The resurgent gala for Wildwood Park for the Arts was an elegant affair, with opulent burgundy table cloths, black chair coverings and tall centerpieces from Tipton & Hurst. Set as it was at Chenal Country Club, a short jog from the park, the affair aimed to remind Chenal Valley denizens (and those of other ZIP codes who visit frequently) that Wildwood is their park.
Dinner architects and co-chairmen Tiffany and Daniel Robinson wasted little time at the microphone, thanking Stone Ward, "who helped us rebrand one of our favorite evenings," Tiffany said, and the night's chief sponsors, Deltic Timber (which owns the country club), Chip and Cindy Murphy (her mother and stepfather) and Bank of the Ozarks, and Chef Dan Capello for building the menu, and Jonathan Looney from O'Looney's Wine and Liquor for pairing the wine.
"Finally, we just want you to enjoy dinner," Daniel Robinson said. "The spirit of this event is the food and wine."
"Throughout the dinner," Tiffany continued, "we're going to have two performances by some of the students and the faculty at our new Wildwood Academy for Music and the Arts, which we refer to as WAMA. ... bon appetit!"
The five courses proceeded this way:
• Spanish shrimp with gazpacho sauce appetizer with Ferrari-Carano fume blanc, 2013 (California)
• A goat cheese salad with mustard vinaigrette with Patrick Piuze Val de Mer Bourgnogne Blanc 2011 (France)
• An orange sorbet intermezzo
• Bacon-wrapped filet with Bordelaise sauce, garlic whipped potatoes and seasonal vegetables with a Niepoort Twisted Red 2011 (Portugal)
• A caramel flan cheesecake with salted caramel ganache
About 180 came out for the fare affair and helped raise a bit over $100,000.
High Profile on 11/16/2014