menu ideas

July 24, 2013

Health-conscious guests will be happy to pop a few of New York-based Elegant Affairs’ gluten-free lemon-scented hummus and zucchini roulades into their mouths while lounging poolside.

Photo: Courtesy of Elegant Affairs Catering & Event Design

This summer, the Ritz-Carlton Los Angeles is serving cocktails made with freshly picked herbs and fruits from its rooftop garden. The drinks include the Kalamansi Lemonade, made with vodka, lemon puree honey-lemongrass syrup, Sprite, and lemon juice; the Rhubarb Shiso Fizz, made with Ketel Oranje, rhubarb simple syrup, and shiso leaves; and the Pinarita, made with pineapple tequila, Luxardo Triplum, lime juice, simple syrup, and Thai basil.

Photo: Mi & Mo Photography

Canned cocktails are trending in the world of mixology right now. At the Manhattan Cocktail Classic gala in May, Campari served up canned Negronis, made with gin, sweet vermouth, and the Italian aperitif. Red-and-white-striped straws added a summery touch.

Photo: Virginia Rollison

A warm-weather take on the food-and-drink pairings trend: one-bite paella skewers served with red and white sangria, by KG Fare Catering & Events in New York.

Photo: Courtesy of KG Fare Catering & Events

Like strawberry shortcake in a glass: the Red Velvet Shortcake cocktail includes 1½ ounces of the new Zing Red Velvet vodka, two ounces of cream soda, two muddled strawberries, and a splash of lemon juice.

Photo: Courtesy of Zing Vodka

Nothing beats an ice pop when temperatures rise. At the 2013 mtvU Woodie Awards and Festival, held in March in Austin, Texas, guests beat the heat with more than 7,000 custom-flavored all-natural frozen pops from Mom & Pops.

Photo: Courtesy of MTV

Chicago’s Truffleberry Market reports recently receiving requests to create finger-friendly versions of classic desserts. The catering company's banana split cones feature strawberry mousse in a mini waffle cone dipped in dark chocolate and topped with fresh strawberries, banana chips, and shaved hazelnuts.

Photo: Courtesy of Truffleberry Market

From Elegant Affairs’ clean eating menu, cilantro lime-infused crab salad cucumber cups make for a light, refreshing hors d’oeuvre.

Photo: Courtesy of Elegant Affairs Catering & Event Design

This summer, Ainsworth Park in New York will offer its take on sweet tea, made with Belvedere Lemon Tea vodka, Aperol, lemon juice, simple syrup, and iced tea, served in a summer-appropriate Mason jar.

Photo: Courtesy of Ainsworth Park

To preview its new summer menu of regional American barbecue flavors, Burger King tapped Peter Callahan to style bite-size versions of the new burgers for a tasting party at the Glasshouses in New York on May 16. The mini sandwich options included barbecue chicken salad, pulled pork, and a Carolina BBQ Whopper.

Photo: Aydin Arjomand Photography

Nothing says summer quite like fresh fish. At the Carlu’s recent 10th anniversary gala in Toronto, L-Eat Catering was in charge of the fish station. Among the offerings were individual portions of liquid-nitrogen-chilled, fennel-crusted tuna with green apples and pomegranates.

Photo: Courtesy of L-Eat Catering

L-Eat Catering also served smoked trout caviar and pickled red onion relish canapés at the Carlu anniversary gala.

Photo: Courtesy of L-Eat Catering

The Skybar at the Mondrian Los Angeles is offering a few new takes on the classic mojito, including a spicy mango mojito muddled with serrano peppers.

Photo: Courtesy of the Mondrian Los Angeles

For an upscale camp-themed affair, try KG Fare Catering & Events' mess-free take on s'mores, displayed on clothespins.

Photo: KG Fare Catering & Events

This summer, Fourty Four at Royalton in New York is featuring a garden-to-glass cocktail menu of fruit-, herb-, grain-, and veggie-based drinks. The Jackrabbit Margarita includes Tequila Avión, carrot juice, agave nectar, grapefruit, and lemon, with a garnish of parsley and lime.

Photo: Courtesy of the Royalton Hotel New York

If you’re looking for easy, classic summer barbecue fare, Weber Grill Restaurant just launched Weber on Wheels, a mobile grill party offering available in Chicago and Indianapolis. Staffers grill up the company's signature meats on giant Weber Kettles, and the extensive menu options include a build-your-own burger bar. Set up and clean up are included, and a minimum order of $500 is required. Delivery and pick-up packages are also available.

Photo: Courtesy of Weber Grill Restaurant

The Floozy, a cheekily named cocktail served at Hill & Dale, a new gastro-lounge in New York, is made with vodka, fresh lime, simple syrup, and muddled strawberries, then topped with a fresh daisy.

Photo: Courtesy of Hill & Dale

A perfect passed hors d’oeuvre for a beachside bash: Trufflebery Market’s Fish on Chips, with key lime zest and Sriracha aioli.

Photo: Courtesy of Truffleberry Market

SBE’s XIV Summer Sessions parties will serve the Corzo Watermelon Margarita featuring fresh watermelon juice and Corzo tequila strained over ice with a splash of soda.

Photo: Courtesy of SBE

Maria Zoitas of Maria’s Homemade recommends adding fruit-infused ice cubes to drinks at summer parties. Just add berries, grapes, or pomegranate seeds to the water in ice cube trays, then toss the final product into champagne mixed with hibiscus syrup.

