Sweet Hope, Central’s all you can eat dessert event for charity, is back! I can’t recommend this family experience enough! Kids love it! Reservations are staggered and required. This year, there will be live jazz and a balloon artist. This event is $25 per person for those 10 and over.
Previous coverage and a few words about the late Michel Richard are here. The flier for the event is below.
-JAY
We miss you, Michel.
Michel Richard’s Central has continued to hold a annual benefit for St. Jude Children’s Hospital, even a year and a half after his death. A few weeks ago, we were thrilled to sample Central Michel Richard‘s delicious French desserts and donate toys to St Jude. Above are some images of of the highlights from this benefit.
Our Previous coverage of Michel and his events can be found here. You can easily see how he was a beloved fixture in the DC restaurant scene.
Happy Holidays everyone!
-JAY
Today we attended the Sweet Hope, Dessert for Toys Reception at Michel Richard’s Central. Toys were collected for St Jude Children’s Hospital. I even got a chance to say talk to Restauranteur/Chef Bart Vandaele, who was in attendance. We look forward to this event every year. Pictures from the event are above.
-JAY
We recently attended Michel Richard‘s Sweet Hope dessert for toys event at Central. The event benefits St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. There’s nothing like the combination of happy children, balloon animals, and amazingly delicious desserts! Above are pictures of some of the highlights of the event.
I have never been disappointed by Michel’s establishments, and I hear he has a new restaurant in NYC, Villard.
-JAY
What an event! A text from my eating companion says it all, “This is heaven!” Zoofari, a fundraiser at the National Zoo, happened last night. With over 100 D.C. restaurants in attendance, it’s all a blur to me. I do remember fish was the most fashionable ingredient of the night. And that Blue Moon was the beer of choice. Oddly enough, I spent two hours at the zoo and saw no animals, unless, of course, you count the woman with 5 Georgetown Cupcake morsels on her plate. (And I’ll freely admit I’ve argued against boutique cupcakes in the past, but those were pretty damn good cupcakes!) If I can remember correctly, I’ll share some highlights of the evening. But again, I rolled out of the zoo last night like a Violet Beauregarde blueberry.
Mike Isabella of Zaytinya and Top Chef fame offered a melon popsicle. Too bad melon isn’t in season yet. Shouldn’t he know that? The Source, sans Wolfgang Puck, served delicious dumplings – just one more tasty tidbit that reaffirms its place as one of the best restaurants in D.C. BLT Steak had mini-burgers. Mini-burgers that made me crave White Castle instead of their big brother. Rocklands roasted a whole pig. Belga Cafe had a few variations of a Belgian waffle. I opted for the traditional topped with chocolate and whipped cream. The waffle was warm. Morton’s was a let-down. Sure, there were a lot of soups topped with crab and various foams that I passed on, but a steakhouse, and a famous one at that, should not be serving teeny tiny slices of beef on a huge potato roll. Tail gaiters can do better!
I wish I could remember everything. It all became a blur after a while. And unlike a top news reporter or blogger extraordinaire, I was more concerned with not dropping my food and drink rather than taking notes and pictures. But trust me, there were rows and rows of restaurants, beverage stations with wine and beer, and musical acts interspersed a long the way to keep the people happy. Sure, Central, Chef Geoff and his offerings, and Zola are all a blur. But it’s a good blur, and one I’d be happy to experience again. But next time, I’ll be sure to pace myself. One can’t eat so much delicious food so quickly! It makes for gastro-intestinal mayhem and foolishness.
Oh, and I almost forgot, I don’t remember who it was, but someone was serving what was essentially bacon juice soup topped with a goat cheese foam. Yes, my friends, heaven it was.
AEK
Michel creating the "smoked salmon croquet madames" he is about to hand us.
I was fortunate to attend the “announcement party” at Central for Michel Richard’s new restaurant (tentatively named “Michel”) at the The Ritz-Carlton, Tysons Corner (in the old Maestro space).
At the beginning of the event, I was (intentionally) positioned to watch Michel make some “small bites,” which he handed to the three of us. At one point, Michel was in the corner of the room surrounded by his staff. I wandered over into his tight group and started a conversation with him. I’d never met Michel before and was very impressed with him because he is personable, passionate, and expressive and makes people immediately feel comfortable. He is also funny: (spoken in a French accent) “I like cheeses that smell like my feet when my wife gives me foot rubs.”
Half of the time my gaze kept being drawn back to their house made charcuterie–intensely red cured hams, and salamis sitting right in front of me on the meat slicers. $22 for a charcuterie plate (from their lunch menu).
I skipped the two mushroom dishes (due to an allergy) but one diner told me that a mushroom dish was the best thing she had that night. Everything I had was tasty, but my favorite was the croquet madame, of which I had several; the cheese, black bread, and salmon in the teeny sandwiches were an amazing combination. The deviled eggs were great but they did have (raw) meat in them! Yum! I tried the two red wines, and both were good but I preferred the tempranillo (the heavier wine). Below is a list of what we were served.
I HAD to take a picture of the charcuterie.
Wines:
Bailly Lapierre, Crémant De Bourgogne, Blanc de Blancs, France 2007 – (Chardonnay)
Bourgogne Blanc, Michel Richard, Domaine Maillard, Burgundy, France 2007 – ( Chardonnay)
Domaine Coteau De La Biche, Vouvray, Loire, France 2008 – (Chennin Blanc)
Bodegas Muaurodos, Prima, Tora , Spain 2006 – (Tempranillo)
Frederic Mabileau, St Nicolas de Bourgueil, Loire, France 2006 – (Cabernet Franc)
Hors d’oeuvres:
Mushroom croquet monsieur – duxelle of mushrooms, Swiss cheese, whole wheat bread
Smoked salmon croquet madame – smoked salmon, Swiss cheese, black bread
Gougeres (cheese puffs) – gruyere and parmesan cheese
Mushroom Tarts – mushrooms and gruyere cheese
Deviled steak & eggs – hard boiled eggs stuffed with beef tartar
-JAY
