Eat and Greet

“Meet and greet” has been cited in print since at least 1960 and means a welcoming event for a person or persons. “Eat and greet” is a “meet and greet” event where food is advertised to be served. The term “eat and great” also has been cited in print since at least 1960, but became popularly used at political events since the late 1990s.
 
Many professional entertainers hold a “meet and greet” with fans before the entertainment. Country music’s Zac Brown Band has been holding “eat and greet” events with fans since at least 2009.
 
     
Wikipedia: Zac Brown Band
Zac Brown Band is an American country music band based in Dahlonega, Georgia. The lineup consists of Zac Brown (lead vocals, guitar), Jimmy De Martini (fiddle, vocals), John Driskell Hopkins (bass guitar, vocals), Coy Bowles (guitar, keyboards), Chris Fryar (drums) and Clay Cook (guitar, keyboards, mandolin, steel guitar, vocals). The band has toured throughout the United States, including a slot on the 2009 and 2010 Bonnaroo Music Festival. They have also recorded four studio albums, and charted six Number One singles on the Billboard country charts: “Chicken Fried”, “Toes”, “Highway 20 Ride”, “Free”, “As She’s Walking Away”, and “Colder Weather”, in addition to the single “Whatever It Is,” which peaked at number 2 on the same chart.
 
Zac Brown Band Official Store
The Official Zac Brown Band “Eat and Greet”
As most fans are aware, bands regularly host a “meet and greet” at shows where a limited number fans have the opportunity to briefly meet the band, say hello, get an autograph, etc.
 
ZBB is taking that idea one step further… At most ZBB shows, the band will be hosting the Official Zac Brown Band “Eat and Greet”. Everyone in attendance will have the opportunity to actually hang out the whole band for an hour before the show AND enjoy a fantastic plate of Southern Ground Grub cooked and prepared right there by Zac and Chef Rusty featuring Zac’s signature Brown Sauce, Spice Rub and other recipes.
 
The passes are for the Eat and Greet only and DO NOT INCLUDE tickets to the show. Tickets must be purchased separately through normal ticketing channels. The location of the Eat and Greet within the venue will be provided with the passes at will call.
 
(Oxford English Dictionary)
meet-and-greet, n. and adj.
colloq. orig. and chiefly N. Amer.
A. n.
An activity or occasion which involves formally receiving and welcoming a person or persons.
1960 Oakland (Calif.) Tribune 7 July 67/4   Committee chairmen‥have been selected‥. They are:‥Ernest Bianchi, house meet-and-greet and budget.
1988 Boston Globe 31 Oct. 10   He attends countless ‘meet-and-greets’, conducts high-school bands, signs autographs.
B. adj.
Designating such an activity or occasion.
1981 N.Y. Times 15 Nov. i. 52/5   She has made it much more than a white-gloved, meet-and-greet kind of job, said Diane M. Coffey, the Mayor’s administrative assistant.
     
25 December 1960, Los Angeles (CA) Times, “UCLA’s Co-ed Dorm Scores Big Success” by Norman Dash, pg. WS1:
EAT AND GREET. In cafeteria of new Dvkstra Hall Marshall Nichols teams. up with Beverly Weiss left and Linda Wilson for lunch.
 
21 May 1994, Orlando (FL) Sentinel, “Meet Political Candidates Today: Democrats, Republicans Planning ‘Eat-and-Greet’ Events” by Jerry Fallstrom, Lake Sentinel, pg. 2.
 
12 June 1997, Richmond (VA) Times, “Warner endorses Republican ticket, aide says”:
With the GOP ticket set, all six candidates were scheduled to “eat and greet” for the first time at the annual Pork Festival near Emporia yesterday.
   
Google News Archive
20 October 1999, Free Lance-Star (Fredericksburg, VA), Neighbors, pg. 10, col. 1:
Republicans
eat and greet
By JUDITH HENTERLY JONES
Stafford Country Republicans gathered for an old-fashioned “meet and greet” barbecue at Curtis Park on Saturday.
 
New York (NY) Times
Page Two; Where the Elite Meet to Eat and Greet
By RAYMOND HERNANDEZ
Published: February 15, 2004
PRESIDENT BUSH showed up in a gray Army windbreaker. Prince Charles was decked out in desert camouflage and boots. Tony Blair was more casual, in jeans and an open-neck shirt.
 
No, it wasn’t Fashion Week. It was Iraq: where politicians go to see and be seen. At least 150 members of Congress have made the trip, including Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, Democrat of New York, and Tom DeLay, the House majority leader.
 
ABC News
‘Eat and Greet’: Roasted Pork
3/1/2006, 12:57 PM EST
Bring the Chef Into Your Kitchen
With ABC News’ “Eat and Greet,” you can play video in your kitchen and have the best chefs in the country teach you how to make their recipes. You can even stop and start the video for step-by-step instructions.
 
On this week’s “Eat and Greet,” ABCNews’ Katrina Szish went inside the kitchen of the hot Times Square District Cuban restaurant Havana Central to bring you executive chef Stanley Licairac’s recipe for roasted pork.
 
CMT News
HOT DISH: Taylor Swift Moves Out, Miranda Lambert Moves Forward
More News About the Zac Brown Band, Dierks Bentley, Trace Adkins and Others
October 5, 2009; Written by Hazel Smith
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Zac Brown Band Hosting Eat-and-Greets
Artists often host meet-and-greets, but now’s your chance to enjoy an eat-and-greet with the Zac Brown Band. Zac is quite a connoisseur of great food, and he and the band have scheduled these events at several concerts. Several lucky pass holders will not only be allowed to hang with Zac and the band, they’ll be treated to a plate of Southern cooking prepared by Zac and Chef Rusty. A total of 24 eat-and-greet passes will be available for the shows at $35 each. If you find yourself hanging out with Zac, tell him Hazel says, “Hey!”