Hartford & Beyond Mix & Mingle 50+

Saturday, November 7, 2026
🍽️ Dinner at 5:00 p.m. — pending reservation
🎶 Show at 7:30 p.m.

Let’s make a night of it! We’ll start around the dinner table at Gather55, where a delicious meal does something good for our community, then head to The Bushnell for an evening of soulful music with John Violinist.

🍽️ Gather55: A Seat at the Table, A Purpose Behind Every Plate
📍 55 Bartholomew Avenue, Hartford

Good food has a way of bringing people together—and at Gather55, that’s the whole idea.

Operated by Hands On Hartford, this welcoming restaurant pairs creative cooking with a mission: helping ensure our neighbors have access to nutritious meals, regardless of their ability to pay. Its dinner program features a three-course menu created by rotating guest chefs, with proceeds supporting its food-access mission.

Gather55’s daytime café offers opportunities to pay what you can or volunteer in exchange for a meal. When we sit down to dinner, we’re helping make room at the table for others, too. That’s a pretty wonderful reason to go out to eat! (gather55.com, handsonhartford.org)

Dinner: Currently $55 per person, plus tax and a 20% service charge supporting the daytime café. (gather55.com)

🎻 Next Stop: John Violinist Live!
📍 Belding Theater at The Bushnell
166 Capitol Avenue, Hartford
🕢 7:30 p.m.

If your idea of violin music is strictly classical, John Violinist will give you something new to enjoy!

Blending R&B, soul, hip-hop, pop, and contemporary music, John brings an expressive sound and lively stage presence to his performances. Think soulful melodies, familiar sounds reimagined, and the kind of energy that might have you swaying in your seat. It’s a fitting way to follow an evening of food and conversation! (johnviolinist.com)

🎟️ Tickets & Getting Together

Please purchase your concert ticket before RSVPing. Everyone is responsible for their own dinner and concert ticket; concert prices vary by seat and availability.

I’ll be in Rear Mezzanine, Section D, Row F, Seat 423, if you’d like to find a seat nearby.

Purchase tickets through The Bushnell.

Come hungry, bring your love of music, and join us for a Saturday night with a little heart and a whole lot of soul!

Thursday, November 12 | 4:30–6:30 PM
Fire by Forge Restaurant
539 Broad Street, Hartford
🎉 We’re celebrating ONE YEAR!

It feels only right to celebrate our first anniversary where it all began — Fire by Forge, the site of our very first Meetup! Come raise a glass, reconnect with friends, meet some newer members, and celebrate a wonderful year of getting out, trying new things, and making connections.
Fire by Forge is a chef-driven, upscale-casual restaurant featuring Pan-American–inspired cuisine influenced by the food cultures of North, Central, and South America. Even better, it’s a social enterprise of Forge City Works. Dining there helps support culinary and hospitality job training, internships, and employment opportunities for people overcoming barriers to employment.
🍹 Our Anniversary Happy Hour Meetup: 4:30–6:30 PM

And there’s more! Going forward, I’ll be hosting a monthly Happy Hour at different local restaurants. It will be a fun, easy way for us to get together between our other activities, discover new places, and just enjoy each other’s company.

💡 Know a great Happy Hour? Send me your suggestion! If we use your recommendation, I’d love to make you the co-host for that event. This is our group, so I’d love to get more members involved in choosing and hosting some of our outings.

🥂 Come celebrate our first year — and help us kick off year TWO!
Please RSVP only if you plan to attend so I can provide the restaurant with an accurate head count.

🎄 Festival of Trees & Traditions + Dinner at Sol y Luna

Saturday, December 5, 2026

Celebrate the season with beautifully decorated trees and festive holiday displays at the Wadsworth Atheneum, followed by dinner and conversation at Sol y Luna!

📍 3:00 p.m. — Wadsworth Atheneum
600 Main Street, Hartford

We’ll explore the museum together until it closes at 5:00 p.m., then take a short walk to dinner at nearby Sol y Luna.

🎟️ Museum admission
Hartford residents are free, and other discounts may be available. Please bring identification or membership documentation for applicable discounts.

For tickets and admission details, visit the museum’s ticket page⁠ or inquire at the admission desk. Check whether any special festival fees apply before purchasing.

💡 Other ways to save
Check with your Connecticut public library about a Wadsworth ARTpass and whether it covers admission during the festival.

🍽️ 5:30 p.m. — Dinner at Sol y Luna
10 Capitol Avenue, Hartford

Please indicate whether you’ll attend both the museum visit and dinner, or just one portion, so I can arrange the restaurant reservation.

Everyone is responsible for their own applicable admission costs, dinner, drinks, tax, and tip. Dinner reservations will be confirmed once we have a head count.

Looking forward to celebrating the season together!