Happy Birthday #BlogOmaha - Hiro88 Celebration with Omaha Cupcakes

Disclosure: I was provided with food in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own. 

  

Is there anything in the world that beats a really good birthday celebration? Not in my mind.

Blog Omaha Birthday Bash Friends

Now let's look back in time. I've been blessed to be a part of the Omaha Bloggers Network for the past year. These gals and guys are amazing people with vast and varied blogs. And--they are totally willing to share their experiences and expertise. I'm so happy to have made some awesome blogging friends and I believe I've been making my blog even better because of their influence and help.

Beautiful place settings at Hiro88 Old Market

Cupcakes from Cupcake Omaha waiting for us to open.

I was thoroughly impressed by the party coordinated by one of our own. She worked with Hiro88 in the Old Market for us to meet and they provided our group with three giant boats of sushi, plus other happy hour appetizers such as the crab rangoon, edamame, and fried gyoza (similar to a pot sticker).

Crab Rangoon

One of our sushi boats

Another Sushi Boat

Happy Hour Drink Special

She also got cupcakes from Cupcake Omaha for dessert. Can I be the first to tell you that I've never had such a moist cupcake in recent history. So much better than the others I've had. Yum!

We didn't have formal plans for our event, it was a time for us to get together, celebrate a year of better blogging and just be social. Don't worry, we still had lots of 'shop talk' and I've noticed other bloggers putting their shop talk to good use. I was able to get some questions answered and learned of some new conferences I want to check out. In today's world, it's sometimes hard to connect with others in similar pursuits. So I'm thankful for the Omaha Bloggers and our network.

My thoughts about Hiro88:
I found it to be a trendy, upscale dining spot, but the dress ranged anywhere from dressy to very casual shorts or jeans and a tshirt. I was glad to see that patrons were welcomed and treated as valued guests no matter what attire they were wearing. The food was delicious. The crab rangoon was simply amazing. So light and crunchy and the inside was rich and creamy. I also rarely find good 'pot stickers' so when I tasted the fried gyoza, I knew what I was ordering off of the happy hour menu.
Old Market Location Happy Hours:

Mondays:3pm-6:30pm
Tuesdays:3pm-6:30pm
Wednesdays:3pm-6:30pm / 10pm-12am
Thursdays:3pm-6:30pm / 10pm-12am
Fridays:3pm-6:30pm / 10pm-1am
Saturdays:10pm-1am
Sundays:All Day (11am-10pm)

PB Cup Cupcake -
It was amazing!

My thoughts about Cupcake Omaha:
I tried a few bites of several cupcakes (we played pass them around). My descriptor is moist. They weren't dry and crumbly--which I find disgusting in a cupcake. They were moist and almost all of them have a surprise center. Might be a pudding, might be a creme filling, but whatever it was, delicious was the word I'd use over and over. The salted caramel peanut topping on one was enough to make me a happy girl. I got to eat the PB Cup Cupcake. It was delicious. I meant to save a portion of it for my son who loves PB Cakes...that didn't happen. I ate every last bite.

Chocolate creme center

Oreo Cupcake