#ROCKETPRIVATEVIEWS 2019: WPY

This year, our Rocket Private View event took place at the breath-taking Natural History Museum, and in celebration of the Wildlife exhibition, focused on our efforts towards catering sustainably.

Guests began with canapés and cocktails (alongside a glass of English sparkling wine) while they enjoyed an exclusive viewing of the latest Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition.

The concept

While previous Private Views have usually involved fabulous food stalls and larger receptions, this year we opted for something more intimate and opulent. After the drinks and canapés in the exhibition, guests were taken to Hintze Hall where two long tables awaited them underneath Hope the whale. In line with the sustainble thread running through the evening, Lavender Green designed stunning florals that ran all the way down the centre of each long table, using only in-season, British flowers.

Our chefs

Bringing a touch of theatrics to dinner, we had our chefs cooking on a raised pass (brilliantly made by Wise Productions) right in front of the staircase and in full view of guests. The idea was to put our food front and centre, and offered our clients a chance to see the Rocket kitchen doing what we do best.

The menu

Sustainability may not seem the easiest thing to achieve when catering a lavish dinner, but with our menu we aimed to strike the balance the ‘green’ and the exquisite through seasonality, locality and challenging the idea of waste. An amuse of Dorset lobster, with crab agnolotti and a shellfish consommé, was followed by grilled brassicas, winter truffle and quail’s egg. For main course, guests enjoyed Cornish lamb six ways served with artichokes and a lamb jus.

The drinks

Working with the incomparable Drinks Fusion, we served up fabulous cocktails which also embraced the evening’s sustainable theme wholeheartedly – from woodland-inspired Negronis to autumn G&Ts.

The importance of locality reflected into our wine choices, as guests were treated to some of England’s finest wines from Gusbourne Estate.

The dessert

Dessert took a different turn, as guests were invited to leave the table and wander over to a beautiful circular bar, where ‘Cocktail Gourmands’ (developed by Drinks Fusion to pair with dessert) awaited them. It was here that we displayed an array of delicious chocolate patisserie, all inspired by and made using Original Beans chocolate – a highly ethical, sustainably-driven, chocolate supplier.

We'd like to thank...

…the Natural History Museum for their collaboration on this fabulous night. For further information on hosting an event at this venue, please do contact us.

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