For all seasons and all occasions, a comprehensive entertaining book that provides the best ideas from such acclaimed establishments in North America as Blackberry Farm and Meadowood. The Art of Entertaining presents seventeen seasonal parties, both intimate and grand, held at a variety of Relais & Châteaux venues. These hospitality insiders, who transform their properties into perfect settings, share their ideas for creating parties that can be translated to every home. The themes, floral choices, festive table displays, recipes for cocktails and dishes, and much more show you how to wow guests with unexpected touches. Set the mood for an elegant New Year’s Eve party by covering ceilings with gold balloons. To dazzle friends on the Fourth of July, make a cake in patriotic red, white, and blue and light sparklers on top. Create a cowboy-themed cookout with haystack seating and wildflowers. This beautifully photographed go-to tome will be embraced by hosts and hostesses seeking fresh inspiration from the most admired chefs and entertainers in America. BOOK FEATURES BY SEASON: SPRING: The Inn at Dos Brisas, Washington, Texas: Wildflower Cookout; The Charlotte Inn, Martha's Vineyard (Edgartown), Massachusetts: Afternoon Tea in the Garden SUMMER: Ocean House Inn, Watch Hill, Rhode Island: Independence Day Dinner on the Beach; Auberge du Soleil, Napa Valley (Rutherford): California Provençal Cocktail Party; Weekapaug Inn, Westerly, Rhode Island: New England Clam Bake; Langdon Hall, Cambridge, Ontario, Canada: Olmstead Longtable Garden Luncheon; Homestead Inn, Greenwich, Connecticut: Celebration of the Senses Dinner AUTUMN: Blackberrry Farm, Walland, Tennessee: Harvest Dinner in Stone Pavilion; Fearrington House, Pittsboro, North Carolina: Seasonal Beer Dinner Party; Glenmere, Chester, New York: Gatsby Dinner Party; Planters Inn, Charleston, South Carolina: Courtyard Terrace Autumn Dinner; Meadowood, Napa Valley St. Helena, California: Wine Harvest Dinner in the Vineyard; The Inn at Little Washington, Washington, Virginia: Halloween Party WINTER: Esperanza, Cabo San Lucas, Mexico: Romantic Seafood Dinner; The Ranch at Rock Creek, Philipsburg, Montana: Snow Adventure Cookout in the Wild; Blantyre, Lenox, Massachusetts: New Year's Eve Dinner Party

This comprehensive garden sourcebook is replete with inspiring ideas for seasonal gardening, interior design, and entertaining from Relais & Châteaux hospitality insiders. Experts in the creation of beautiful environments, they show how to translate their savoir-faire into indoor and outdoor sanctuaries and festive events at home. Showcased are a variety of Relais & Chateaux enchanting horticultural havens--from simple cutting and kitchen gardens to more elaborate formal plantings, including parterres and topiaries at fifteen celebrated establishments in North America. The delights of the garden are then brought indoors through botanical prints, textiles, wallpapers, and objets d'art, such as metal and porcelain flowers. How-to sidebars show ideas for setting a festive table using rose petals, garlands, bud vases, and more, and for dressing up dishes and cocktails with edible flower garnishes and creating culinary delights harvested by the local terroir. A must-read for passionate gardeners and flower lovers, and all those who appreciate the masterful creativity of Relais & Châteaux, The Art of the Garden shows how to bring the sparkle and freshness of the outdoors into your home.

!--StartFragment--Winner of the 2007 IACP Cookbook of the Year Award Winner of the 2007 IACP Cookbook Award for Best Book on Wine, Beer or Spirits Winner of the 2006 Georges Duboeuf Wine Book of the Year Award Winner of the 2006 Gourmand World Cookbook Award - U.S. for Best Book on Matching Food and Wine !--EndFragment-- Prepared by a James Beard Award-winning author team, "What to Drink with What You Eat" provides the most comprehensive guide to matching food and drink ever compiled--complete with practical advice from the best wine stewards and chefs in America. 70 full-color photos.

The bestselling business book from award-winning restauranteur Danny Meyer, of Union Square Cafe, Gramercy Tavern, and Shake Shack Seventy-five percent of all new restaurant ventures fail, and of those that do stick around, only a few become icons. Danny Meyer started Union Square Cafe when he was 27, with a good idea and hopeful investors. He is now the co-owner of a restaurant empire. How did he do it? How did he beat the odds in one of the toughest trades around? In this landmark book, Danny shares the lessons he learned developing the dynamic philosophy he calls Enlightened Hospitality. The tenets of that philosophy, which emphasize strong in-house relationships as well as customer satisfaction, are applicable to anyone who works in any business. Whether you are a manager, an executive, or a waiter, Danny’s story and philosophy will help you become more effective and productive, while deepening your understanding and appreciation of a job well done. Setting the Table is landmark a motivational work from one of our era’s most gifted and insightful business leaders.