Bill Marriott Birthday Party View Photos

BYU

Bill Marriott’s 80th birthday was an event that BYU, home of the Marriott School of Business (named for Bill Marriott), wanted to celebrate in style – and in style it was! From the custom cake Culinary Crafts created (yes, that stack of gorgeously fashioned books is actually the birthday cake) to the gatherings of students across three tiers that assembled to serenade the birthday boy to the menu of comfort classics – this event was so much fun and a great way to honor a great man. When asked, Bill told Mary that his favorite foods were cold cuts, potato salad, green salad, and carrot cake – quite a stretch from the usual fare Culinary Crafts creates. In the end, though, we were able to make a beautiful menu that was delicious and true to the guest of honor’s favorites! We were so honored to be a party of this very special day. Best wishes to Bill Marriott!

Oliver's Bar Mitzvah View Photos

The Leonardo

Whenever Kim Albers is involved, you can bet the party is going to be fabulous! She plans the best bar mitzvahs and Oliver's was no exception. The party was held at the amazing new Leonardo Museum and it was the perfect venue for this rocking party. Lights, props, great DJ, and fun activities all made for a memorable night. Culinary Crafts was on hand to cook Oliver's favorite foods and he especially liked the "Virtual Dessert Display" with our new "Brownie Sliders." The "Street Tacos" were the hit of the evening and kept everyone coming back for more! Maple glazed salmon, Tuscan panini, and torched honey chicken rounded out the evening with the signature beverage bar for young and old alike.

Polo Match View Photos

Salt Lake County Equestrian Center

It doesn't get any better than this . . . 900 of Utah's Who's Who, a beautiful summer day, the finest cuisine, and the  social event of the year. I love hats and where else do these glamorous women get to show their finery than at a gala polo match hosted to support the U of U Pharmaceutical Research Foundation? Butler-passed hors d'oeuvres greeted the guests as they imbibed the signature "Mint Julep" and "Ginger Pomegranate" cocktails. We created new custom brunch stations, appetizers, and desserts to make sure each morsel was over the top. During the "Stomping of the Divots," Prosecco with blueberries and rosemary sprig was passed to the guests on the polo field. Caviar Bellini, oyster shooters, crab, shrimp, Nutella French toast bites, and over 75 dozen perfectly fried eggs, are just a few of the highlights. The Culinary Crafts team was flawless and Mary was on-site to oversee all the amazing details. Hats off to Scenemakers for setting the perfect atmosphere for a day that will be long remembered! Photography by ZumaPhoto.

American Cancer Society Hope Gala View Photos

Salt Lake City

We were honored to serve the prestigious guests again this year at the American Cancer Society Gala. This year's event was held in the parking lot of the future home of the Salt Lake AMS and offered its own set of challenges with no running water, electricity, or truck access to the site. But undaunted, our expert team pulled off an amazing event and as you can see, it's all hands on deck to create a flawless evening for everyone.  We love teaming with our great friends at Scenemakers who are always perfection in design, decor, and floral! Photography by ZumaPhoto.

The Ultimate Birthday Celebration! View Photos

Private Residence

Nestled in the heart of Salt Lake City is a large estate that whisks you away to what seems like the green pasture of Kentucky! The home was the setting of one of my favorite events of the year...I want this for my 80th Birthday Party! Guests were greeted with a plethora of tastes in the fun passed hors d'oeuvres which featured retro to trendy. We worked out in the host's garage among a million dollars worth of cars...careful everyone! The beautiful tent, citrus and cowboy florals, and bright pink and mango linens set the stage for an unforgettable evening. The Western Theme called for the grill master's finest skill for perfect chicken and rib eye steak. It takes 3 chefs for the last-minute touches of the Lobster and Mascarpone Mac and Cheese! The evening started with the Oak Ridge Boys concert, then dinner, then another band with dancing, and never-ending desserts. My favorite: Homemade chocolate chip cookies with iced milk shooters! My hats off to the International Caterers Association cookbook that inspired the entire menu and my heart-felt thanks to the wonderful ICA chefs for sharing their creativity.

