rasta helps the Spanish Club

Kids hate fundraising.  Fact.

I know that when I had to fund-raise, my parents took countless catalogs to work, family members, friends-of-friends, etc. to get them to buy things that they probably didn't need - frozen pizzas, chocolate bunnies, pies, wrapping paper, lottery tickets...I could go on forever.  Why?

To save themselves money.

Fundraising, though, doesn't always save that much money - I mean, my parents bought a lot of those things for the fundraiser.  Most of them were used, but I'm sure others were not - but regardless, they got something out of the deal now, to save money later.

Imagine trying to get kids to fund-raise for Spanish Club.  There's way too much competition.

Marching band, AFJROTC, baseball, football, softball...kids have to fund-raise for opportunities in so many areas that getting them to fund-raise for Spanish Club is like pulling teeth.  However, we need to fund-raise to be able to afford activities - the less money we have, the less we can do.

Who wants to be in a club where you don't do anything?

To alleviate some of the aggravation of getting kids to raise money, James had an idea - why don't we do a fundraising dinner at Casa Rasta?  People could pay a fee, and the proceeds (minus the food cost) would go to the Spanish Club.  We would also hold raffles to raise some more funds.

As always - genius.

Antonio and Laura, the owners of Casa Rasta, have been so kind to us - and they offered to do the event on a Tuesday, the only day of the week that the restaurant is closed, and therefore, their only day off.  Although the restaurant space itself is small - only 11 seats - we decided to do the best we could in inviting enough people to fill the place (ok, OVERfill the place), while raising a decent amount of funds to cover the cost of future club events.

My tacos (from clockwise from top left): Rajas, Birrio, Soyrizo

17 people came to the dinner - 6 over the seating capacity.  We made it work.  Diners had the choice of 3 tacos OR 1 taco and 1 burrito, plus their choice of drink.  We raffled off 8 baskets - each diner had 3 free tickets for the raffle, while having the option for purchasing additional tickets.

Each diner had a spread like this - well-worth it!

We raised $246.  That's $246 additional for club activities that we didn't have before.  $246 that students don't have to worry about raising (or paying themselves).  I'm pretty happy about that, and I'm sure they are, too!

The best part?  It was a good time.  Definitely a good time - great company, great food, and an opportunity for a few groups to meet - my family, Twitter followers, and teachers.

I have so many people to thank for making this event successful:

Antonio and Laura from Casa Rasta: Thank you so much for giving up your day off to help us out!  Your generosity does not go unappreciated in any way, shape, or form.  Your food is amazing, and I'm so glad that more people got to experience it!  Muchisimas gracias!

Burgh Gourmand: Thank you so much for your organization of this event!  In addition, your generosity in donating raffle prizes is overwhelming.  So many foods from so many places - cactus, sardines, gelatin, hot sauces, etc. You are truly THE BEST!

Mexico Lindo Mercado y Galeria de Artesanias: Thank you so much for donating the "luchador" purse!  My Aunt Marie ended up winning it, and I KNOW she'll get use out of it!

Decor and Mexican Coke

Fonzi's Synergy Fitness: Thank you so much for the t-shirt and 1 month gym membership with training!  Who won?  My mom.  Marie is jealous.  Regardless, it WILL get used!  Yay!

Pittsburgh Prep: Thanks for your generous donation of a basket for our raffle!  Anyone who needs a college readiness academy for services  like SAT or ACT prep MUST check them out!  They are AWESOME people who work hard to ensure that students get the preparation they need for college!

Nancy Cardone: You are SO AWESOME for donating the wrapper purse to raffle off!  Joanne will totally use it, and I'm glad you won a basket in return!  Hooray for karma!

Mr. and Mrs. McMonagle: Thanks for coming and being so supportive!  Now we can do more fun things with the Spanish Club!  Woo hoo!

My family members - Mom, Dad, Mark, Marie, and Dan: Thanks for coming out and trying a new place (and supporting the Spanish Club at the same time!  Two-fer!)

Friends - Joanne, Clara, Nancy (again) and Tom: Thanks so much for coming and being so supportive!  It seems like everyone had a great time!

#TACOYES Twitter Team - Sara, Justine, & Pam: TACOS!  Who can resist?  Thanks for coming out to Casa Rasta for #tacotuesday and supporting the Spanish Club's activities at the same time!

Hopefully, we can do more events like this in the future - they're fun to attend, enjoyable to plan, and help raise funds for a good cause, all while still being Spanish language (and food) -oriented.  

Anyone else want to help us out?

Casa Rasta

2102 Broadway Ave.

Pittsburgh, PA 15216

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/#!/CasaRastaPgh

...Casa Rasta

Tacos are trendy.

