For some guests, the evening began with a four-course dinner presented by Michael Garbin, CEC, AAC, HGT, executive chef of the Union League Club, featuring a menu that was inspired by the decadence of the jazz age. After dinner, two groups of revelers converged into the Dessert Dance Parties that were putting on the Ritz on two different floors, where they were treated to an indulgent evening of sampling sweets and savories and swinging tunes until midnight.
More than $189,000 was raised, all earmarked for funding student scholarships for The French Pastry School’s L’Art de la Pâtisserie and L’Art du Gâteau programs.
“Chef Jacquy [Pfeiffer] and I created The French Pastry School to provide the pastry world with well-trained pastry professionals,” says Chef Sébastien Canonne, M.O.F., cofounder and academic dean of The French Pastry School. “We are honored to see so many people coming together to support the education of passionate individuals who may not otherwise be able to afford it. This evening is the perfect example of how tightly-knit the food industry is; it is a great example for our students.”
A highlight of the evening was The Great Gâteau Cake Parade; more than 20 local pastry businesses and a group of students from After School Matters designed cakes that evoked the Roaring Twenties. Each featured Art Deco elements inspired by the architecture and fashion of the day complete with lots of gilding, sunbursts and pearls.
The next For the Love of Chocolate scholarships will be awarded to students who start L’Art de la Pâtisserie on July 9 and L’Art du Gâteau on Sept. 2. For more information on The French Pastry School, visit www.frenchpastryschool.com.