Michele

Realty Builder

If there’s one thing I know about Realtors, it’s that they enjoy eating.

If you put out food, they will come.

But, it has to be the good stuff - no lunch meat sandwiches for these folks. Oh, no, they like buffets with a variety of items including fruits, meats, veggies and, of course, dessert.

Over the last 10 years, I’ve attended a lot of meetings at a lot of facilities around Northeast Florida. Here’s a rundown of some of the best meeting places and meetings in Jacksonville, St. Augustine, Amelia Island and Clay County.

Best breakfast:

NEFAR and SMC used to meet at the Ramada Inn in Mandarin, but moved to the University Center at the University of North Florida many years ago.

The Ramada Inn had the BEST breakfast ever and I’ve yet to find another meeting facility that can top it. None of the Realtor associations meet there any more.

The University Center is a close second. Their buffet has scrambled eggs, fruit, biscuits, gravy, sausage, eggs, waffles and sometimes pastries. It’s tasty and diverse enough for everyone.

Best meeting place:

I’d have to say the Jacksonville Marriott. Several associations, including NEFAR, the Commercial Real Estate Women of Jacksonville and the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties currently have their luncheons there.

The facility has large rooms that can be split or opened up accommodate any crowd and pretty decent food. I’ve had plated lunches there as well as buffets and they were all very good. It is centrally located and has a nice reception area at the front where one-on-one business meetings can occur.

Ryland Homes gave out a Sudoku game and D.R. Horton gave out a zip drive.

Best lunch:

Since I love salad, I’ll say the San Jose Country Club has the best lunch buffet at the Women’s Council of Realtors meetings. I enjoy making a large salad with chicken salad on top and then adding a few of the items from the buffet.

The buffet includes the salad bar, soup, usually a chicken dish or beef, a fish, a vegetable, a rice or pasta dish, rolls and dessert. You need to get to the buffet pretty quick after they announce it’s open because you share it with other groups meeting in the same facility and the line can get pretty long, pretty quick. Oh, and another tip: pick a large plate as you head to the back of the line. It’s too hard to juggle a salad plate, a dinner plate and a dessert plate while walking back to your seat.

Best run meeting:

The Commercial Real Estate Women of Jacksonville. They give you plenty of time to network before the meeting starts. When they call to order, the time flies by. They usually start with a salad and bread while the committee reports are being given and then move onto the main course while the speaker does his/her presentation.

When the speaker is done, the meeting is over. So many times at other meetings, when the speaker is done the organization still has drawings or committee reports or some other reason to keep you in your seat. I organizations that respect the fact that you took time out of your work day to attend and need to get back to work in a timely manner.

Best variety:

The Amelia Island/Nassau County Association of Realtors likes to mix it up. Each month, the meetings move to either a restaurant, the association office, Walker’s Landing at Amelia Island Plantation or a golf course clubhouse. You are always surprised at the location’s aesthetics and the food you may be served. I like that they don’t do the same thing month after month and move locations, menu and speaker.

Best view:

Serenata Beach is a wonderful place to meet for a meeting any time of day. You look out the floor-to-ceiling windows and see nothing but foamy surf lapping at the white sandy beaches while you enjoy getting to know the person sitting next to you or listen to an interesting speaker. The Sawgrass Beach Club is the runner-up.

Ryland Homes gave out a Sudoku game and D.R. Horton gave out a zip drive.

Best holiday meeting place:

NEFAR’s Southwest Council has held their holiday luncheon at Timuquana Country Club for as long as I can remember. It always put me in the holiday spirit since the club was decked out for the holidays and the meeting featured holiday singers, a wonderful buffet and dessert bar and a huge Christmas tree. When you enter the front doors of the large white columned building, you just felt as if the holiday season had really begun.

They’ve moved the event to the Hilltop Restaurant in Orange Park, a delightful place. Hopefully, that holiday cheer will follow them there.

Best parking:

You hate to have to wander about looking for a spot so my choice is the University Center, where there’s always room for one more no matter how many meetings are in progress at the same time.