The F&B team at San Francisco’s Parc 55
Hotel is accustomed to thinking outside
the cocktail-station box when it comes to
parties and receptions.
“There’s so much competition in this
area that we really need to wow our
clients, or they could be going next
door,” says John Yu, F&B director. “The
executive chef, catering director, banquet
director, and I sit down together
with each client. We ask about the backgrounds
and interests of their guests
and then brainstorm on how to make
their event meaningful and unique. The
client is impressed with the personal
attention from all four of us, and this
system usually lands us the business.”
An upcoming event that was recently
pitched is a small reception for a serviceman
returning from Iraq. The team put
together a barbecue that suited the casual,
jovial nature of the affair, and they
decided to propose a beer pairing idea.
“Each course will be accompanied by
three-ounce samplings of the beers that
match best with that cuisine,” says Yu.
“Ales will go with the beef, pilsners with
chicken, and hefeweizens with a Gem
Romaine Caesar salad. Servers will
expound on the properties and virtues of
each beer and why it goes well with
what guests are tasting. The client loved
the idea.”
Other innovations at Parc 55 include
Asian fusion wine pairing receptions featuring
action stations with different
Asian cuisines alongside stations of
California wines that match best with
each flavor. Pad Thai stations are set up
in tandem with Rieslings; Thai kabobs
partner with Pinot Grigios; a sushi selection
sidles up to Chardonnays; and
sometimes an oyster bar is thrown in
with Sauvignon Blancs.
“Wine pairing receptions, in general,
are really popular now. But even if it’s a
tableside poured wine reception, we try
to do something a little different.
Sometimes, if the crowd numbers are
there, we pour from a huge three-liter
bottle of wine instead of the normal 750
milliliter. It always gets a big reaction
from guests when they see us coming at
them with that thing,” Yu laughs.
Signature cocktail bars are also huge
right now, Yu adds, especially ones featuring
the pack-a-punch mojito. Parc 55
uses a low bar so guests can choose
from mojito fixings, including a variety
of chopped fruits, different flavors of
rum and juices, and trays of colored
sugar for glass rims.
“We have potted mint on the bar, so
the bartender picks it fresh and uses a
wooden masher to muddle it. We also
have sticks of real sugar cane that act as
edible swizzle sticks, which guests really
get a kick out of. Actually, it’s hard not to
get a kick after a couple of these
drinks.”—Ashley Brown Allen
