Category News & Events

Parties That Cook Gets Scientific in the Kitchen with BMRN and Genentech

0 comments By The Kitchen Whisperer Filed in Entertaining, News & Events Tagged with BMRN, Genentech, kitchen challenge, sumptuous small plates, tapas recipes, team building, team building event ideas August 15th, 2011 @ 12:17 pm

In the last couple of weeks, we have seen no lull in our busy streak. On Friday, August 5th, BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (BMRN) hosted a fun Sumptuous Small Plates corporate team building event. Lead Chef, Laura, reported that the event ran smoothly and she thought it was a really nice group. She added that the guests were “excited about what the event had to offer and were proud of their work.” As they should be!

The mouthwatering menu consisted of such delicious items as Lettuce Cups Filled with Gingery Pork, Shiitake Mushrooms and Hoisin Sauce, Ground Sirloin Sliders with Smoky Cheddar Cheese, Little Fish Tacos with Tomato Salad and Chipotle-Lime Crema, Crostini of Homemade Ricotta and Roasted Red Bell Pepper Jam and Banana and Mango Spring Rolls with Caramel-Rum Sauce. I’m getting hungry already!

Chef Laura’s words were mirrored by the BMRN host, Paul F., who commented that, “It was just overall fun, with a great atmosphere.” This is not hard to believe, since Paul had selected, Zephyr, a beautiful San Francisco showroom, as the venue!

The following Monday, August 8th, repeat client Genentech hosted a high-energy Kitchen Challenge team building event at Thomas Fogarty Winery. Linda B., the Genentech host, best described the atmosphere as “controlled chaos”. Linda also reported, “Everyone told me it was great fun and they loved this activity,” – a fun way to end a morning of meetings! She found that the best part was “the opportunity to work with people on our team that we typically don’t have the chance to interact with on a fun task. I got to know some people better from a different perspective.” Mission accomplished!

Lead Chef, Scott, hit another one out of the park! It’s no easy task to engage people just out of a 3-hr meeting. Chef Scott and the rest of the PTC team guided guests through an event with NO recipes (the norm for a Kitchen Challenge). Linda commented that the guests created some terrific dishes, “everything the participants wanted or needed was provided… The staff was very responsive and right there when we had questions or needed help — good direction and handy preparation tips.” Nicely done, PTC team!

What a great sign of things to come as we slowly approach the busy Holiday Season!
We love hearing about all the fun in the field! If you would like to see your Parties That Cook event featured in our blog, just let us know!

Parties That Cook’s Chicago Team Mixes Things Up with Wrigley

0 comments By The Kitchen Whisperer Filed in Entertaining, News & Events Tagged with cooking party, corporate team building, corporate team building activity, event blog, italian menu, taste of napa, wrigley chicago August 8th, 2011 @ 2:20 pm

A couple of weeks ago, Parties That Cook knocked out 11 events in 3 days… Last week was no different! Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday were filled nearly to the brim with corporate team building events, public cooking classes and recipe testing! Sneaking in right before the madness began was a Monday evening corporate event hosted by Wrigley. The company opted to entertain all 24 guests in a private home in Chicago.

Guests arrived from Mexico, Canada and all over the U.S. for this Chef’s Table event. Brandy, our Chicago Operations Manager and Chef Instructor, led the guests through a quick cooking demonstration outdoors before splitting the group into teams. Don B., the Wrigley host, worked with Beth, one of our great event planners, to create a custom menu. The result was a complete success! Guests enjoyed the Italian options like the Savory Plum and Thyme Bruschetta with Shaved Pecorino Romano Cheese , Flash Fried Cornmeal Calamari with Sauce Arrabbiata and a Warm Chocolate Budino with Raspberry Sauce. They also liked dishes from our Taste of Napa Menu, including Chilled Vegetable Gazpacho with Spice Watermelon Relish, Grilled Filet Mignon with Ricotta Salata Salsa Verde and a Savory Garlic and Cherry Tomato Strata. All great choices!

In the end, Brandy reported that the guests loved the event! They were really invested in their recipes, and after the meal, many guests made a point to let Brandy know what a great time they had – we love that! Don reported that the best part was “seeing what my coworkers created, then eating it. This was successful because the team definitely worked together and enjoyed the evening… It was fantastic.” What great feedback!