An Elegant Affair
Wedding weekends at Chateau de la Barbeliniere were special times. The receptions were elegant affairs, which typically began with cocktails at 5pm, followed by dinner at 10 and then drinking and dancing until the wee-est of the wee hours. Often the family stayed over, and the guests enjoyed a foggy-headed Sunday brunch by the pool the next day. With wedding parties exceeding three hundred guests, and bride's (and bride's mothers) having, shall we say, "high expectations," it was a job for the pros.
One Saturday, Marie-Laure asked us if we minded if the caterer set up in front of our cottage, where they would have access to electricity and water. We had been working hard all week to prepare the grounds for the wedding party, and now it was time to relax and watch the show. How could we say no?
About mid day a fleet of catering trucks rolled in and backed up to the cottage door. When the trucks' disgorged their contents in front of our house, we could tell this was going to be a big operation. After the kitchen was set up, the chefs got right to work, preparing all manner of creative appetizers.
Meanwhile, the guests began arriving, and each was handed a glass of champagne. Soon the buffet tables were filled and everyone began sampling the wonderful delicacies. As the evening went on, the appetizers kept coming and coming.
With the food service well-managed, Arnaud and Marie-Laure were pressed into childcare duty.
Unbeknownst to Karen and I, Marie-Laure had asked the caterer to serve us in our cottage as compensation for letting them park outside. For us it was no inconvenience to have them there, but we weren't about to turn down the offerings, either.
Every fifteen minutes or so we'd hear a knock at the door, and we'd open it to a new plate of wonderful treats. This went on for hours. Even after dark, long after the guests had moved on to the barns for the dinner service, the food kept coming. The main course, magret de canard in a red-wine reduction, was medium rare, done to perfection.
By now, Karen was tired and declared she was going to bed. When the next knock at the door came, she called down, "Tell them no."
"Can't," I replied, "that would be impolite." Mentally, I checked off the courses we'd been served. We still had the cheese and then dessert to go.
When the cheese plate arrived, I decided to wrap it for the fridge. It would still be good the next day.
The dessert was delivered right at midnight. With Karen upstairs, sound asleep, I too was beginning to droop.
Tempted as I was to sample the plate, I knew Karen wouldn't want to miss out. The dessert joined the cheese plate in the fridge.
The next day the crew returned and efficiently packed up all the gear. According to Arnaud, this particular caterer has multiple fleets of trucks, each with its own team of chefs and staff, and every weekend they spread out all over France to deliver haute cuisine to appreciative crowds. The wedding business at Chateau Barbeliniere is booming, and we could see why. Who wouldn't want to get married in a castle in France?
