Elegant Affairs Caterers
Glen Cove Avenue, Glen Cove, NY 11542
Submission For: ICA 2012 CATIE Awards
Category: Best Buffet Presentation
Theme: “A Mexican Grill”
The Client: The client was a wealthy couple who lived in a stately brick colonial, situated on a
multi-acre estate which featured rolling lawns, specimen plantings, a built in pool and formal
patio. The wife was throwing a surprise 40th birthday party for her husband - he is of Mexican
descent - so she wanted to honor that and make it stylish and comfortable for the guests.
The Concept: The idea behind “A Mexican Grill” was to start with the tasty basics of Mexican
fare and take it up a notch on the scale of presentation as well as the integration of flavors. It
was a summer outdoor event and we were going to make a colorful and mouthwatering splash
for the guests at this beautiful home. Mexico is a sunny place where the culture and its fare is all
about color.
The Creativity: We began with a black & white tablecloth which was the perfect backdrop for
the black risers and U-channel used to hold and frame the colorful appetizers. U-channel is
found at any home improvement store and matched the shape of the bottom end of a taco shell;
hence the filled tacos sat upright for the guests to grab and go.
Behind the taco display were two successive shelves (shoe racks found at IKEA) topped with
black glass to display the additional hors d’oeuvres. The center point, behind the tacos, was a
dish of black bean, roasted corn & tomato salad. On either sides of the salad were the plates for
the guests, plates were white. Adjacent to the plates (on both sides for symmetry) were a third
appetizer, guacamole parfaits with vegetable mango salsa with colorful chips for dipping in a
clear glass.
The final two shelves featured raffia-tied shrimp in a pastry dough basket filled with mango
salsa, sitting just below the fresh red peppers stuffed with yellow rice seasoned with vegetables.
These last two hors d’oeuvres were flanked by a burst of sunflowers held in a black vase.
Ultimately, the entire table was framed out by the exquisite archway overlooking a lush, green
summer lawn and tall swaying trees.
The end was in the beginning, as the formal site visit revealed and provided a fabulous
architectural element to work with.
The Execution: This was turn-key and simple. All of the creative thinking, from the menu to
the vessels which would contain it, to the decorative elements were all organized in advance.
My staff arrived with their props and set up shop in a matter of minutes.
The Challenges: The challenge was that it was a surprise 40th birthday party, we had one hour
to transform a beautiful patio into a summer fete worthy of 50 guests. During the planning
process, we kept it simple and prepped as much as we could prior to set up while maintaining
the integrity of fresh vegetables, crisp taco shells and a flaky pastry dough filled basket to hold
the shrimp.
The Event: When the day arrived, it went off without a hitch. Guests arrived at this beautiful
home which featured an eye-popping set up bursting with summer colors, from the fare to the
flowers to the grounds on which the event took place. My client was ecstatic. They felt they
were taking a risk with Mexican food, but wanted to incorporate the guest of honor’s heritage
into this important celebration. Their guests were delighted with the menu and wowed by the
presentation. The simplicity of a grab and go taco, grilled shrimp in an edible basket, and
guacamole with chips all in one glass kept everyone coming back for more with minimal clean
up. There were no messy bowls of chips that would go stale in just a few hours. We replenished
as necessary, behind the scenes.