Pondstock

Everything you need to know about Pondstock can be found on this page, scroll down

What is Pondstock?

A backyard party on Steroids hosted by a group of neighbors and friends, in a big open area on a Pond in St Charles, IL.  It started in 2000 and has become an annual event, getting a little larger each year.  Friends and friends of friends attend, so we usually get a big diverse group or folks, usually somewhere between 200 and 300 total.

Seafood Boil-  Authentic Cajun seafood boil.  (bring one pound of RAW seafood/shellfish per adult.  (scallops, shrimp, lobster, muscles, crab, octopus, crayfish, etc)  we supply everything else for the boil(s)  Bring an appetizer or dessert if your so inclined.

 

Beverage  - keg beer and soda and water are provided, until it runs out.   If you want to drink anything else, please BYOB.  Many People bring a  small cooler, etc.

 

Music -   Tent, stage, several bands, music starts at around 4:00 pm-ish, goes to 11:00 pm (or maybe a little later)

General Description

First boil served around 2:00 PM.  Lots of kids running around.  Bean bag games start.  People continue to arrive, peaks at about 6 to 10 ish.  As the evening progresses, families with kids (especially young ones) tend to take off.  Turns more info an adult affair as the sun goes down (but quite a few kids still around, of course)   Headliner band starts around 9 to 9:30 pm.  We usually start a fire after dark.  Music stops around 11:00 ish, but party will continue and slowly die down, about 1:00 am or so mostly done.

 

The general idea is plant down some chairs, relax, eat some great food, listen to some great music, play some bags if you want, relax more, have a great time, and take off when you have had enough.

 

 

The Boil

Party is centered around an authentic Cajun seafood boil.  We supply all the basic ingredients (potatoes, onions, corn, garlic, spices, etc,) and guests bring the seafood (well...we actually always have some starter seafood for the early boils).   The "Boilmaster" oversees the cooking, all done in a very large pot(s) aided by a few assistants.  Once the pot is ready, everything "Poured" onto long tables.  Guests dig in at their leisure throughout the late afternoon and evening.

 

 

The Boilmaster will keep an eye on the party, and pace boils accordingly.   During peak periods, is not uncommon for two pots to be used.   A  LOT of food is served, with typically 20  or more pots poured during the parts.

 

The "early" boils tend to be a little more mild in spices, but certainly not bland.   Kids like these better.  As the evening progresses, the Boilmaster will typically add more spices, and the boils gradually become hotter.  The laster boils, with the last one usually around 10 PM or so, can get pretty intense, so beware!

 

The role of Boilmaster is not an easy one.  In addition to a lot of setup and work cooking, a lot of how-to knowledge is required,.  It is more than :"just through it all in the pot:"; it is fairly complicated in execution, required careful interval timing of various ingredients and the proper  balance of spices.   Apprentices  are typically trained by a seasoned (no pun intended) Boilmaster, assisting for a few years under tutelage, before becoming certified.  It can be quite stressful, but luckily, a plethora of adult beverages make the evening go smoother.

Guests and hosts will frequently bring a side dish (salads, pastas, etc) or dessert tray, although not by any means mandatory.  We set up large tents and tables for the side stuff.    In the past, sometimes we have a non-seafood selection (pulled pork perhaps) feature, but no guarantee.

Other Food

For the past several years we have been making batches of French fries in the early afternoon, a big hit.   This early snack helps keep the kids happy (although a lot of adults love em also)

Some people simply don't like seafood, yes we know, sad but true.  We always have a gas grill available, but it is a "cook on your own" deal. Bring your own meat, if you need.   We can say, however, that many people who typically shy away from seafood in general find that they like the boil type seafood, so there!.

 

Beverages

We have soft drinks and water on hand, but typically folks bring a cooler of drinks and stuff.  Keg beer until it runs out.  In general, the party is a BYOB event.

Activities

Sometimes folks bring their own game stuff, which is very cool, just not "Jarts:" lol.    Absoulty NO FIREWORKS!.    We love them, but just not a good idea here.

We typically have two or three bean bag games set up, very popular. People play till the sun goes down.   Teenagers usually take over volleyball, burning off pent up energy.

We always have Jumper/moon bouncer thing for the little kids (have to keep the teenagers in line, as they get pretty rowdy sometimes).  Varies from year to year, but we occasionally set up additional stuff for the young kids.

The "Pond" has some decent bass and other fish'ees.  If you like to relax with a pole bring it along.  Some of the bass are big, and have become good friends over the years, so catch and release please.

Music

Over the years we have had all types of bands and solo performers, mostly all local.  The music seems to just get better and better, along with the stage, sound systems and lighting.   Check out the archives to see samples of what we have had in the past.

 

 If your a local band and want to play, or just want to get up alone with a song or two, lets us know.

Pondstock