In honor of National Grilled Cheese Month, on April 12, (National Grilled Cheese Day) Tillamook celebrated by having a golden ticket surprise at selected grocery stores in Los Angeles, CA, and Dallas, TX. Now how cheestastic is that?! Every hour Golden Tickets were hidden next to items that matched the theme of a grilled cheese sandwich. Lucky participants who found the ticket redeemed their Golden Ticket at the Loaf Love Tour kiosk to claim their prize. Each winner received a coupon for a free 2 lb baby loaf of their choice! To make the event extra special, their ticket was put into a drawing with the rest of the other tickets TO WIN A YEAR’S WORTH OF TILAMOOK CHEESE! YUM! Below are some fun photos from our Golden Ticket Giveaway.

Don’t forget the bread! A must have to make a tasty grilled cheese!

Can you think of all the places a Golden Ticket could have been hiding?

Here are some cheesy hints!

One of our first winners comes to the kiosk to get his free coupon for a 2lb Baby Loaf!

Participants had a lot of fun going through the aisles trying to find one of our Golden Tickets. After speaking with many, almost everyone decided to have grilled cheese sandwiches for dinner that night! There’s nothing quite like the feeling of being able to bring a Baby Loaf of cheese to one of our Tillafans.

You can join in on all of our fun by visiting us on Loaf Love Tour. Check the schedule – we may be coming to your city! Check out my cheesy adventures by following me on twitter @peppercornypaku. See you soon!

-Pakou

By Tillamook

Baby Loaves and Smile Sticks

I can’t believe that nearly a month ago I was hopping on a plane from Portland, OR to Dallas, TX to start my new job as a Brand Ambassador for the famous Tillamook Loaf Love Tour.  When people say that time flies when you’re having fun, they aren’t kidding. It’s hard to believe that our time in Dallas is coming to an end; I feel like we just got here. I was already extremely excited to begin my 6 month adventure, but Dallas and the Loaf Love Tour have far exceeded my expectations.

I know it sounds cheesy (the cheese humor never gets old), but there is not one thing that I don’t love about this job.  From the cubing parties, where all the Brand Ambassadors listen to music and slice the cheese into perfect bite-sized cubes to share with the people of Dallas, to the big events like the Dallas Zoo.  Originally, the Dallas Zoo event was supposed to be on a Saturday, but some extreme weather forced us to cut that day short.  Miraculously, just two days later the clouds parted and that big, orange wheel of cheese in the sky beamed down on us, and we were able to put our award-winning cheese in the mouths of thousands of zoo-goers. After a day on the job I often think to myself, “Am I dreaming?  I get to drive around in our awesome Baby Loaf buses. I get to talk to the wonderful people of Dallas about delicious cheese, and I get to travel around and share the Loaf. Someone pinch me!

My favorite day in Dallas thus far was definitely our Day of Loaf. The entire crew hops into our Baby Loaf buses, and we drive around spreading the loaf, taking pictures with the wonderful people of Dallas. Because it was Burger Week, we visited five Dallas-area restaurants and sampled their specialty burgers made with delicious Tillamook Cheese.  By the fifth restaurant I was so delightfully full…and happy that I had worn pants with an elastic waist band.

If you were one of the people who visited with me at a local grocery store, thank you for the warm hospitality! I love the sincerity as you listen to me rave about this amazing cheese and the support you’ve shown our co-op of family farmers. Dallas has been the perfect city to kick off the Texas leg of the Loaf Love Tour. This beautiful city has made me so excited to see what else the fine state of Texas has to offer.

Look out Texas!  The Loaf Love Tour is here! We Loaf you Dallas, TX!

- Til-Lyssa of the Loaf Love team

Dallas Super Fan

By Alyssa

As one of the latest additions to the Tillamook Loaf Love Tour team, I had heard all about Taco Week in Phoenix from the other brand ambassadors. And as a passionate foodie, I was thrilled when I learned there would be a Burger Week in Dallas! Despite the storm warnings and a fierce wind, the Tillamook team was not going to let the weather deter us from eating some tasty burgers. The only thing I wanted to be blown away by was each chef’s juicy, mouthwatering creation!

