palette, palate, plate

In November of 2019, we started to expand our reach beyond the Harrisonburg/Rockingham County locations that have been featured in our dinners for the last three years. We connected with a developer who had turned one of the gorgeous buildings on Beverly Street in Staunton into a mixed use space—nice corporate offices on the first floor and a stunning loft apartment/intimate 1893 Event Center on the second floor. The contrast of modern and old was inspiring and we decided to take this NYC artist loft feel and run with it.

A unique piece of art inspired each dish’s ingredients and plating—from Jackson Pollock’s Number One, 1950 (Lavender Mist) to Botticelli’s The Birth of Venus and the printed menu took the form of a art gallery guide, connecting each course and the artwork. The tablescape featured stacks of art books and paint cans spilling brightly-colored silks down the center of the table.

We invited painter, Noelia Nunez to be our “artist-in-residence” for the evening. She set up her blank canvas and easel and painted throughout the dinner, completing the piece by the end of the event. One of our guests purchased the finish piece to take home with them.

MENU

Curried English Pea Soup
Andy Warhol | Campbell’s Soup I: Green Pea 50

Seared Scallops with Blood Orange, Fennel and Pistachio
Sandro Botticelli | The Birth of Venus

Gorgonzola Ravioli with Sage Cream, Balsamic and Walnut Powder
Jackson Pollock | Number One, 1950 (Lavender Mist)

Jardin Salad
Claude Monet | Le Jardin de l’artiste a Giverny

Red Partridge with Apple and Chorizo
Juan Sanchez Cotan | Still Life with Game, Vegetables and Fruit

Chocolate-Passionfruit Tart
William Kooienga | Vortice

Photography by Sarah Featherstone.