Photo: Courtesy of Westside Market NYC

Served at this year’s Great GoogaMooga festival in Brooklyn was a sophisticated tropical tipple called the Uncle Buck that included Tequila Don Julio Blanco, pineapple juice, fresh lime juice, ginger syrup, and green Chartreuse.

Photo: Courtesy of Don Julio

V.I.P. guests at GoogaMooga also sipped on Quiet Storms, a mix of Bulleit bourbon, lemon juice, extra-dry vermouth, simple syrup, and ginger beer.

Photo: Courtesy of Bulleit Bourbon

For an updated take on the classic margarita, mix Cointreau orange liqueur, Tequila Avión, blood orange juice, and fresh sour mix.

Photo: Courtesy of Tequila Avión

Chicago restaurant Allium served a swimsuit-friendly 500-calorie lunch at a recent beachwear fashion show at the Four Seasons Chicago. The three-course menu included beet salad with Greek yogurt, fennel, and mache lettuce; wild Alaskan halibut with smoked fingerlings, pickled ramp bulbs, asparagus, and English peas (pictured); and 99 percent pure chocolate sorbet.

Photo: Jenny Berg/BizBash

Created by Otis Florence of Pouring Ribbons in New York City, the From the Vine cocktail includes the new Skyy Infusions Moscato Grape, Cynar, lime juice, simple syrup, and Pierre Ferrand Dry Curacao, garnished with basil leaves and grapes.

Photo: Courtesy of Skyy

A lighter summery take on beef stroganoff from Truffleberry Market in Chicago includes seared Meyer lemon zest gnocchi.

Photo: Courtesy of Truffleberry Market

Keep guests alert at a late-night bash with this boozy take on iced coffee: mix one part Avión Espresso, one part espresso, and one part soda water, then garnish with espresso beans.

Photo: Courtesy of Avión

For a recent meeting, the Wyndham Grand Orlando Resort Bonnet Creek put together stations themed around local fare from the various areas of Florida. The north Florida station included May Port shrimp and scallop ceviche marinated in Florida citrus.

Photo: Courtesy of the Wyndham Grand Orlando Resort Bonnet Creek

The south Florida station at the Wyndham Grand Orlando Resort Bonnet Creek meeting included spiny lobster-and-blue-crab cocktails.

Photo: Wyndham Grand Orlando Resort Bonnet Creek

Add some extra sweetness to the bar offerings with Melville’s peppermint-flavored hard candy shot glasses, $20 for 12, available at Candy.com.

Photo: Courtesy of Melville's

Kaley Cuoco's Wedding

For her New Year's Eve nuptials, actress Kaley Cuoco had an upside-down wedding cake created by Kimberly Bailey of the Butter End Cakery in Los Angeles. During the wedding, Cuoco posted a photo of the cake to her Twitter and Instagram accounts, and “our traffic went insane,” said Sara Beveridge, director of operations at the Butter End. “We have 3,000 new Instagram followers ... and 2,000 new Facebook fans.”

Photo: Claudia Craig Photography

'People' and Entertainment Industry Foundation SAG Awards After-Party

Following the Screen Actors Guild awards ceremony on Saturday, People magazine and the Entertainment Industry Foundation hosted an after-party with production from Event Eleven. A photo of a Parisian greenhouse inspired the look of the event, which had a chic white bar decked with topiary-like greenery and flowers.

'People' and Entertainment Industry Foundation SAG Awards After-Party

Four massive, moss-covered bronze arches served as a dramatic centerpiece to the room.

AT&T Best of Washington

An idea for celebrating the Chinese New Year: a "Destination Asia" cart from a 2013 bash in Washington included shrimp and snow pea leaf dumplings, chicken dim sum, and miso-glazed pork belly with steamed buns.

Photo: Tony Brown/imijphoto.com for BizBash

'Condé Nast Traveler' Special Issue Launch at the Peninsula Chicago

A colorful koi pond appeared on the walls of the Peninsula Hotel's ballroom at a 2013 event. The Asian-theme event celebrated Condé Nast Traveler's "Grand Tour of Asia Issue."

Photo: Courtesy of Fig Media

HBO's Luxury Lounge

At HBO's Luxury Lounge during the Emmys in Los Angeles, mats under mani stations encouraged social snaps for guests receiving Marc Jacobs Beauty manicures.

Photo: Alesandra Dubin/BizBash

Pandora Jewelry Launch

To promote social media sharing, Pandora launched a new jewelry collection in Los Angeles and emblazoned the Mondrian hotel's bold oversize planters with hashtags.

Photo: Stefanie Keenan

59th Annual Washington Winter Show

The Washington Winter Show kicked off January 9 with a cocktail party at the Katzen Arts Center at American University. The event offered easy-to-eat versions of traditional Southern fare. Susan Gage Caterers turned shrimp and grits into hors d’ouevres by deep-frying the grits into patties and topping them with a single shrimp and remoulade sauce.

Photo: Erin Kelleher Photography

59th Annual Washington Winter Show

Desserts were kept to quick bites that could be easily eaten while mingling. The menu included unusual treats such bourbon balls, incorporating one of the South's liquor staples.

Photo: Erin Kelleher Photography

59th Annual Washington Winter Show

Buffet tables were also set up throughout the three floors of venue with Southern fare such as cheddar cheese grits, barbecue beef brisket, and cornbread served in iron skillets.

Photo: Erin Kelleher Photography