Prepping has begun for our special New Year's Eve menu. Kevin and Holly, Walter and Heather will be here all day today slicing and dicing, chopping and portioning, simmering and blending. I have edited the previously posted menu to include dessert and some other subtle changes, which I am sure will be continuing throughout the two days of preparation. We expect to sell out of the baked oysters - we have 50 orders available for our 90 some reservations, so Kevin has to come up with a back-up plan for that - we don't want our 9 o'clocks to be disappointed! I am doing as little as possible to help with the kitchen work - I might make the coconut dulche de leche sauce for the ice cream, and I'll help with the brittle for that, but that's about it. (Kevin just said that I better be making the sauce for the ice cream!! "You better!")
We've been "doing" New Year's Eve for almost 20 years now - since 1986 - with the exception of 2004, when we were at the Hyatt in Cambridge, 2005 when we were at Padre Island in Texas, and last year when we did the Hyatt thing again. While being on Padre Island was pretty cool, working on New Year's Eve is what we like best; that being said, it can be a tough night if things aren't really, really organized. Kevin is sitting here now writing the two-columned prep list, planning what plates to use for what dishes, fine-tuning recipes and sauces and garnishes. I have to give him the seatings - how many people are coming in at every half hour booking - and continue to offer my invaluable advice as to what will be the most popular dish, what he will need the most of. (Some would call this back-seat driving...) The reservation thing itself is where my stress will come from - there will inevitably be last minute changes and cancellations - and I look forward to meeting the challenge of managing a smooth yet exciting evening.
We'll see how it goes...
We've been "doing" New Year's Eve for almost 20 years now - since 1986 - with the exception of 2004, when we were at the Hyatt in Cambridge, 2005 when we were at Padre Island in Texas, and last year when we did the Hyatt thing again. While being on Padre Island was pretty cool, working on New Year's Eve is what we like best; that being said, it can be a tough night if things aren't really, really organized. Kevin is sitting here now writing the two-columned prep list, planning what plates to use for what dishes, fine-tuning recipes and sauces and garnishes. I have to give him the seatings - how many people are coming in at every half hour booking - and continue to offer my invaluable advice as to what will be the most popular dish, what he will need the most of. (Some would call this back-seat driving...) The reservation thing itself is where my stress will come from - there will inevitably be last minute changes and cancellations - and I look forward to meeting the challenge of managing a smooth yet exciting evening.
We'll see how it goes...
So, how did it go? Happy 2008!
ReplyDeletemarty