Roy Assad could not have asked for a more ideal evening on which to open his new French brasserie, L'Opera, in West Palm Beach. The event took place on a clear, breezy night—the kind of tropical evening that calls for a romantic stroll down Clematis Street.
"The concept was to transport our guests from Clematis Street to Paris," Assad says. "We were trying to instill in the minds of the guests a true sense of what Paris is like."
The restaurateur hired event designer Bruce Sutka to create a street party that emphasized the spirit of the restaurant, complete with cancan dancers, French cigarettes, and mimes.
Sutka closed an entire block of Clematis Street to traffic and set up a 30- by 80-foot clear-framed tent from Premier Party Rentals. Underneath the tent was a cocktail party that hummed with jazz standards by singer Trish O'Brien and featured free-flowing wine and champagne. A raffle for an all-expense-paid trip to Paris raised money for the Palm Beach International Film Festival's scholarship fund.
In the center of the tent stood a three-foot-tall ice sculpture of the Eiffel Tower, created by White Glove Catering. Miniature metal versions of the tower appeared as centerpieces on tall cocktail tables. Surrounding the tent was white picket fencing decorated with white flowers and miniature French flags. The entire event took on a romantic glow with simple white and gold lighting from chandeliers by Hy-Lite Productions.
Roaming throughout the party were Parisian-inspired performers including Marie Antoinette, a white-faced mime, a capuchin monkey handler, and cigarette girls selling Gitanes and Gauloises.
L'Opera's chef, Laurent Loupiac, kept guests happy with beef and salmon tartare and goat cheese, scallop, and shrimp pastries. For dessert, warm mini chocolate cakes and sweet cheese puffs with cream inside were served atop strawberry sauce.
An unplanned guest provided a realistic Parisian touch. Speck, a 20-pound French bulldog, showed up with his owner, who paraded him around as if they were walking on the Champs-Elysées.
—Juan Carlos Rodriguez
"The concept was to transport our guests from Clematis Street to Paris," Assad says. "We were trying to instill in the minds of the guests a true sense of what Paris is like."
The restaurateur hired event designer Bruce Sutka to create a street party that emphasized the spirit of the restaurant, complete with cancan dancers, French cigarettes, and mimes.
Sutka closed an entire block of Clematis Street to traffic and set up a 30- by 80-foot clear-framed tent from Premier Party Rentals. Underneath the tent was a cocktail party that hummed with jazz standards by singer Trish O'Brien and featured free-flowing wine and champagne. A raffle for an all-expense-paid trip to Paris raised money for the Palm Beach International Film Festival's scholarship fund.
In the center of the tent stood a three-foot-tall ice sculpture of the Eiffel Tower, created by White Glove Catering. Miniature metal versions of the tower appeared as centerpieces on tall cocktail tables. Surrounding the tent was white picket fencing decorated with white flowers and miniature French flags. The entire event took on a romantic glow with simple white and gold lighting from chandeliers by Hy-Lite Productions.
Roaming throughout the party were Parisian-inspired performers including Marie Antoinette, a white-faced mime, a capuchin monkey handler, and cigarette girls selling Gitanes and Gauloises.
L'Opera's chef, Laurent Loupiac, kept guests happy with beef and salmon tartare and goat cheese, scallop, and shrimp pastries. For dessert, warm mini chocolate cakes and sweet cheese puffs with cream inside were served atop strawberry sauce.
An unplanned guest provided a realistic Parisian touch. Speck, a 20-pound French bulldog, showed up with his owner, who paraded him around as if they were walking on the Champs-Elysées.
—Juan Carlos Rodriguez
A model dressed as Marie Antoinette roamed the French-themed opening party for L'Opera brasserie in West Palm Beach.
White Glove Catering created an Eiffel Tower made of ice.
Parisian touches included a sidewalk caricature artist.
The cast of party characters was topped off with a classic French mime.