I never imagined when I started this blog that so many new Hispanic/Latino restaurants would open even beyond the ones that were opening at the time.  In the original, epiphany-inspiring article, China Millman mentioned Alma, Smoke, Verde...but even more are opening, and they all have a common theme.

Tacos.

James checked out a place in Overbrook on Route 51 a few months ago called California Taco Shop, which I have yet to patronize.  Recently, he was made aware of a place in Beechview called Casa Rasta.

He was on it.  Quickly.

He ranted.  He raved.  He tweeted.  He blogged.

And now I had to get there myself, too!  Tacos are my thing, after all.

We were planning on spending a Saturday afternoon with Food Collage, shopping in the Strip District and making dinner at her place so that James could show off his cooking talents (and so that she and I could reap the benefits), so we thought, why don't we do lunch at Casa Rasta?

Done.

After shopping for our dinner ingredients in The Strip, we drove to Beechview, not far from Dormont, right along the "T" tracks (weird, because the "T" could come by at any moment, and we'd have to yield to it).  Lo and behold, Casa Rasta soon appeared on the left.

Casa Rasta

It's small and cute, with limited seating, just like Smoke BBQ Taqueria, but it definitely adds to the charm of the place.  James had become friendly with the owners, Antonio and Laura, who were so amiable and welcoming when we entered.

It was tough to decide what to order.  James had tried...well, most of the menu, and he liked it all, so it was hard to decide.  We spent a lot of time mulling over the menu, but in the meantime, I ordered a Mango Jarritos:

Menu + Mango Jarritos

One additional menu item for that day was a Ceviche Tostada.  When I hear ceviche: ceviche = sold.  Fresh.  Clean.  Refreshing:

Ceviche Tostada

 Even though the snow was blowing around outside, I already felt like I had escaped to a tropical, Caribbean resort in the middle of...well, Beechview.  Who knew? 

Snow surfing? Nah, just a knick-knack on the windowsill at Casa Rasta. It's adorable!

 Laura brought out a dip tray with a traditional red salsa, tomatillo salsa, and additional jalapeno peppers.  No matter how much I try to like tomatillo salsa, I always find the traditional red to taste better to me.  Not that the tomatillo was bad (not at all!), I just prefer the red to the green:

Tomatillo salsa, traditional salsa, jalapenos

I had finally settled on a Poblano Pepper & Rajas (Potato) Torta, a vegetarian option (not that I'm vegetarian, but I don't mind eating like one sometimes).  I also ordered a side of black beans and a side of rice:

Poblano Pepper & Rajas Torta

Oh wow.  You're probably wondering why I got a torta and not tacos - well, James got tacos, and I knew he'd let me try his...so torta it was.  No doubt it was amazing - all of the ingredients were very authentic, but I especially loved that it was topped with fresh avocado.  It was pretty filling, too - I did force myself to eat my beans and rice, though, to the best of my ability:

Black beans & rice

 Like I mentioned, James allowed me to try his tacos - a carnitas (pork), and a steak, or "carne asada".  I will definitely be getting tacos next time - maybe I'll try every single one.  They were reminiscent of the ones from Reyna's Taco Stand in the Strip District or at the taco stand at Las Palmas, with the savory meats and doubled-up tacos.  So tasty, so flavorful, so delicious:

Carnitas & Carne Asada Tacos

Food Collage went the taco route, too, and ordered similar to James.  For her review, click here.

Since we were the only ones there at the time, Antonio offered us some Chocolate-Chile Pepper Truffles, which were sweet, yet spicy.  These spicy chocolate truffles were rich and decadent, and melted in your mouth with that combination of sweetness and spice:

Chocolate-Chile Pepper Truffles

In addition, we sampled a quesadilla made with cheese (queso fresco) and "empazote", a leafy-green vegetable native to Mexico.  Antonio told us that people would just walk outside of their house and pick empazote from the plant in the yard to put it in their quesadillas.  Although simple, it was yummy!

Quesadilla: Queso Fresco & Empazote

Finally, we tried goat cheese (not my favorite, remember) with blueberry.  If I ever eat goat cheese again, it will be this - the tangy sweetness of the blueberry made it taste almost dessert-like:

Blueberry Goat Cheese

It's a good thing Casa Rasta isn't close to me (like Smoke), because I'd be there - well, as often as I am at Smoke.  The tortillas, the ingredients, the atmosphere - I loved it all.  Not to mention the charm and love that Antonio and Laura put into the food.  I also can't wait to work in conjunction with them on a fundraiser for the Spanish Club that I sponsor (that's how kind and generous they are!)

More Hispanic/Latino places have opened.  More will be opening.  I could easily live on a diet of tacos and other traditional foods - and I wouldn't complain.  Wouldn't complain at all...

Casa Rasta

2102 Broadway Ave.

Pittsburgh, PA 15216 (Beechview)

Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/CasaRastaPgh