Bacara
Culinary Magic at Kirk Douglas Gala
Dining
Detectives
By Carol & Joe Davis
The
2013 Santa Barbara Film Festival Kirk Douglas Award for Excellence
in Film Gala, honoring Academy Award-winning actor Forest
Whitaker at The Bacara Resort & Spa in
Goleta, California, was the kick-off event for the SBIFF Festival
January 30 through February 3, 2014.
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Bacara
- Reardon Team
While
the ballroom was transformed into a vision of elegance, Chef David
Reardon and an army of kitchen staff were preparing an amazing
feast featuring his braised short ribs, fresh fish, and a medley
of organic asparagus served on a bed of creamy herb polenta. The
delicious and creative menu also included a fresh greens salad
with goat cheese and bacon, along with beautiful desserts prepared
by the hotel pastry chef.
Bacara Salad
Watching
this amazing process it is obvious it takes a well trained and
dedicated army to present a perfect evening of food, beverage
and visuals as well as also attend to so many details that make
it all blend together beautifully. Waiters and wine servers were
rushing to set everything up in advance as guests enjoyed delicious
bites and Moet & Chandon, SBIFF champagne sponsor, on the
patio.
Moet & Chandon
Roger
Durling, Executive Director of the Santa Barbara International
Film Festival was busy welcoming guests and making introductions
as celebrities walked the red carpet. Wines served during the
gala dinner were from the Sunstone Vineyards and Winery, located
in Santa Ynez, California. Sunstone was the inspiration for the
2014 SBIFF Poster.
Roger Durling, Forest Whitaker, Angela Bassett, and Michael B.
Jordan
Long
time friend and Academy Award-winning actress Angela Bassett presented
Forest Whitaker with the prestigious Kirk Douglas Award, and gave
a very touching tribute to his career path and how meaningful
his kindness has been to her personally over their twenty-five
year friendship. Guest enjoyed dessert with champagne and coffee
while listening to Whitaker, a very soft spoken and gentle spirit,
explain how grateful he felt to be presented with this award while
still in the process of building his career history. He said he
was so very honored.
Bacarat Dessert
The
Bacara Resort & Spa dining facilities, overseen by Executive
Chef David Reardon, include Mira Restaurant, where Frederick Dame
Master Sommelier shares his skill in the renowned dining room.
The Bistro featuring chef de cuisine Chris Turano offers Italian
cuisine as its best, and The Spa Café is where healthy
menu items abound. The Bacara Bar is a delightful room with a
view that serves wonderful small plates, including an amazing
grilled cheese and heirloom tomato soup, along with a bevy of
cocktails, beers and wines.
For hotel reservations visit: www.bacararesort.com
and for SBIFF information and tickets visit: www.sbiff.org.
Bonnie
Carroll
http://www.lifebitesnews.com