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TASTE OF SONOMA
Community Partners Showcase Local Bounty
Presented by DoubleTree Hotel Sonoma Wine Country,
Rohnert Park, California
The DoubleTree Hotel Sonoma Wine Country celebrated the local vineyard culture
with “A Taste of Sonoma,” drawing 150 guests to a culinary affair jointly coordinated by the
hotel’s food and beverage staff and six local restaurants.
“We are known for great restaurants in this region, so I wanted to give
our guests a sense of those restaurant settings, but all in one place,” says
GM Ted Sakai.
Executive Chef Vicky Walker and Chef John Alexander worked side by side with
restaurateurs to put together a menu that complemented area wines with a broad sampling of local cuisine.
Tasting stations offered a sampling of the vintner’s art, while a diverse assortment
of wine-themed dishes including a Chardonnay sorbet rounded out a menu that featured
regional produce, Sonoma sausages, and poached prawns.
With so many restaurants rubbing elbows, success lay in variety. “The whole trick
is to have the right mix so no one is competing with anyone else,” Sakai says. |
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ULTRA - SOPHISTICATED FUNDRAISING
Rich Menu, Colors Wow Guests
Presented by the Peabody Orlando, Orlando, Florida
The Peabody Orlando’s annual fundraiser for Give Kids the World—a local village
that houses families of children being treated for life-threatening illnesses—
is a 1,500-person event that also serves as a thank you to corporate
sponsors.
"With the kind of people who are involved in [the fundraiser], their expectations
are high. These are major, major corporate partners, a very well-traveled
audience,” says Eddie Maddox, director of catering and convention services at
the Peabody Orlando.
With its “Havana Nights” theme, last year’s event was extraordinarily colorful,
starting with rich chocolate-brown velour drapery hanging from floor to ceiling.
Linens sported chocolate and cherry red. Dazzling purples and blues formed the basis of fabric-pillowed walls.
Appetizers included swordfish with green papaya slaw and roasted heart of palm
salad with sour orange vinaigrette. Entrées included coffee-rubbed New York strip with
a Rioja wine sauce, as well as mojito-marinated jumbo prawns with roasted Caribbean
root vegetables.
“Everyone who comes to the event looks forward to seeing how we are going to
meet the challenge of doing something different from previous years,” Maddox said.
“That is part of the goal here; we want to shake them up a little bit.” |
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ART DECO STYLE
Understated Authenticity
Presented by Charleston Place, Charleston, South Carolina
When Charleston Place hosted a three-day conference for Alcon Labs in March,
Associate Director of Special Events Christy Loftin helped treat the 175 guests to an Art
Deco-themed evening.
The hotel’s Riviera Ballroom, a freestanding building, seemed the natural setting,
having once served as an Art Deco theater. Loftin dressed it up for the evening with
palm trees (a very Art Deco element) and special lighting that played up the frieze
work of the room.
The menu complemented the inherent elegance and artistic interest of the Art Deco
era. Passed items included chilled crab dip served on individual spoons. Displayed
items featured old-fashioned English brioche and Beef Wellington complemented by
mushroom duxelles with truffles.
All this elegance was tempered by a deliberate sense of restraint. “The challenge
is to hold onto the integrity of the event, to not have that one extra thing that makes it
look like you went overboard,” Loftin says. |
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$460,000 FUNDRAISER
Dietary Detail Pays Off
Presented by the Jefferson Hotel, Richmond, Virginia
For the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation fundraiser, the Jefferson Hotel went Hollywood.
The 420 guests entered on a red carpet, to be greeted by an oversized Oscar replica looming in
the rotunda. Volunteers posed as paparazzi. Dubbed “Lights! Camera! Take Action,” the event
signaled its presence with iconic searchlights sweeping the skies.
Décor matched the upscale theme, with different colors of trim (black or gold skirting) used to differentiate
the Silent Auction tables, Super Silent Auction tables, and bars. Glass bowls with yellow
orchid centerpieces dressed up the ballroom.
In true Hollywood style, the hotel delivered celebs and schmaltz, with American Idol darling
Elliott Yamin sharing the stage with about 30 diabetic children, which was a major logistics
achievement. “This process had to be discussed in detail from their initial audition
back in January to make sure the children’s dietary needs were met on the night of the
event,” noted Catering Sales Manager Trisha Brinkley. “On a side note, I did receive a
lovely thank you letter that stated they raised over $460,000.” |
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WINTER CELEBRATIONS
Chefs Travel Worldwide for Menus
Presented by Hershey Lodge, Hershey, Pennsylvania
How much chocolate can you fit into one month? Just ask Anura Dewapura, executive
assistant manager and food and beverage director at—where else?—Hershey Lodge.
This year’s “Chocolate Covered February” delivered a tribute to cocoa’s origins,
a tropical-themed to-do whose highlights included a pairing of Caribbean rums
with chocolates originating from Trinidadian, African, and Javanese cocoa. For authenticity,
Dewapura secured the services of chefs flown in from these diverse locations.
“The toughest part was getting the chefs within these timetables,” says Dewapura.
“They have busy schedules, and some came from the Caribbean and elsewhere.”
The international affair capped a month of sweet celebrations. Highlights included
cooking demonstrations, artisan chocolate tastings, a chocolate-and-Scotch pairing
event, and dessert decorating classes.
But it was the tropical-themed event that took the cake, as it were. Eighty guests were
warmed by Trinidadian music, steel drums, servers in Caribbean attire, and a bamboo
beach hut bar. “In the middle of winter, we created a tropical party,” Dewapura says. |
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ROYAL HOSPITALITY
Debutantes Welcome Guests
Presented by Marriott Camelback Inn, Scottsdale, Arizona
You know what they say: twenty-third time’s a charm. The Camelback Inn stepped up for the twenty-third
time to host the annual celebration of the Board of Visitors, a nonprofit agency raising money for
women’s and children’s charities.