On our Day of Loaf we cruised through some wonderful Dallas neighborhoods in the Yums, and visited five local restaurants to try their delicious burgers, all of which beautifully decorated with Tillamook cheese. Many people were shocked and pleasantly surprised to see four adorable orange VW buses driving past their local hangouts. My favorite part of our Yum caravan was taking a brief detour through the gorgeous SMU campus. We even stopped to pass out smile sticks to a group of preschoolers; they could hardly contain their excitement when they saw the Yums! I definitely felt like a cheesy celebrity!

All of the driving made us quite hungry, and we visited several local restaurants to refuel. I made sure to savor every bite at every place we stopped. I never say “No” to a burger, and I’ve never met a burger I didn’t like! While all five were incredibly tasty, my personal favorite was the ½ lb. cheeseburger and fries at Neighborhood Services Tavern. It featured a juicy patty of delectable ground beef dressed with lettuce, tomato, sweet pickles, and caramelized onions – all nestled in a super soft and lightly toasted bun. Yum doesn’t even begin to cover it! It was a delicate balance of savory and sweet.

So, how do you like to dress up your burger? Share it with us on Facebook or Twitter, and be sure to enter the Burger Week contest. It ends tomorrow!

Asteria, Loaf Love Tour Brand Ambassador

Follow me on Twitter @aspiringasteria!

By Asteria

Lee Harvey's Burger courtesy of Sara Kerens, Dallas Observer

It’s estimated that the average American eats around 100 cheeseburgers a year. But you just need one to win our Dallas Burger Week contest!

Beginning today, snap a picture of yourself enjoying your favorite burger, and post your pic to the Tillamook Facebook page or tweet @TillamookCheese with the hashtag #BurgerWeek to enter to win a $25 gift card to one of our Dallas Burger Week partner restaurants!

Want to find out more about our partner restaurants and see the Tillamook cheeseburgers they are grilling up? Get all the details here.

Prize: $25 gift certificate to one of the participating Tillamook Burger Week restaurants. Four winners will be chosen.

How to Enter:

1)    Read the official contest rules.

2)    Post a picture of yourself enjoying your favorite burger to the Tillamook Facebook page or tweet to @TillamookCheese with the hashtag #BurgerWeek by midnight PST on Saturday, March 24

3)    Tillamook will randomly select the winners and award each of the four winners: $25 gift certificate (1 per winner) to one of the participating restaurants

4)    Winners will be announced on Monday, March 26

Good luck!

By Tillamook

Cowboy Loafy!

The Loaf Love Tour has arrived in Texas! After several sunny weeks in Arizona, we reached a rainy and stormy Dallas – I think Texas wanted us to feel more at home with Oregon-style weather. After almost a week of rain, we were finally able to enjoy beautiful 80 degree weather on Monday at the Dallas Zoo! It was a fun-filled day with more than 13,000 people enjoying Tillamook Cheese samples, Loaf Love Tour bingo, smile sticks, bean bag toss and of course the super-cute zoo animals!

This was the first event where all five of our Baby Loaf buses were there, and they sure made a big impact! Many people mentioned seeing the new Tillamook Loves Texas commercials that feature one of our awesome Baby Loaf buses on a Texas road trip! In addition to the buses, our cheery cheesy mascot, Loafy was there! The kids and families here in Dallas were getting a kick out of Loafy’s sweet disco dance moves, and I was thrilled to get the coveted job of escorting Loafy around the zoo.

