At Tuesday’s 11th annual Gourmet Gala at the National Building Museum, more than 750 guests got a jump on celebrating Fat Tuesday by sampling a whole lot of food—all from some of D.C.’s top chefs and restaurants. Benefiting pediatric treatment and research at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, the evening raised more than $400,000 and drew 40 chefs, each offering samples of their favorite dishes. That’s more than 10 pounds of food if guests were to try one of everything, according to the evening’s M.C., Norah O’Donnell of MSNBC.
This year, Tschiffely added five chefs, lining the Building Museum’s east and center courts with restaurant stations. Following a reception with a silent auction, guests took their seats to eat a preset salad while listening to the evening’s presentation. Then they were free to wander the space, meeting chefs and sampling dishes like pork cassoulet from Blue Duck Tavern, lamb stew and Yukon gold potatoes from Marcel’s and Brasserie Beck, and chocolate and raspberry macaroons from Adour.
To match the event's theme, "Mardi Gras for the Kids," a four-piece band playing New Orleans jazz evoked the proper spirit, as did the purple, green, and gold palette, with colorful feathers placed at the base of elegant floral arrangements, and purple, green, and gold uplighting on the museum’s columns. For the first time this year, Tschiffely had two stages on site, adding one to the east court to make the evening’s remarks feel more inclusive. Both stages were decorated with fleur-de-lis images projected on curtains draped behind the podium.
The evening also featured some friendly competition—diners could vote for their favorite chef by dropping a bag of Mardi Gras coins into a hat placed at each station. Sweets won the Taster’s Choice Award, with Xavier Deshayes, executive chef of the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center, scoring a Breitling watch for his array of mini desserts. Guests took home gifts, as well: Those not lucky enough to win the Bulgari necklace (donated by Liljenquist & Beckstead, valued at $6,200) raffle prize or one of the live-auction items (including vacation packages and a shoe signed by members of the U.S. men’s basketball 2008 Olympic team) received a gift bag including Allegro coffee, Bulgari perfume, and a calendar featuring recipes from area chefs and restaurateurs.
