Guest Bloggers

Bray, as far as I can see (it was rainy and dark - which is not atypical of the region) is a charming little hamlet about an hour outside of London, and not too far from Heathrow. I saw a bend in the road, a couple of houses, a few pubs, and that was about it.

It is always a pleasure working with Jill Cole from Great Performances Catering. Jill manages all of the catering for events at Jazz at Lincoln Center and she’s fantastic! Not only is she insanely detailed but she’s also genuinely enthusiastic about creating a menu specific to each event. The food and beverage menu for an event is so important in creating a memorable, unique experience for your guests and Jill really understands this. She put together the following menu for the Sade listening party I posted pics from last week. It was savory, satisfying and creative. The desserts were lovely as well. Everyone loves milk and homemade chocolate chip cookies on a chilly winter night! Here is the menu and a few more pics from the event!

We stood near the wall by the corner of the gym at the Salvation Army facility on 138th and Lenox. A long table at one end held two piles of white plastic plates, then a heavy-duty tin foil container, warmed by two Sternos, with string beans; next, a foil with stuffing; next; yams; next, mashed potatoes; then, the heart of the matter--turkey slices in turkey juices. This is where I stood, my colleague on the other side of the table. A plate would work its way down each side of the table, and a server on each side of a foil would ladle his or her responsibility on it. (My daughters Nell and Kate were charged with the stuffing; my seniority probably landed me the meat job.) Then the plates would pass our station to the gravy ladlers, and then the roll and butter guys, and then they'd sit at the end waiting for the servers to bring them to our guests.

I'm so honored to be a part of the Martha Stewart Weddings team, and I hope to keep you all interested with many bits and pieces "from the field," as I like to say. I will work hard to record great behind the scenes details from events I design with our amazing, creative, and hard working staff!

I'm starting with details from a May wedding at Caramoor in Katonah, NY. The guest list was almost 400, with the perfect weather plan of holding the ceremony in the gardens and dinner/dancing in the very large Venetian Theater. As you can see, the tented space is really large and can feel slightly overwhelming when you first walk in. This was a real concern for everyone involved, so we had to think hard about how to make the space feel more intimate and inviting.

This is the second of a trio of trips that my friend Isaac and I have endeavored to take, following a somewhat obscure, fringelike movement in fine dining. The ostensible Molecular Gastronomy movement.

I think it's interesting that whimsical food presented as one thing, evolving into entirely another would have developed such nomenclature. It seems to me that molecules and culinary trickery have little more to do with each other than do molecules and traditional fare...

There are many things that can make or break a wedding.  The weather (especially at an outdoor affair), the entertainment (a DJ or band leader that can't get the crowd on the floor should look for a different line of work) and of course the food.

For me, a wedding that serves pigs-in-a-blanket (PIB) is not going to make a wedding by itself, but it does get points in the win column.  I don't know where this obsession came from - my dad has it too so maybe it's an inherited trait - but I just love them.