Brian Lawrence Live
Sunday, Dec. 6
Beverly & Carlos Quinones were kind enough to extend an invitation to the annual Guilford Holiday Party, held at the home of Bari & Tom Fore (the beautiful stone mansion was a former residence of Ogden Nash). After meeting friends Peter & Eleanor Landauer for cocktails in their home, we headed over to the party, which was in full swing when we arrived. Lots of familiar faces: Joan & Landon Royals, Greg Pease, Dick & Leslie Leech and many more. A string trio from the Peabody Conservatory provided backdrop music for the crowds. A nice bonus: the party raises funds to maintain the historic Sherwood Gardens, the focal point of the neighborhood.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 12/15/09 at 11:38 AM
Wed., Dec. 2
A group of us made the pilgrimage up to Volt in Frederick to see what all the ‘Top Chef’-inspired hoopla was about. It’s all justified. We paused for cocktails in the sleek barroom before being shown in to the private dining room for our Chef’s Kitchen Menu. An added treat: it was Wed. night and the week’s new episode of ‘Top Chef’ was screening while we ate (meta moment: watching Bryan Voltaggio make goat’s cheese ravioli for his quick-fire challenge while actually eating his goat’s cheese ravioli). Along for the evening: Avery Strachan, Nick Zupancic, Karen Bokram, Tracy Kwiatkowski, Patrick Sutton, Steve Ward and Dr. Jay Miller. Nine excellent courses later, we were sated and had the pleasure of Bryan paying us a visit, where he hung out for about 15 minutes chatting with us. He didn’t give away who wins on the finale this week, but he did kindly sign our menus, “It’s OK to play with your food!”
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 12/07/09 at 04:51 PM
Tues., Dec. 1
I joined a large crowd at Pazo this evening to celebrate five years since the opening of Tony Foreman & Cindy Wolf‘s restaurant. Marketing director Allison Parker Abromitis had clued me in to what to expect, but it really was quite a show. Acrobats, jugglers, stilt walkers, dancers— there was a lot to look at. The bar even concocted four specialty cocktails that were paired with matching-color Cover Girl lip glosses for guests to take home. A guest DJ had great sounds going all night, and a few routines by a troupe of hip-hop dancers kept the crowd entertained. City Council prez. Stephanie Rawlings Blake was there with an entourage, and lots of familiar faces were there to take in the festivities: Edie & Stan Brown, Donna & Dean Alexander, Patrick Sutton & Tracy Kwiatkowski, Avery Strachan & Nick Zupancic, Tom Moore, Christian Johannsson, Monyka Berrocosa, David Schleider, way too many more to mention. We headed out around 11, but heard the party went on til after 1.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 12/03/09 at 12:00 PM
Nov. 23-29
Kicked off Thanksgiving week with a foodie dinner at Phillips’ Seafood with new corporate chef Arturo Paz (featured in the Dec. issue of Style), along with Todd Yuhanick, Diane Macklin, Dara Bunjon and Celeste Corsaro— hello, mac’n'cheese lollipops and meatloaf with a Velveeta core! Tuesday, I met up with chef Kevin Miller at the new Adela in Fells Point to check out the menu there and the beautiful interiors by Rita St. Clair Associates— the place looks to be a hit already. Then it was on to Sascha Wohlhandler & Steve Suser‘s annual pre-Thanksgiving party at their Bond Street home, always a great chance to catch up with lots of friends and get into the holiday spirit. Wednesday night I joined the crowd at Little Havana for that annual pre-Thanksgiving bash— with music by the Real Geniuses and the post-Dewey crowd that packs this one, it almost feels like a school Homecoming Dance— in a good way. Friday, I hit the Laurel racetrack for their annual Guys Day Out with pals Jim Burger, Kerry Plackmeyer and Denis Nash— won one race and sampled some fine cigars. And wound up the week with the Ravens/Steelers game, the win in overtime was a great way to wrap up the holiday, but the late-night finish and ensuing traffic made for a tough Monday morning.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 12/02/09 at 03:46 PM
