Oh, what a night!
Utopia’s first progressive dinner:
A delicious success, start to sitar!
On Friday, March 11, the Utopia HOA celebrated our friendly neighborhood with a perfectly orchestrated progressive dinner. The fun started at Peter and Aymee Zubizarreta’s home with cocktail bites and wine. Nearly 60 people gathered at the Zubizarreta’s to meet old friends and new, have a glass of wine and pick up their place cards which told everyone at which home they would be dining.
Gracious hosts for the dinner were Sean Reichert, Carlos and Ellen Klappholtz, Nick Psioris, Ron Morgan and Steve Weirich, and Cheryl Andrews. Carla Blanco generously and amazingly created the main course (her recipe for Chicken Cacciatore follows) and salad for all. Sean Reichert bigheartedly supplied the wine for each of the dinners.
In groups of eight to ten, neighbors got to know new neighbors and caught up on news with old friends. “The boundaries of Utopia certainly shrank that night,” said one dinner guest later, “I met people from blocks over who now I consider good friends…and I might never have met them if not for this fabulous dinner!”
After dinner, it was on to Jo-Ann Forester’s home for dessert and a surprise. Jo-Ann, in an exclamation point to the evening, hired a sitar player to greet partygoers at her entrance hall. Sitting cross-legged on a table and playing exotic sitar music, he was a hit. “Classic Coconut Grove!” was heard over and again. The desserts—from cakes to chocolate covered popcorn–were divine and the candlelit setting in her home was a delightful way to end the evening.
Carla’s secret recipe for chicken cacciatore.