Rowland Hall Donors Dinner View Photos

Utah Museum of Fine Arts

It was a great honor to host the 2010 Donors Dinner at the Utah Museum of Fine Arts for the prestigious Rowland Hall School. There is a natural flow of an event that Culinary Crafts has down like the orchestration of a fine symphony. The grand hall is ready with tables, chairs, linens, centerpieces, and china well in advance of guests and the room waits quietly for the time. Guests gather in the lobby for drinks, hors d'oeuvres, and mingling, while in the Grand Hall the staff begin their flurry of activity to ready the room with waters, salads, breads, and last minute touches. Finally the guests are seated as our staff wait patiently along the sidelines keeping a watchful eye on every detail. The Rowland Hall students begin to play and at last, guests begin to dine...all in a days work at Culinary Crafts.

Riley's Carnival View Photos

Private Residence

I had so much fun planning Riley's party. Kelle, her mom, is THE BEST and such a joy to work with! She really trusted us to take the theme and run with it. And run with it, we did! I wanted to stay away from typical colors, so instead, I chose to use pink, purple, and green as our base colors. I first chose the linen and built the design around it...I couldn't do all of the design alone, so, I called in Jen from Scenemakers to help and she did just an amazing job with the vintage carnival theme! We served typical carnival food like sliders, hot dogs, quesadillas, and added a nice fruit and salad station for the Moms. The piece de resistance of the party was the fabulous birthday cake created by Carrie and the candy table that we designed around it with mini circus tent boxes and pastel colored macaroons surrounded by freshly spun cotton candy and old fashioned candy treats! A birthday is not complete without entertainment so we arranged for hoola hooping stiltwalkers, face painting clowns, and a fabulous magic show! There were games galore such as balloon darts, ring toss, and bean bag toss while the bouncy house was the go to place for some time alone with gravity. Seven is going to be a good year for Riley! Photography by Zuma Photo.

Hannah's Bat Mitzvah View Photos

Jewish Community Center

Culinary Crafts' loves to team up with Kim Albers and the Jewish Community Center to create some of Utah's best bar and bat mitzvahs! Hannah's party was full of color, food, and fun. Hannah's beach party featured a yummy South Sea's menu and ended with our homemade artisan gelato served in waffle cones with fresh tropical fruits. Check out her special non-alcoholic beverage bar for all the kids. Hannah is such a beautiful and amazing young woman...no wonder she had so many friends come to help her celebrate!

Levine Bat Mitzvah View Photos

Jewish Community Center

This was a fabulous event for a wonderful girl.

American Cancer Society Hope Gala View Photos

South Jordan Airport Hangar

How do you create a perfect fund raiser? By combining "out of the box" themes and translations with fabulous entertainment, soft and subtle decor, and an amazing menu. Sandra Ence Paul and the committee of volunteers truly outdid themselves this time! The silent auction began while we served delicious passed hors d'oeuvres . . . smoked salmon and goat cheese bruschetta, mushroom bouchees, and miniature zucchini cakes with a dill yogurt sauce. These, accompanied by cocktails and conversation, created a fabulous silent auction. Once guests were invited into the hangar, they were treated to a decadant dinner of Sake Salmon, Beef tenderloin with mushroom chausseur sauce, and a fabulous vegetarian layered lasagna. During the presentation, guests were treated to an amzing silk acrobat show and dinner ended with a custom dessert . . . a slow baked, merengue cloud topped with a Bear Lake berry compote and finished with fresh whipped cream. Everything came together this evening to make a truly outstanding event that continues to receive the highest compliments! Thank you American Cancer Society and Sandra for giving us the opportunity to work with you again this year. Photography by Zuma Photo.

Steve Price Birthday Party View Photos

Utah Opera House

Steve's 50th was such a blast! Not only was it chic and elegant for the adults, but, full of fun for all of the children! The party began with an extremely tall man on stilts greeting all of the guests and then moved from a bird exhibit all the way to video games and an air slide for children and adults alike to enjoy. We hosted Steve's birthday at the Utah Opera House's Black Box and Theatre room - the perfect location! We served miniature gourmet hamburgers, mini beef brisket sandwiches, pasta and alfredo sauce, and miniature to go's filled with chinese noodles, vegetables, and chicken. The menu was designed first and foremost to be kid-friendly while still sophisticated and delicious for the adults as well. To satisfy every child's sweet tooth, we prepared rice crispie treats, peanut butter cookies, and chocolate chip cookies accompanied by Shirley Temples with a cherry. At the end of the night, the adults had a wonderful celebration where they could mix and mingle and the kids were all tuckered out from all of the fun. Photography by Zuma Photo.

