Vintage Posters LOVES a good party.

Cotes du Rhone tasting at Vintage European Posters Showroom

The Finer Things

My roots in the Bay Area go way back.  In the decade before I sold my first poster, I made a living in the exhilarating world of Events planning.  This was an incredible career for a curious young person. I had a chance to see the interiors of most beautiful homes of Piedmont, Orinda and Lafayette, providing private parties and with corporate work spent my weekends working parties for Apple Computer, Napa Valley Wine Auction and many others. These events exposed me to many of the best hotels, ballrooms and event centers all over the Bay Area. I never got tired of seeing all of these secret venues, and seeing them transformed for events was even better.

More than 15 years ago I had a chance to work with the renowned Grace Street Catering, and I never forgot their style. I have stayed in touch with the dream team behind Grace, Erin McKinney and Anastasia Alvarado.  Turns out, Erin and Anastasia have a love of vintage posters,  so we have had plenty to talk about over the years.

Grace Street counts the Asian Art Museum, The DeYoung and the Legion Of Honor among their clients.  The provision of fine food, and great service for people enjoying art is Grace Streets’s manifesto, so working with VEP to create a stellar event for our 13^th Annual Preview Show was a natural.

We started out by checking out Grace Street’s amazing showroom at 4629 Martin Luther King Way in Oakland.

Vepca installation at Grace Street Catering showroom in Oakland.

The Grace Street showroom is available for private party rental.  They have hosted Audi’s debut of the new A7,  and  the Northern California Cheese Society, but local foodies will know the address as the Pop Up General Store held where delicious premade treats are available for purchase from local food celebs such as Chris Lee from Eccolo and Rachel Saunders of Blue Chair Jam.

Their space has beautiful walls, great light and a real industrial chic I find appealing. To me, those big walls were crying out for posters, so in June, we packed up our van, hired crackerjack art installer David Beckett and went back to the Grace Street Studio to do some aerial tricks.

Cachou Lajaunie by Cappiello

You can pop in on weekdays to see the framed posters on display, as well as to look at Grace Street’s portfolio of events.

Erin and I got to talking about France. Eating well all over France is one of the perks of the poster business.  We have long enjoyed reminiscing about food with our clients, sharing our stories of favorite memories and trading addresses of must see places. I told Erin about eating Bouillabaise in Marseille. I saw him thinking about that. And then we talked about little fishies, a “french  treat” of fried anchovies with Romesco sauce, and then the flavors of the summer I have enjoyed so much in the South of France – olives, peppers, tomatoes, figs, eggplant.

Freshly Shucked Miyagi Oyster Courtesy of Grace Street

The menu that Grace Street prepared for our guests at the 13^th annual Preview Show last month evoked all of those South of France memories, and created something I think everyone will remember for years to come.  Miyagi oysters from Tomales Bay, with a natural clear cucumber flavor floated in their crystal clear brine, and were served with mignonette sauce.

Grace Street's own rabbit pate

Rabbit Pate with tiny toasts was earthy and peppery, Liver mousse was refreshingly earthy — for once not overly sweetened for the American palette.

The very best way to serve small fish!

Boquerones wrapped in faux bois paper cones and served with

Romesco Sauce had the perfect crunch.

Salted caramels

To end the night, Grace Street served Salted Caramels with a rosy

pink salt.  We all left the party smiling, cast in a rosy glow . Bravo!

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