WEDDINGS
This couple wanted to get married at the beach, and had booked a small beach club. We designed three tents and a site decorated with palm trees.
We weathered the threat of a hurricane. The wedding ceremony was at water's edge. Tables were named for famous couples (Rhett and Scarlett, Sid and Nancy.) Cocktails included a spectacular Tuscan "abbondanza" buffet, followed by a Dinner of roasted lobster, veal chop or Chilean sea bass. Fireworks on the beach. Summer melon soup with tropical sorbets. John Galliano made the wedding dress. Guest Bon Jovi sang the first dance. Helena Christenson and Naomi Campbell looked beautiful but didn't eat much.
This couple were foodies and Francophiles, and rented a country bed and breakfast to remind them of sojourns in the French countryside, complete with an afternoon bike ride on back roads. They wanted guests to be able to sit down and eat a real dinner, without interruption, as if dining in a restaurant, so the dancing tent was kept separate from the dinner tent. Dining tables were of all different shapes and sizes (nothing matchy matchy) all covered in varied antique lace cloths from friends and family, with an extra special head table 25 feet long for the heirloom 'Folly' cloth from a great great grandmother's wedding. They rented cobalt blue glasses in honor of their Jewish heritage. An accordion player roamed the tent playing Piaf and Brel tunes. It was a hot August night and guests welcomed the chilled vichysoisse – some leek, some carrot- and the panetieres of assorted country breads. We served a family-style dinner with platters over-laden with roast duck a l'orange, a grilled lamb done as in the mechoui, and grilled tuna provencale. After, a salad and cheese course, of course, and then into the dancing tent with bistro tables, patisseries, Armagnac were and good old-fashioned American rockabiliy.
BAR/BAT MITZVAH
This family had just returned from Israel for their son's bar mitzvah and couldn't decide upon a theme. They loved the marketplace in Old Jerusalem. We created a theme around this: with stalls and stations around the perimeter and actors dressed as bazaar vendors. Banners of photos from Israel were hung over the dining tables. Centerpieces were made of olive branches and hanging candles. Adults dined on traditional mezza, including hummus and tabbouleh with grilled pita and flat breads, while kids were entertained by a magician in the Israeli nightclub
Peachtree planned its food and wine to dovetail perfectly with the color palette of pink and chocolate at this bat mitzvah held in a huge warehouse. As a secret ingredient can pull together a recipe, so too can an understated theme serve to organize a menu--- all menu items were created with 'rose colored glasses.' There were magnums of rose champagne chilling in a bar made from a solid block of ice washed in pink light, a first course tuna tartare dish mimicking the flower logo on the invitation—and tinted kids' drinks. We even dealt with a dessert calamity—when the baker's truck broke down and all the cakes were stolen!
MILESTONES
A couple who loved to cook were both turning fifty. We came up with the idea of throwing a "100 year-old" birthday party at the Viking Culinary Center with guests preparing the dinner under our supervisions PICS?
KING OF BUD – We ditched the first party plan of a Polynesian send off when we realized that what Dan enjoyed most was drinking bottled Budweiser while golfing with his buddies! So, why not plan the most unforgettable surprise party imaginable by inaugurating Dan the official "King of Bud" in front of 150 of his closest friends and family? An invitation was quickly modeled after the famous Budweiser bottle label, with all the iconic beer facts replaced with fun "Dan facts!" Peachtree transformed the pool house into the perfect setting for Budweiser's biggest fan. We fashioned centerpieces out of Budweiser bottle caps and red flowers, hung Bud flags and banners from the pool house rafters and hired a reggae band. Budweiser lights and logos illuminated the house and pool, while live reggae music played from the patio. Staff wore Bud t-shirts and hats. A giant screen flashed Bud videos, commercials and photos of Dan. Dan's three daughters then coronated their dad as the King of Bud' with a crown, a robe and a note signed by August A. Busch IV himself. A party fit for a king! Next up—the party for their mom, to be crowned the "Belle of Chanel." Stay tuned.
FUNDRAISING
Vernon and Shirley Hill building dedication at Penn's School of Veterinary Medicine: In an attempt to represent the brand and with an eye towards budget, we arranged for one of the major donors to provide the pork from their farm for the entrée, and the milk from the Vet School's own Chester County farm for dessert. Capogiro, a local artisanal ice cream manufacturer, made custom flavors.
University of Pennsylvania was celebrating 125 Years of Women at Penn. Cocktails were served in the university bookstore—and Peachtree planned a menu around hors d'oeuvres culled from recipes provided by two U of P alumnae cookbook authors.
"A Date With a Plate" ~ The Art of Table Setting, was a two-day event to support The Noreen O'Neill Foundation for Melanoma Research: Peachtree's "Through The Cooking Glass' table.
Springside and Chestnut Hill Academy--- Common Ground Event----When the recession hit mid-stream, Peachtree worked closely with the school committee and the parent volunteers rather than cancel this vital fundraising opportunity. Peachtree helped 'vision 'the event- held to link the two school communities together by redesigning the green space between--relocating the party site from the gymnasium to the grounds themselves, and branding it Common Ground. The garden wonderland designed by parent volunteers demonstrated how well the two schools worked together towards a common goal. It was a study in earth tones, spring green, water and lots of raffia. Peachtree designed and 'did up' a menu so that nobody could guess its underpinnings as a glorified salad bar with soup and sandwiches. The committee exceeded their fund