HBO celebrated its four Golden Globe wins with 800 of its closest friends at the Beverly Hilton hotel’s Griff’s Restaurant and pool, decked out with a Moroccan theme for the occasion. The exotic design was inspired by peripatetic event decorator Billy Butchkavitz, who returned to Los Angeles from travels abroad with sumptuous materials and plenty of ideas.
Restaurant banquettes and buffets as well as lounge-worthy daybeds and ottomans were festooned in vivid jacquard silks and paisley velvets in shades of antique gold, blue, and burnt orange, imported from Morocco, France, Belgium, and Turkey. Tables were topped with centerpieces—Moroccan lanterns atop inlaid trays—which coordinated with cups of gold and red marigolds and inlaid bowls holding pita bread, breadsticks, pitted olives, and hummus. “It’s a very, very warm and rich look,” said Eileen Rivard, HBO's vice president of special events.
The opulence continued outdoors, where ironwork gazebos covered in vines and decorated with lanterns dotted the poolside area. Most of the gazebos enclosed tables and chairs, but one covered a dance floor where New York DJ Qool Marv played an eclectic mix. The most striking gazebos seemed to be floating in the pool, although they were actually supported by hidden platforms, lit by fiber optics, and surrounded by orchids made of silk so they would float if it rained. Above the pool, the HBO logo was projected against the adjacent garage wall.
Guests dined on a Moroccan salad of sweet bell peppers, cucumbers, tomato, and scallions; chicken and spiced sausage cous cous; penne pasta with Moroccan-style vegetable lamb tagine; sautéed marinated filet of Pacific sea bass with shrimp and fennel in a light cream tomato saffron sauce; grilled eggplant,.phparagus, and portobellos; and oak-grilled beef sirloin with red wine sauce. Apart from the baklava, the desserts were theme free—chocolate .phpberry opera cake, white chocolate mango cheesecake, crème brulee, lemon-lime bars, and walnut espresso brownies. Servers passed flutes of Moët & Chandon, which was one of the event’s sponsors, and custom-concocted “goldentinis”—bourbon, lime juice, Amaretto, and Sprite.
—Irene Lacher
Photos: Stephen Shugerman/Getty Images
Restaurant banquettes and buffets as well as lounge-worthy daybeds and ottomans were festooned in vivid jacquard silks and paisley velvets in shades of antique gold, blue, and burnt orange, imported from Morocco, France, Belgium, and Turkey. Tables were topped with centerpieces—Moroccan lanterns atop inlaid trays—which coordinated with cups of gold and red marigolds and inlaid bowls holding pita bread, breadsticks, pitted olives, and hummus. “It’s a very, very warm and rich look,” said Eileen Rivard, HBO's vice president of special events.
The opulence continued outdoors, where ironwork gazebos covered in vines and decorated with lanterns dotted the poolside area. Most of the gazebos enclosed tables and chairs, but one covered a dance floor where New York DJ Qool Marv played an eclectic mix. The most striking gazebos seemed to be floating in the pool, although they were actually supported by hidden platforms, lit by fiber optics, and surrounded by orchids made of silk so they would float if it rained. Above the pool, the HBO logo was projected against the adjacent garage wall.
Guests dined on a Moroccan salad of sweet bell peppers, cucumbers, tomato, and scallions; chicken and spiced sausage cous cous; penne pasta with Moroccan-style vegetable lamb tagine; sautéed marinated filet of Pacific sea bass with shrimp and fennel in a light cream tomato saffron sauce; grilled eggplant,.phparagus, and portobellos; and oak-grilled beef sirloin with red wine sauce. Apart from the baklava, the desserts were theme free—chocolate .phpberry opera cake, white chocolate mango cheesecake, crème brulee, lemon-lime bars, and walnut espresso brownies. Servers passed flutes of Moët & Chandon, which was one of the event’s sponsors, and custom-concocted “goldentinis”—bourbon, lime juice, Amaretto, and Sprite.
—Irene Lacher
Photos: Stephen Shugerman/Getty Images
HBO celebrated its four Golden Globe wins with 800 guests at the Beverly Hilton hotel’s Griff’s Restaurant and pool, which it decked out in a Moroccan theme.
Orchids floated in the pool.
Table linens featured imported silks and velvets in shades of antique gold, blue, and orange.
Centerpieces coordinated with cups of gold and red marigolds and inlaid bowls.
