Serving up SXSW: A photo recap of the Silicon Prairie Cereal Bar

Amid the rain and eventual shine at South By Southwest last week in Austin, Texas, Silicon Prairie News hosted a different kind of open bar. We tried something new this year to extend the networking, take a breather from the conference craze and provide our party attendees a unique experience with an edible spoon. We…

SXSW attendees were bowled over by serious cereal selection at our March 11 cereal bar in Austin. 

Amid the rain and eventual shine at South By Southwest last week in Austin, Texas, Silicon Prairie News hosted a different kind of open bar.

We tried something new this year to extend the networking, take a breather from the conference craze and provide our party attendees a unique experience with an edible spoon. We hosted the Silicon Prairie Cereal Bar on March 11, and more than 600 SXSW attendees joined us at Halcyon, a coffee shop just a few blocks from the convention center, for a bowl of their favorite from our cereal selection.

We were fortunate to have had a wide array of SXSW attendees, from serial entrepreneurs to cereal enthusiasts,  pass through and share a spoonful. If you stopped by the cereal bar, drop a line and share your experience. 

Thanks to the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce there were plenty of the edible spoons to go around, in addition to the personalized Des Moines Partnership photo milk cartons and custom screen protectors from the Iowa Economic Development Authority – a perfect solution to protect SXSW mobiles during the spotty weather. Thanks to our sponsors’ support and presence at the event, we were able to serve up the best of the breakfast world to SXSW. 
A special thanks to noted Austin photographer Otto Helweg for capturing images of the event. In the pictures below, you can see just how bowled over we were about the event. Take a look at Helweg’s work below and make sure to check out his other SXSW coverage

Attendees ventured outside for the cereal bar when the rain cleared.

Special thanks to the Iowa Economic Development Authority for sponsoring the Cereal Bar. 

William Corcoran of biltboard (left) and SPN co-founder Jeff Slobotski talked shop at the coffee shop.

Through the morning and into the afternoon, close to 600 attendees stopped through the cereal bar.

Thanks to Sticker Mule for the Silicon Prairie News swag. 

 Josh Cramer (left) of Cramer Dev was part of a sizable Iowa contingent in attendance.

SXSW cereal bar attendees engaged in coffee shop chatter. 

Cereal Bar guests paused to pose for a photo.

Halcyon drew a crowd on a sunny Austin Sunday.

Big thanks to the Greater Omaha Chamber for their support of this Silicon Prairie News event.  

Halcyon’s array of beverages complemented the assortment of cereals available at the event.

Dhruv Chopra (Left) and Rob Adams (Right), both of Capricorn Investment Group, chatted over cereal.

Smiles abounded at the Cereal Bar. 

Over a cup of joe and Apple Jacks, attendees found time to chat. 

Geoff Wood struck a pose next to his milk carton mugshot provided by our sponsor, the Greater Des Moines Partnership.


Credits: Photos by Otto Helweg.

This story is part of the AIM Archive

This story is part of the AIM Institute Archive on Silicon Prairie News. AIM gifted SPN to the Nebraska Journalism Trust in January 2023. Learn more about SPN’s origin »

Get the latest news and events from Nebraska’s entrepreneurship and innovation community delivered straight to your inbox every Wednesday.