Bobby Flay visits Jackson... and BRAVO!

We were very fortunate to be selected as the caterer for this year's Mistletoe Marketplace Preview Party hosted by the Junior League of Jackson.  What an honor it is to work with these amazing women as they put on the nation's premier holiday shopping event - a four day tour-de-force with as many events as there are vendor booths!

The high point of this year's event for many was the cooking demonstration featuring Chef Bobby Flay of  Mesa Grill fame (and six other restaurants!) one of the American Iron Chefs, the host of a myriad of cooking shows and the author of many excellent cookbooks.  The recipes for his demonstration BOBBY FLAY HEATS UP THE SOUTH can be found on the Junior League's website (www.jljackson.org).   

Chef Flay is a powerful personality and an outstanding restaurteur.  So, you can imagine our thrill when we were asked to host an after party for Bobby and the Junior League leadership team!

Bobby's comments about his trip, the demo, the junior league, and his evening at BRAVO! can be found on his website (www.bobbyflay.com) under BOBBY and then BOBBY'S BLOG.  The text of the entry is reproduced below for your convenience:

Bobby's Blog:   Jackson, Mississippi

After doing a cooking demonstration based on healthier ideas for the holidays in front of about 2000 people, I work up an appetite that needs to be satiated.  The lovely women from teh Junior League are not only professional, first rate fundraisers, they know how to party!

They assemble a group of about 30 who'd worked for the last 18 months to put together the fund raiser they call "Mistletoe".  Word on the streets of Jackson is that they may have toppled the 1 million dollar mark for the year... Awesome!

The after party is at a local favorite called BRAVO.  The restaurant serves Italian food with a Southern twist is what I'm told by the long time chef. 

We start with celebratory Champagne and shots of silve tequila (I told you these woman could party) and then the barrage of food comes flying out of the open kitchen... A brick overn pizza with eggplant, spinach and caramelized onions, thin noodles with fresh crab and my favorite of the night, gnocchi with a ragout of pheasant that I believe was a victim of a locals bullet.

It was a short stay for me (about 19 hours) but I always have a great time in the South!