A balcony view of the crowd at the 3rd Annual Plate by Plate Tasting Benefit for Project by Project San Francisco. The event took place at the Bently Reserve and marked the 15th anniversary for Project by Project nationally (photo: Nicole Abalde).
Back in July, Audrey told you all about Plate by Plate in Los Angeles and in August, we previewed the annual tasting benefit in San Francisco. The time has come and passed, and this year’s event by the Bay fulfilled its promise of bringing together a terrific crowd to enjoy the company of each other, support the community, and of course, devour plenty of delicious tiny dishes!
The 3rd Annual Plate by Plate Tasting Benefit organized by the San Francisco chapter of Project by Project took place on September 22 at the spacious and gorgeous Bently Reserve near the Embarcadero Center. The evening attracted some hundred of finely dressed attendees to socialize and enjoy three rooms of food samples, desserts, and liquor. Actual Rafiq, Redstickman, Speakeasy Ray, and Big Sloppy of The Ambient Mafia provided the sounds for the event, and a silent auction for some fun items was also in place.
Over 40 local restaurants, wineries, vendors, and brands were present to provide the food and drinks to guests—each providing a unique culinary creation or concoction to delight all taste buds. The seafood was especially scrumptious. George’s, a sustainable seafood restaurant, had their New England day boat scallops (Mixed with watermelon, olives, peppers, and celery puree) up for grabs. Farallon showed off some dungeness crab salad (Made with corn puree) that was worth coming back to more than twice. Some of the more traditional Asian fare included Chinese chicken salad from Tommy Toy’s, dumplings from Yank Sing, and short rib bibimbap and spicy pork bibimbap (Korean rice bowls) from HRD. Other places like Social Kitchen and Brewery offered more familiar items—in this case, beer braised pork belly sliders, along with a summer English ale brewed on-site at their Sunset District location to create the perfect pairing. No matter how fancy or modest each restaurant was, they each offered something truly one-of-a-kind to reflect the lovely landscape of food in the Bay Area.
New England day boat scallops from George’s were a hit at the event (photo: Nicole Abalde).
Of course, that landscape went beyond food, but included beverage as well. Chambord, a Gold sponsor of the event, served up its signature black raspberry Flavored Vodka. St. Germain, a French liqueur, provided refreshing goodness with its subtle pear and citrus flavors. Pacific International Liquor provided a variety of sakes ranging from sweet and fruity to dry. Wine was especially popular with the abundance of wineries in attendance, including Grgich Hills Estate, Peju Province Winery, and Threshold Wine Company. Indulgent sweet treats topped off the selections. Some of our favorites included double chocolate mousse and creme caramel duos from Galaxy Desserts and handmade truffles from Socola Chocolates, which came in Asian-inspired flavors like Vietnamese coffee, guava, and Sriracha.
Over 100 items were up for bidding at the silent auction. These included items that were donated by merchants and organizations, and even items from individuals’ personal collections. Some of these treasures were souvenir gift bags from the London 2012 Olympics and Wimbledon and autographed memorabilia from the likes of San Francisco 49ers and San Francisco Giants players, the casts of The Avengers and The Dark Knight Rises, Justin Bieber, U2, and late greats like Whitney Houston and Michael Jackson.
This year’s Plate by Plate in San Francisco commemorated the 15th anniversary for Project by Project nationally. Project by Project was the partner and theme for this year to mark that milestone. Through the efforts and community support of Plate by Plate, the organization plans to extend its reach in helping Pan-Asian non-profits in need as well as encouraging more volunteerism and leadership. The partners for the past two Plate by Plate San Francisco events—APA Family Support Services and the Oakland Asian Students Educational Services (OASES)—were present at the event, and Project by Project will continue their services to them as part of its mission.
Food, drink, desserts, friends, networking, music, and fundraising all under one immaculate ceiling—Plate by Plate 2012 in San Francisco was definitely one trendy and unique happening with a whole lot of heart to it. Check out the Plate by Plate San Francisco website to see the complete list of restaurants and all of those involved in the event, and check out some of our photos below for some of the sights from the evening (Be warned, you might feel even more hungry)!
