Here in Ann Arbor, things went really, really well. We had about 65 people show up to what we billed as an "unconference". We had four 30min sessions with 4 breakout groups (10 minute breaks between sessions) with a variety of themes discussed: You can see the list of topics discussed on the wiki:
http://openeverything.wik.is/Ann_Arbor/Discussion The conversation in each group was fantastic and hard to stop - definitely a good sign. Upon leaving, people commented that they had a great time and that they can't wait until the next event. Most of the evening's success is a result of the wonderful people who attended, but good food and a good space definitely had a hand in the overall excitement.
curious to hear how other events / gatherings went.
- garin