Supper Clubs Are Going Global

The supper club concept is a good fit anywhere in the world. We recently had a wonderful evening with old and new friends in Puszczykowo Poland. Our Impromptu Sunday Night combined interesting people, amazing food and engaging conversation in a perfect setting. It was the perfect supper club dinner party.

Lucien and Ela Vendome hosted the evening in their wonderful new home. Lucien and I have been friends for many years. The book, Impromptu Friday Nights- A Guide To Supper Clubs is an offshoot of a question Lucien asked me after a fun evening in Memphis years ago. He said: “Lots of people write cook books, have you ever thought about writing a book about what you and Susan do with supper clubs?” It took over twenty years, but the book published this year is the genesis of Lucien’s question. So much of what I know about food and fine dining comes from lessons learned from this friend and culinary genius.

The menu for the evening was fantastic:

Hors d’Ouevre

Tartellete aux champions (Marsala wine -cream – sage)
Chaussons a la Polonaise (Caramelized onions – Parmesan – sausage)

Salmon Saltimbocca

Pan seared – Beurre rouge – Parisian de celeriac – Melissa

Pork Medallions

Cider honey Mustard glaze – Rosemary – Caramelized apples

Pommes de Terre Anna

Butter – Chives

Roasted Root Vegetables

Citrus and chive butter

Fondant aux Chocolat

Crème Chantilly – Coulis de framboise – Melissa

For me, one of the most fun components of the evening was the preparation as it brought back so many fond memories. Lucien and I worked at Kraft years ago and had practice of:

Lucien would stop by my office at 3 pm on a Friday afternoon asking if Susan and I were in town this weekend
I would respond: “The usual suspects?”
A quick call to Susan to get clearance and the invitation chain started
Calls would go out to five couples at 4 pm. The guys were traveling the world and normal scheduling was a nightmare. But, amazingly 9 times out of 10 everyone would show up at 7 pm to enjoy a a la minute menu prepared by Lucien and myself.
The meaning of “Impromptu Friday Nights” was born and a lifetime friendships and memories created.

The good news is that the ability to recreate these events continues with the evening at Villa Vendome a perfect example.

(Lucien & Paul bringing focus to the cooking)

The group for the evening brought together old and new friends. Lucien and Ela were hosting Susan and I for the weekend. Ela and Magda have known each other years having been professors together at Poznan University. Magda’s husband Paol is a former military attaché from Denmark, enjoying retirement as much as Lucien and I. Marta is a concert pianist and professor of music who lives in nearby Puszczykowo. The group was perfectly eclectic and conversations covered a gamut of topics. It was so much fun learning about each other’s lives and adventures. As the evening went on it seemed that no one wanted it to end. Old friendships were renewed and new friendships born.

One of the beauties of Lucien and I being old friends of a certain age is that we have heard each other’s stories many times but can’t remember them. We had lots of fun retelling them to the delight of each other and new friends (we hope). Fortunately, Ela and Susan put up with hearing the stories for the thousandth time.

Wherever you live in the world, give the supper club concept a try. Whether it is in Pittsburgh or Puszczykowo the concept works. The fun we had at Villa Vendome is the perfect testimony.

If you enjoyed this blog and similar other stories/supper club lessons follow me on Facebook and Twitter and subscribe to get future blogs at www.impromptufridaynights.com/blog and check out my book Impromptu Friday Nights a Guide to Supper Clubs. Published by Morgan James Publishing and available through most channels where books are sold.

Montserrat Mise En Place

The most important key to a supper club dinner party success is preparation. Catalonia is close to France and we saw a perfect example of Mise En Place during our day trip to Montserrat from Barcelona. Loosely translated, Mis En Place means: “put into place”. It is a key to meal preparation taught at culinary schools around the world and it was key to how a restaurant can feed 3 bus-loads of tourists all at once and keep everyone happy. See an earlier blog that explains Mise En Place in more detail.

Another key feeding a large group in a short period of time is having a menu designed for the occasion. The lunch menu at the restaurant in Montserrat was perfect for the occasion with:

Local breads
Cold tomato soup (Provided in a large pitcher so guest could serve themselves)
Salad platters (Lettuce, Carrot, Tomato, Cucumber & Vinaigrette)
Catalonian Cannelloni (Served hot)
Fruit salad for dessert

As the hungry group arrived from our tour of Montserrat, waiters set the table with bread, wine, salad platters and soup pitchers. Consequently, everyone could eat immediately with no lines and no delay. As our guide Borja said: “Perfecto!”. After a short time waiters came around and served the hot cannelloni that had been warmed in ovens and topped with a creamy béchamel. Again, “Perfecto!”.

