Start with an onion . . .: The Big Birthday Bash

Brian wanted to do something special for Debra's "milestone" birthday. He didn’t think much of my suggestions of glow-bowling or paint-balling because let’s face it, Deb is a bit more refined than that.

Brian finally settled on having a dinner catered by our own personal chef. "We could do it at my house," I offered. The idea is that the chef comes in, cooks dinner, serves it, cleans up and leaves. What a great idea - a gourmet dinner in the comfort of your own home. There are a lot of chefs who will do this in Vancouver. Some of them were rather pricey but Brian found the reasonably-priced and talented Trevor (and his team) from Served Catering.

Brian selected the menu with feedback from Trevor.

Appies:
Chicken skewers
Crab cakes
Figs in prosciutto with marscarpone

Entrees:
Salad of Roasted Beets, Burrata (cheese), Arugula, Candied Pecans and Aged Sherry Vinaigrette
Seafood Tagine
Moroccan Style Lamb with Apricots and Roasted Vegetable Cous Cous
Roasted Vegetables (zucchini, mushrooms, peppers)

You can’t even imagine how excited I was when Trevor and his wife Michelle showed up at 2 that afternoon. Sure, it was a birthday dinner for Debra, but I had a real honest-to-goodness chef in my kitchen to watch and learn from.

Trevor and Michelle had done a lot of chopping before they arrived, and started right in on the cooking. Frankly, it was odd to watch someone else take over my kitchen. Odd, but good. They were so friendly and didn't seem to mind me looking over their shoulders to pick up tips and techniques.

One of the unexpected but very exciting parts of the evening was when the waiter arrived! Our very own attendant! How bourgeois. He served the appies and made sure that everyone’s glasses were filled with water or wine throughout the evening. When I host dinner at my house, I'm busy preparing, serving and cleaning so I miss a lot of the conversation and fun. It goes without saying that my chair is always near the door with easy access to the kitchen. But not on this night.

Once it finally sunk in that I had no responsibilities, I settled back for a lovely evening and felt as pampered and looked after as everyone else!

We played music from the early 70s - which was when Deb was in high school. It was a good choice because it brought back more memories than music from her birth year would have done. (The list is at the end of this post.)

It was a relaxing, delicious, fun-filled evening with friends and family without the restrictions of a public space like a restaurant. It also made it much easier for the young families who each had a one-year old.

And at the end of the evening, Trevor and his team left my kitchen spotless.

Thanks Brian! Although Paul feels that you set the bar pretty high for my 60th.

We are still laughing about the great carrot controversy. The pictures reveal that there really were carrots being prepared but none of us remember eating them. The next day Deb called and asked me to check around for the carrots, but they were never ever found.
What follows are pictures of that incredible evening. There are gaps because I had a hard time remembering to take pictures: at the beginning because I was so dazzled to have a personal chef in my kitchen, and later because I was enjoying being a guest in my own home.

Was this a great idea? Absolutely. Would I recommend Trevor and Michelle? You bet.

I make Moroccan style lamb a lot. I didn't know I could fry the almonds in with the onions!

Lots of veggies! And there are the carrots.

Squash with spices

Prepping the figs.

Eating the figs

Chicken skewers. Nice presentation. And served by a cheerful fellow who walked around and made sure our glasses were topped up. Aren't those carrots in the background?