Pizza Rustica

Today's new SocialBuy deal is $5 for $10 to Pizza Rustica. I think I was probably the first person to click BUY NOW.

I used to work for a major newspaper in downtown LA, and a Pizza Rustica (it's a franchise) was just down the street. For some reason, I didn't eat there the whole time I worked in that area. But a couple of months later, I was visiting an old coworker downtown, and we decided to get lunch there.

HOLY COW. In general, I'm a huge pizza lover. Growing up, it was usually the thing I gave up for Lent... unsuccessfully. I ascribe to the theory that any pizza is good pizza.

Pizza Rustica is GREAT pizza. I ordered the Chicken Alla Florentina. I got the small, and it was enormous. It was the kind of pizza that's so huge that you have to fold it in half and eat it like a sandwich. Between that and the pitcher of beer we ordered, I was barely able to waddle out the door when I was done (no, there were no leftovers to speak of).

What I'm trying to say is, buy this SocialBuy deal. If not for yourself, then for me. This is a Los Angeles restaurant deal you don't want to miss.

TWITTER CONTEST!

Hey Tweeps!

We're having our first-ever Twitter contest today. If people RT our message, they can win 2 tickets to our upcoming event with Schmoozd at WokCano on March 25th. Here's the message:

TWITTER CONTEST! RT this to win 2 tix to our Schmoozd mixer at WokCano on March 25 http://bit.ly/afVzRb #socialbuy

Here are the details:

• This contest runs until midnight Pacific time on Wednesday (when the deal expires)
• A winner will be randomly selected to win two tickets to our event (details here)
• Anyone and everyone is welcome to buy the deal on their own at SocialBuy
• Winner must be 21+ (sorry!)

If you have any questions, leave them in the comments and I'll come back and answer them. You can also ask by RT'ing socialbuy_jess.

East Restaurant in Hollywood - Hang with the SocialBuy Crew!

Tomorrow night, Angelenos have a very special opportunity: to meet the team behind SocialBuy at our first-ever SociaLite "Classy Hour" event. We're holding it at East Restaurant and Lounge in Hollywood. It's one of the newer Hollywood hotspots, though owner David Judaken and chef Keven Allen Lee aren't exactly hospitality greenhorns.

Right now on SocialBuy, we're selling $15 drink vouchers to East for $7. If you want to try out East but can't make it tomorrow night, no worries - this deal voucher will be valid for the next year.

It starts at 5 pm and goes until 8, which is the extent of East's regular happy hour. The voucher applies to happy hour drinks - hey, we like to save money too!

Besides promoting East, this is a great opportunity for us to meet our fans and fellow web denizens face-to-face. It'll also be a solid chance to wind down and recover from mid-week slump.

Like I said, this is our first-ever SociaLite event - as in, we plan on having plenty more in the future. We'd love to see you there tomorrow night, but if you can't, no worries. You'll have plenty more chances to hang out with us!

Get your drink voucher here. RSVP to our Facebook event and get more details here.

Eye of the Tiger

Sometimes, you hear about a combination so awesome that you can't believe no one has thought of it before. Bacon and chocolate. Lady Gaga and Beyonce. Blankets and sleeves (though, to be fair, robes have been pretty popular for the last millenia or so).

Today's SocialBuy deal is equally awe-inducing: cardio, self-defense, and kung fu. Yes, KUNG FU. You can get a month of cardio-self-defense-kung-fu lessons from White Tiger Kung Fu for $23 with today's SocialBuy.

Not to be a downer, but in a big city like Los Angeles, self-defense skills are a necessity. If that skill set includes kung fu, so much the better.

True story: my college roommate's dad got mugged walking to his car from work one night. Her dad - who served in some sort of special ops military group that he doesn't talk about - said to him, "You really don't want to do that. I'm giving you one chance to walk away." The mugger didn't move. So her dad broke his nose.

Frankly, I'd feel better just by looking at strangers and thinking, "I know kung fu. Don't try anything fishy. I can chop you and then have the endurance to jog at a steady pace to a safe location."

What's the saying - you can't put a price on peace of mind? Find your inner zen (and inner martial artist) by getting in on today's SocialBuy and taking a month of classes at White Tiger Kung Fu for just $23.

Team Tan

We have an awesome deal right now for the sun-resistant: $60 for $125 worth of services from Island Spray Tan. Island Spray Tan has two very unique, very awesome things going for it: they use all-natural organic products, and they come to your work/home/movie set/whatever and do the spray tan for you there. How many companies still make house calls like that??

They do a custom job, so whether you're already bronzed or painfully pale (like me), the tan will look natural. You can either use your SocialBuy for a one-time thing or put the amount toward a monthly membership.

The whole vampire-Twilight-craze made being pale moderately more acceptable. But seeing as I *don't* want to be associated with any team of the Edward or Jacob variety, I think I'm going to get in on today's SocialBuy. (One of my Twitter pals, @tanningshoptips, held a contest to see who could do the best job of giving Edward Cullen a fake bake - check it out here)

Like I said, Island Spray Tan does a customized tan for you, so I know I won't get Jersey Shore Orange. I really don't want to go super-tan; just enough so that I look sun-kissed. Vampires be damned - I'm joining the dark side.