Dakota Cuvee Events » Just another WordPress weblog

Happy New Year! We can’t wait to see what 2010 has in store for us! So far we have kicked off the year on the right foot.  Anthony Bourdain asked us to cater his VIP after party this week.  Nothing is better than having a client tell you to do whatever you want.  We all know from the Travel channel that Anthony Bourdain will eat about anything so Rambla owner, Bob Iacovone, got right to work on a creative menu.   Chef Bob had passed hors d’ oeuvres to please the eyes and taste buds of all:

Passed Hors d’ oeuvres

warm foie gras and pecan pie

octopus & habanero ceviche; white gazpacho

serrano wrapped chevre stuffed peppadews

sea scallop boudin; chilled uni

Being the fan that I am I scored a copy of “Kitchen Confidential” and had a great night!

-Bridgette

The bride and groom were huge travelers before they fell in love with one another.  Their romance grew as they exchanged stories of each other’s adventures.  Therefore it seemed fitting that as soon as they were married they would set off on yet another jet setting memory.

The night before the wedding the groom’s parents hosted the rehearsal dinner in their home.  It was a lovely affair! The home was easy to work with as we incorporated it all into the dinner theme and event décor.

The meal itself was quite a journey as each course held true to the couple’s desire to travel.  Take a look at the menu:

Around the World Passed Hors d’oeuvres

Crabcakes; Crabmeat Ravigote

Sherried Mushroom Duxelles with Chèvre; Brioche Toast

Medjool Dates, Smoked Bacon; Marcona, Valdeon

Grilled Pork Satays, Butternut Squash; Crisped Sage

Local

The Bleu

apples, cashews, red onion

France

Crab Meat & Brie Gnocchi

shaved parmesan; truffle oil

Italy

12- Hour Braised Beef Short Rib “Osso Buco”

forestiere sauce, polenta; cippolini onions; sweet corn muffin

USA

Mile High Pie

chocolate pie crust, layered ice creams; (peppermint,chocolate, vanilla)  meringue

The night concluded with toasts congratulating the soon to be married couple.  We were so lucky to be apart of such a memorable night!

-Bridgette

With new executive chef Kristen Olsen in house Cuvee has decided to open up for Thanksgiving this year.  What better way to celebrate Thanksgiving with your family? Amazing food and NO dishes! Sounds perfect to me! Take a look below for the menu Cuvee will be offering.

Stay tuned as The Dakota Restaurant will be offering a Thanksgiving menu as well!

See you there!

-Bridgette

Great food, live music, our New Orleans Saints, flip flops AND  an amazing cause?!? There isn’t a better party to be invited to!

This weekend the offensive line of the New Orleans Saints (OL4NO) teamed up with Feed the Children in an effort to raise awareness, funding and food drives for our area.

The theme of the party was fleur de lis & flip flops… a great blend of our great city and football!

All of the food items had a tailgating theme such as:

Cochon de Lait-Dirty Rice Hushpuppies; Spiced Steens Cane Syrup

Natchitoches Meat Pies; Tomato-Garlic Confit

Shrimp & Blackbean Quesadillas; Fresh Prico

The amount of items that were auctioned off can’t be explained! Donated jerseys and helmets from professional teams around the country came together along with an endless supply of local vendors.

Working with Suzanne Werdanne, director of sports partnerships- Feed the Children, was excellent.  She brought everyone together to create a memorable event!

To learn more about Feed the Children visit: www.feedthechildren.org

-Bridgette

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to work with Sak’s 5th Avenue New Orleans in a fabulous collection expo celebrating 100 years of Cartier.

The event emphasized the glamour of Cartier men and women through the precious jewels, customized champagne, models and of course my favorite: food.  The event’s theme was ‘games’ and was topped off with Cartier pages greeting guests, beautiful low profile flower arrangements by Perfect Presentations of New Orleans and an overall elegant ambiance.

Get your mouth water by taking a look at a few of the items guests snacked on:

Lobster Rillete… Lobster, Cauliflower Puree, Caviar; Potato Gaufrette

Fromage Grill… Fontina, Brie, Bleu, Pepperjelly; Brioche

Beef Tenderloin Frico… Beef Tenderloin, Lemon-Aioli, Arugula Pesto; Parmesan Frico

A big thanks to my new friends at Sak’s for asking me to be apart of this great affair!

-Bridgette

Whenever you are ready to start pre-gaming we will be ready! Rambla is staying open for breakfast later than usual to make sure we all have our bloody marys and mimosas! We will also be open for lunch with 2 for 1 beer specials and awesome sandwiches!

Come back after the game too! On Sundays we are open until 10:00!

Who Dat!

-Bridgette

The weather is a little bit cooler, business is picking up… fall is in full swing for us all!

Reward yourself with happy hour! Whether you are on the north-shore or south-shore one of our restaurants can make that 5 o’clock hour a little sweeter!

The Dakota opens it’s bar Monday-Saturday at 5 o’clock and has small plates in the bar starting at $7.00 along with awesome drink specials!

