Hora d’oeuvres

A chalkboard sign near the entrance gave guests an at-a-glance look at the restaurants included in the night's lineup.

Cronut inventor Dominique Ansel offered up a taste of one of his madcap dessert creations: chocolate "caviar" served with coffee caramel cream and Sablé cookies.

Gin-based drinks continue to be a popular tipple at events. The Clover Club's Julie Reiner concocted a cocktail named the Port of Call, which mixed together gin, ruby port, lemon juice, cinnamon syrup, cranberry relish, and bitters.

Perhaps one of the event's most indulgent offerings, High Road Craft Ice Cream offered a new take on the ice cream sandwich: a scoop of vanilla Fleur de Sel smooshed between two grilled cheddar sandwiches on cinnamon brioche smeared with Cortland apple butter.

From Arlington Club chef Laurent Tourondel came filet mignon steak tartare with white mushrooms on grilled country bread rounds.

At the Celebrity Cruises-sponsored bar, guests could opt for a "Thai-Chi" cocktail, a mix of tamarind, tequila, agave nectar, Scotch, and grilled pineapple bitters with a pepper-and-lime rimmer and liquid nitrogen.

Pastry chef Emma Bengtsson of Aquavit displayed a variety of quirky Swedish candies, including mango coriander sour ribbon and carrot peanut brittle, on a table decorated with pinecones, birch logs, and fake snow.

Blue Hill at Stone Barns served up seasonal cocktails made with its in-house gin, grappa, and vermouth.

Red Farm's Joe Ng whipped up bite-size black-seabass-and-avocado tarts.

Manzanilla's Dani Garcia masterminded a dish called "Montaditos de Rabo de Toro," featuring pulled oxtail, mushroom, and kale on bagel-like steamed brioche buns.

Robert Aikens from the Peacock offered a new take on a classic canapé, titled salmon tartare Britannia. The bite-size dish featured a Yorkshire pudding-like base.

Einat Admony of Balaboosta served up a mix of Asian and Middle Eastern flavors: shrimp kataif with tobiko sauce and cucumber salad.

Tertulia offered spiced pumpkin soup with smoked lamb bacon and labne.

Chef Mark Gandara of Red Rooster Harlem served a spicy take on a Southern classic: creole shrimp and pimento grits with chorizo aioli.

The Brushstroke station, helmed by Teruyoshi Suzuki and David Bouley, offered kabocha-pumpkin-butternut-squash soup with sweet potato, walnuts, and soy-sauce powder.

Jonathan Benno from Lincoln topped toast rounds with veal terrine, fall vegetables, and bagna cuda dressing.

Apple pie crescents with apple butter cream and caramel, created by Larissa Raphael of Telepan, would make for a tasty addition to a bite-size dessert display.

Num Pang offered spicy butternut squash soup with coconut cream.

Lamb barbacoa tacos by Akhtar Nawab of La Cenita came topped with sweet corn purée and crispy queso.

Marc Spitzer of Cherry displayed his big-eye tuna tarts on a barrel topped with glass and filled with a holiday-worthy arrangement of red berries and greenery.

The Elm's Paul Liebrandt offered red kuri squash velouté with comté chantilly cream.