South Beach Food Symphony
IT’S pretty impossible to take it all in at once. There’s the initial opulence of the Americana ballroom, with its spectacular chandeliers, deep, plush carpeting and several hundred bodies moving at dizzying speed. The celebrity chefs are frantically putting the finishing touches to their magnificent stations.
Martha Stewart, one of the honorees, has the longest table, with flowers that seem to conjure up summer’s final rays. Other tables boast yellow or green arrangements. The flowers, we glean, are from Grand Affairs – they’re a brave set of people, we surmise, for with the queen of domesticity set to enter at any moment, we can only hope that she’s as impressed as we are.
The wine stations are as important as the colour of the flowers chosen for Martha’s table. Peter and Robert Mondavi, wine icons of the Napa Valley for many years, are to be honoured too, as well as corporate titan Donald Lefton.
The Tribute Brunch Menu. under the baton of Chef Clay Conley
Braised American Wagyu Short Rib and Grilled Japanese Wagyu Beef
Sunny Side Up Quail Egg with Black Truffle.
Chef Allen Susser
Lobster Macaroni and Cheese
Calabaza, Tiny Wild Mushrooms, Tarragon and Reggiano Parmesan
Chef Michael Bloise
Frittata Station
Duck Confit, Rabbit Breakfast Sausage and Five Cheeses
Kumamoto Oysters with Mimosa Gelée
Chefs Frank and Andre Randazzo
Nova Scotia Smoked Salmon
Yukon Gold Potato and Chive Smashed Crispy Pancakes
American Caviar and Crème Fraiche
Citrus Poached Maine Lobster
Fresno Chilies, Toasted Brioche, Yuzo Tobiko and Basil Aioli
In addition.
Molecular Mimosas and Bloody Marys
Assorted Italian Chesses
Assorted Quiches
Lorraine, Spinach and Seafood
French Toast Banana and Nutella Pudding
Egg Benedict in a cup of toast
Pancakes and Maple Syrup
Old Fashioned Oatmeal
Dried and fresh fruits parfaits with nuts and berries
Puff Pastry Breakfast Sunrise
Smoked Salmon with Bagel Chips and Cream Cheese Bar
Tomatoes filled with Mozzarella and Balsamico
Tortilla Espanola in Paella Pan
Breakfast Potato
Bacon, Turkey and Pork Sausages
Assorted Breakfast Pastries
Wines
Robert Mondavi Winery Fume, To Kolan Vineyard, Napa 2002
Charles Krug Sauvignon Blanc, Napa 2006
Robert Mondavi Winery Cabernet Sauvignon, Oakville District, Napa 2003
The Honourees Robert Mondavi
The founder of the Robert Mondavi Winery established in 1966, it was the first major winery built in Napa Valley, following the 1933 Repeal of Prohibition. Robert Mondavi is to this day the global symbol of American food and wine.
Dedicated to fostering a wine culture in America, Mondavi was the first in the Napa Valley to create in-depth public tours, education programmes and wine tastings, and pioneered many fine winemaking techniques in California, including cold fermentation, stainless steel tanks, and the use of French oak barrels. Robert and his wife, Marguerite, made a personal gift in 2001 to the University of California, Davis, to establish the Robert Mondavi Institute for Wine and Food Science.
Peter Mondavi
Many honours have been bestowed upon President, CEO and Lead Ambassador of Charles Krug Winery Peter Mondavi, Snr throughout his career, one of which is having been named one of the 12 “Living Legends” in Napa Valley wine history by the Napa Valley Vintners Association. Mondavi’s parents were involved in purchasing and shipping California wine grapes to fellow Italian immigrants in Minnesota, and later established an ambitious wine grape shipping firm in Lodi, California.
They not only shipped fine wine grapes from the Napa and central valleys, but also produced their own wine for the family table. After graduating from Stanford University in 1937, Mondavi Snr pursued graduate studies in oenology at the University of California, Berkeley, where he conducted research on cold fermentation, enabling the production of exceptionally crisp, fruity white wines that became the industry standard.
Martha Stewart
Domestic diva Martha Stewart loves sharing the principles that have made her America’s most trusted guide to everyday life – and that is a good thing. Inspiration always surrounded the Barnard College-educated icon. Her mother taught her the basics of baking, cooking, and sewing, and her father introduced her to gardening in the family’s small backyard garden in New Jersey.
After moving to Westport, Conn, to start a family, Stewart developed a catering business that showcased her talents and originality, which were the basis for her first book, Entertaining (1982). Eventually, her incomparable business sense and vision laid the foundation of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, a company that today includes successful magazine (Martha Stewart Living) and book divisions (2006’s Martha Stewart’s Homekeeping Handbook: The Essential Guide to Caring for Everything in Your Home), a best-selling product line for Kmart (Martha Stewart Everyday) and popular satellite radio and Martha Stewart-designed homes in communities across the country. It will debut an all-new line of Martha Stewart Collection home merchandise developed exclusively for Macy’s this fall.