Elite Event @ Mission Inn Resort & Club

Elite Event at a Resort?! Can it get any better?!
Mission Inn is the shizzz… They served as a great host for this awesome elite event.
Started out with Island drinks and a few tours of some of the different hotel rooms. After that we were shuttled off to the clubhouse where we were ushered into a ball room for our own private party. Dishes included sushi, risotto, chicken stir fry and fish. Hornito’s Vodka drinks were going around like like crazy. Did I mention there was also a putting contest on the beautiful putting green?! This was a lot of fun.
Note to Self: Drink more water… Elite Event hang overs are not enjoyable.

Wow! I can’t believe what a spectacular location this is. They have tons of hotel rooms, an all-​you-​can-​eat sushi buffet, excellent food, beautiful rolling hills… I could go on.
When we entered, we were greeted with two cocktail trays of different flavored margaritas. I chose the mango, which was perfectly mild enough to balance out the acidic saltiness of the margarita flavor. We were taken on a tour by Shannon, who is in charge of their weddings. She was so enthusiastic about how wonderful Mission Inn is!
After we sipped our margaritas and gazed out the floor-​to-​ceiling windows onto the golf course, we headed over to the spa area, where we had more cocktail servers with dirty martinis and something with Tito’s in it that I didn’t have a chance to try. Then we ate. YUM! The chefs offered plenty of options, including seaweed and tuna tartar, an amazing cocktail glass with their version of caprese salad (phenomenal), salmon & capers, and chicken stir-​fry.
One thing that I was completely impressed by was their service. I couldn’t leave an empty plate on my table without a server swooping up and clearing it away. They wouldn’t allow anyone to have an empty glass or a dirty plate!
Sadly we couldn’t stay the night and explore more of the property. All in all, it was an amazing evening and we couldn’t have enjoyed it more unless we had brought friends along to share the fun with!

We were taking advantage of the opportunity to stay the night so we arrived earlier in the afternoon and took time to explore the Mission Inn property on our own. I have to say that every staff member we encountered along the way was incredibly pleasant. There are some truly beautiful vistas at the Mission Inn and I can see why it is a popular wedding locale. In fact there was one happening that very afternoon.
I will post my full review of the property on the regular page. Here I just want to talk about the elite event itself which was another success, crammed full of opportunities to experience all that the Mission Inn had to offer. Our Colleen as well as the resort staff put together a great time. We were welcomed with pre-​event cocktails and room tours then we moved over to the banquet area.
Once over at the banquet room the music, food and drink were plentiful. In addition to the stocked bar, Tito’s vodka and Vitamin water were each there offering complimentary beverages. As for the food, the culinary team had prepared a lovely buffet for us. The only thing missing was some beef «Where’s the beef?» as it was a very seafood intensive spread and it would have been really nice if they had given us a dessert sampling so we would have had a complete picture of their catering capabilities.
The Mission Inn staff circulated throughout the crowd and Marty remarked that they were some of the friendliest staff members we had met at any of these events — especially Shannon (my fellow CT Yankee) who took exceptionally good care of us. The spa and golf facility tours were fun and informative.
Having spent 19 years as a licensed massage therapist, with a stint in both spa management and teaching spa techniques at a massage school I was especially excited to see their facility. It is a very nice spa, well laid out and they have some interesting treatment offerings. I was particularly intrigued by the warm bamboo massage. I would like to try that someday.
All in all, it was a wonderful introduction to one of Central Florida’s uniquest resort/​event properties.

First of all, Mission Inn Resort is beautiful! They really did a great job setting everything up and accommodating all of us Unilocalers. We started out with a cocktail and a tour of some of the rooms you could stay in at Mission Inn. Then we headed over to the main event where the music was blasting and the drinks were flowing. Featured again on this event was my favorite, Tito’s Vodka. The lovely people at Mission Inn made a few signature cocktails for the event and then had tons of other drink options as well… including everyone’s favorite, Vitamin Water.
The food spread was ridiculous. And by ridiculous, I mean amazing. Anything from fresh mozzarella and tomato to grouper stuffed with goat cheese, to made to order stir-​fry. It was crazy! And everything was really delicious. I was so stuffed by the time the event ended.
We got to tour the Spa which was so so beautiful. I only wish they had been open on Sunday for me to take advantage of all that they offer their customers.
Overall, I think this was a wonderful event. Although Mission Inn is a little far for me, I would definitely come here another time and take advantage of all they offer people. Would be a nice little future staycation!
Thank you to Mission Inn and Colleen B. for setting up this great event!

Such a wonderful elite event. Where do I begin?
I chose to take the RedCoach bus to and from the event and I am sure glad that I did. The driver was so friendly and the free wifi and comfy seats with foot rests didn’t hurt either ;)
As other Unilocalers both here, and at the event, noticed, the venue was beautiful. Upon arriving, we were greeted with a cocktail reception where we had the opportunity to tour a few rooms; they were lovely. Then we were shuttled to the main banquets hall where the vent was help. We were treated to some amazing food, like fresh tuna tartar, seaweed salad, asparagus, made to order stir fry, risotto to die for, and a caprese salad served in a martini glass. Cuz we fancy ;)
There was plenty of good music to accompany the superb food and drinks.
I must say, I had a fantastic time at this event. Mission Inn is a gorgeous place that I hope to stay in the future for a «stay cation» and I look forward to visiting the Spa!!!

This Elite event is unlike any we’ve attended. Colleen really pulled out all the stops on this. Not only did she have a spacious room packed with great food and drink, and greater people, but she even chartered a bus to shuttle everyone up to Howey-​In-​the-​Hills at a fare of … no money! We weren’t on the bus, as we decided to take advantage of the Staycation offer and stay an extra night ($ 99, breakfast included), but the general consensus was the it was some bus! I’m going to upload some pix later, but trust me in the mean time: the spread that The Mission Inn Culinary team put on was spectacular. Blue fin tuna (the Pacific and sustainable kind, I trust), cured salmon, seaweed salad, endive sprinkled with boursin and black sesame, grouper in a puff pastry … I could go on and on, but it’ll just make those who missed this enviously green. The only thing I didn’t get to taste was the asparagus in sauce Bearnaise: I took pictures of it, but when I went back a little later, they were all gone! Besides the delicious food and great service, I must also compliment the Mission Inn folks for providing some decent drinks — both of the Mondavi reds (Cab and Merlot) were eminently drink-​worthy. Last but certainly not least, what ALWAYS makes Elite events special is meeting some great fellow Unilocalers: Rashmi and her other half Rahul, Jessica V., and new friends Kelly, Sandy, and Beau… It was an evening to savor. Thanks Colleen, and thank you Mission Inn!

Another great Unilocal event!
Fun group of people, fantastic food, and beautiful facility