Office Christmas Party at the Shaughnessy Golf & Country Club
This is the first time in my career that I have an office job, which means this is the first time I have attended a work Christmas Party. And boy, did it deliver on all my stereotypical, television expectations. There was excessive drinking with an open bar, loud non-harmonious singing, lewd dancing, plus the saucy question who will hook up with who.
However, this all happened on a Sunday, with everyone scheduled to work the next day. Although mind you, we were given an hour later start. I kept it responsible and showed up on time Monday morning, whereas a handful of people continued partying downtown and had to call in sick. But let’s rewind.
Our office party would be held at the Shaughnessy Golf Club, where our boss is a member and thought it fun to invite us all to their annual Christmas Gala. Here, they rolled out the red carpet, trimmed all the trees, and lit up the disco ball in festive celebration. Speaking to the members, this event has been lack lustre in the past, and have only started to pick up in recent years.
The whole of the occasion was held at one of their banquet rooms. The space included bar, dance floor, high tables to stand by, and large tables to sit around. Dinner was spread out around the room, held across multiple self-help stations.
Staff were shucking oysters and spreading them out over a bed of backlit ice. Sweet and creamy kusshi oysters with horseradish and a mignonette Sauce for self dressing.
There was a giant charcuterie board with cold cuts, sliced cheeses, and pickles. The least inspiring of all the options, considering the meat slices included honey ham and turkey breast.
I liked the hand wrap sushi station the most. A piece of seaweed topped with rice and either raw marinated salmon or tuna, along with green onion and fried shallots. Not the freshest fish, but the seasoning and toppings well made up for that in flavour.
At the Chinese themed table there was a bowl of spring rolls chopped in half with a sweet and sour dipping sauce. Plus pulled pork bao sliders with pickled onion and cilantro. The former was still crispy and pretty standard with a pork filling. The latter was bland and in need of some oyster sauce for zip.
Although the most impressive was the dessert table. A collection of one bite pies, tarts, cake pops, chocolate rolls, cookies, macarons, and cream puffs on display. Especially eye catching were the chocolate mousse-filled, edible golf balls. As I am not partial to sweet foods, I did stay away from trying any of it.
There were also canapés and small bites passed around by the servers. One was dressed like a human Christmas tree and the other a humanoid candy cane. Both available and willing to take photos.
The deep fried shrimp dumplings were nice and crispy. There could have been more prawn filling, as is they looked like deflated Santa’s sac.
I found the peanut satay chicken skewers wonderful and had a couple. The meat was tender and the sauce plentiful with crushed nuts. I would have liked them as a meal over rice.
And there were also mini beef sliders. More bread than meat, but the patty that was present was juicy and well seasoned. This was just the sort of heavy small bite you needed to have it feeling like an entree.
For drinks, I was enamoured with the snowflake ice feature that doubled as a martini dispenser. Your gin martini would run through the ice sculpture, thus chilling it, before pooling into your empty glass waiting below. Not only a spectacle, but a fun one to interact with.
At the regular bar we took shots of tequila with the boss and his wife. Sipped on red and white wine, as we mingled. And had the occasional highball to mix things up. Here, I would continue to graze to balance out all the drinking.
Then for the remainder of the night, we took Photo Booth photos as keep sakes. Danced until our feet hurt and the heels came off. And belted out our favourite karaoke songs when the DJ was taking requests.
Overall, a great night and a fun stop to celebrate the season at.
Shaughnessy Golf & Country Club
4300 SW Marine Dr, Vancouver, BC V6N 4A6
(604) 266-4141
shaughnessy.org
