We took a little Rip Van Winkle nap and are now just waking up.  You beloved g33k d1nner will be back pretty dang soon.  Expect a imminent announcement (just need to confirm venue).  I will give you a hint loyal diner, it will involve beer.

When I founded the geek dinner in March of 2006, the vision was:

To create a space, where people interested in, passionate about, those working with, building, creating, technology on the Internet could meet and get to know each other. Although most of these people would be working inside companies or for other people, some of them would eventually want to start their own endeavors. And when that happened, they needed people to collaborate and work with - that held similar values and mindset and varied skillsets. The geek dinner created the space for connections, true friendship bonds to be formed with self-selected like minded individuals.

We met over dinner, because a different relationship forms when sharing a meal. I was not interested in building the event into a brand or personal business, so I kept it as cheap and accessible as possible by making people responsible for taking care of their own costs. I did not explicitly search out sponsors, although some companies saw the value in the Geek Dinner and offered “sponsorship” money. I personally covered the costs of sharpies, nametags, restaurant guarantees (when necessary) and other misc things.

Fast forward 4 years and the LA Tech community is completely different - much in part because of the early efforts of the Geek Dinner and everyone who attended, supported and became this community. Although I “killed” the Geek Dinner at the end of 2009, I have miss the energy it supported. I have not been able to find the same feeling at other events.

I’m trying an experiment, I’m bringing the Geek Dinner back for one night - tomorrow - at one of our old favorite restaurants: Canter’s Deli. Canter’s has great food, though it’s not super cheap, plus a full bar, and can easily accommodate “over 200 people at a time”.

So if you want to make lasting connections, or just see some old friends, come join us. I promise no one will try to sell you anything, and if they do, I’ll ask them to leave.

It’s been a long time, months since I retired the Geek Dinner last year and I don’t know about you, but I’ve been kind of missing the old geek dinner energy. There are so many great events in Los Angeles, but none of them have the same low-key, community building energy that made the geek dinner, the geek dinner. So, I’m bringing the Geek Dinner back - for a one-off geek dinner. Don’t be thinking it’s coming back for-ever!

• When: Tuesday, June 15, 2010, starting around 7:30pm
• Where: Canters Deli, Mid-Town on Fairfax near Melrose
• What: People who self-identify as geeks

How does it work: Show up, order a drink, some food, be open and friendly, meet some new people, have some interesting conversations, eat some pastrami.

It’s a chill scene. No uber networking, self-promotion or company promotion. Just be cool. We’re all friends you haven’t met yet. RSVP on our old friend Upcoming.

The Geek Dinner has joined up with Ignite to hold the first ever Ignite LA on July 21st at Cinespace (map) in Hollywood.

What is Ignite?
———————
Speakers get 5 minutes to give an amazing, inspiring talk. They submit 20 slides which automatically advance every 15 seconds.

At other Ignites, talks have included:
- The Secret Underground World of Lego
- How to Buy a Car
- Cyborg Anthropology
- Hacking Chocolate

This will be the first Ignite in Los Angeles; it is co-sponsored by LA Geek Dinner, Girls In Tech LA, and a few other groups to be announced soon.

What is Geek Dinner?
———————
The LA G33k dinner was kind enough to let us take over their July dinner to host the first Ignite.

LA Geek Dinner, founded by Heathervescent brings people with a passion for technology and the internet together over a meal where conversations happen, friendships form, and collaborations on various projects occur. L.A. Geek Dinner is an inclusive event.

Details & Schedule
———————
The event is free. We’re hosting it at Cinespace on July 21:

6:30 Geek Dinner& Drinks — Cinespace is doing a beer bucket special for us for the the first hour (5 beers for $20)
8pm-9:30 Ignite talks
10pm Cinespace opens to the general public for Dim Mak (you’re welcome to
stay for the band)

While the event is free, you are responsible for paying for your own food/drinks from Cinespace if you want ‘em.

Please RSVP to the Geek Dinner list on upcoming.

Talks
———————
If you’re working on an interesting project, have an unusual skill, or just some interest that would be fun to share with everyone, please submit your proposal here.

Follow Us
———————
Ignite/LA announcement Mailing List
Ignite Twitter

Geek Dinner Facebook
Geek Dinner Twitter: http://twitter.com/lageekdinner

Thanks,
Heathervescent — LA Geek Dinner
Brady Forrest, Matt Forrest & Dan Gould — Ignite/LA