Another Wedding Tasting Feast

Remember when we talked about our wedding tastings here? Each one is such a feast for the eyes, totally different from the last so I just had to share another.

Photos: Bonnie Tsang and Tara Maxey

Heirloom LA Wedding Tasting

It is standard in the wedding world for engaged couples and sometimes their mom or their wedding planner to do a "tasting" where they choose from a large menu some appetizers and entrees they think they might want to serve on their wedding. 

For these tastings we always go in our garden and do trimmings for the salad and the garnishes. We are so lucky to be able to have access to delicate little edible flowers that we take with us on our events. They're a really pretty surprise to guests.

We built a private tasting room, The Salon, to hold special events in as you see here, but also to host these wedding tastings. It's a great way for our catering managers and our chefs to explain our philosophy of food and help brides and grooms make catering decisions to best suit their vision.

We start with a series of appetizers and sometimes a crostini station. This really helps couples imagine their cocktail hour.

Next up is a garden salad which we always preface with the explanation that we are a seasonally driven kitchen. Oftentimes couples come in 6-8 months before their wedding date so the apples and persimmons that were so crisp and sweet at their tasting will be replaced by nectarines and plums for their big day. Greens will be different also because we never know what farms will be bringing in. We trust them. We work with small, organic family run farms that have never let us down. They love that we appreciate what they do so they never fail to bring us their best offerings, and that's what goes in all of our garden salads and vegetable dishes.

Our sides to entrees are seasonal as well. Our menu features "Trust Us" vegetables. It's lovely that 95% of our clients choose to Trust Us. They understand that by choosing this option they are enabling us to trust our farmers.

We prepare these tastings "family style" so those eating all share from the same dish, serving themselves on their own plate to get a taste of everything. Fish is an entree that most people want to taste. Again, the fish we serve is seasonal and wild, more on that here.

Chicken is a popular dish on weddings and we do our Jidori chicken in many different ways. Since the quality of the chicken we purchase is so high, there is more flavor and juiciness.

Photos: Jennifer Emerling

We get our lambs (and pigs and cows) in whole from humane and sustainable ranches so it's great to encourage couples to choose "whole harvest" which is basically a way to incorporate different cuts from the same animal for their menu. This choice enables us to support these small ranches. If a menu choice is lamb rack for 100, then clearly we need to outsource our lamb from a larger purveyor and many different animals. We still take great care in who we purchase our proteins from but it is our goal to primarily support the little ranches like this one and this one. We all make important political decisions with every food purchase so why not support the guys who are working really hard to maintain integrity and humanity in their ranching? You can taste the difference and you're making a difference.

So there's a bit on our food philosophy and a glimpse into one of our wedding tastings. If you're not getting married anytime soon, there are many other opportunities to taste our food. We look forward to feeding you!

Customizing Your Wine

See web feature here

Our Food Truck in C Magazine

You may have already seen this wedding in C Magazine. It took place at the Ace Hotel which has their own catering but we were allowed to bring in our Food Truck for this extravaganza along with our friends from Let's Be Frank and Handsome Coffee. The next morning we cooked a brunch off site which helped with everyone's hangovers!

Photos: Max Wanger

ASPARAGUS SOUP

Photos: Tec Pataja

Here's a hearty recipe for Asparagus Soup elegant enough to serve as a tray pased appetizer as we did on this wedding in Ojai featured here on Style Me Pretty as well as the latest issue of Pacific Weddings, but you can serve it as an entree for lunch or a starter for dinner.  

ASPARAGUS SOUP

Makes 2 qts (4-6 entree servings)

2 lbs asparagus, bottoms trimmed + washed, then cut in half

1/2 c extra virgin olive oil

1 white onion, sliced

1 Idaho potato, peeled + diced to 1/4 " cubes

8 cloves fresh garlic, peeled + sliced

1 cup basil leaves, sliced thin

32 oz stock (vegeatble, mushroom, or chicken- or just water)

1 cup white wine

1/2 cup creme fraiche or sour cream

salt and pepper

Toss asparagus in half of the olive oil, salt and pepper. Broil in preheated oven (500 F) on a cookie sheet covered in aluminum foil. Roast until slightly charred. About 4-6 minutes.

Meanwhile in a large pot warm olive oil on medium heat and add onions, potatoes, garlic, basil and season with salt and pepper. Toss to keep from burning. You are looking for a caramel color and for the onions to be translucent. At this point, add white wine to deglaze.

Reduce liquid by half.

Add asparagus to pot and scrape bottom to prevent sticking.

Add stock and simmer for 3 minutes to warm through. Add creme fraich or sour cream and blend in a food processor or blender until smooth.

Garnish with balsamic vinegar reduction, olive oil, pesto or toasted nuts or asparagus tips.

Jessica + Jake

Photography:  Erin Hearts Court

Design: Bash, Please

Full Feature:  Style Me Pretty

Jeanette + Justin

Photos:  Sarah Yates for  Birds of a Feather

Design: Bash, Please

Furniture:  Yeah Rentals

Menu Design:  Bramble Workshop

Press:  Design Sponge

Amy + Kevin

see complete Green Wedding Shoes feature here

photos: Annie Mc Elwain

venue: Local 80

design: Bash, Please

Anna + Colby

Non-Food Photos: Charley Star

See Full Martha Stewart Feature Here

Design: Bash, Please
Furniture/Rugs/Pillows: YEAH! Rentals
Plates: Casa de Perrin

A Couple of Crostini Stations to Snack On

Everyone loves Amber. She's one of our favorite servers and clearly she's a favorite of our clients as well for that is who took these photos and sent them back to us. She stands next to a couple of versions of our Crostini Stations filled with house-cured meats, house-made pickles, roasted veggies, fresh cheeses, pizza bread pudding... adult snacks.

top photo: Diane Severt 

bottom photo:  Angela Hsu

Kristen + Adam

Event Design: Amy Kaneko

Photography: Joy Marie Photography

Venue: Korakia

Full Style Me Pretty Post

Downtown Wedding Featured on The Wedding Chicks

 See full blog post here

Coordination + Planning: Chic Celebrations

Photos:  Paul Von Rieter

Lasagna Cupcake photo: Beata Bernina

One Must Eat After Eloping

Whimsical Warehouse Elopement from Tower Films on Vimeo.

Styling by: Gather Events

Photos by: Leah Lee

Video by: Tower Films

See  Green Wedding  Shoes feature here

Thanks C Magazine, We Love To Be Called Hot