Tag Archive: Monochromatic

There’s an annual party in the gay club scene in NYC (and probably in other cities as well), called The White Party. The idea being to dress all in white, sexy, clubby, etc., and dance the night away. There’s also The Black Party, which tends towards a lot of leather. This dinner had nothing to do with either, other than probably an inspiration for the name of the evening. It was a white, monochromatic dinner (ooh, yet another one, so long before the trend), in midwinter, so presumably a bit on the snowy side outside the walls of my 16th floor apartment.

Sunday, January 16, 2005
The White Party

Shichimi-seared Albacore Tuna, White Miso Sauce
Rihaku “Dreamy Clouds” Nigori Sake

Celeriac Soup, Sea Scallops, Gorgonzola Dolce
Taittinger “Comtes de Champagne” Blanc de Blancs, 1985

Slow-roasted Cauliflower, Walnut Puree, Dried Cherry Chutney
F. Chauvenet Meursault “Les Bouchères”, 1986

Blanquette de Veau
Touchais “Grande Année”, 1976

Tetilla
Blandy’s 5-year old Verdelho Madeira

Another color themed dinner I did a lot of those, and long before the modernist trend we’re seeing in 2015 for “monochrome” dinners. Prescient, that’s what I was, prescient.

I guess I was still in my colors phase, after January’s red dinner and March’s rainbow dinner. We went white for August.

White Gazpacho
 Codorníu Blanc de Blancs, N.V.

White Pizza with Garlic & Ricotta Salata
 Castel de Paolis “Selve Vecchie”, 1995

Flounder with Roasted Corn & Coconut-Lime Dressing
 Castel de Paolis “Vigna Adriana”, 1995

Breast of Chicken with Onion-Pear Relish
Mashed Potatoes
 Kristone Blanc de Blancs, 1992

Cheese Plate: Morbier, Humboldt Fog Coupe, Corsignano
 Domaine de Chevalier Blanc, 1989

Drunken Figs in a Honeydew Nest with Pear Cream
 La Famiglia Malvasia Bianca, 1993

Following on January’s successful red dinner, I guess I decided to go full rainbow! So not actually a monochromatic menu, but in a related spirit. [And a corrected first dish name, either my mind had simply slipped, or I let an auto-correct slip by me.]

A study in red, long before “monochromatic” dinners became all the rage among chefs in the 2010s…. The photo forming the foundation of the menu, if it doesn’t immediately register is of a section of Jupiter (January, get it?) showing off it’s famed “red spot”.