The Reno Rodeo continues through this Saturday, including Club 1919, which is the official tent for sponsors.
It’s set up with drinks and food every day of the rodeo for them to enjoy.
The tent is the perfect place for the sponsors to relax, enjoy delicious food, cocktails, hand-scooped ice cream, and, most importantly, get out of the sun for a bit.
It’s open for two hours daily, but even with such a short open window, more than 1,300 people make their way through it.
Kandi Smith, who’s the Assistant Chair for the Sponsors Committee, said, "It's a place where they can come, have dinner, have some drinks, and then go to enjoy a performance. It's our way of saying thank you. Have a nice dinner. Have a couple of drinks, talk to your friends, and meet everybody. It's an appreciation. We couldn't do it with them."
This tent has been a part of the Reno Rodeo tradition for decades now and has over 200 sponsors each year.
Once the rodeo season ends, the committee checks back in with sponsors to see if they want to commit again, then applications for new sponsors open up in October. Final selections are made before the end of May, and for over 30 years, Pinocchio’s Bar and Grill has provided the food for it buffet style.
Matt Mooneyhan the Food Manager for Pinocchio's told us, "It’s an all-day, every day thing for the 10 days. A little bit longer for us, because we do a lot of prep, you know, getting ready for and set up and everything, but, yeah, it's, it's a whirlwind."
Some favorite dishes that always make their way back on the menu are the roasted turkey and baby back ribs.
About 20 turkeys are hand-roasted for about half the day, and about 400 single ribs are served on weekends.
But there's still plenty more on the menu that people enjoy and even go into the restaurant to get more of after the rodeo season ends.
Mooneyhan told us, "We like to get it out there you know, and then, a lot of people will come into the restaurant that hadn't been in the restaurant before and one of the first things they say is, what's that pasta with the chicken in the white sauce. It usually draws them in."
Both people who work for the rodeo and Pinocchio’s say they wouldn't be able to make this happen without the volunteers who participate each year.
