Eat, Drink, and Be Married
A Potluck BuffetOctober 11, 2002
The Bride and Groom: Silvana Nardone, 32, a cookbook author
and the owner of a mail-order food company, and Stephen Gross, 41,
a freelance portrait photographer.
The Setting: Their upstairs neighbors' apartment in Carroll
Gardens, Brooklyn.
The Backstory: Although Silvana and Stephen had been engaged
for almost a year before their wedding, Silvana is, by her own admission,
a major procrastinator; two weeks before the wedding, she still
hadn't ordered any food. She had called a well-known catering company
a few weeks before but found the menu pretentious and the prices
outrageous. "We didn't have a budget in mind, but we didn't
see any reason to be too elaborate, since that wouldn't be a reflection
of us," says Silvana. "We wanted it to be more about intimacy,
about sharing with friends and family." As luck would have
it, a number of Silvana's friends were also in the food business.
So partially out of desperation, partially out of knowing she'd
end up with delicious food, Silvana decided to ask about a dozen
of them to bring something.
Making it Happen: The couple's foodie friends showered them
with culinary contributions. Jim Lahey, owner of Sullivan Street
Bakery, cabbed it across the Brooklyn Bridge with boxes of pizza
bianca. Others brought big rounds of cheese or platters of antipasti
heaped with olives, cured meats such as prosciutto, and charred
artichokes, eggplant, and zucchini. Some brought bottles of wine
and champagne chosen with great care to celebrate the special occasion.
At the last minute, Silvana ordered a few basics - orzo and quinoa
salads, a cheese platter, poached shrimp and a poached salmon -
from another friend, Brooklyn-based caterer Jamie Sydney. To supplement
the wines brought by guests, she also ordered a few cases of her
favorite wine, a Sardinian varietal. Her other splurge was a chocolate
cake with chocolate ganache from Regula's Specialty Cakes.
How it Played Out: Sydney laid out the food buffet-style on
the large farm table in the kitchen, and added the various offerings
as guests arrived with dishes. Disposable plates and silverware
avoided the need for pricey rentals. The 75 guests helped themselves
throughout the evening, and many took home doggie bags filled with
leftovers. In the end, Silvana's "un-plans" proved wildly
successful. "Everyone who had been married before told me they
wished they could have enjoyed their reception as much as we enjoyed
ours," says Silvana. "It was very simple but very beautiful,
and I didn't have to worry about anything."
The Tab: About $24 a head for food and beverage.