Rambla’s bar is always open in the afternoon into the late evening and also has daily specials! Chef Scott has daily tapas that are based on fresh  farmer’s market finds!  Stop in and get to know us!

-Bridgette

Next Wednesday The Dakota Restaurant will welcome the Ramey Wine Cellars as we host a fabulous wine dinner! Space is limited so please make your reservation today!

I look forward to seeing you!

-Bridgette

There aren’t too many things that make me happier than football season.  There is something about the unity of our great city.. along with beer, who-dat and those black and gold boys!

We all know that pre-gaming and post-gaming is apart of our Sunday’s this time of year.  Why not do it with us?

-Bridgette

Rambla has a fabulous new lunch menu that we couldn’t be more excited about!  Daily sandwich specials along with tapas combinations make for a perfect lunch in the CBD!

We also have amazing new dinner tapas items such as Galician-Style Octopus, Moorish Chicken Sausage and Cochon de Lait.

I look forward to seeing you all at Rambla!

-Bridgette

I can’t think of another way to honor the Katrina anniversary than by busting with business! August 29th couldn’t have felt better!
On the north-shore Christ Episcopal had their 25th anniversary and the grand opening of their high school in Covington! Dakota had amazing food for the 400+ guests to enjoy! From cochon de lait to scallop ceviche they had it all! Fat Tuesday’s had hurricanes to get everyone dancing to Four Unplugged. It was a wonderful affair!

Thank you Christ Episcopal for including us in such a milestone! Cheers to another 25 years!

On the south-shore we had our hands filled as well. Rambla and International House had the opportunity to host the Stewart & Ayobamidele wedding. What a unique event!
The ballroom was set with rich eggplant linens and candles throughout.

The guests had the opportunity to enjoy a VERY original menu! The couple embraced their Nigerian heritage and decided to incorporate it into many aspects of their wedding, especially the menu. Our chef, Scott Maki, prepared a menu boasting with flavors such as stewed goat, jollof rice, dodos and curried shrimp. We always enjoy the chance to do a little something out of the norm!
Thank you Bello and Rosalind for allowing me to be apart of one of the most memorable days in your life! Best wishes to you both!

Cuvee meanwhile was singing happy birthday to a great client. The Hall family rented out the entire restaurant to wish Janice a happy 60th! Guests were greeted with stuffed peppadews, crab cakes and many other miniature bites to get their palate watering for the meal that awaited them. The menu included some of our signature items such as the spiced shrimp napoleon and the chopped salad along with some seasonal specialties.

Janice had cake that displayed her love of music as it had piano keys covering the rich chocolate goodness.

We hope everyone enjoyed the evening as much as we did!

-Bridgette

Slumping economy.. hot Louisiana nights.. TREAT YOURSELF!! 

Lobster is at some of it’s lowest pricing of the year!  Both Dakota & Cuvee are taking advantage of  it this summer in an effort to spoil you!  Every Thursday night is lobster night at both restaurants.  Each week our team of chef’s come up with a fabulous 4 course menu that incorporates lobster into ever course.  For $45 you can indulge like never before! 

-Bridgette

Who would have thought Peach Snapple and a shot of Cointreau would be such a match made in heaven? 

While catering the Vintage Bar Ware Collectors Symposium (a Tales of the Cocktail event) yesterday we sipped on the delightful Cointreau Kiss cocktail. The event was very educational as it took place in the Southern Food and Beverage Museum.  

There were many exhibits for guests to check out such as a tribute to the sno-ball, po-boy and okra on the food side of things and antique bottles, prohibition facts and cocktail lagniappe for the mixologist in all of us.  Guests munched on delightful beet “truffles”, assorted charcuterie of pâté and rillettes along with wonderful imported and domestic cheeses.  

A great happy hour treat for all involved! 

Make your own beet “truffle”…

Marinate bite sized fresh beet pieces in horseradish and balsamic 

Rolls the drained beets in chevre and dust with crushed almonds

Make your own Cointreau kiss…  

1 shot Cointreau® orange liqueur

3 oz Peach Snapple® 

Ice cubes

Pour Peach Snapple®  over ice and top off with one shot Cointreau®  on top. 

-Bridgette

What a great week to be a part of New Orleans! This week is “Tales of the Cocktail!”

The event brings together the best and brightest of the cocktail community—award-winning mixologists, authors, bartenders and chefs—for a five-day celebration of the history and the craft of the cocktail.

We had the opportunity to “stir our soul” on Monday night. Rambla hosted a group of bloggers and food writers as they dined on a fabulous tapas selection paired with cocktails. The event was hosted by Leblon Cachaça so many of the drinks had the delicious sugar cane liquor involved.

**Fun fact: Cachaça, the third most-consumed spirit in the world, is the key ingredient to the Caipirinha, Brazil’s national drink. Cachaça (ka-SHAH-sa) is made from fresh-pressed cane juice fermented and distilled, and can only come from Brazil.**

Take a look at Monday’s great menu: 

Thanks to Blair and all of his friends for allowing us to host them! Check him out at: www.tradertiki.com

-Bridgette