“It was like a princess’s dream,” says Susan Fuller, director of catering sales.
The centerpiece of the event was the presentation of about 50 graduating girls, debutante style, by
fathers and grandfathers. Three levels of seating in the Garden Pool courtyard formed the backdrop for
the ceremony, with white drapery uplit in soft pinks and long window boxes bursting with pink and white
flowers. Rose petals scattered on the ramp completed the princess procession.
The catering team had hurdles to overcome in creating this event. Overflow seating spilled onto the
patio, potentially cutting off some guests from the main party in the ballroom. To compensate, 30
strands of Italian lighting warmed the area, giving it an intimate bistro effect. A string
quartet on the patio added to the ambiance. “Since they weren’t in the ballroom, we
wanted a way to make them feel a little special,” Fuller says. |
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RESIDENTIAL FEELING
Small Business Penthouse Setting
Presented by Dolphin Bay Resort & Spa, Pismo Beach, California
The Dolphin Bay Resort & Spa, played host to an intimate dinner
celebrating Wood Winery. Forty people dined in 2,000 square feet of comfort in a converted penthouse unit featuring
dramatic ocean views.
“The guests like the intimate feel,” says Events Coordinator
Kari Roose. “It’s almost like the clients are entertaining in their
own home, with someone else doing the cooking and cleaning.”
The chef worked in the penthouse kitchen while a jazz band
played and the fireplace crackled. No centerpieces were used
on the four rounds of 10 seats, just a lineup of five wine glasses
to be filled as the meal progressed. “We thought it made
enough of a statement that we didn’t need to add anything
else,” says Roose. “If we had added more, it would only have detracted.”
The staff faced one big logistical hurdle, in that the former condo is located across
the property from the restaurant kitchen. It’s a three-minute dash from point to point, so
logistics are at a premium. With 200 wine glasses plus settings for five courses, “you
don’t want to find that you’re missing anything and have to make that run again,”
Roose says. |
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TROPICAL DRAMA
Event Space Transformation
Presented by the Driskill Hotel, Austin, Texas
Last February, some 550 realtors gathered at the Driskill Hotel
in Austin. Not everyone’s idea of a party, perhaps, but Director
of Catering Elizabeth Elias was ready to tackle the challenge
for the second year in a row on behalf of Round Rock, the
Texas office of homebuilder Newland Communities.
With help from event production team Townsley Design,
Elias went with a Cuban theme. “It was Townsley that created
the ‘Havana Night’ theme. We wouldn’t have been able to
do this without having the right vendors involved,” she says.
Cuban touches were everywhere, with a dramatic slat-roof columned entryway
appearing to open onto a Havana street. The mezzanine took on a tropical-chic look with
bursts of intense color set against a white backdrop and set off by seagrass ottomans,
jute rugs, and a banana tree. The balcony was transformed into a Cuban market with
iron bistro tables, a cigar roller, and bar.
With all of that hardware, Elias had to rely on her vendor team. “There were a lot of
things they did that could potentially damage our space, but they were very respectful
of our historic property,” she says. “They would always say to us, ‘This is what we want
to do, is that going to be alright with you?’” |
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SOFT SELL
Heavenly Bed Attracts Event Planners
Presented by the Westin Providence, Providence, Rhode Island
It's not a party if nobody shows up. That can be a real concern if, for
instance, a hotel throws its own fête.
The Westin Providence, Rhode Island, threw a client thank-you
party, inviting some 200 of its customers to a “Heavenly Chocolate”
event. Director of Sales and Marketing Alan Swerdloff saw a risk
that some invitees might just peek in and leave. He wanted them to stay
the evening, so he gave away one of the hotel’s renowned comfy beds.
“To be eligible, they had to throw their business card on the bed. That way they couldn’t
just stick their head in the door and leave,” says Swerdloff. “They really had to come all the way into the room.”
Once in, guests were enticed by an array of desserts including chocolate martinis, a
chocolate fountain, and similar confections. “The entire center of the room was just
decked out in desserts,” Swerdloff says.
More than just a thank you, the party gave the hotel a chance to strut its stuff in
front of potential future clientele. “We’re always trying to show people we can do different
things at different times of year, that we can cater to 98 percent of whatever is
out there,” Swerdloff says. |
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FRENCH CHIC
Ice Sculpture Signature Touch
Presented by the Heathman Hotel, Portland, Oregon
Here’s a lesson: Don’t sell the banquet food in the restaurant. As private dining sales manager at the
Heathman Restaurant and Bar, Kehau Petersen has seen it happen.
The event in question was the annual Beaujolais Nouveau celebration,
sponsored by the French- American Chamber of Commerce. A couple of years
ago, the chamber donated several cases of shrimp for the event, which the kitchen promptly set out as the nightly special. “There are so many different things going on, so many different menu items that have to get coordinated,”
Petersen says.
No such problem when 350 people enjoyed the fête without a hitch this year. Food
sprawled over seven private dining rooms, all à la Français, such as Artisan bread and
house charcouterie, seared fois gras, seafood, and crêpes.
Petersen was especially proud of the seafood station, with its giant wine bottle ice
sculpture complemented by wooden birds, shells, and fish nets.
On the big day, it was Operations Manager Todd Cooper who made the wheels turn,
stocking the extra hors d’oeuvres, counting the plates, and making sure all the tiny
forks were laid in. Setup started at 9 a.m., although the guests didn’t arrive until eight
hours later. “It’s a full day of just getting ready,” Petersen says. |
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