2014 JBF Dinner: 10 Years of Tuscan Flavor
By TuttoToscana Staff
Photos by David Weiss
We knew from the start that 2014, beyond the anniversary concept, was going to be a special year for JBF events. After a smooth garden reception service in the garden of the Foundation, the JBF waitstaff, which includes familiar faces encountered year after year, commented before the seated antipasto was served:
“You guys have a great team this year.”
The waitstaff has always been admired by our team for its professionalism, velocity, organization, and much more. It’s a pleasure to work side by side with the staff members we know and learn from their clockwork precision. Yet it had never occurred in the past to receive production-related compliments so early in the evening, which indicated a terrific start and high expectations to satisfy from the antipasto to the final dessert course.
But the team truly did deserve the compliment and stepped up to the challenge through hard work, perspiration, chopping, braising, and sauteeing. Not to mention artfully arranging the visuals of each dish.
Each detail was carefully handled by specific team members and the plating line buzzed with sauce drizzles, petals, mini-vegetable garnishes, and balance between objects. Delivery was solid, the flavors bold yet harmonious, and the crowd voiced appreciation for several of the wines including the Santa Cristina Cipresseto rosé during aperitivo, Mazzei Philip paired with ribollita, and the smoothness of Capannelle Chianti Classico paired with the duck ragu. The potential sense of repetition through dishes that represented TuttoToscana’s past was avoided. Granted, our had chefs originally sought to create new presentations of an anniversary menu representing emblematic TuttoToscana dishes, but the biggest challenge in terms of audience was the group of FUA-invited guests who had experienced if not all at least some of this year’s menus in previous editions.
FUA guests represented several university partners including Penn State, CUNY Queens College, SUNY Stony Brook University, Pratt Institute, Monroe Community College, Robert Morris University, and Pace University. Several institutions were represented by faculty and administrators from the hospitality departments. We also discovered that amongst the general public a few pleasant surprises. Saturday dinners have generally sold out in previous years. This year, we had the pleasure of meeting members of the general public who have been to the FUA-produced dinner six consecutive time and cite our refreshing, educational format and the opportunity to “taste” a final exam as the main motives for coming back.
Executive Chef Andrea Trapani and Pastry Chef Simone De Castro led an excellent team this year. From prep to on-site service, brigade members kept a constant quality and conveyed a high level of interpersonal communication. Alix, Vicky, Tom, Lisa, Jay, Meagan, Sarah, Jo, Silvana, Carey, Vicky S, and Giselle concentrated all of their efforts and competencies put to the test at the two previous TuttoToscana events. The final result was a consistently stunning first JBF event.
More updates coming soon on team portraits and our final JBF Alumni Dinner.
Check out our complete photo album from the event!