Noah's Hip Hop Bar Mitzvah View Photos

Utah Olympic Park

This Bar Mitzvah was so much fun! Shari and her son Noah have vibrant personalities that made the entire process of planning this party a blast! I can't wait for the next one! We started with a hip hop theme and made this party all about the kids. We offered a dress up photo booth, a mix music station where the kids wrote their own lyrics and recorded their masterpieces on a CD which we mailed out after the event, skilled hip hop dancers to teach each child the moves, a graffiti artist to paint a custom piece for Noah that night, and a fabulous DJ from Diamond Music to entertain everyone- young and old alike- with dances, hoola hoops and competitions. The kids had a blast and the parents did too. One of the things I love about Bar Mitzvahs is that the parents are still young enough to enjoy the party too! Have I mentioned the food??? Live chef action stations lent to the festive mood and keep the food as delicious as possible since it's prepared right in front of the guests! Grilled salmon with a piquillo pepper sauce, mini corn muffin, and fresh micro greens were served alongside mini burgers and fries. Macadamia halibut with polenta was served in the same room as our gourmet quesadillas and our on fire Chinese wok station! THE CANDY STATION!!! It was all lit up with blinking and glowing jewelry and every rockin' candy I could find! Who knew the adults would enjoy the bling as much as the kids? Along with all of this, 9:00 p.m. hit with an awe inspiring "Flying Aces" show followed by autographed posters, dancing and desserts until 11:00 p.m. The music was fantastic and the entire crowd couldn't help but dance into the night, not wanting the fun to end. Photography by Zuma Photo.

JCC's Annual "Shalom on the Range" Fundraiser View Photos

Jewish Community Center

When the JCC asked for our donation to their annual fundraiser, we gladly agreed to make this a fabulous event for them, while also donating 15% of our cost. We offered fantastic kosher style hors d'oeuvres such as the mini roasted corn cakes and mini beef brisket sandwiches on our homemade buns along with a fabulous chips and salsa assortment. Once the silent auction wrapped up, the evening proceeded with a fabulous waiter served dinner. The dinner consisted of our signature, Ancho glazed Salmon with Cilantro Creme Fraiche along with Japanese long beans and Saffron Roasted Red Potatoes. We finished with a Caramel Apple Torte with Creme Anglaise. Our waiters were festively attired in their cowboy hats and red bandanas offering good, old fashioned, friendly service. We received rave reviews from the JCC stating that it was the "Best ever" fundraiser!

Kadish Bar Mitzvah View Photos

Jewish Community Center

Kim Albers did it again! She created this fun and creative set up where the centerpiece was a liquid bar and a huge dance floor. Light up cubes, moving liquid lighting, lava lamps, and dance music created ¨club liquid¨ once again stations were a hit, pleasing adults and children alike. While the adults savored Halibut with a piquillo pepper sauce over Asiago polenta, the kids enjoyed homemade gelato milkshakes in light up mugs! Diamond music did a fantastic job playing games with the kids and entertaining them throughout the night with great music and mesmerizing lighting. Photography by Zuma Photo.

Tessie's Sweet Sixteen View Photos

Murray Theater

Wow! What a lucky girl! This event was so much fun! Tessie's Aunt, Gracie, gave her the coolest sweet sixteen in Utah-- complete with a graffiti artist, a Laker's shoe birthday cake, and break dancers galore! We supplied every fun food station we could think of from a dazzling candy station to specialty pizzas and burgers and fries. DJ Juggy spinned cool tunes through the night while Tessie and 500 of her friends enjoyed the party. Photography by Zuma Photo.