All the kids and families were so excited to see the Loaf Love Tour and taste Tillamook Cheese. I loved seeing so many people fall in loaf with our cheese for the first time! It was a close call between which was the favorite attraction at the zoo today: the brand new koala bears, the jungle animals, or the Loaf Love crew.  I heard one mom asked her son, “What do you want to see first, the reptiles or the tigers?” Her son replied, “I want to go back to the CHEESE!!!” We met so many fun and awesome Texans today. I’m so excited to be spending the next three months in this great state!

I hope to see you all on the road!

Ashley, Loaf Love Tour Brand Ambassador

Follow me on Twitter @TillatasticAsh

Longhorn Loaf Love

Hooray for Dallas Zookeepers!

By Ashley

Photo courtesy of Twisted Root Burger Company

Texans love their cheeseburgers! To celebrate this, the Loaf Love Tour is partnering with five Dallas restaurants for Tillamook Burger Week. From Saturday, March 17 through Saturday, March 24 stop by any of our partner restaurants to get a taste of their best burgers, featuring Tillamook Cheese, of course.

Check out these Dallas burger hot spots for Tillamook Burger Week:

Twisted Root Burger Company – Deep Ellum and SMU locations

Winner of the 2011 Dallas Observer and D Magazine Reader’s Choice for Best Burger, chefs Jason Boso and Quincy Hart introduce the Tillamook Horseradish Pimiento Burger.  Made with Twisted Root Horseradish Mustard, Cayenne Pepper and Tillamook Sharp Cheddar. ($7.99)

Lee Harvey’s

Known for delicious burgers this 50-year old favorite is proud to present Erick’s Tillamook Burger. Served with Tillamook Pepper Jack, Grilled Onions, Grilled Jalapenos and Fries. ($9.25)

Neighborhood Services Tavern

Local celebrity chef Nick Badovinus serves up his classic 1/2 lb# Cheeseburger and Fries. This Burger Week special comes fully dressed with caramelized onions and Tillamook Sharp Cheddar. ($13)

Thomas Avenue Beverage Company

Enjoy their special Tillamook Pepper Jack Black Angus Burger covered in shredded Tillamook Pepper Jack Cheese melted over Black Angus Sirloin with Lettuce, Tomato, Grilled Onions and Jalapeno Mustard. Served with French Fries. ($11.95)

Victor Tangos

Executive Chef Greg Bussey is serving up the All Prime Double-Double Burger with Tillamook Sharp Cheddar Cheese for Burger Week.  Come hungry for two, 4 oz. patties served with a ketchup mayo blend. ($11)

As part of Tillamook Burger Week festivities, we will also be giving away $25 gift cards for you to try these burgers for yourself. Stay tuned to the blog for details on how to win!

Click here for a complete schedule of the Loaf Love Tour in the Dallas area!

See you at Burger Week!

Photo of Neighborhood Services cheeseburger, courtesy of Daniel Walker, Deep in the Gut of Texas

By Tillamook

Howdy Texas! All the way from Oregon, the Tillamook Loaf Love Tour is here to say hello to the lone star state. Our team of fun-loving, cheese-sharing brand ambassadors have just entered Dallas, and we are so excited to start sharing the loaf at the Dallas Zoo with events on Saturday, March 10th and Monday, March 12. Stop by to see us between 9am and 5pm to enjoy some cheese samples, play games and get Tillamook goodies!

The first 100 people who come to the zoo each day wearing Tillamook Orange will get in to the zoo for free. Anyone after the first 100 will save $1 off zoo admission. Inside the zoo we’ll be sampling four of our natural cheeses – Medium, Sharp, Monterey Jack and Pepper Jack. We will also be handing out bingo cards that you and your family can take around the zoo to find fun animals and Tillamook cheese. When you’re done, stop by our sampling station outside the zoo to collect a special prize! If free cheese and goodies aren’t enough, we’ll also be handing out coupons for Tillamook Cheese along with delicious recipes for you and your family.

We hope you’ll stop by the Dallas Zoo on Saturday or Monday to say hello and have some fun with Tillamook!

Find more info on Facebook!

Yay for Dallas Zoo!

By Loafy