The Catalonian Cannelloni is different from the more familiar Italian version. The big difference is that it uses a béchamel, or white sauce, instead of tomato sauce. Borja explained that it is a tradition to have this the day after Christmas. This makes a lot of sense as it is a dish that can be made well in advance and heated and served at the last minute. It also helps to have extra béchamel to add as you serve to avoid your dish being too dry. A problem with pasta dishes is that the pasta can act like a sponge soaking up the moisture. A last minute addition of sauce is easy and really helps the dish.

See the recipe

It never hurts to have a perfect setting. Having lunch at the vineyard with the hills of Montserrat in the background was beautiful. The picture of Susan pointing out why they are called the “Serrated Mountains”.

As we exited the restaurant the maître d’ thanked multinational group for coming and instinctively knew what nationality each guests was. How do they know? I sometimes think I wear a sign. I am an American. I remember traveling internationally in the 1980’s. It seemed that all American men wore a uniform of tan slacks and a blue blazer. Today, every nationality seems to wear jeans. I try not to be the Ugly American as we have a guy in Washington that has become the poster boy for it. He might not have invented the term, but the rest of the world thinks it of him. Now it is all a matter of guilt by association. All I can say is: this too shall pass.

After lunch we went to Oller Del Mas winery. Borja did a wonderful job explaining how the vineyard has been resurrected. The area had been been a major producer of wine before the Spanish Civil war, but the area and vineyard had fallen into disrepair. The current owners have rebuilt it resurrecting old strains of grape trying to bring the region back to historic levels. It was a wonderful afternoon and a perfect example of how Mise En Place and preparation makes things work.

Barcelona Is “Perfecto”

“Perfecto”

I am now fluent in Catalan. What a fantastic word to describe so many things. The use of one word is so helpful when travelling the world. I went to Paris in high school with my French class and remember having a goal of getting through the day with one word: “Oui”. Again, it is a perfect word.

This story brings back the old joke:

What do you call someone who speaks many languages: Multilingual
What do you call someone who speaks two languages: Bi lingual
What do you call someone who speaks one language: American

The joke is sad, but true. We Americans are spoiled because in so many places around the world we can get by with our one language. On the other hand, I remember telling my friend in Holland how advantaged his children would be as they spoke: Dutch, English, German and French. He told me that he doubted that they were advantaged at all because the Dutch children were forced to spend a disproportionate amount of their intellectual energy on language versus American children being able to have more focus on math and science. Who knows what is true. I do know I love having one word to focus on: “Perfecto”.

Barcelona has been a great place to build on our supper club mission. We started our first night by having dinner with two old supper club friends from Memphis. Linda Stevens and Steve Cooper just happened to be in Barcelona with her sister and brother in law. We had a wonderful dinner at Patron. The waiter took the lead and kept up a flow of Tapas and sea bass prepared a few different ways. “Perfecto”.

(Dick, Karen, Steve, Linda, Susan and Paul at Patron)

We spent a day with a Danny (www.inourbarcelonatour.com) touring the city. The works of Gaudi highlighted by La Sagrada Familia really stood out. Many of us have toured cathedrals, but this place is different. I had been to Barcelona 20 years ago and to see the progress and the beauty was special. The work has progressed enormously. So much so that one feels compelled to come back to see it finished. They say it will be done by 2026 (100^thanniversary of Gaudi’s death), but I suspect that a final completion is a long way off. The place is amazing. It is the only cathedral in the world where you have to pay to get in and people line up by the thousands every day. “Perfecto”.

There are two major supper club food themes that we are bringing back from Barcelona. Tapas and seafood are everywhere you look. The Tapas theme is fantastic for supper clubs as the sharing of food is a great way to socialize over a meal. The seafood of this city on the Mediterranean is spectacular. We had dinner last night at Botafumeiro restaurant and had some amazing seafood. “Perfecto”.

Tapas of grilled pork, sausage and codfish croquet

Razor clams with herb butter