American Cancer Society Hope Gala View Photos

Private Residence

Bridgette Server Birthday Party View Photos

Wheeler Historic Farm

Wheeler Farm offers not only a spectacular indoor venue with the warm and inviting barn space, the outdoor landscape is perfect for Spring and Summer weddings with its open lawns and mature trees. It's not every day we get the opportunity to plan a fabulous 40th birthday party! Bridgette's husband Brit and his sisters had a vision of whimsy and elegance, fun and sophistication, and plenty of tiny pin-on buttons! We used vibrant colors and florals along with personalized buttons designed by Heidi to create the atmosphere. Guests were invited to a gorgeous tent on the green at Wheeler Farm where they were greeted by a tall Cherry blossom Tree on which they hung small paper blossoms scripted with meaningful tributes. The aroma of freshly prepared dishes filled the tent where our chefs were the "live, action" centerpiece! Asian to go containers filled with a variety of candies as well as a fun assortment of tiny little buttons were offered as favors and the afternoon was filled with heart felt devotionals and genuine gratitude. Overall, this truly was a celebration of a life well lived- filled with fun, generosity and plenty of love! Thank you Server family for allowing me to be a part of this truly joyous occasion!

Karen Freed Birthday Party View Photos

Private Residence

"Turning 60... Turning Wild!" Karen Freed is one of my most delightful clients and a dear friend. I loved helping her design this over-the-top celebration, complete with theme, linens, and sumptuous menu. I selected leopard Velore linens, and black spandex Chivari covers with fushia bands accented with a rhinestone dragon-fly. Wow! Guests were greeted with butler-passed hors d'oeuvres and her signature cocktail, the "Wild Mama" with a Lychee nut garnish. Our trendy copper floating buffet displayed the hand-rolled sushi and "Hamachi Spoons". The most popular station of the evening was the Utah Roasted Corn and White Truffle Mashed Potatoes with butter-drawn Lobster served in martini glasses and garnished with edible flowers. Yummm! Instead of a traditional birthday cake, Karen chose a cupcake display featuring her signature cupcake, the "Chocolate Diablo with Candied Jalapeno"...of course! She is truly "One Hot Mama"! Photography by Pepper Nix.

Sam's Bar Mitzvah View Photos

Jewish Community Center

Sam and his friends had a blast this evening! Our staff dressed as characters from Sam's favorite movies... Jack Sparrow, Indiana Jones, Darth Vader, and Spiderman...just to name a few. We had a fabulous hot, buttered, popcorn station and pizza for the kids while the adults had a sophisticated caramelized Salmon with Mango salsa and fresh Mozzarella and Tomatoes. Dessert was an array of our miniature gourmet cupcakes -Chocolate Diablo, Red Velvet, and Mango butter cream. Each table had it's very own theme- from The Simpson's to Spamalot! Kim Albers, the JCC's own event designer, came up with each theme and carried it out to its fullest extent-- fabulous work! Guests danced into the evening to all of our favorite show tunes and Movie themes while the children enjoyed drinks from our fabulous "skull" ice tube slide.

Bernstein Bar Mitzvah View Photos

Utah Olympic Park

We had such fun planning this Bar mitzvah! The groovy signs, lava lamp centerpieces, and take home treats with tie dye chair cover t-shirts were a blast from the past. The younger crowd enjoyed non-alcoholic Mai tais and a wonderful Sundae and Frushi bar while the adults enjoyed our fabulous Pad Thai, Macadamia encrusted Halibut and Vietnamese lacquered Chicken. The lava lamp martinis were a hit well into the night while we all took in the gorgeous surroundings of the Utah Olympic Park in the spring!

Josh's Bar Mitzvah View Photos

Red Butte Garden

Michelle came to me with a sports theme and we took it from there! Guests were greeted by a huge banner welcoming them to "Josh's World Class Smackdown". Josh listed all of his favorite sports teams for me and we covered each table in linens to represent each of his favorite team's colors. We ran a double line, jersey style stripe down the middle of each table and added huge arrangements made from pendants and pompoms. Our food stations ranged from sophisticated halibut with a coconut curry sauce and papya chutney with Saffron rice to chicken wings, french fries, and mini sliders. For dessert we served cotton candy while servers passed miniature ice cream sandwiches in hawker trays. These kids had a blast dancing into the evening as the adults enjoyed wonderful food and conversation.