Eating With Erica Presents A Little Black Dress Brunch At Salt Yard
I can honestly say that I have been quite the busy gal. And although my most successful event thus far was a few weeks ago, I now have the time to play catch up to share with you about the exciting event! The event, which was held on a Sunday, was called “Eating with Erica’s Little Black Dress Brunch.”
I had an awesome time planning this stylish and scrumptious event! I decided to showcase the new trendy restaurant Saltyard, which is located on Peachtree Street in Buckhead next door to the Watershed. I immediately fell in love with the restaurant because of the its gorgeous décor, large windows, the awesome private dining area, and complimentary valet parking, because we all know how Buckhead parking can be.
I decided to have a theme for this brunch event: a little black dress. I mean, who doesn’t look good in a little black dress? Which, by the way, there were so many cute, black dresses that showcased many of my guests’ personalities. And more importantly, who doesn’t like brunch? So I combined the two, and it was a delightful afternoon to say the least. I never release the menu prior to my event, so it’s always a huge compliment to me when everyone buys tickets to show up to an event in which they no clue what foods they’ll be enjoying. Typically at a brunch, you have your traditional shrimp and grits, eggs Benedict, pancakes, bacon, etcetra. But with this brunch, I really wanted a brunch menu that leaped out of the box, and Saltyard executed this perfectly!
The menu consisted of four courses, and each guest had a choice of bottomless adult beverages, which were:
- · Delicious mimosas with freshly squeezed orange juice,
- · A Bloody Mary Stand,
- · Bubo Pinot Grigio California, and
- · Emmotivo Montalpulciao Italy.
Needless to say, everyone loved the freshly squeezed orange juice and superb champagne that were in the mimosas! I don’t think many people tried any of the other options because the mimosas were such a HUGE hit with everyone’s tastebuds, and it didn’t help that they were bottomless. Make sure that when you go to Saltyard that you add their mimosas to your must-try list!
For the first course, each guest had a choice of:
- · Raw Kale Salad Buttermilk, sunflower seeds, and blue cheese,
- · Burrata Grilled Asparagus,
- · Brussels Leaf Salad Red Cabbage, carrot, pumpkin see vinaigrette.
The kale salad was my favorite! But after interacting with the guests, the kale and the burrata were the favorites. However, the kale salad was definitely everyone’s number one pick. The Burrata came in a close second. It consisted of fresh Italian cheese made from mozzarella and cream. The outer shell is solid mozzarella while the inside contained both mozzarella and cream giving it an unusual, soft texture. It is also defined with sauce as an outer shell of mozzarella filled with butter, or a mixture of butter and sugar. It is usually served fresh and at room temperature. The name “burrata” means “buttered” in Italian.
The second course, each guest had the choice of:
Nick’s Soon-to-be-Famous French toast, which was mascarpone stuffed with local brioche and a choice of house-made strawberry infused maple syrup, or house-made blueberry pecan maple syrup
Mascarpone cheese is a rich, creamy cow’s milk cheese that is somewhere between butter and cream cheese in terms of both texture and flavor. It is smoother than cream cheese, but thicker and much less “meltier” than butter. It has a very delicate, subtle flavor, more like butter than cream cheese. The cheese originally comes from Italy. Brioche is pastry of French origin that is akin to highly-enriched bread, and whose high-egg and butter content gives it a rich and tender crumb. It’s light and slightly puffy, more or less fine, according to the proportion of butter and eggs. This was the best French toast I have ever had. I am certain this French toast will be famous in no time. The mascarpone was a wonderful compliment to the brioche and strawberry-infused maple syrup, and it made this French toast be on the list of “My Fav in the City.”
The third course, each guest had a choice of”
“Croquet Madame,” which was ham and cheese stuffed French toast, fried egg
Or
1. Roasted mushrooms and sausage,
2. Fresh Tomato and basil salsa brioche crumbs,
3. Creamed Local Spinach,
4. Heuvos divorciadios black beans, salsa verde, salsa roja.
A croque-monsieur is a grilled ham and cheese sandwich. It originated in French cafés and bars as a quick snack. Typically, Emmental or Gruyère cheese is used. There are several versions of the sandwich with substitutions or additional ingredients. The name is based on the verb “croquer,” which means “to crunch,” and the word monsieur, which means “mister.” Enough of the vocabulary lesson, because I have to say that it was so tasty! The egg options where enjoyable. 0The dish was served sunnyside up. Everyone had their preference for the way they liked their eggs prepared. It was a tie regarding what dish was the third-course favorite.
The fourth course, my guests had a choice of:
Chocolate nemesis, seasonal citrus vanilla cream
Meyer lemon crème brulee, blackberries, Georgia strawberry shortcake, mousse, spongecake,
This was a great dessert because it had something for everyone. Strawberries, chocolate, or crème brulee. No matter what your dessert preference was, there was something for everyone’s tastebuds!
I want to give a huge thanks to all of my close and personal friends that attended my brunch. I also want to say thanks to the media that was able to attend; Kelsey Nykole from VH1’s Couples Therapy; Whitney and Nicole (http://shopchouse.com); Tami (http://talkingwithtami.com); Que and Jason (http://bemagazine.me/); Milla (http://happilyeating.
Everyone enjoyed the brunch, which always puts a huge smile on my face! Overall, working with Saltyard, Double Cross Vodka (http://doublecrossvodka.com), Consignment House( http://www.shopchouse.com) , House of Bidalle (http://www.houseofbidalle.com), and Dining Out Magazine (http://www.diningout.com/city/atlanta), they made this event a breeze! I want to thank all of the fabulous ladies and gents that joined me on that beautiful Sunday for my “Little Black Dress Brunch.” I also would like to say thank you to everyone at Saltyard. Besides a gorgeous restaurant, the staff was extremely friendly, courteous, and professional! They made sure that my event went smoothly and that everyone was happy, which they were! Again, this was my most successful event to date, and I extremely humbled and thankful! See you at the next Eating with Erica event!